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23  WEST  MAIN  STRSET 

WEBSTER,  NY.  14S8C 

(716)  873-4503 


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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions 


Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


1980 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
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D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


□    Covers  damaged/ 
Couverture  endommagde 

□    Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaur6e  et/ou  pellicul^e 


D 


D 


D 
D 


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Cover  title  missing/ 

Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 


I      I    Coloured  maps/ 


Cartes  gdographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 


I — I    Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 


Bound  with  other  material/ 
Reli6  avec  d'autres  documents 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  disto'-tion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  reliure  serr6e  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intdrieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
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have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajoutdes 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  dtait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6t6  film6es. 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  dt6  possible  de  se  procurer.  Los  details 
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sont  indiqu^s  ci-dessous. 


□    Coloured  pages/ 
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Pages  damaged/ 


I I    Pages  endommagdes 

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Pages  d6color6es,  tachetdes  ou  piqu6es 


I      I    Pages  detached/ 


d 


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Showthrough/ 
Transparence 


I      I    Quality  of  print  varies/ 


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Includes  supplementary  material/ 
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Seule  Edition  disponible 

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D 


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This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmi  au  taux  de  reduction  indiqu6  ci-dessous. 


10X 

14X 

18X 

22X 

26X 

30X 

y 

17X 

16X 

20X 

24X 

28X 

32X 

The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 

Library  of  the  Public 
Archives  of  Canada 


L'exemplaire  fi9m6  f ut  reproduit  grice  A  la 
gAn6rosit6  de: 

La  bibiiothdque  des  Archives 
publiques  du  Canada 


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filmage. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
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sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimde  sent  filmis  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinta 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  selon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmis  en  commenpant  par  la 
premidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  -^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED "),  or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  —^^  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  dtre 
film6s  d  des  taux  de  reduction  diff6rents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  §tre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich6,  11  est  filmd  d  partir 
de  Tangle  sup6rieur  gauche,  de  gauche  i  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  n^cessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m6thode. 


1 

2 

3 

32X 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

H 


THE  WORKS 


OF 


HUBERT  HOWE  BANCROFT. 


HI 


THE  WORKS 


or 


HUBERT  HOWE  BANCROFT 


VOLUME  XXIII. 


HISTORY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Vol.  VI,     1848-1869. 


SAN  FRANCISCO: 
THE  HISTORY  COMPANY,  PUBLISHERS. 

1888. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress  In  the  Year  1888,  by 

HUBERT  H.  BANCROFT, 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


All  Rights  Beserved. 


I   I 


CONTENTS  OF  THIS  VOLUME. 


CHAPTER  I. 

CALIFORNIA   JUST  PRIOR   TO  THE   GOLD    DISCOVERY. 

January,  1848. 
The  Valley  of  California-Quality  of  Population-The  Later  Incomers- 
Kmpaflo  American,  Anglo-American,  and  Others-Settlers  around 
San  Francisco  Bay-San  Jos^-The  Peninsula-San  Francisco- 
Across  the  Bay-Alameda  and  Contra  Costa  Valleys-Valleys  of  the 
San  Joaqum  and  Sacramento-Sutter's  Port-Grants  and  Ranchos- 
About  CarquinesStrait-Napa,  Sonoma,  and  Santa  Rosa  Valleys- 
San  Kafa«l.  Bodega,  and  the  Northern  Coast-Natural  Wealth  and 
Jjiuvironment 


PAUB 


CHAPTER  11. 

THE   DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 

January,  1848. 
Situation  of  Sutter-His  Need  of  Lumber-Search  for  a  Mill  Site  in  the 
Mountains-Culuma-James  W.  Marshall-The  Building  of  a  Saw- 
mill  Dotermme,!  upon-A  Party  Sets  Forth-Its  Personnel-Char- 
acter of  Mar8hall-Tl.e  Finding  of  Gold-What  Marshall  and  his 
Men  Thought  of  It-Marshall  Rides  to  New  Helvetia  and  Informs 
Sutter-The  Interview-Sutter  Visits  the  Mill-Attempt  to  Secure 
the  Indian  Title  to  the  Land 

CHAPTER  HI. 

THE  SECRET   ESCAPES. 

February,  1848. 
Bennett  Goes  to  Monterey-Sees  Pfister  at  Benicia- ' There  is  What  will 
«eatCoal!  -Bennett  Meets  Isaac  Humphrey  at  San  Francisco-Un- 
successful  at  Monterey-Sutter's  Swiss  Teamster-The  Boy  Wimmer 
Itlls  Him  of  the  Gold-The  Mother  Wimmer,  to  Prove  her  Boy  not  a 
Liar  Shows  It-And  the  Teamster,  Who  is  Thirsty,  Shows  It  at  the 
i-ort-Aflfairs  at  the  Mill  Proceed  as  Usual-Bigler's  Sunday  Medi- 
tat.ons-Gold   Found  at  Live  Oak   Bar-Bigler  Writes  his  Three 

vv) 


26 


vi 


CONTENTS. 


PAOK 


Friends  the  Secret— Who  Unite  witli  Tliem  Other  Three  to  Hell) 
Them  Keep  It — Tliree  Conic  to  Coloma — Discovery  at  Mormon  Inland 
— The  Mormon  Exit 42 


CHAPTER   IV. 

PROXIMATE   EFFECT  OF  THE  GOLD   DISCOVERY. 

March- August,  184S. 
The  People  Sceptical  at  First — Attitude  of  the  Press — The  Country 
Converted  by  a  Sight  of  the  Metal — The  Epidemic  at  San  Francisco 
— At  San  Jose,  Monterey,  and  down  the  Coast — The  Exodus — De- 
sertion of  Soldiers  and  Sailors — Abandonment  of  Business,  of  Farms, 
and  of  All  Kinds  of  Positions  and  Property 52 


M^ 


CHAPTER  V. 

FURTHER  DISCOVERIES. 

March-December,  1848. 

Isaac  Humphrey  again — Bidwell  and  his  Bar — Reading  and  his  Indians 
on  Clear  Creek — Population  in  the  Mines — On  Feather  River  and 
the  Yuba — John  Sinclair  on  the  American  River— The  Irishman 
Yankee  Jim — Dr  Todd  in  Todd  Valley — Kclsey— Weber  on  Weber 
Creek — The  Stockton  Mining  Company— Murphy— Hangtown— On 
the  Stanislaus — Knight,  Wood,  Savage,  and  Heffernan — Party  from 
Oregon — On  the  Mokelumne  and  Cosunmes — The  Sonoraus  on  the 
1  uoluuuie — Coronel  and  Party 


Or^ 


07 


CHAPTER  VI. 

AT  THE  MINES. 
1848. 

Variety  of  Social  Phases— Individuality  of  the  Year  1848 — Noticeable 
Absence  of  Bad  Cliaracters  during  this  Year — Mining  Operations — 
Ignorance  of  the  Miners  of  Mining — Implements  and  Processes — 
Yield  in  the  Different  Districts — Price  of  Gold-dust — Prices  of  Mer- 
chandise— A  New  Order  of  Things — Extension  of  Development — 
Affairs  at  Sutter's  Fort — Bi1)liography — EflFect  on  Sutter  and  Marshall 
— Character  and  Career  of  These  Two  Men 82 


■Site 


CHAPTER  VII. 

BROADER   EFFECTS   OF    THE  GOLD    DISCOVERY. 

1848-1849. 
The  Real  Effects  Eternal — How  the  Intelligence  was  Carried  over  the 
Sierra — To  the   Hawaiian  Islands— British  Columbia — Orei^on   and 
Washington — The  Tidings  in  Mexico — Mason's  Messenger  in  Wash- 


liigat 


CONTENTS. 


vu 


to  Help 
11  Island 


pauk 


PACK 

ington— California  Gold  at  the  War  Office — At  the  Philaileliihia 
Mint — The  Newspaper  Press  upon  the  iSubject — Bibliogiuphy — 
Oreeley's  Prophecies — Industrial  .Stimulation — Overland  and  Ouoaiiie 
Routes — (Jeiieral  ESect  in  the  Eastern  States  and  Europe — Interest 
iu  Asia,  South  America,  and  Australia 110 


Country 
'rancisco 
lus— Pe- 
lf Fivrnis, 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

THE  VOYAGE  BY  OCEAN. 
1848-1&49 

Modern  Argonauts — Pacific  Mail  Steamship  Company — Establishment  of 
tiie  Mail  Line  from  New  York  via  Panamd  to  Oregon — Sailing  of  the 
First  Steamers — San  Francisco  Made  the  Terminus — The  Panama 
Transit — The  First  Rush  of  Gold-seekers — Disappointments  at  Pan- 
amd — Sufferings  on  the  Voyage — Arrivals  of  Notable  Men  by  the 
First  Steamship 126 


I  Indiana 
Liver  and 
Irishman 
m  Weber 
own — On 
irty  from 
ns  on  the 


07 


CHAPTER   IX. 

THE   JOURNEY   OVERLAND. 
1849. 

(Organization  of  Parties — Brittle  Contracts  of  These  Associations — Missis- 
sippi River  Rendezvous — On  the  Trail — Overland  Routine — Along 
the  Platte— Through  the  South  Pass — Cholera — The  Different  Routes 
-Across  the  Desert — Trials  of  the  Pilgrims — Starvation,  Disease, 
and  Death — Passage  of  the  Sierra  Nevada — Relief  Parties  from 
California — Route  through  Mexico — Estimates  of  the  Numbers  of 
Arrivals — Bewilderment  of  the  Incomers — Regeneration  aud  a  New 
Life 143 


oticeable 
rations — 
ocesses— 
of  Mer- 
pnient— 
Marshall 


CHAPTER  X. 

SAN    FRANCISCO. 

1848-1850. 
Site  and  Surroundings — Rivals — Effect  of  the  Mines-  Shipping — Influx 
of  Population — Physical  and  Commercial  Aspects — easiness  Firms — 
Public  and  Private  Buildings — National  Localities — Hotels  and  Res- 
taurants —  Prices  Current  —  Property  Values  —  Auction  Sales — 
Wharves  and  Streets — Early  Errors— Historic  Fires — Engines  aud 
Companies — Immigration  and  Speculation — Politics — The  Hounds — 
City  Government 


1G4 


over  the 
t;ou  aud 
iu  Wash- 


CHAPTER  XL 

SOCIETY. 

1849-1850. 
1  Mgathering  of  Nationalities — Peculiarities  of  Dress  and  Manners — Phys- 
ical and  Moral  Features— Levelling  of  Rank  and  Position — In  the 


VIII 


CONTENTS. 


PAUR 

Mines — Cholera — Hardsnips  and  Self-denials — A  Community  of  Men 
— Adulation  i>f  Woman —Arrival  and  l>oparturo  of  Steamers — Sani- 
tary Condition  of  Sau  Francisco— Rats  and  Other  Voruiin — The 
Drinking  Habit — Anmscments — (iamhling— Lotteries  and  Kaiilos — 
Bull  and  Bear  Fighting— The  Drama— Sunday  in  the  Mines— Sum- 
mary      2l!l 

CHAPTER   XII. 

POLITK^AL   HISTORY. 

1840-1849. 
The  Slavery  Question  before  Congress — Inaction  and  Delay — Military 
Rule  in  California — Mexican  B\)rn)s  of  Civil  and  Judicial  Oovern- 
ment  Maintained — Federal  Offieiali  in  California — (rovernor  Mason 
— Pranks  of  T.  Butler  King— Oovenior  Riley — Legislative  Assembly 
— Constitiitional  Convention  at  Monterey — Some  BiographieH— Per- 
sonnel of  tlio  Convention — Money  Matters — Adoption  of  the  Consti- 
tution— Election  251 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

POLITICAL   HISTORY. 

1849-1350. 
The  First  legislature — Qrestion  of  State  Capital — Meeting  of  the  Legis- 
lature at  San  Jose — Organization  and  Acts — Personnel  of  the  Body 
— State  Officers — Further  State  Capital  Schemes — California  in  Con- 
gress— Impending  Issues — Slavery  or  No  Slavery — Admission  into 
the  Union — California  Rejoices 308 

CHAPTER   XIV. 

UNFOLDING    OF   MINERAL    WEAL-     . 

1848-1850. 
Extent  of  Gold  Region  in  1848-9- -American  River  the  Centre — El  Do- 
rado County — South  Fork  and  Southward — Middle  Branch — Placer, 
Nevada,  Yuba,  Sierra,  Plumas,  Butte,  and  Shasta  Counties — Trinity 
and  Klamath— Gold  BluflF  Excitement,  1850-1— Del  Norte,  Hum- 
boldt, and  Siskiyou — In  the  South — Amador,  Calaveras,  and  Tuol- 
umne— Table  Mountain  —  Mariposa,  Kern,  San  Bernardino  —  Los 
Angeles  and  San  Diego— Along  the  Ocean 35 1 


CHAPTER  XV. 

OEOLOOICAL   AND  SOCIAL  ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 

1848-1856. 
Physical  Formation  of  the  California  Valley— Tlic  Three  Geologic  Belts 
— Physical  Aspect  of  the  Gold  Regions — Geologic  Formations — In- 


CONTENTS.  is 

PAOK 

(lications  that  Influence  the  Prospector — Origin  of  Rushes  and  Camps 
— .Society  along  tlie  Foothills — Hut  and  Camp  Life — Sunday  iu  the 
Minus— Catalogue  of  California  Mining  Rushes — Mariposa,  Kern, 
Ocean  Beach,  Nevada,  DoM  Lake,  Lost  Cabin,  OoM  Bluff,  Siskiyou, 
Sonora,  Australia,  Fraser  River,  Nevada,  Colorado,  and  the  Rest — 
Mining  Laws  and  Regulations — Mining  Tax — Discrimination  against 
Foreigners 381 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

MINING   MKTBODS. 

1848-1856. 

Primitive  Mining  Machinery — Improved  Means  for  Poor  Diggings — 
California  Inventions — Tom,  Sluice,  Pluming — Hydraulic  Mining — 
Ditches,  Shafts,  and  Tunnels — Quartz  Mining — The  First  Mills — Ex- 
citement, Failure,  and  Revival  —  Improved  Machinery — Coopera- 
tion— Yield  —  Average  Gains — Cost  of  Gold — Evil  and  Beneficial 
Effects  of  Mining 409 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

BIUTU  or  TOWNS. 

1769-1869. 

Mexican  Town-maKing — Mission,  Presidio,  and  Pueblo — The  Anglo- 
American  Method — Clearing  away  the  Wilderness — The  American 
Municipal  Idea — Necessities  Attending  Self-government — Home- 
made Laws  and  Justice — Arbitration  and  Litigation — Camp  and 
Town  Sites — Creation  of  Counties — Nomenclature — Rivers  and  Har- 
bors— Industries  and  Progress 429 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

CITY  BniLDINQ. 

1848-1888. 

The  Great  Interior — River  and  Plain — Sutte^^'ilIe  and  Sacramento — Plan 
of  Survey — The  Thrice  Simple  Swiss — Better  for  the  Country  than 
a  Better  Man — Healthy  and  Hearty  Competition — Development  of 
Sacramento  City — Maryaville — Stockton — Placerville — Sonora — Ne- 
vada— Grass  Valley — Benicia — Vallejo — Martinez — Oakland  and  Vi- 
<uiuty — Northern  and  Soutliern  Cities 44G 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 

1848-1888. 
Affairs  under  the  Hispano-Califomians — Coming  of  the  Anglo- Americans 
—El  Dorado,  Placer,  Sacramento,  Yuba,  and  Other  Counties  North 
oitd  South — Their  Origin,  Industries,  Wealth,  and  Progress 481 


II 


I  I 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   XX. 

MEXICAN   LAND  TITLES. 

1851-1887. 


PAGE 


Tlie  Colonization  System — Land  Grants  by  Spain  and  Mexico — Informal- 
ities of  Title — Treaty  Obligations  of  the  United  States — Eflfeet  of  the 
Gold  Discovery — Tlie  Squatters — Reports  of  Jones  and  Hallcck — 
Discussions  in  Congress — Fremont,  Benton,  and  Gwin — Tlie  Act  of 
1851 — The  Land  (Jommission — Progress  and  Statistics  of  Litigation — 
Principles — Floating  Grants — Surveys — Fra  udulent  Claims— Speci- 
men Cases  —  Castillero — Fremont — (jomez  --Limantour  —  Peralta — ■ 
•  — Santillan — Sutter — Vallejo — Mission  Lands — Friars,  Neophytes, 
and  Church — Pico's  Sales — Archbishop's  Claim — Pueblo  Lands — The 
Case  of  Siin  Francisco — Statistics  of  1880 — More  of  Squatterisin — 
Bliuk  and  Jones — Attempts  to  Reopen  Litigation — General  Conclu- 
sions— The  Act  of  1851  Oppressive  and  Ruinous — What  should  have 
been  Done 529 


CHAPTER   XXI. 

FILIBUSTERING. 
1850-1860. 

Attractions  of  Spanish  America  to  Unprincipled  Men  of  the  United 
States — Filibustering  in  Texas — The  Morehead  Expedition  from 
California  to  Mexico — Failure — Charles  de  Pindrays  EflForts  and 
Death — Raoulx  de  Raousset-Boulbon's  Attempts  at  Destruction — 
Capture  of  Hermosillo  iind  Return  to  San  Francisco — Trial  of  Del 
Valle — Riiousset'a  Death  at  Guaymas — Walker's  Operations — Re- 
public of  Lower  California — Walker  in  Sonora — Walker  in  Nicara- 
gua— His  Execution  in  Honduras — Crabb,  the  Stockton  Lawyer .... 


582 


CHAPTER   XXH. 

FINANCES. 

1849-1869. 

An  Empty  Treasury — ^Temporary  State  Loan  Act — State  Debt — Licenses 
and  Taxation — Extravagance  and  Peculation — Alarming  Increase  of 
Debt — Bonds — State  Indebtedness  Illegal — Repudiation  Rejected — 
Thieving  Officials — Enormous  Payments  to  Steamship  Companies — 
Federal  Appropriations—  Indian  Agents — Mint — Navy-yard— Fortifi- 
cations— Coast  Survey — Land  Commission — Public  Lands — Home- 
stead Act — Educational  Interests— The  People  above  All 604 


CHAPTER  XXni. 

POLITICAL   HISTORY. 

1850-1854. 
Quality  of  our  Early  Rulers — Governor  Burnett— Governor  McDougal — 
Senatorial  Election — Sowing  Dragon's  Teeth — Democratic  Convene 


CONTENTS. 


XI 


CM 


I 
tion— Senator  Gwin,  the  Almighty  Providence  of  California— Party 

Issues — Governor  Biglor — Broderick — White  vs  Black — Slavery  or 

Death  I  —Legislative  Proceedings — Talk   of   a  New  Constitution — 

Whigs,  Democrats,  and  Independents — Another  Legislature 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

rOLITirAL  HISTORY, 

185-1-1S59. 

War:n  and  Wicked  Election — One  Party  the  Same  ai  Another,  only 
Worse — Senatorial  Contest — Broderiek's  Election  Bill — Bitter  Feuds 
— A  Two-edged  Convention — Bigler's  Administratiou — Rise  and  Fall 
of  the  Know-nothing  Party — Gwiu's  Sale  of  Patronage — Broderick  in 
Congress — He  is  Misrepresented  and  Maligned — Another  KL'ction — 
Chivalry  and  Slavery — Broderiek's  Death  Determined  on — T!ie  Duel 
— Character  of  Broderick (iTS 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

POPULAR  TRIBUNALS. 

1849-1856. 

State  of  Society — Miners'  Courts — Crimes  and  Punishments — Criminal 
Class — The  Hounds — Berdue  and  Wildred — Organized  llutfianism — 
Cominittees  of  Vigilance — The  Jenkins  AflFair — Villanous  Law  Courts 
— James  Stuart — Political  and  Judicial  Corruption — James  King  of 
William — His  Assassination — Seizure,  Trial,  and  Execution  of  Crim- 
inals— A  Vacillating  Governor — A  Bloody-minded  Judge — Attitude 
of  United  States  Officials-  Success  of  the  San  Francisco  Vigilance 
Committee  under  Trying  Circumstances — Disbaudmeut 740 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

ANNALS  OF  SAN   FRANCISCO. 

1851-1856. 

A  Period  of  Trials — Land  Titles — City  Limits — Mexican  Grants — Spu- 
rious Claims — -Water  Lots — Fluctuations  of  Values — The  Van  Ness 
0;'dinance — Villanous  Administration— A  New  Cliarter — Municipal 
Maleadministration — Popular  Protests — Honest  and  Genial  Villains 
—  lucreaseil  Taxation— Vigilance  Movements — Reforms  — Another 
Charter — Real  Estate  Sales — The  Baptism  hy  Fire  and  Blood — Ma- 
terial and  Social  Progress — Schools,  Chur'.hes,  and  Benevolent  Socie- 
ties— Tlie  Transformed  City "aS 


HISTORY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  I. 


CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 

•January,  1848. 
The  V.\r,LK,T  of  California— Qi-alhy  of  Popflation — Thf,  Later  Incom- 

EKS— Hl.SPANt>-A.MKKl(AN,     ANULO-AmERICAN,     AND    OTHERS— SETTLEIiS 

AKorNu  San  Francisco  Bay — San  Jose — The  Peninsula — San  Fran- 
cisco— Across  iiie  Bay— Alameda  and  Contra  Costa  Valleys — Val- 
leys of  the  San  Joaquin  and  Sacramento — Sutter's  Fort— Grants 
ANi>  Uani;hos — About  Carijuines  Stuait — Xapa,  Sonoma,  and  Santa 
Ilosv  Valleys — San  Rafael,  Bodega,  and  the  Northern  Coast — 
Natural  Wealth  and  Environment. 


Although  the  California  seaboard,  from  Sail  Diego 
to  San  Francisco  bays,  had  been  explored  by  Euro- 
j)t;ans  for  three  hundred  years,  and  had  been  occu- 
pied by  uiissionai'y  and  military  bands,  with  a 
s[)rinkling  of  settlers,  for  three  quartern  of  a  century, 
the  great  valley  of  the  interior,  at  the  o)»ening  of  the 
year  1848,  remained  practically  undisturbed  by  civili- 
zation. 

The  whole  of  Alta  California  comprises  a  seaboard 
strip  eight  hundred  miles  in  length  by  one  or  two 
hundred  in  width,  marked  off  from  the  western  earth's 
end  of  the  temperate  zone;  it  was  the  last  to  be  occu- 
;)ied  by  civilized  man,  and,  to  say  the  least,  as  full  of 
liiir  conditions  as  any  along  the  belt.  The  whole 
urea  is  rimmed  on  either  side,  the  Coast  Range  roll- 
ing up  in  stony  waves  along  tlie  outer  edge,  and  fur 

Vol.  VI.    1 


CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY 


It 


background  the  lofty  Sierra,  upheaved  in  crumpled 
folds  from  primeval  ocean.  The  intervening  space  is 
somewhere  overspread  with  hills  and  vales,  but  for 
the  most  part  comprises  an  oblong  plain,  the  Valley 
of  California,  the  northern  portion  being  called  the 
Sacramento  Valley,  and  the  southern  the  San  Joa- 
quin Valley,  from  the  names  of  the  streams  that 
water  the  respective  parts.  The  prospect  thus  pre- 
sented opens  toward  the  setting  sun. 

Humanity  here  is  varied.  There  is  already  round 
San  Francisco  Bay  raw  material  enough  of  divers 
types  to  develop  a  new  race,  howsoever  inferior  the 
quality  might  be.  It  is  a  kind  of  refuse  lot,  blown 
in  partly  from  the  ocean,  and  in  part  having  perco- 
lated through  the  mountains;  yet  there  is  amidst  the 
chaff  good  seed  that  time  and  events  might  winnow. 
But  time  and  events  are  destined  here  to  be  employed 
for  higher  purpose,  in  the  fashioning  of  nobler  metal. 

Of  the  condition  of  the  aborigines  I  have  spoken 
elsewhere,  and  shall  presently  speak  again.  So  far 
the  withering  influence  of  a  strange  civilization  upon 
the  true  proprietors  of  the  soil  had  emanated  from 
Mexican  incomers.  Now  a  stronger  phase  of  it  is 
appearing  in  another  influx,  which  is  to  overwhelm 
both  of  the  existing  races,  and  which,  like  the  original 
invasion  of  Mexico,  of  America,  is  to  consist  of  a  fair- 
hued  pe(jple  from  toward  the  rising  sun.  They  come 
not  as  their  predecessors  came,  slowly,  in  the  shadow 
of  the  cross,  or  aggressively,  with  sword  and  firelock. 
Quietly,  with  deferential  air,  they  drop  in  asking 
hospitality;  first  as  way-worn  stragglers  from  trap- 
ping expeditions,  or  as  deserting  sailors  from  vessels 
prowling  along  the  coast  in  quest  of  trade  and  secrets. 
Then  compact  bands  of  restless  frontier  settlers 
slip  over  tiie  border,  followed  by  the  firmer  tread  of 
determined  pioneers,  who  wait  for  strength  and 
opportunity.  Not  being  as  yet  formally  ceded,  the 
land  remains  under  a  mingled  military-civil  govern- 
ment, wherein  Hispano-Calitbrnians  still  control  local 


ERY 

rumpled 
space  is 
,  but  for 
e  Valley 
iUed  the 
Ban  Joa- 
ims  that 
thus  pre- 

dy  round 
)f  divers 
erior  the 
ot,  blown 
ig  perco- 
luidst  the 
i  winnow, 
employed 
ler  metal, 
ve  spoken 
So  far 
tion  upon 
ited  from 
of  it  is 
t'erwhelm 
e  original 
of  a  fair- 
hey  come 
e  shadow 
firelock, 
asking 
om  trap- 
m  vessels 
d  secrets, 
settlers 
tread  of 
igth   and 
Bded,  the 
I  govern- 
trol  local 


n 


, 


'■  a 


MATERIALS  FOR  SOCIETY.  S 

management  in  the  south,  while   in  the  north  men 
from  the  United  States  predominate. 

These  later  arrivals  are  already  nearly  equal  numeri- 
cally to  the  former,  numbering  somewhat  over  6,000, 
while  the  Hispano-Californians  may  be  placed  at 
1,000  more.  The  ex-neophyte  natives  in  and  about 
the  ranches  and  towns  are  estimated  at  from  3,000 
to  4,000,  with  twice  as  many  among  the  gentile  tribes. 
The  new  element,  classed  as  foreign  before  the  con- 
quest of  1846,  had  from  150  in  1830  grown  slowly  till 
1845,  after  which  it  took  a  bound,  assisted  by  over 
2,000  who  came  as  soldiers  in  the  regular  and  volunteer 
corps,  not  including  the  naval  muster-rolls.  These 
troops  served  to  check  another  sudden  influx  contem- 
plated by  the  migrating  Mormons,  whose  economic 
value  as  colonists  cannot  be  questioned,  in  view  of 
their  honesty  and  thrift.  An  advance  column  of  about 
200  had  come  in  1846,  followed  by  the  Mormon  battal- 
ion in  the  United  States  service,  350  strong,  of  which 
a  portion  remained.  The  first  steady  stream  of  immi- 
grants is  composed  of  stalwart,  restless  backwoods- 
men from  the  western  frontier  of  the  United  States; 
self-reliant,  and  of  ready  resource  in  building  homes, 
even  if  less  enterprising  and  broadly  utilitarian  than 
those  who  followed  them  from  the  eastern  states; 
tiie  latter  full  of  latent  vivacity;  of  strong  intellect, 
here  quickening  under  electric  air  and  new  environ- 
ment; high-strung,  attenuated,  grave,  shrewd,  and 
practical,  and  with  impressive  positiveness. 

By  the  side  of  the  Americanized  Anglo-Saxc^i, 
elevated  by  vitalizir-r  freedom  of  thought  and  inter- 
course with  nature,  vvw  find  the  English  representa- 
tive, burly  of  mind  and  body,  full  of  animal  energy, 
marked  by  aggressive  stubbornness,  tinctured  with 
brusqueness  and  conceit.  More  symi)athetic  and  self- 
adaptive  than  the  arrogant  and  prejudiced  English- 
man, or  the  coldly  calculating  Scot,  is  the  omnipresent, 
'juick-witted  Celt,  and  the  easy-going,  plodding  Ger- 
man, with  his  love  of  knowledge  and  deep  solidity  of 


CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


mind.  Intermediate  between  these  races  and  the 
native  Californian  stands  the  pure-bl<MMJed  Spaniard, 
A\' rapped  in  the  reflection  of  ancestral  preeminence, 
and  using  his  superior  excellence  as  a  means  to  affirm 
liis  foothold  among  humbler  race  connections.  An 
a[)proximate  affinity  of  blood  and  language  here  paves 
tlio  way  for  the  imaginative  though  superficial  French- 
man and  Italian,  no  less  polite  than  insincere,  yet 
cheerful  and  a3sthetic.  A  few  Hawaiian  Islanders 
have  been  brought  over,  and  are  tolerated  until 
prouder  people  press  them  back  and  under. 

Even  now  events  are  giving  a  decisive  predomi- 
nance to  the  lately  inflowing  migration,  by  reason  of 
the  energy  displayed  in  the  rapid  extension  of  indus- 
trial arts,  notably  agriculture,  with  improved  methods 
and  machinery,  and  growing  traffic  with  such  standard- 
bearers  of  civilization  as  the  public  ])ress  and  a  steam- 
boat. So  far  this  influx  has  confined  itself  to  the 
central  part  of  the  state,  round  San  Francisco  Bay  and 
northward,  because  the  gateway  for  the  immigration 
across  the  plains  opens  into  this  section,  which  more- 
over presents  equal  if  not  superior  agricultural  features, 
and  greater  commercial  prospects.  The  occupation  of 
the  south  by  a  difterent  race  serves  naturally  to  point 
out  and  affirm  the  limits. 

San  JostS,  founded  as  a  pueblo  within  the  first  dec- 
fide  of  Spanish  occupation,  and  now  grown  into  a 
lespectable  town  of  about  700  inhabiumts,  is  the 
most  prominent  of  the  northern  settlements  wherein 
the  Hispan^-Californian  element  still  predominates. 
Notwithstanding  the  incipient  greatness  of  the  city  at 
tlie  Gate,  San  Jose  holds  high  pretensions  as  a  central 
inland  town,  on  the  border  line  between  the  settled 
south  and  the  growing  north,  with  aspirations  to  sup- 
plant Monterey  as  the  capital.  This  accounts  in  a 
measure  for  the  large  inflowing  of  foreigners,  who  have 
lately  acquired  sufficient  influence  to  elect  the  alcalde 
from  among  tliemselves,  the  ]iresent  incumbent  being 
James  W.  Weeks.     The  fertile  vallev  around  counts 


ttfua 


d  the 
iniard, 
nence, 
affirm 
.  An 
paves 
rencli- 
•e,  yet 
anders 
[   until 

edoml- 
ason  of 

indus- 
letliods 
mdard- 
stcam- 

to  the 
Jay  and 
irration 
1  niore- 
jatures, 
xtion  of 
o  point 

st  dec- 

into  a 

is   the 

vherein 

linates. 

city  at 

central 

settled 

to  sup- 

ts  in  a 

lo  have 

alcalde 

t  being 

counts 


Central  California  in  1848. 


(5J 


'^m 


iiti'i 


6        CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 

aniong"  its  numerous  farmers  several  of  them,  notably 
tlie  Scotch  sailor,  Jolin  Gilroy,*  who  in  1814  became 
the  first  foreij^ner  permanently  to  settle  in  California, 
and  Thomas  W.  Doak,  who  arrived  two  years  later, 
the  first  American  settler.  North  of  Sum  Jos^  and 
the  adjoining  Santa  Clara  mission,*  where  Padre  Real 
holds  out  manfully  against  claimants,  are  several  set- 
tlers clustering  round  the  present  Alviso.'  Westward 
Rafael  Soto  has  established  a  landing  at  San  Fran- 
cis(juito  Creek,  and  Whisman  has  located  himself  a 
dozen  miles  below.* 

Along  the  eastern  slope  of  the  peninsula  leads  a 
well-worn  road  past  scattered  ranchos,  among  which 
are  those  of  John  Cooper  on  San  Mateo  Creek,  and 
John  Coppinger  on  Canada  de  Raiumndo;  and  near 
by  are  Dennis  Martin  and  Charles  Brown,  the  latter 
having  just  erected  a  saw-mill.^ 

San  Francisco,  at  the  end  of  the  peninsula,  however 
ill-favored  the  site  in  some  respects,  seems  topographi- 
cally marked  for  greatness,  rising  on  a  series  of  hills, 
with  a  great  harbor  on  one  side,  a  great  ocean  on  the 
other,  and  mighty  waters  ever  passing  by  to  the  outlet 
of  the  wide-spread  river  system  of  the  country.  It  is 
already  in  many  respects  the  most  thriving  town  in 
California,  the  prospective  metropolis  of  the  coast,  with 
200  buildings  and  800  inhabitants,  governed  by  Alcalde 

'  The  town  bearing  his  name,  in  the  southern  part  of  the  valley,  is  situated 
on  his  former  rancho.  Other  early  settlers  were  Mat.  Fellom,  Harry  Be«, 
John  Burton,  J.  A.  Forbes,  J.  W.  Weeks,  and  Wm  Gulnac,  who  iu  1842 
joined  Weber  in  erecting  a  flour-mill. 

'  Hrannan  &  Co.  had  a  tannery  at  this  place. 

*  Including  the  families  of  Alviso,  Berreyesa,  Valencia,  John  Martin,  and 
Leo  Norris,  the  latter  an  American,  on  Clierro  rancho. 

'Near  the  present  Mountain  View.  J.  W,  Whisman  was  in  1848  joined 
by  I.  Whisman.  J.  Coppinger  lived  for  a  time  on  Soto's  rancho,  married  to 
his  daughter.     S.  Robles  had  bought  Santa  Rita  rancho  from  J.  PeAa. 

^Called  Mountain  Home.  The  last  two  had  settled  near  the  present 
Woodside.  G.  F.  Wyman  and  James  Peace  were  also  in  the  same  vicinity, 
the  latter  as  lumberer.  The  leading  grants  were  Las  Ihilg&s  of  Luis  Argiiello, 
35,000 acres;  SanGregorioof  A.  Buelna,  18,000acre8;  BuriBuriof  I.  Sanchez, 
14,(300  acres;  Caftada  de  Raimundo  of  J.  Coppinger,  12,o00 acres;  Ca&adadel 
Corte  de  Madera  of  M.  Martinez,  I.S.OOO  acres.  Other  grants,  ranging  from 
9,000  to  4,000  acres,  were  San  Pedro,  Corral  de  Tierra,  F^lix,  Mintmontes, 
CaOada  Verde,  Sau  Antonio,  Butano,  and  Pouta  del  Aoo  Nuevo,  following 
■outhward. 


Vi 


RY. 


THE  PENINSULA. 


iiotably 
became 
ifomia, 
s  later, 
08^  and 
re  Real 
ral  set- 
estward 
n  Fran- 
mself  a 

leads  a 
g  which 
eek,  and 
nd  near 
le  latter 

however 
ographi- 
of  hills, 
n  on  the 

e  outlet 
It  is 

own  in 
ast,with 

Alcalde 

r,  is  Bitaated 
Harry  Be«, 
rho  ia  1S4-2 


Martin,  and 

1848  joined 
married  to 
Peiia. 

the  present 
me  vicinity, 
lis  Argnello, 
"  I.  Sancliez, 
Caflada  del 
vnging  from 
Mirainoiites, 
o,  foUowiug 


t 


George  Hyde  and  a  sapient  council.  The  population 
is  chiefly  composed  of  enterprising  Americans,  sturdy 
pioneers,  with  a  due  admixture  of  backwoodsmen 
and  seafarers,  numerous  artisans,  and  a  sprinkling  of 
traders  and  professional  men — all  stanch  townsmen, 
figuring  for  beach  lots  at  prices  ranging  as  high  as 
$000,  and  for  local  offices.  There  are  rival  districts 
stmggling  for  supremacy,  and  two  zealous  weekly 
newspapers. 

Less  imposing  are  the  immediate  surroundings; 
for  the  town  spreads  out  in  a  straggling  crescent 
along  the  slope  of  the  Clay-street  hill,  bordered  by 
the  converging  inclines  of  Broadway  and  California 
streets  on  the  north  and  south  respectively.  A  thin 
coating  of  grass  and  melancholy  shrubs  covers  the 
sandy  surface  between  and  around,  with  here  and 
there  patches  of  dwarfed  oaks,  old  and  decrepit,  bend- 
ing before  the  sweeping  west  wind.  The  monotony 
incident  to  Spanish  and  Mexican  towns,  however, 
Avith  their  low  and  bare  adobe  houses  and  sluggish 
population,  is  here  relieved  by  the  large  proportion  of 
compact  wooden  buildings  in  northern  European  style,^ 
and  the  greater  activity  of  the  dwellers.  The  beach, 
hollowed  by  the  shallow  Yerba  Buena  Cove,  on  which 
fronts  the  present  Montgomery  street,  presents  quite 
an  animated  scene  for  these  sleepy  shores,  w^ith  its 
bales  of  merchandise  strewn  about,  and  piled-up  boxes 
and  barrels,  its  bustling  or  lounging  frequenters,  and 
its  three  projecting  wharves;^  while  a  short  distance 
off  lie  scattered  a  few  craft,  including  one  or  two 
ocean-going  vessels.  Farther  away,  fringed  by  the 
fading  hills  of  Contra  Costa,  rises  the  isle  of  Yerba 
Buena,  for  which  some  wild  goats  shortly  provide 
the  new  name  of  Goat  Island.  On  its  eastern  side  is  a 
half-ruined  rancheria,  still  braving  the  encroachments 
of  time  and  culture. 

*  There  were  160  frame  buildings  afsd  only  35  adobe  honsei,  ttltbo^gh  the 
latter  were  more  conspicuous  by  their  length  and  brightness. 
'At  California,  Clay,  and  Broadway  att^ui^U. 


■f 


C'ALIFOKMA  JUST  TRIOR  TO  THE  (JOLD  DISCOVERY. 


r 


San  Fba:<clsco  is  1348. 


ABOUT  THE  BAY. 


L     - 


n 


In  tlio  roar  of  the  town,  which  extends  only  be- 
tween Calitoniia  and  Vallejo  streets  to  Powell  on  the 
west,  from  the  direction  of  the  Lone  Monntain  and 
beyf)nd,  comes  a  spur  of  the  Coast  Ran<,'o,  tipped  by 
the  Pa[)as  Peaks.  To  either  side  divergc?s  a  trail,  one 
toward  the  inlet  of  the  bay,  where  is  the  presidio 
enclosure,  with  its  low  adobe  buildings,  and  to  which 
the  new  American  occupants  have  added  frame  houses, 
and  earthworks  with  ordnance  superior  to  the  blatant 
muzzles  of  yore.  Two  miles  to  the  south,  beyond  the 
sand  hills,  lies  Mission  Dolores,  its  dilapidated  walls 
marked  by  darkened  tile  roofs,  scantily  relieved  by 
clumps  of  trees  and  shrubs.  The  cheerless  stone 
fences  now  enclose  winter's  verdure,  and  beyond  the 
eddying  creek,  which  flows  through  the  adjoining 
iields,  the  sandy  waste  expands  into  inviting  pasture, 
partly  covered  by  the  Rincon  farm  and  government 
reserve.** 

The  opposite  shores  of  the  bay  present  a  most  beau- 
tiful park-like  ex[)anse,  the  native  lawn,  brilliant  with 
flowers,  and  dotted  by  eastward-bending  oaks,  watered 
by  the  creeks  of  Alameda,  San  Lorenzo,  San  Leandro, 
and  their  tributaries,  and  enclosed  by  the  spurs  of  the 
]  )iablo  mountains.  It  had  early  attracted  settlers, 
whose  grants  now  cover  the  entire  ground.  The  first 
to  occupy  there  was  the  Mission  San  Jose,  famed  for 
its  orchards  and  vineyards,*  and  now  counting  among 
its  tenants  and  settlers  James  F.  Heed,  Perry  Mor- 
rison, Earl  Marshall,  and  John  M.  Horner.^"  Below 
are  the  ranchos  of  Agua  Caliente  and  Los  Tularcitos; 
and  above,  Potrero  de  los  Cerritos;"  while  behind, 
auKMig  encircling  hills,  is  the  valley  of  San  Jose,  the 
pathway  to  the  Sacramento,  and  through  which  runs 

"Padre  P.  Santillan,  who  afterward  became  conspicuous  as  a  claimant  to 
ttie  mission  ground,  was  in  charge  at  Dolores.  Tlie  liuncho  Punta  de  Lobos 
of  15.  I)iaz  extended  to  the  north-west. 

"  In  ciiarge  of  Padre  Real.  The  claim  of  Al  varado  and  Pico  to  the  soil  was 
later  rejected. 

'"  'i"he  latter  a  Mormon,  living  with  his  wife  at  the  present  Washington 
Cornel's,  and  subsequently  prominent. 

"  Tlie  former  two  sijuare  leagues  in  extent,  and  transferred  by  A.  Sunol  to 
F.  iligucra;  tlie  latter  three  leagues,  and  held  by  A.  Alviso  and  T.  Pacheco. 


10       CAUFORNIA  JUST  PIUOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


the  upper  Alameda.  Here  lives  the  venturesome 
Enj.^lish  Hailor,  Robert  Livermore,  by  whose  name  the 
nook  is  becoming  known,  and  whose  rapidly  increasing 
possessions  embrace  stock-ranges,  wheat-fields,  vine- 
yards, and  orchards,  with  even  a  rude  grist-mill."  Ad- 
joining him  are  the  ranches  Valle  de  San  Josd  of 
J.  and  A.  Bernal,  and  Suflol  and  San  Ramon  of  J.  M. 
Amador,  also  known  by  his  name.  Northward,  along 
the  bay,  lies  the  Rancho  Arroyo  de  la  Alameda  of 
Josd  Jesus  Vallejo;  the  San  Lorenzo  of  G.  Castro 
and  F.  Soto;  the  San  Leandro  of  J.  J.  Estudillo;  the 
Sobrante  of  J.  I.  Castro;  and  in  the  hills  and  along 
the  shore,  covering  the  present  Oakland  and  Alameda, 
the  San  Antonio  of  Luis  M.  Peralta  and  his  sons."* 

Similar  to  the  Alameda  Valley,  and  formed  by  the 
rear  of  the  same  range,  enclosing  the  towering  Monte 
del  Diablo,  lies  the  vale  of  Contra  Costa,  watered  by 
several  creeks,  among  them  the  San  Pablo  and  San 
Ramon,  or  Walnut,  and  extending  into  the  marshes 
of  the  San  Joaquin.  Here  also  the  most  desirable 
tracts  are  covered  by  grants,  notably  the  San  Pablo 
tract  of  F.  Castro;  El  Pinole  of  Ignacio  Martinez, 
with  vineyards  and  orchards;  the  Acalanes  of  C. 
Valencia,  on  which  are  now  settled  Elam  Brown, 
justice  of  the  peace,  and  Nat.  Jones;'*  the  Palos 
Colorados  of  J.  Moraga;  the  Monte  del  Diablo  of  S. 
Pacheco;  the  Mddanos  belonging  to  the  Mesa  fam- 
ily; and  the  Mdganos  of  Dr  John  Marsh,  the  said 
doctor  being  a  kmd  of  crank  from  Harvard  college, 


"  His  neighbor  on  Rancho  Loa  Pozitos,  of  two  sauare  league.,  was  Jos4 
Noriega;  and  west  and  south  in  the  v  Hey  extended  Rancho  Valle  de  San 
Ju86,  48,000  acres,  Santa  Rita,  9,000  a  "es,  belonging  to  J.  D.  Pacheco,  the 
Sua  Ramon  ranclio  of  Amador,  four  sqi  re  leagues,  and  Cafiada  de  los  Va- 
queros  of  Livermore.  Both  Colton,  Th  ■  Years,  266,  and  Taylor,  El  Dorado, 
i.  73,  refer  to  tlie  spot  as  Livermore  Pat  leading  from  San  Jos^  town  to  the 
valley  of  the  Sacramento. 

>»  D.  Peralta  received  the  Berkeley  par  V.  the  Oakland,  M.  the  East  Oak- 
land and  Alameda,  and  I.  the  south-east,  The  grant  covered  five  leagues. 
I'lie  extent  of  the  Alameda,  San  Lorenz  and  San  Leandro  grants  was  in 
square  leagues  respectively  about  four,  se  3n,  and  one;  Sobrante  was  eleven 
leagues. 

■*  By  purchase  in  1847,  the  latter  owning  one  tenth  of  the  three-quarter 
league. 


VERY. 

ituresouie 
natno  the 
ncreaHing 
Ids,  vine- 
ill. '»  Ad- 
[1  Josd  of 

11  of  J.  M. 
ard,  alonjr 
laiueda  of 
jr.  Castro 
dillo;  the 
iiid  alon^ 
Alameda, 
s  sons.^** 
ed  by  the 
ng  Monte 
atered  by 
'  and  San 
!  marshes 

desirable 

an  Pablo 

Martinez, 

es   of  C. 

Brown, 

e   Palos 
bio  of  S. 

esa  fam- 

the  said 
college. 

He.  was  JoB^ 
^alle  (le  San 
:'acheco,  the 
de  los  Va- 
I,  El  Dorado, 
1  toMm  to  the 

Le  East  Oak- 
Bve  leagues, 
its  was  in 
I  was  eleven 

kree-quarter 


SAN  JOAQUIN  VALLEY. 


U 


1;* 


wlio  settled  here  in  1837,'*  in  an  adobe  hut,  and 
athioved  distinction  as  a  niisanthro[)e  and  miser, 
sympatiietic  with  the  spirit  at  whose  mountain's  feet 
ho  crouched. 

The  upper  part  of  the  San  Joaquin  Valley  had  so 
fur  been  shunned  by  fixed  settlers,  owing  to  Indian 
hostility  toward  the  Spanish  race.  With  others  the 
aborigines  agreed  better;  and  gaining  their  favor 
through  the  mediation  of  the  influential  Sutter,  the 
German  Charles  M.  Weber  had  located  hinrself  on 
French  Camp  rancho,  which  he  sought  to  develop  by 
introducing  colonists.  In  this  he  had  so  lar  met  with 
little  success;  but  his  farm  prospering,  and  his  em- 
ployes increasing,  he  laid  uut  the  town  of  Tuleburg, 
soon  to  rise  into  prominence  under  the  new  name  of 
Stockton.'*  He  foresaw  the  importance  of  the  place 
as  a  station  on  the  road  to  the  Sacramento,  and  as  the 
gateway  to  the  San  Joaquin,  on  which  a  settlement 
had  been  formed  in  1846,  as  far  up  as  the  Stanislaus, 
by  a  [)arty  of  Mormons.  On  the  north  bank  of  this 
tributary,  a  mile  and  a  half  from  the  San  Joaquin,  the 
migratory  saints  founded  New  Hope,  or  Stanislaus, 
which  in  April  1847  boa-.ted  ten  or  twelve  colonists 
and  several  houses.     Shortly  afterward  a  summons 

''  He  bonght  it  from  J.  Noriega,  and  called  it  the  Pulpunes;  extent,  three 
leagues  by  four.  The  San  Pablo  and  Pinole  covered  four  leagues  each,  the 
Palos  Colorados  three  leagues,  the  Monte  del  Diablo,  on  which  Paclieco  had 
some  5,000  head  of  cattle,  tour  leagnes.  The  aggressive  Indians  had  disturlied 
several  settlers,  killing  F.  Briones,  driving  away  Wni  Welch,  who  settled  in 
1832,  and  the  Romero  brothers.  Brown  settled  in  1847,  and  began  to  ship 
lumber  to  San  Francisco.  There  were  also  the  grants  of  Las  Juntas  of  Wm 
Welch,  three  square  leagues;  Arroyo  de  las  Nueces  of  J.  S.  Paclieco  and 
Cafiada  del  Hambre  of  T.  Soto,  the  two  latter  two  square  leagues  each. 

'*Amon^  the  residents  were  B.  K.  Thompson,  Kli  Randall,  Jos.  Buzzell, 
Andrew  Baker,  James  Sirey,  H.  P.  Fanning,  George  Frazer,  W,  H.  Fairchild, 
James  McKee,  Pyle,  and  many  Mexicans  and  servants  of  Weber.  See  fur- 
ther in  Tinkham  s  HM.  Stockton;  San  Joaquin  Co.  Hist;  Col.  Star,  May  13, 
1848,  eto.  Taylor  reports  two  lo^  cabins  on  the  site  in  1847,  those  of  Buzzell 
and  Sirey.  Nic.  Gann's  wife,  while  halting  in  Oct.  1847,  gave  birth  to  a  son, 
William.  The  name  French  Camp  came  from  the  trappers  who  frequently 
camped  here.  T.  Lindsay,  while  in  charge  in  1845,  was  killed  by  Indian 
raiders.    The  war  of  1847  had  caused  an  exodus  of  proposed  settlers. 


12      CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 

from  Salt  Lake  came  to  assist  the  floods  in  breaking 
up  the  colony.*^ 

North  of  Stockton  Dr  J.  C.  Isbel  settled  on  the 
Calaveras,  and  Turner  Elder  on  the  Mokelumne, 
together  with  Smith  and  Edward  Robinson.'^  The 
latter,  on  Dry  Creek  tributary,  has  for  a  neighbor 
Thomas  Rlioads,  three  of  whose  daughters  married  T. 
Elder,  William  Daylor  an  English  sailor,  and  Jared 
Sheldon.  The  last  two  occupy  their  grants  on  the 
north  bank  of  the  Cosumnes,  well  stocked,  and  sup- 
porting a  grist-mill.  Along  the  south  bank  extend 
the  grants  of  Hartnell  and  San  *  Jon  '  de  los  Moque- 
lumnes,  occu])ied  by  Martin  Murphy,  Jr,  and  Anas- 
tasio  Chabolla.  South  of  them  lies  the  Rancho 
Arroyo  Seco  of  T  Yorba,  on  Dry  Creek,  where 
William  Hicks  holds  a  stock- range. ^^ 

The  radiating  poiuu  for  all  these  settlements  of  the 
Great  A'alley,  south  and  north,  is  Sutter's  Fort, 
founded  as  itw  first  settlement,  in  1839,  by  the  enter- 
prising Swiss,  John  A.  Sutter.  It  stands  on  a  small 
hill,  skirted  by  a  creek  which  runs  into  the  American 
River  near  its  junction  with  the  Sacramento,  and 
overlookinii:  a  vast  extent  of  ditch-enclosed  fields  and 
park  stock-ranges,  broken  by  groves  and  belts  of  tim- 
ber. At  this  time  and  for  three  months  to  come 
there  is  no  sign  of  town  or  habitation  around  what  is 
now  Sacramento,  except  this  fortress,  and  one  old 
adobe,  called  the  hospital,  east  of  the  fort.     A  garden 

"  Stout,  tlie  leader,  had  given  dissatisfaction.  Buckland,  tlie  last  to  leave, 
moved  to  Stockton.  Tlie  place  is  also  called  Stanislaus  City.  Higler,  Diary, 
MS.,  4S-9,  speaks  of  a  Mormon  settlement  ontlic  Merced,  meaning  the  altove. 

"*  Tlie  former  on  Ih"y  Creek,  near  tlie  present  Liberty,  which  he  transferred 
to  Roliiiisoii,  married  to  his  aunt,  and  removed  to  the  Mokelumne,  whore 
twins  were  horn  in  November  1847;  he  tiien  proceeded  to  Uaylor's.  Thomas 
Pyle  settled  neivr  Lockeford,  but  transferred  liis  place  to  Smith. 

'*  The  Chabolla,  Hartnell,  Sheldon- Daylor,  and  Yorba  grants  were  8,  6, 
5,  and  1 1  leagues  in  extent,  respectively.  The  claims  of  E.  Rufus  and  E. 
Pratt,  north  of  the  Cosumnes,  failed  to  b6  oontirmed.  Col.  Star,  Oct.  '2.S,  1847, 
alludes  to  the  tiouring  mill  on  Sheldon's  rancho.  See  SiUter's  Pers.  Hem.,  MS., 
KJ'J,  in  which  Taylor  and  Ciiamberlain  are  said  to  live  on  the  Cosunnies.  In 
the  San  <loa<|uin  district  were  three  elevendeaguo  and  one  eight-league  grants 
claimeil  by  dose  Castro,  .John  Rowland,  J.  S.  Lippincott,  and  A.  B,  Thompson, 
all  rejected  except  the  last. 


SACRA^'ENTO  VALLEY. 


18 


to  leave, 
•,  Diary, 
he  above, 
ausferred 
le,  where 
Thomas 

'ere  8,  6, 
and  Vj. 
2.S,  1847, 
m.,  MS,, 
iiies.  In 
le  grants 
lompsuu, 


of  eig'lit  or  ten  acres  was  attached  to  the  fort,  laid 
out  with  taste  and  .skill,  where  flourished  all  kinds  of 
vegetables,  grapes,  apples,  peaches,  pears,  olives,  figs, 
and  almonds.  Horses,  cattle,  and  sheep  cover  the 
surrounding  plains;  boats  lie  at  the  embarcadero. 

The  fort  is  a  parallelogram  of  adobe  walls,  500  feet 
long  by  150  in  breadth,  with  loop-holes  and  bastions 
at  the  angles,  mounted  with  a  dozen  cannon  that 
sweep  the  cui'tains.  Within  is  a  collection  of  gran- 
aries and  wareh(>uses,  shops  and  stores,  dwellings 
and  outhouses,  extending  near  and  along  the  walls 
round  the  central  building  occupied  by  the  Swiss 
potentate,  who  holds  sway  as  })atriarch  and  priest, 
judge  and  father.  The  interior  of  the  houses  is  rough, 
with  rafters  and  unpanelled  walls,  with  benches  and 
deal  tables,  the  exception  being  the  audience-room 
and  ]tiivate  ai)artnients  of  the  owner,  wlio  has  ob- 
tained from  the  Russians  a  clumsy  set  of  California 
laurel  i'urniture.'"  In  front  of  the  main  building,  on 
the  small  scjuare,  is  a  brass  gun,  guarded  by  the 
sentinel,  wliose  measured  tramp,  lost  in  the  hum  of 
day,  marks  the  stillness  of  the  night,  and  stops  alone 
beneatii  the  boirry-[)ost  to  chime  the  passing  liour. 

Throughout  the  day  the  enclosure  presents  an 
animated  scene  of  work  and  tratficking,  by  bustling 
laborers,  diligent  mechanics,  and  eagc  trailers,  all  to 
the  chorus  clang  of  the  smithy  and  reverberating 
.strokes  of  the  carpenters.  Horsemen  dash  to  and  iVo 
at  the  bidding  of  duty  and  pleasure,  and  an  occasional 
wagon  creaks  along  u[)on  the  gravelly  ruad-bi)d,  sure 
t<»  ])ause  for  recuperating  purposes  bel'ore  the  trad- 
ing store,-^  whefe  confused  voices  mingle  with  laugh- 
ter and  the  sometimes  discordant  strains  of  drunken 

■'"'Tho  first  made  in  the  country,  ho  saya,  and  strikingly  superior  to  the 
enidc  furniture  of  the  Culiforuians,  \\'\i\\  ru\\  iiide  and  Wullock-licud  ciiaiiMaiid 
lK'(l-sitrt't(jliers.  SiMr's  /'ci-k.  JiVm.,  MS.,  1(14,  (!t  sci|,  liryant  descrilpcs  til- 
dining-room  an  having  uurcly  l.fiK'ii.s  and  deal  talde,  yet  displaying  silver 
siioons  an. I  China  bowls,  tlie  latter  serving  for  diahes  as  well  as  euiw.    H'/iat  I 

"  One  kept  by  Smith  and  Ikannan.  Prices  at  this  time  were  SI  a  foot  for 
horse-shoeing,  $1  a  bushel  for  wheat,  peas  l^l.uO,  uuboltcu  flour  §8  a  100  lbs. 


14      CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 

singers.  Such  is  the  capital  of  the  vast  interior  valley, 
pregnant  with  approaching  importance.  In  Decem- 
ber 1847  Sutter  reported  a  white  population  of  289 
in  the  district,  with  16  half-breeds,  Hawaiians,  and 
negroes,  479  tame  Indians,  and  a  large  number  of 
gentiles,  estimated  with  not  very  great  precision  at 
21,873  for  the  valley,  including  the  region  above  the 
Buttes.'**  There  are  60  houses  in  or  near  the  fort, 
and  six  mills  and  one  tannery  in  the  district;  14,000 
fanegas  of  wheat  were  raised  during  the  season,  and 
40,000  expected  during  the  following  year,  besides 
other  crops.  Sutter  owns  12,000  cattle,  2,000  horses 
and  mules,  from  10,000  to  15,000  sheep,  and  1,000 
hogs.*''  John  Sinclair  figures  as  alcalde,  and  George 
McKinstry  as  sherift*. 

The  greater  portion  of  the  people  round  the  fort 
depend  upon  Sutter  as  permanent  or  temporary  em- 
ployes, the  latter  embracing  immigrants  preparing  to 
settle,  and  Mormons  intent  on  presently  proceeding 
to  Great  Salt  Lake.  As  a  class  they  present  a  hardy, 
backwoods  type  of  rough  exterior,  relieved  here  and 
there  by  bits  of  Hispano-Californian  attire,  in  bright 
sashes,  wide  sombreros,  and  jingling  spurs.  The  na- 
tives appear  probably  to  better  advantage  here  than 
elsewhere  in  California,  in  the  body  of  half  a  hundred 
well-clothed  soldiers  trained  by  Sutter,  and  among 
his  staff  of  steady  servants  and  helpers,  who  have  ac- 
quired both  skill  and  neatness.  A  horde  of  subdued 
savages,  engaged  as  herders,  tillers,  and  laborers,  are 
conspicuous  by  their  half-naked,  swarthy  bodies;  and 
others  may  be  seen  moving  about,  bent  on  gossip  or 
trade,  stalking  along,  shrouded  in  the  all-shielding 
blanket,  which  the  winter  chill  has  obliged  them  to 
put  on.  Head  and  neck,  however,  bear  evidence  to 
their  love  of  finery,  in  gaudy  kerchiefs,  strings  of  beads, 
and  other  ornaments. 


«  McKUiHtry  Pap.,  MS.,  28. 

'■"There  were  30  ploughs  in  operation.  Siitter^s  Peru.  Rem,,  MS.,  43.     The 
Teniou  reproduced  iu  Hoc.  Go,  IiiHl.,  31,  ditfvrit  somewhat. 


or  valley, 
Decem- 
n  of  289 
ians,  and 
imber  of 
cision  at 
ibove  the 
the  fort, 
;;  14,000 
ison,  and 
',  besides 
)0  horses 
nd  1,000 
1  George 

I  the  fort 
>rary  em- 
paring  to 
'oceeding 
;  a  hardy, 
here  and 
in  bright 
The  na- 
ere  than 
lundred 
among 
have  ac- 
subdued 
rers,  are 
ies;  and 
gossip  or 
hielding 
them  to 
lence  to 
jf  beads, 


}.,43.    The 


SUTTEE'S  FORT. 


15 


The  fort  is  evidently  reserved  for  a  manor-seat,  de- 
spite its  bustle;  for  early  in  1846  Sutter  had  laid 
out  the  town  of  Sutterville,  three  miles  below  on  the 
Sacramento.  This  has  now  several  houses,'*  having 
received  a  great  impulse  from  the  location  there,  in 
1847,  of  two  companies  of  troops  under  Major  Kings- 
bury. It  shares  in  the  traffic  regularly  maintained 
with  San  Francisco  by  means  of  a  twenty-ton  sloop, 
the  Amelia,  belonging  to  Sutter  and  manned  by  half 
a  dozen  savages.  It  is  supported  during  the  busy 
season  by  two  other  vessels,  which  make  trips  far  up 
the  Sacramento  and  San  Joaquin.  The  ferry  at  the 
fort  landing  is  merely  a  canoe  handled  by  an  Indian, 
but  a  large  boat  is  a-building.*® 

Six  miles  up  the  American  River,  so  called  by  Sut- 
ter as  the  pathway  for  American  immigration,  the 
Mormons  are  constructing  a  flour-mill  for  him,'^®  and 
another  party  are  in  like  manner  engaged  on  a  saw- 
mill building  and  race  at  Coloma  Valley,  forty  miles 
above,  on  the  south  fork.  Opposite  Sutter's  Fort,  on 
the  north  bank  of  the  American,  John  Sinclair,  the 
alcalde,  holds  the  large  El  Paso  rancho,^^  and  above 
him  stretches  the  San  Juan  rancho  of  Joel  P.  Ded- 
mond,  facing  the  Leidesdorft'  grant  on  the  southern 
bank."^  There  is  more  land  than  men;  instead  of 
100  acres,  the  neighbors  do  not  regard  100,000  acres 
as  out  of  the  way.  Sutter's  confirmed  grant  of  eleven 
leagues  in  due  time  is  scattered  in  different  direc- 
tions, owing  to  documentary  and  other  irregularities. 
A  portion  is  made  to  cover  Hock  Farm  on  Feather 

'*  Sutter  built  the  first  house,  Hatlel  and  Zina  followed  the  example,  Zins' 
being  the  tirat  real  brick  building  erected  iu  tiie  country.  Morae,  Hist.  Sac, 
places  the  founding  in  1844. 

"  As  well  aa  one  for  Montezuma.  Cul.  Star,  Oct.  23,  1847;  Oreysoii's  Stat., 
M.S.,  7.^ 

''"  With  four  pairs  of  stones,  which  was  fast  approaching  completion.  A 
dam  had  been  constructed,  with  a  four-mile  race.  Description  and  progress 
in  N.;  liiijler's  Diary,  M.S.,  50-7;  Sutter's  Pera.  Rem.,  MS.,  159.  Brighton 
has  now  risen  on  the  site. 

"Of  some  44,000 acres,  chiefly  for  his  Hawaiian  patron,  E.  Grimes. 

"^  Of  3."),r)00  acres;  Dedmond's  was  20,000.  Leidesdortf  had  erected  a  houBe 
In  184G,  at  the  present  Koutier'a. 


R 


16       CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 

River,"®  his  chief  stock-range,  and  also  enibraoiiig  fine 
plantations.'*'^  On  the  east  side  of  this  region  lies  the 
tract  of  Nicolaus  Altgeier,^^  and  along  the  north  bank 
of  Bear  River,  Sebastian  Keyser  and  the  family  of 
William  Johnson  have  located  themselves;^'  oppo- 
site are  two  Frenchmen,  Theodore  Sicard  and  Claude 
Chanon.  The  south  bank  of  the  Yuba  is  occupied 
by  Michael  C.  Xye,  John  Smith,  and  George  Pat- 
terson.''^ Facing  them,  along  Feather  River,  Theo- 
dore Cordua  had  settled  in  1842,  and  established  a 
trading  [)ost,  owning  some  12,000  head  of  stock. '** 
Charles  Roether  had  in  1845  locatqd  himself  on  Hon- 
cut  Creek,  and  near  him  are  now  Edward  A.  Farwell 
and  Thomas  Fallon. ''^  The  lands  of  Sanmel  Neal  and 
David  Dutton  are  on  Butte  Creek;  William  North- 
grave's  place  is  on  Little  Butte;  W.  Dickey,  Sanders, 
and  Yates  had  in  1845  taken  up  the  tract  on  Chico 
Creek  which  John  Bidwell  is  at  this  time  entering 
upon.^*'  Peter  Lassen,  the  famous  Danish  trap[)er,  had 
settled  on  Door  Creek,  and  erected  a  mill  and  smithy,'*' 
granting  a  league  to  Daniel  Sill,  Sen.  Moon's  rancho 
is  held  by  W.  C.  Moon  and  Merritt.  A.  G.  Toomes 
occupies  a  tract  north  of  the  creek  which  bears  his 


"A  n.imc  applied  hy  Sutter  from  the  feather  omainents  of  the  natives. 

'"It  vas  fouiiiled  ii»  1.S41,  ami  managed  successively  l)y  Bidwell,  Benitz, 
S.  J.  Jleiisley,  and  Kaiiak^i  Jim.     It  had  5,0()0  head  of  cattle  and  1  ."JOO  horses. 

"  Who  Settled  on  the  jjresent  site  of  Jsicolaiis.  North  of  Hock  Farm,  C 
W.  Fliigge  ha<l  obtained  a  grant  wiiich  was  transferred  to  Consul  Larkin. 

''On  the  tivedeaguo  rancho  given  to  l'.  (iutiurrez,  decciised,  hy  Sutter,  wlio 
made  several  grants  in  the  valley,  by  authority.  They  bought  laud  and  cattle 
and  tlivided. 

■"Smith,  who  came  first,  in  1S4.5,  sold  a  part  of  his  tract  to  Patterson. 
The  fii'st  two  had  nearly  2,000  liead  of  stock. 

'*Tliis  rancho.  on  tlie  site  of  tiie  present  Marysvillc,  he  called  New  Meck- 
lcnl)Uig,  in  honor  of  his  native  German  state.  Chus  Covillaud  was  manager; 
trade  relations  were  had  with  San  Francisco. 

"  Tlic  former  on  a  grant  claimed  by  Huber;  the  two  latter  on  Farwell's 
rancho. 

^'' Northgrave  was  a  settler  on  the  tract  ckimcd  by  S.  J.  Henaley,  but 
disalloweil  afterward.  James  W.  Marshall  liad  abandoned  his  liolding  cm  the 
same  tract.  Tlie  eonlirmed  gi'ants  were  Fernandez,  4  leagues;  Arroyo  Ciiico 
of  Bidwell,  5  leagues;  Agua  Fria  of  Pratt,  6  leagues;  Llano  Scco  of  Parrott, 
4  li.'agues;  liosijuejo  of  ]ji:<sen,  5  leagues;  IJoga  of  Larkin,  5  leagues;  Escjuon 
of  Neal,  5  leagues.  The  claims  of  Cambustou,  Uuber,  Heusley,  Nye,  and 
others  were  rejcjcted. 

^'BiJwdrs  Cat.  1S41-S,  MS.,  231-2. 


)VKRY. 


ALONG  THE  SACRAMENTO. 


17 


racing  fine 
on  lios  the 
lorth  bank 
family  of 
!s;^'  oppo- 
nd  Claude 
3  occupied 


oi'ije 


Pat- 
vcr,  Tlieo- 
ablished  a 
of  stock.  ^* 
If  on  Hon- 
V.  Farwell 
.  Neal  and 
lUi  Nortli- 
j,  Sanders, 
',  on  Chico 
e  entering' 
apper,  had 
d  smithy,"'' 
u's  ranclio 
.  Toomes 
bears  his 


lie  natives, 
hvell,  Bt'iiitz, 
I  l.-2()()liorst;.s. 
lock  Farm,  C. 
ul  L.'11'kiii. 
y  Sutter,  who 
lud  and  cattle 

to  Patterson. 

il  New  Meck- 
ras  manager; 

on  Farweil's 

Hensley,  but 
Idiuf^  oil  tlie 
ViToyo  Cliico 
of  I'arrott, 
ues;  Esquon 
Nye,  and 


4 


I 


name,  and  above,  on  Antelope  Creek,  lives  Job  F. 
Dye,  below  P.  B.  Reading,  who  ranks  as  the  most 
northern  settler  in  the  valley,  on  Cottonwood  Creek,^ 
one  of  the  immerous  tributaries  here  fed  by  the  adja- 
cent 'ikiow-crowned  summits  dominated  by  the  majes- 
tic Shasta. 

Descending  along  the  west  bank  of  the  Sacramento, 
we  encounter  the  rancho  of  William  B.  Ide,  of  Bear-flag 
fame;-'^  below  him, on  Elder  Creek,  is  William  C.  Chard, 
and  K.  H.  Thomes  on  the  creek  named  after  him.*" 
On  Stony  Creek,  whence  Sutter  obtains  grindstones,*^ 
live  Granville  P.  Swift,  Franklin  Sears,  and  Bryant; 
below  them  John  S.  Williams  has  lately  settled  with 
his  wife,  the  first  white  woman  in  this  region.*^  Watt 
Anderson  is  found  on  Sycamore  Slough,  and  on  the 
north  side  of  Cache  Creek  the  familv  of  William  Gor- 
don.*^  Eastward  lies  the  rancho  of  William  Knight,** 
and  below  him,  facing  the  mouth  of  Feather  River, 
that  of  Thomas  M.  Hardy. *^  In  a  hut  of  tule,  facing 
the  Sutter's-fort  grant,  lives  John  Schwartz,  a  reticent 
builder  of  airy  castles  upon  his  broad  domain,  and  of 
whom  it  is  said  that,  having  lost  his  own  language, 
he  never  learned  another.  A  northern  slice  of  his 
land  he  sold  to  James  McDowell  and  family.*^  On 
Putah  Creek,  John  R.  Wolfskill  had,  since  1842,  oc- 
cupied a  four-league  grant.     Adjoining,  on  Ulattis 


'"One  Julian  occupied  it  for  him  in  1845,  and  he  himself  settled  theie  in 
1847. 

'"Just  below  the  present  lied  Bluff,  a  tract  bought  by  him  from  Joaiah 
Belilen.     Tliese  northern  grants  averaged  live  leagues  each. 

^''Ho  built  the  first  dwelling  in  tiie  county,  on  the  site  of  Tehama 

*'  Cut  by  Moon,  Merritt,  and  Lassen. 

"  of  Colusa  county,  daughter  i\i  Joa.  Gordon.  He  located  himself  two 
miles  south  of  Princeton,  on  the  Larkin  children's  grant,  with  800  hea<I  of 
cattle,  on  siiarea  with  Larkin.     M.  Diaz'  claim  to  11  leagues  was  rejected. 

"  \Vho  built  the  first  dwelling  in  Yolo  county,  in  KS4'2,  on  Quesiaosi  grant. 
His  son-in-law,  Nathan  Coombs,  was  probably  the  first  white  bridegroom  in 
tlie  Sacramento  Valley.  Married  by  Sutter  in  1844.  His  sou  William  was 
the  first  white  child  of  Yolo  county.     Cboudis  soon  moved  to  Napa  Vall  y. 

"  Who  settled  at  the  present  Knight's  I^anding. 

'*  An  Englishman,  hostile  to  Americans. 

'*  McDowell  builta  log  house  at  the  present  Waahington,  and  was,  in  1847, 
presented  with  the  first  white  girl  of  Yolo  county.  He  paid  Schwartz  I'ij 
cents  an  acre  for  (iOO  acres. 

HWT.  CAt...  Vol.  VI.    i 


1" 


18       CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY, 

Creek,  extends  the  grant  of  Vaca  and  Peiia,  and  at 
its  mouth  are  Feltia  Miller  J  D.  Hoppe,  and  Daniel 
K.  Berry. 

Hence,  down  the  Sacramento  for  four  leagues 
stretches  the  Ulpinos  grant  of  John  Bidwell,  which 
he  sought  to  improve  by  sending,  in  1846,  a  party 
of  immigrants  to  transform  the  lonely  house  then 
standing  there  into  a  town.  After  a  few  months' 
suffering  from  hunger  and  hardships,  the  party  aban- 
doned a  site  for  which  the  Indian  name  of  Halo  Che- 
muck,  'nothing  to  eat,'  was  for  a  time  appropriately 
retained.  Charles  1).  Hoppe  bought  a  fourth  of  the 
tract  in  1847.*^  Equally  unsuccessful  was  the  con- 
temporaneous effort  of  L.  W.  Hastings,  a  Mormon 
agent,  to  found  the  town  of  Montezuma,  fifteen  miles 
below,  at  the  junction  of  the  Sacramento  and  San 
Joaquin  in  Suisun  Bay.  His  co-religionists  objected 
to  the  site  as  devoid  of  timber;  jet  he  remained  hope- 
ful, and  ordered  a  windmill  and  ferrv-boat  to  increase 
the  attractions  of  his  solitary  house.*"* 

These  efforts  at  city  building  indicate  how  widely 
appreciated  was  the  importance  of  a  town  which 
should  tap,  not  merely  each  section  of  the  great  val- 
ley, as  at  Sutter's  Fort  and  Stockton,  but  the  joint 
outlet  of  the  Sacramento  and  San  Joaquin.  It  "as 
foreseen  that  hence  would  flow  the  main  wealth  of 
the  country,  although  the  metallic  nature  of  the  first 
current  was  little  anticipated.  The  idea  seems  to 
have  struck  simultaneousl}'  Bidwell,  Hastings,  and 
Semple.  The  last  named,  with  a  judgment  worthy  of 
the  towering  editor  of  the  Califonikin,  selected  the  bil- 
lowy slopes  of  the  headland  guarding  the  opening  of 
this  western  Bosphorus,  the  strait  of  Carquines,  the 
irmer  golden  gate  of  San  Francisco  Bay.     Indeed,  the 

*'  The  present  town  of  Rio  Vista  lies  just  lielow  the  site.  Another  version 
hftp  it  thtit  the  tlirec  families  settled  there  were  carried  away  by  the  gold- 
'■"'er,  and  that  'haluchuinmuck' was  called  ont  by  Indiana  when  they  here 
t  i!\ed  a  party  of  starving  hunters. 

«(W.  Star,  Oct.  2.3,  1847;  Buffum'a  Four  Months.  9«      Here  rose,   later, 
n  iiaiiilet  of  CoUiusville. 


I 


V/f- 


NAPA  AND  SONOMA  VALLEYS. 


19 


superiority  of  the  site  for  a  metropolis  is  unequalled  on 
tlie  Pacific  seaboard,  and  unsurpassed  by  any  spot  in 
the  world,  lying  as  it  does  at  the  junction  of  the  valley 
outlet  with  the  head  of  ocean  navigation,  with  fine 
anchorage  and  land-locked  harbor,  easy  ferriage 
across  tlie  bay,  fine  climate,  smooth  and  slightly  ris- 
in<r  oTound,  with  a  magnificent  view  over  bays  and 
isles,  and  the  lovely  valley  of  the  contra  costa  nestling 
at  the  foot  of  Mount  Diablo.  And  Benicia,  as  it 
Avas  finally  called,  prospered  under  the  energetic  man- 
a«>"ement.  Although  less  than  a  year  old,  it  now 
boasted  nearly  a  score  of  buildings,  with  two  hundred 
lots  sold,  a  serviceable  ferry,  and  with  prospects  that, 
utterly  eclipsing  those  of  adjoining  aspirants,  were 
creating  a  flutter  of  alarm  in  the  city  at  the  Gate.*'' 

Passing  on  the  extreme  right  the  Armijo  rancho,'" 
and  proceeding  up  the  Xapa  Valley,  now  famed  alike 
for  its  scenery  and  vineyards,  we  find  a  large  number 
of  settlers.  Foremost  among  them  is  the  veteran 
trapper,  George  Yount,  who  in  183G  built  here  the 
first  American  block-house  of  the  country,  as  well  as 
the  first  flour  and  saw  mill,  and  extended  warm  hos- 
pitality to  subsequent  comers.  North  of  him  entered 
soon  afterward  J.  B.  Chiles  and  William  Pope  into 
the  small  valleys  bearing  their  names,  and  E.  T. 
Bale  and  John  York."^  The  Berreyesa  brothers  oc- 
ciip}^  their  large  valley  across  the  range,  on  the  head- 
waters of  Putah  Creek ;  and  on  the  site  of  the  present 
Xapa  City,  just  about  to  be  laid  out,  stand  the  two 
houses  of  Cayetano  Juarez  and  Xicolds  Higuera,  wIkj 
had  settled  on  this  spot  in  1840,  followed  by  Salvador 
Yallejo,  and  later  by  Joel  P.    Walker  and  Xathan 


For  other  names,  see  preceding  volume,  v. 


•'  Stephen  Cooper  was  alcalde. 
672  et  8(!q. 

^  I'roperly  in  Suisun  Valley,  near  the  present  Fairfield,  where  Iwrdereil 
also  the  grants  of  Suisun  and  Suscol,  the  latter  clain)eil  by  Vallejo,  but  which 
claim  was  rejected.  Mare  Island  waa  used  as  a  stock-range  by  V.  Castro, 
its  lirantee. 

"  x\t  the  present  St  Helena  and  Calistoga,  respectively.  With  Yount  was 
C.  Hopper;  with  Pope.  Barnett;  and  with  Chiles,  Baldridge.  Itelow  extended 
the  Cliiuiiles  grant  uf  J.  I.  Berreyesa. 


20      CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERV. 


Coombs;  ana  by  John  Rose  and  J.  C.  Davis,  who  in 
184G  built  a  schooner  here,  and  were  now  erecting  a 
mill  for  Vallejo.'-  Northward,  in  the  region  round 
Clear  Lake,  Stone  and  Kelsey  occupy  a  stock-range, 
and  George  Rock  holds  the  Guenoc  rancho/' 

The  similar  and  parallel  valley  of  Sonoma,  signifying 
*  of  the  moon,'  is  even  more  thickly  occupied  under 
the  auspices  of  M.  G.  Vallojo,  the  potentate  of  this 
region  and  ranking  foremost  among  Hispano-Cal- 
ifornians.  This  town  of  Sonoma,  founded  as  a  pre- 
sidio thirteen  years  before,  near  the  dilapidated  mis- 
sion Solano,  claims  now  a  population  of  260,  under 
Alcalde  Lilburn  W.  Boggs,  with  twoscore  houses, 
among  which  the  two-story  adobe  of  the  general  is 
regarded  as  one  of  the  most  imposing  in  the  country. 
The  barrack  is  occupied  by  a  ccjmpany  of  New  York 
volunteers  under  Captain  Brackett,  which  adds  greatly 
to  the  animation  of  the  place.  Several  members  of 
Vallejo's  family  occupy  lands  above  and  below  on 
Sonoma  Creek,  as,  for  instance,  Jacob  P.  Leese;  west- 
ward on  Petaluma  Creek,  Juan  Miranda  and  family 
have  settled;  above  are  James  Hudspeth,  the  large 
grant  of  the  Carrillos,"  and  the  fertile  ran(?hos  of 
jSIark  West  and  John  B.  R.  Cooper,  the  latter  with 
mill  and  smithy.  At  Bodega,  Stephen  Smith  had 
in  184G  established  a  saw-mill,  worked  by  the  first 
steam-engine  in  California,  and  obtained  a  vast  grant,^"* 
which  embraced  the  former  Russian  settlement  with 
its  dismantled  stockade  fort.  Edward  M.  Mcintosh 
and  James  Dawson's  widow  hold  the  adjoining  ran- 
chos  of  Jonive  and  Pogolomi,  the  latter  having  planted 
a  vineyard  on  the  Estero  Americano.     Above  on  the 


1 


I 


¥ 


*^  There  were  a  nutnljer  of  other  settlers,  nearly  four  score,  by  this  time, 
and  two  saw-mills  and  two  flour-mills.  Cut.  Star,  Jan.  22,  April  1,  1848. 

^^  Of  21,000  acres.  J.  i*.  Leese  and  the  Vallejos  had  stock,  the  latter  claim- 
ing the  Lupyomi  tract  of  l(i  leagues,  which  wa.s  rejected,  and  Rob  F  Ridley 
that  of  Collayomi  of  8,000  acres,  whicli  was  confirmed. 

^' Mrs  Garrillo's  covering  the  present  Santa  Rosa,  and  Joaquin  Carrillo's 
that  of  SelxMtopol. 

^  Of  35,000  acres.  Both  men  liad  been  sailors,  the  former  from  Scotland, 
the  other  from  Erin. 


VERV. 

is,  who  in 
erecting  a 
ion  round 
)ck-rango, 

signifying 

ieti  under 

ite  of  this 

ipano-Cal- 

as  a  pre- 

lated  niis- 

560,  under 

e    houses, 

general  is 

e  country. 

^ew  York 

Ids  greatly 

lenibers  of 

below  on 

Bse;  west- 

nd  family 

the  large 

■anchos  of 

xtter  with 

niith  had 

the  first 

st  grant,^"* 

nont  with 

Mcintosh 


THE  NORTHERN  SEABOARD. 


21 


nuig  ran- 
ig  planted 
ve  on  the 

by  this  time, 
1  1,  1848. 
e  latter  claim - 
ob  F   Ridley 

uiii  Carrillo's 

'oiii  Suotland, 


coast  arc  the  tracts  of  William  Beniiz  and  Ernest 
Rufus,  the  latter  with  a  grist-mill.*®  Along  Russian 
River  stretches  the  Sotoyoine  grant  of  H.  D.  Fitch, 
with  vineyards  and  niill.''^  Cyrus  Alexander,  lately 
Fitch's  agent,  had  occupied  Alexander  Valley,  and 
below  him  now  live  Lindsay  Carson  and  Louis  Le- 
ge nd  re,  ""^ 

Tile  hilly  peninsula  between  the  bay  and  ocean, 
named  after  the  Indian  chief  Marin,  is  indebted  for  a 
comparatively  compact  occupation  mainly  to  its  posi- 
tion relative  to  other  settlements,  and  to  the  impulse 
given  by  the  now  secularized  and  decaying  mission 
establishment  of  San  Rafael.  This  lovely  spot  was 
budding  into  a  town,  and  contained  several  settlers,''' 
besides  Timoteo  Murphy,  in  charge  of  the  mission  es- 
tate. Above  extend  the  tracts  of  Novato""  and  Ni- 
casio,  the  latter  owned  by  James  Black,®'  and  adjoin- 
ing, those  of  Ramon  Mesa  and  Bartolome  Bojorques. 
Rafael  Garcia  and  Gregorio  Briones  are  located  on 
the  ranchos  of  Tomales  and  Bolinas,  owning  many 
cattle;  and  William  A.  Richardson  holds  that  of  Sau- 
zalito,  which  is  already  an  anchorage  and  supply  sta- 
tion,*- yet  with  aspirations  cramped  by  the  closely 
pressing  hills,  and  overshadowed  by  the  looming  me- 
tropolis.*^ 

**  Erected  by  H.  Hiigler  on  Walhalla  River,  ■which  is  now  usually  callt-d 
Gualula  River. 

'"  Covering  the  present  site  of  Uealdsburg. 

*"  Among  other  settlers  may  be  ujentioned  Frank  Bedwell,  Mose  Carson, 
Fred.  Starke,  Hoeppner,  Wilson,  the  Pirtas,  and  the  (lorilons. 

■"*  Among  them  Mrs  Merriner  and  sons,  Jacob  and  J.  O.  B. ;  Short  and 
Mrs  Miller  near  by.     Ignf.cio  Pacheco  was  justice  of  the  peace. 

•"Obtained  by  F.  Fales  in  1839  and  transferred  to  Leese. 
'  Who  had  obtained  it  from  J.  O'Farrell,  in  exchange  for  his  grant  near 
Bodega. 

"'■■The  earliest  settler  here,  since  1820,  had  been  John  J.  Read,  who  subse- 
quently obtained  the  Corte  de  Madera  rancho,  wliere  he  planteil  orchards  and 
erected  rt  grist-mill,  followed  by  a  saw-mill  in  184.S,  the  year  of  his  death. 
Aiigel  Island  was  for  a  time  occupied  by  A.  M.  Oslo.  Among  other  settlers 
were  Martin  and  Tom  Wood,  the  latter  a  famous  vaquero. 

•'On  the  map  presented  I  mark  with  preference  the  names  of  settlers, 
giving  the  rancho  only  when  the  actual  holder  is  in  doubt,  as  repre.'ienteil  by 
proxy  or  tenant,  or  claiming  merely  by  virtue  of  grant.  The  preceding  mat- 
ter has  been  drawn  from  official  documents,  books,  and  manuscripts,  with  no 
small  supplemeuting  by  the  mouths  of  living  men 


22       CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 

Such  is  the  detail  of  the  picture  whicli  I  wish  to 
present  of  central  and  northern  California  in  Jan- 
uary 1848.  I  will  couiplete  it  with  some  genijralities 
of  phy.sical  features  and  jwpulation,  thus  givinjj  as  a 
whole  the  inhabitants  and  their  environnient. 

It  is  the  dawn  of  history  in  these  parts,  ))resently 
to  be  followed  by  a  j^olden  sunlight  flooding  the 
whole  western  world.  All  alontj  the  centuries  Cali- 
fornia  had  lain  slumbering,  wrapt  in  obscurity,  and 
lulled  by  the  monotone  of  ocean.  The  first  fitful 
dreams  of  explorers  in  search  of  an  ever-eluding 
strait,  of  cities  stored  with  treasures,  ha<l  subsided 
into  pastoral  scenes,  with  converts  and  settlers  clus- 
tering round  white-walled  missions  in  the  sliadow  of 
the  cross.  Then  came  the  awakening,  impelled  by  a 
ruder  invasion  of  soldiers  and  land-greedy  backwoods- 
men, the  premonitory  ripple  of  international  interest 
and  world-absorbing  excitement. 

Strewn  lavishly  about  is  what  men  most  covet,  those 
porticms  of  nature's  handiwork  called  wealth  and 
wealth-making  material,  the  acquisition  of  which  is  the 
great  burden  progressive  men  conventionally  lay  upon 
themselves  as  the  price  of  their  civilization.  These 
resources  reveal  themselves  in  the  long  snow-clad 
uplands  of  the  Sierra,  with  their  timber  and  metals,  in 
the  northern  foothills,  revelling  in  perennial  spring, 
and  in  the  semi-tropic  vegetation  of  the  central  and 
southern  valleys.  The  extremes  of  heat  and  cold,  of 
desert  aridity  and  unhealthy  rankness,  are  rare  and 
of  small  extent,  serving  rather  to  illustrate  as  rem- 
nants the  method  and  means  of  nature  in  producing 
one  of  her  masterpieces.  Such  are  the  unsightly 
marshes  in  different  localities;  the  Colorado  desert 
bordering  the  river  of  that  name,  and  its  link  along 
the  eastern  declivity  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  with  the 
great  basin  of  the  interior,  which  in  the  south  is 
marked  by  a  dismal  stretch  of  bare  ridges  and  inter- 
vening valleys  of  sand  and  volcanic  scoria,  with  occa- 
sional muddy  salt  pools  and  cracked  surfaces  frosted 


SOME  PHYSICAL  FEATURES. 


2S 


I  wish  to 
ia  in  Jaii- 
•tiiiiiralities 
ivinij  as  a 
lit. 

,  |)resently 
(oding  tlie 
urios  Cali- 
3uritv,  and 

first  fitful 
rer-eluding 
I  subsided 
ttlers  clus- 

shadow  of 
)elled  by  a 
jackwoods- 
lal  interest 

;ovet,  those 

health    and 

^hich  is  the 

ly  lay  upon 

)n.     These 

snow -clad 

1  metals,  in 

lial  spring, 

•entral  and 

nd  cold,  of 

3  rare  and 

e  as  reni- 

producing 

unsightly 

fido  desert 

link  along 

with  the 

south  is 

and  inter- 

with  occa- 

jes  frosted 


with  alkali,  and  in  the  south  by  a  rugged  lake  basin. 


il 


has 


/I 


I 


jrficial,  for  nature 
left  compensation  in  many  valuable  minerals;  and 
art  pronuses  t<»  continue  her  task  of  reclamation  by 
means  of  palm-lined  canals,  health-bringing  eucalyptus 
groves,  and  rain-inviting  forests. 

It  is  a  terrane  younger  than  the  eastern  seaboard, 
wrought  not  by  the  same  slow  and  prosy  process 
of  ordinary  strata  formation,  but  in  many  a  fit  of  pas- 
sion, with  upheavals  and  burstings  asunder,  with  surg- 
ing floods  and  scorching  blasts.  The  soil  yet  quivers 
and  is  quick  with  electric  force,  and  climatic  moods 
are  fitful  as  ever;  here  a  gentle  summer's  holiday, 
tliere  a  winter  of  magnificent  disorder;  between,  ex- 
hilarating spring,  with  buds  and  freshness,  and  beyond, 
a  torrid  fringe,  parched  and  enervating.  Side  by 
side  in  close  proximity  are  decided  differences,  with 
a  partial  subordination  of  latitude  and  season  to 
local  causes.  Thus,  on  the  peninsula  of  San  Francisco 
winter  appears  in  vernal  warmth  and  vigor,  and  sum- 
mer as  damp  and  chilly  autunm,  wliile  under  the  shel- 
ter of  souje  ridge,  or  farther  from  the  ocean,  summer 
is  hot  and  arid,  and  winter  cold  and  frosty. 

While  configuration  permits  surprises,  it  also  tem- 
pers them,  and  as  a  rule  the  variations  are  not  sud- 
den. The  sea  breezes  are  fairly  constant  whenever 
their  refreshing  presence  is  most  needed,  leaving 
rarely  a  night  uncooled;  and  the  seasons  are  marked 
enough  within  their  mild  extremes.  At  San  Fran- 
cisco a  snow-fall  is  almost  unknown,  and  a  thunder- 
storm or  a  hot  night  extremely  rare.  Indeed,  the 
sweltering  days  number  scarcely  half  a  dozen  during 
the  year.  The  average  temperature  is  about  56  de- 
grees Fahrenheit,  which  is  the  mean  for  spring.  In 
summer  and  autumn  this  rises  to  60  and  59,  respect- 
ively, falling  in  winter  to  51,  while  at  Sacramento  the 
average  is  58  degrees,  with  56°,  69°,  61°,  and  45°  for 
the  four  seasons  respectively.  At  Humboldt  Bay,  in 
the  north,  the  temperature  varies  from  43  degrees  in 


ll! 


I  iii 


24       CALIFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  OOLD  DISCOVERY. 

the  winter  to  57°  in  the  summer,  averaging  51^°;  and 
at  San  Diego,  in  the  Houtii,  it  ranges  as  the  extremes 
from  52  to  7 1  degrees,"*  while  the  average  of  summer 
and  winter  and  night  and  day  does  not  vary  over  ten 
degrees. 

In  summer  an  equilibrium  is  approached;  in  winter 
the  tiresome  reserve  is  broken.  By  early  autumn  a 
wide-spread  deadness  obtains ;  the  hills  wear  a  bleached 
appearance,  the  smaller  streams  are  empty,  the  plain 
is  parched  and  dusty,  the  soil  cracked  in  fissures  from 
excessive  dryness;  green  fields  have  turned  sere  and 
yellow,  and  the  weeds  snap  like  glass  when  trodden 
on.  It  is  the  period  of  nature's  repose.  The  grass  is 
not  dead,  but  sleepeth.  When  the  winter  rains  begin, 
in  November,  after  a  respite  of  six  months,  vegetal 
life  revives;  the  softened  soil  puts  on  fresh  garments; 
the  arid  waste  blossoms  into  a  garden.  The  cooler 
air  of  winter  condenses  the  vapor-laden  winds  of  ocean, 
which,  during  the  preceding  months,  are  sapped  of 
their  moisture  by  the  hot  and  thirsty  air.  And  all 
this  is  effected  with  only  half  the  amount  of  rain  fall- 
ing in  the  Atlantic  states,  the  average  at  San  Fran- 
cisco being  little  over  twenty  inches  annually,  at 
Sacramento  one  tenth  less,  and  at  San  Diego  one 
lialf ;  while  in  the  farther  north  the  fall  is  heavier  and 
more  evenly  di.stributed. 

In  this  dry,  exhilarating  atmosphere  the  effect  of 
the  sun  is  not  so  depressing  as  in  moister  regions,  and 
with  cool,  refreshing  nights,  the  hottest  days  are  bear- 
able. It  is  one  of  the  most  vitalizing  of  climates  for 
n)ind  and  body,  ever  stimulating  to  uetivity  and  en- 
joyment. Land  and  sea  vie  with  ead.  other  in  life- 
giving  supremacy,  while  man  step  .  'n  to  enjoy  the 
benefits.  When  the  one  rises  in  undue  warmth,  the 
other  frowns  it  down;  when  one  grows  cold  and  sul- 
len, the  other  beams  in  happy  sunshine.     Winds  and 

•*  Severe  extremes  are  confined  to  a  few  torrid  spots  like  Fort  Yuma,  and 
to  the  Bunimita  of  the  eastern  ranges.  Comprehensive  data  on  climate  iu 
HittelVs  Comm.  and  Iiidimt.,  62-81. 


OVERY. 

51^°;  and 
e  extronie« 
of  suininer 
y  over  ten 

;  in  winter 
r  autumn  a 
■  a  bleached 
,  the  plain 
isures  from 
i  sere  and 
i\\  trodden 
'he  j^rass  is 
•ains  begin, 
hs,  vegetal 

garments; 
rhe  cooler 
Is  of  ocean, 

sapped  of 
.  And  all 
)f  rain  fall- 
San  Fran- 
ihually,  at 
Diego  one 
leavier  and 


THE  A\VAKENIN(}  AT  HAND. 


25 


currents,  sun  and  configuration,  the  warm  stroaui 
from  aiH'ietit  Cathay,  and  the  dominating  mountains, 
all  aid  in  the  e(jualization  of  differences. 

•  Thus  lay  the  valley  of  California  a-dreaming,  wilh 
>  visions  of  empire  fjir  down  the  vistas  of  time,  when 
I  behold,  t)ie  great  awakening  is  already  at  hand !  Even 
I  now  noiselijss  bells  are  ringing  the  ingathering  of  the 
I  nations;  for  here  is  presently  to  be  found  that  cold, 
\  impassive  element  which  civilization  accepts  as  its 
symbol  of  the  Most  Desirable,  and  for  which  accord- 
1  ingly  all  men  perfc)rin  pilgrimage  and  crusade,  to  toil 
%  and  fitfht  and  die. 


le  effect  of 
3gions,  and 
s  are  bear- 
li mates  for 
ty  and  en- 
her  in  life- 
enjoy  the 
irnith,  the 
d  and  sul- 
ifVinds  and 


ort  Yuma,  and 
on  climate  in 


i 


if 


H 

* 

s. 


CHAPTER   II. 


1 


THE  1)1S(H)VKRY  OF  GOLD. 
Janhaky,  1848. 

SlTPATIOX  OF  ShTTER— HlH  NkKI)   OK  LUMBKK — iSKARTII    FOR  A  MlLI.  SiTE  IN 

TiiK  Mountains     (Um.ima     .Iames  W.  Maksiiai.l-  Tiik  Hiildinu  oka 
Sa\v-mii.i.  1>k,tkkminei>  ri'ON— a  Party  Skts  Forth — 1th  I'krsonnkl — 

ClIAKACTKR  OK    MaUSIIALI,      TllK,    FiNDINO    OK  (iol,!)- WllAT  M ARSHALI, 

AM)  Ills  Mkn  Thoi  (iiiT  OF  It     Makshall  Riuks  to  Nkw  Mkuvktia  an'j 
Inkoums  Siti  kii    Tiik  Intkrvikw-  Suttkr  Visrrn  tiik  Mill— Attkmi't 

TO  SkcURK  illK  In  III  AN  'I'lTLK  TO  TIIK  LaNI). 


John  A.  Suttkr  was  tho  potentate  of  tlie  Sacra- 
mento,  as  we  have  seen.  He  had  houses  antl  hmds, 
Hoeks  and  herds,  mills  and  machinery;  he  eountetl  his 
skilled  artisans  hy  the  seore,  and  his  savage  retainers 
hy  the  hundred.  He  was,  moreover,  a  man  of  prog- 
ress. Although  he  had  eome  from  eulture<l  Europe, 
and  ha<l  established  liiinself  in  an  Ameriean  wilderness, 
he  had  no  thouijht  of  diiftin«>:  into  savai^ism. 

Among  his  more  pressing  wants  at  this  moment 
wjis  a  saw-mill.  A  largiT  supply  of  kunboi'  was  needed 
for  a  nudtitnde  of  pur|)oses.  Fencing  was  wanted. 
The  flour-mills,  then  in  course  of  construction  at 
]^righton,  would  takea  large  (piantity;  the  niiighhors 
would  l)uy  some,  and  hoards  might  profitahly  he  sent 
to  San  Francisco,  instead  of  Wringing  them  from  that 
direction.'     There  were    no  good    forest  trees,    with 

'Since  1845  Sutter  hnil  ohtuinccl  luinlwr  from  tho  nionntainR,  got  oat  by 
wliip-HiiWH.  /iiilinl/'n  (\il.  IS.} I  S,  MS..  'J'JH.  Tim  nutlior  of  tliiH  iiuiMt  vivln- 
al>le  iiiaiiiiHcript  int'oi'iiiH  me  further  tliut  Sutter  hml  for  years  eoiiletiipliite<l 
liiiihliii^  a  Miw-niill  in  order  to  avoid  the  hilM>r  and  eoat  uf  miwin^  luinher  hy 
hand  in  the  redwoods  on  the  coast,  and  hringiiig  it  round  l>y  the  hay  in  his 
VtiHaul.     With  thia  i^bjcut  he  at  vuriuun  tiinoi)  Huut  expluriug  parties  into  the 

( 'iti ) 


CULUMA,  BEAUTIFUL  VALE. 


27 


A  Mill  Site  in 

i  lit  II.ltlNtt  OK  A 
TS  I'KltSONNKL — 
k'llAT  MaIMIIALI. 

V  Hki.vktia  and 
Mill— Attkmit 


tlio  Saeni- 

iind  laiulfs, 

>uiito(I  his 

)  retjiinors 

,11  <»r  pro*!^- 

l  Kiirojto, 

ildornosH, 

u. 

s  inoinont 
as  iieodud 
iM  wanted, 
iic'tioii  at 
iiciirlihors 
ly  ho  Hoiit 
from  tluit 
rcos,    with 


18,  got  ont  l)y 

MM  inoMt   Vlllll- 

uonUMiipliiteil 
iiK  litinbor  liy 
thu  hay  in  hia 
i'tit!8  into  the 

■2(1) 


tho  requisite  \vater-ju)wer,  nearer  than  the  footliills  of 
tht;  mountains  to  the  east.  Just  what  point  aloiiiij 
this  hase  line  would  prove  most  suitahle,  searcli  would 
determine;  and  for  some  time  past  this  search  had 
hoen  <?oing  on,  until  it  was  interrupted  hy  the  war  of 
conquest.     The   war    beiiijj   over,  explorations    were 

renewed. 

Twoscore  miles  above  Sutter's  Fort,  a  short  dis- 
tance up  the  south  hraneh  of  American  River,  the 
rocky  j^ateway  opens,  and  the  mountains  recede  to  the 
south,  leaving  in  tiieir  wake  softly  rounded  hills  cov- 
ered with  pine,  halsani,  and  oak,  while  on  the  north 
are  somewluit  abrupt  and  rocky  slopes,  patched  with 
orease-wood  and  chemisal,  and  streaked  with  the 
<K't!pcnini(  sluulcs  of  narrow  gulches.  J^etween  these 
bounds  is  a  valley  four  miles  in  circumference,  with 
led  soil  now  covered  by  a  thin  verdure,  sluuled  here 
and  there  by  low  bushes  and  stately  groves.  C^uluma, 
'lu'uutiful  vaKs"'  the  phu'e  was  called.  At  times  sunk 
in  isolation,  at  times  it  was  stirred  by  the  presence 
of  a  tribe  of  savages  bearing  its  name,  whose  several 
geni'rations  here  cradled,  after  weary  roaming,  sought 
repose  u|»on  the  banks  of  a  useful,  happy,  and  some- 
times frolicsome  stream.  Within  the  half-year  civil- 
ization had  ptMietrated  these  precincts,  to  break  the 
])eriodic  solitude  with  tin;  sound  of  axe  aiul  ritle; 
ibr  here  the  saw-mill  men  had  come,  marking  tiieir 
cour.se  by  a  tn^e-blazed  route,  presently  to  show  the 
way  to  the  place  where  was  now  to  be  playe<l  >he  lirst 
sc(MUM)f  a  drama  which  had  for  its  audience  th'  world. 

Among  tlu!  retainers  of  the  Swiss  h.hond.ulo  at 
this  time  was  a  native  of  New  Jersey,  James  Wilson 
Marshall,  a  man  of  thirty-three  years,  ^^•ho  after  drift- 
ing in  the  western  states  as  carpenter  and  I'arnujr,'^ 

nioniitainn.  Ridwcll  liiinsolf,  in  onmpany  vitli  Scinplc,  mhh  on  oiif  uf  tlic:<f 
uii^iiitJi'Mstul  fX|K'ilitioiis  ill  1,S4(».  Mrv  'Vj|„||i,.|-  MUitt«  tluit  in  .liiiio  Isi"  mIic 
iiiaili'  rniily  litir  IuhimcIioIiI  «'ircit«  to  >  liiitllti  ("rwk,  wliiio  iimiwinill  was 
to  l>u  «'ivot»!(l,  liiit  tlio  iiu'ii  cliuiigoil  tlifir  plaiiH  ami  wi-nt  to  Coioina. 

'■'  We  of  to-<lay  write  ('oloiiia.  ami  apply  tiin  nuinu  to  tlio  town  risoii  thciv. 

'  Uoru  ill  ItiTJ  ill  liopu  tuwiiHliip,  lluiiti'tdou  cuuiity,  Nuw  Jursuy,  whuru 


m 


28  THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD, 

came  liither  by  way  of  Oregon  to  California.  In  July 
1845  he  entered  the  service  of  Sutter,  and  was  duly 
valued  as  a  good  mechanic.  By  and  by  he  secured  a 
grant  of  land  on  Butte  Creek,*  on  which  he  place*  1 
some  live-stock,  and  went  to  H'ork.  During  his  ab- 
sence in  the  wrr  southward,  this  was  lost  or  stolen; 
and  somewhat  discouraged,  he  turned  again  to  Sutter, 
and  readily  entered  into  his  views  for  building  a  saw- 
mill.'* 

The  old  difficulty  of  finding  a  site  still  remained, 
and  several  exploring  excursions  were  now  made  l)y 
Marshall,  sometimes  accompanied  by  Sutter,  and  by 
others  in  Sutter's  service.*  On  the  IGtli  of  May,  1847, 
Marshall  set  out  on  one  of  these  journeys,  accompanied 
by  an  Indian  guide  and  two  white  men,  Treador  and 
Graves.^  On  the  20th  they  were  joined  by  one  Gin- 
gery, who  had  been  exploring  with  the  same  ol)je(t 
on  the  Cosumnes.  They  travelled  up  the  stream 
now  called  Weber  Creek  to  its  head,  pushed  on  to 
the  American  River,  discovered  Culuma,  and  setthd 
upon  this  place  as  the  best  they  had  found,  unitini;' 
as  it  did  the  requisite  water-power  and  timber,  with  a 


.1 


i    i  Ml 


his  fatlipr  had  initiated  him  into  his  trade  as  w.-jgon -builder.  Shortly  afttr 
histweiity-Hrst  hirtiiday  tiio  ])rcvailint;  westward  current  of  migration eaninl 
him  througii  Indiana  and  Illinois  to  Missouri.  Here  lie  took  up  a  h(>in«'stiM<l 
land  claim,  and  bid  fair  to  prosper,  when  fever  and  ague  brought  him  lov, . 
wiiereupon,  in  1844,  he  sougiit  the  Pacific  Coast.  I'liisons^  Life  of  M<irsli<tl'. 
0-8.  lie  started  in  May  1844,  and  crossed  by  way  of  Fort  Hall  to  Oregon. 
where  he  wintered.  He  then  joined  the  MuMahon-Clyman  party  for  Califor- 
nia.    See  H'iKt.  Cat.,  iv.  731,  this  series. 

*  Bought,  says  I'arsons,  from  S.  .J.  Hensley. 

"Marshall  claims  to  have  first  proposed  the  scheme  to  Sutter.  Iliitrhii.ih' 
Mnij.,  ii.  19!).  This  is  doubtful,  as  shown  elsewhere,  and  is  in  any  evt-nt 
iunnaterial. 

*  Marsiiall  says  that  while  stocking  tlie  ploughs,  three  men.  Gingery,  Wiiii- 
mer,  and  Mclielhin,  who  had  heard  of  his  contemplated  trip,  undertook  one 
thi-mst-lve!<,  after  ol>taining  what  information  and  directions  they  could  from 
Marshall.  Winmier  found  timber  and  a  trail  on  wiiat  is  now  known  as  tin- 
Diamond  Springs  road,  and  the  1.1th  of  May  he  and  Gingery  began  worlt  soiin' 
thirteen  miles  west  of  the  place  where  the  Shingle  Springs  house  subseipientiy 
stood,  (iiugery  was  afterward  with  Marshall  when  the  latter  discovered  tlic 
site  of  the  Coloma  mill. 

'  Marshall  implies  that  this  was  his  first  trip.     Sutter  states  definitely , 
'He  went  out  several  times  to  look  for  a  site.     1  was  with  him  twice  on  tlie.-i' 
occasions.     I  was  not  with  him  when  he  determined  the  site  of  the  mil' 
Suiter's  Pers.  Htm.,  MS.,  1(10-1. 


BUILDING  THE  MILL. 


29 


lia.  In  July 
ind  was  <lu]y 
he  secured  a 
;h  he  phietMl 
iring  his  ah- 
)st  or  stolen : 
lin  to  Sutter, 
ilding  a  saw- 
ill  remained, 
ow  made  l»y 
tter,  and  hv 
if  May,  1847, 
accompanied 
Tread  or  and 
by  one  Gin- 
same  olyect 
the  stream 
ushed  on  ti» 
,  and  settled 
und,  uniting 
mber,  with  a 


Shortly  nftir 

migration  faniid 

up  a  ii(iiiK'!<te;i<l 

rought  him  hn\ . 

Li/n  of  Mtu-nhdi'. 

Hall  to  Oiegoii, 

party  fur  Califor- 


I,  Gingery,  Witii- 
),  undertook  one 
they  could  frfiiii 
w  known  as  tlu' 
x'gan  worU  soiru' 
ii8usub.si'(|npntly 
r  discovered  tlio 

tates  definitely, 
n  twice  on  thcM' 
Xa  of  tile  mil'  ' 


i: 


possible  roadway  to  the   fort.*     Sutter  resolved    to 

.ose  no  time  in  erecting  the  mill,  and  invited  Marshall 

to  join  him  as  partner."     The  agreement  was  signed 

in  the  latter  part  of  August,*"  and  shortly  afterward 

„  ^Marshall  set  out  with  his  party,  carrying  tools  and 

J  supplies  on  Mexican  ox-carts,  and  driving  a  flock  of 

M  slicep  for  food.     A  week  was  occupied  by  the  journey." 

f  Shelter  beinjj  the  first  thing  required  on  arrival,  a 

I  double   log  house  was  erected,   with  a  passage-way 

;  between  the  two  parts,  distant  a  (|uarter  of  a  mile  or 

■i  more  from  the   mill  site.*^     Subsequently  two  other 

:   cabins  were  constructed  nearer  the  site.      By  Xew- 

Year's  day  the  mill  frame  had  risen,  and  a  fortnight 

''.Marshall  osti-'Uif;'l  that  even  then  the  lumber  would  have  to  he  hauled 
IS  miles,  auu  .jul.i  !u  raffed  the  rest  of  tiie  way.  A  mission  Indian,  the 
iilcalde  of  t!u  Cosi;:  r-  is  said  to  have  been  sent  to  solve  son\e  doubts  eon- 
ciiiiing  the  s.t' .  Ni;.  mil  must  indeed  have  been  well  disciplined.  Not 
iiiiiny  men  oi'  Iii.i  teiiipcfament  would  have  permitted  an  Indian  to  verify  his 
(li>ul)teil  word. 

'•'A  contract  was  drawn  up  by  Jolni  Bidwell,  clerk,  in  wliicii  Sutter  agreed 
to  furnish  the  men  and  miuns,  while  Marsiiall  was  to  siipei'inteiid  the  con- 
•struction,  and  conduct  work  at  the  n\ill  after  its  completion.  It  is  ditlieult 
to  dtteruiine  what  tlie  exact  terms  of  tiiis  contract  were.  Sutter  merely  i-e- 
niarks  that  he  gave  Marsiiall  an  interest  in  the  mill.  /'on.  Item.,  MS.,  100. 
r>iilwell  says  notiiing  more  tlian  that  he  drew  up  the  agreement.  '  'nl.  y.^'^Z-.s', 
MS.,  'JJS.  Marshall,  in  his  communication  to  llnlrhiinjs'  Maijir.ini',  coii- 
t^nts  liiinself  witli  saying  that  after  returning  from  liis  second  trip,  the  'co 
partnership  was  cotiiplcted.'  Parsons,  in  his  Lifn  nf  Murxh'ill,  79-80,  is  more 
e\i>licit.  'The  terms  of  this  a'.'reement,'  he  v  r'te.->,  'were  to  tiie  etl'eet  that 
Sutter  should  furnish  the  capital  to  build  a  mill  on  a  site  selected  by  Marshall, 
who  was  to  be  the  active  partner,  and  to  run  the  mill,  receiving  certain  com- 
]ieiis.ati()n  for  so  doing.  A  ve^'bal  agreement  was  also  entered  into  Itetwecn 
the  parties,  to  the  eflect  tluit  if  at  ^'l<!  close  of  tiie  Mexican  war  tiien  pendiiii.; 
(  alifornia  sliould  belong  to  .Mexici..  Nutter  as  a  citizen  of  that  rejuiblic  should 
pi  ssess  the  mill  'iite.  >larshall  iciiuiiij  liis  rights  to  ndll  privileges,  and  to 
cut  timber,  etc.;  while  if  the  ■n.utij  was  ceded  to  tiie  United  States,  Mar- 
shall as  an  American  ciiizen  il,i'(jM  w  i  the  property.'  In  the  same  work,  p. 
177,  is  ail  alHdavit  of  J.  in  \N  it.  I'i,  wliicii  certities  that  he.  Winters,  and 
.\ldeii  S.  Hagley  punliasi  1,  in  }>cr.  iS-!S,  .Tohn  A.  Sutter's  interest  in  the 
toloiiia  mill  whicii  intere  >t  'vas  oi.  hall  *^or  ^((,0'  'I  ami  islso  ii  tliiid  of  the 
iiitiivstof  Marshall  f(n- §J,000,  v-''i  ':  i"  ,  iies  tliat  Marshall  then  owned  the 
other  half.  Mia  Winimer,  in  her  narrative,  says  that  Sr.tter  ami  Marshall 
were  eipial  partners.  ^.  /'.  Jiiilldiii,  Dec.  10,  1.S74. 

'"  Marshall  says  Aug.  'J7th;  Parsons,  Aug.  10th;  Hiilwell,  in  a  letter  to  tlie 
author,  Aug.  or  Sept. 

"  Mrs  \Vi miner  makes  the  time  a  fortnight. 

'  One  part  of  the  liouse  Mas  occupied  by  the  men,  and  tlie  other  jiart  by 
tile  Wimuiers,  Mrs  Wimmer  cooking  for  the  eouipaiiy.  Aiiont  tlie  dose  of 
the  year,  however,  a  dispute  arose,  whereupon  the  men  built  for  themselves  a 
ealiiii  near  the  lialf-complete  '  mil!  and  coiiduetid  tlieir  own  culinary  dejiart- 
Ineiit.  Their  food  was  c!  .  /'y  salt  salmon  und  boiled  wheat.  Wiminer's 
)oung  sons  ussistod  with  ;  'le    aiming. 


80 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 


later  the  brush  dam  was  finished,  aklioiigh  not  till 
the  fortitude  of  Marshall  and  his  men  had  been  1  'ied 
by  a  flood  which  threatened  to  sweep  away  the  whole 
structure. 

Another  trouble  arose  with  the  tail-race.  In  ordor 
to  economize  labor,  a  dry  channel  had  been  selected, 
forty  or  fifty  rods  long,  which  had  to  be  deepened  and 
widened.  This  involved  some  blasting  at  the  upper 
end;  but  elsewhere  it  was  found  necessary  merely  to 
loosen  the  earth  in  the  bed,  throwing  out  the  larger 


PT?^ 


jMiilfov ., 


'v!  'A'.v'     -  ..7/,'ii\\-;////;/i'Vi\\v    /  ^i,,. ,vv#       "        mW 

"  /fill'' 


SOENE  OF   DiSCOVEKV. 

stones,  and  let  the  water  during  the  night  pass  through 
the  sluice-gate  to  wash  away  tlie  del)ris. 

It  was  a  busy  scone  presented  at  this  advance  post 
of  civilization,  at  the  foot  of  the  towering  Sierra,  and 
it  was  fitly  participated  in  by  eight  aboriginal  lords  of 
the  soil,  partly  trained  at  New  Helvetia.  The  halt- 
score  of  white  men  were  mostlv  Mormons  of  the  diw- 
banded  battalion,  even  now  about  to  turn  their  faces 
toward  the  new  Zion.  A  family  was  represented  in 
the  wife  and  children  of  Peter  L.  Wiinnier,*^  the  as- 

"  Origiiuil  form  of  name  appears  to  have  been  Weiiner,  corrupted  by  Eng- 


THE  MILL  MEN. 


81 


:)ugh  not  till 
ad  been  i  "ifd 
ay  the  whole 

ce.  In  order 
>een  selected, 
leepened  and 
at  the  upper 
try  merely  to 
it  the  larger 


pass  through 

lad  van  ce  post 
Ig  Sierra,  and 
Lrinal  lords  of 
The  half- 
|is  of  the  din- 
•n  their  faces 
[presented  in 
jner/'  the  as- 
corrupted  l)y  Eng- 


J 


sistant  of  Marshall,  and  occupied  in  superintending  the 
Indians  digging  in  the  race.  Henry  W.  Bigler  was 
drilling  at  its  head;  Charles  Bennett  and  William 
Scott  were  working  at  the  bench ;  Alexander  Stephens 
and  James  Barger  were  hewing  timber;  Azariah 
Smith  and  William  Johnson  were  felling  trees;  and 
James  O.  Brown  was  whip-sawing  with  a  savage.'* 

Thev  were  a  cheerful  set,  working  with  a  will,  yet 
with  a  touch  of  insouciance,  imparted  to  some  extent 
by  the  picturesque  Mexican  sombrero  and  sashes,  and 
sustained  by  an  interchange  of  banter  at  the  sim- 
idicity  or  awkwardness  of  the  savages.  In  Marshall 
they  had  a  passable  master,  though  sometimes  called 
queer.  Hi  was  a  man  fitted  byj)hvsi(jue  and  tem- 
perament for  the  backwoods  life,  wliid.  had  lured  and 
held  him.  Of  medium  size,  strong  rather  than  well 
,  developed,  his  features  were  coarse,  with  a  thin  beard 
round  the  chin  and  mouth,  cut  short  like  the  brown 
hair;  broad  forehead  and  penetrating  eyes,  by  no 
njeans  unintelli<;ent,  yet  lacking  intellectuality,  at 
times  gloomily  bent  on  vacancy,  at  times  flashing  with 
inq)atience.^'  He  was  essentially  a  man  of  njoods; 
his  mind  was  of  dual  conqdexion.     In  the  plain  and 

lish  pronunciation  to  Wiinnior.  Bigler,  Diary,  MS.,  60,  has  Werner,  wliicli 
a|)pr<>aclies  the  Wcimer  form. 

'♦Anioiig  tliose  who  had  set  out  with  Marshall  upon  the  first  expedition  of 
construction  wure  Ira  Willis,  Sidney  Willis,  William  Kount/.e,  and  Kzekicl 
Persons.  The  Willis  hrotliers  and  Kouiitzo  returned  to  tiie  fort  in  Septem- 
lier  1847,  the  two  former  to  assist  Sutter  in  throwing  a  dam  across  the  Amer- 
ican Kiver  at  the  grist-mill,  and  the  latter  on  account  of  ill  liealth.  Mention 
is  made  of  one  Eviins,  sent  hy  Sutter  witli  Bigler,  Smith,  and  Jolinsoii,  Ben- 
nett and  Scott  following  a  little  later;  hut  wliether  Evans  or  Persons  Mere  on 
Hie  ground  at  this  time,  or  had  left,  no  one  states.  Bigler,  Stephens,  Brown, 
Birger,  Johnson,  Smith,  the  hrothers  Willis,  and  Kountzo  had  formerly  be- 
longed to  the  Monnon  battalion. 

''  JVoad  eno.igh  across  the  chest,  free  .and  natural  in  movement,  l.o  thought 
lightly  of  fatigue  anil  hardships.  Mis  complexion  was  a  little  shaded;  tho 
mouth  declined  toward  tiie  corners;  the  nose  and  head  were  well  shaped.  In 
this  estimate  I  ,ini  assisted  by  an  old  daguerreotype  lying  before  me,  anil 
wliicli  reminds  mo  of  Marshall's  answer  to  tiie  editor  of  /liilfhiii'is'  Mtuj  izijie. 
ill  18.')7,  vlien  asked  for  his  likeness.  'I  wish  to  say  that  I  feel  it  a  duty  I 
owe  to  myself,'  ho  M-rites  from  Coloma  the  5th  of  Sept.,  'to  retain  my  like- 
ness, as  it  ia  in  fact  all  I  havotliat  I  can  call  my  own;  and  I  feid  like  any  otiier 
l)()or  wretch,  I  want  sometliing  for  self.  Tiie  sale  of  it  may  yet  keep  me 
from  starving,  or  it  may  buy  mo  a  dose  of  medicine  in  sickness,  or  jjay  for 
the  funeral  of  a  dog,  and  such  is  all  that  I  expect,  judging  from  former  kind- 
nesses.    I  owe  tlie  country  nothing.' 


32 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 


proximate,  he  was  sensible  and  skilful;  in  the  obscure 
and  remote,  he  was  utterly  lost.  In  temper  it  was 
so;  with  his  conipanions  and  subordinates  he  was 
free  and  friendly;  with  his  superiors  and  the  world 
at  large  he  was  morbidly  ill-tempered  and  surly.*'' 
He  was  taciturn,  with  visionary  ideas,  linked  to 
sj)irituali8m,  that  repelled  confidence,  and  made  him 
appear  eccentric  and  morbid;  he  was  restless,  yet 
capable  of  self-denying  perseverance  that  was  fre- 
quently stamped  as  obstinacy.*' 

Early  in  the  afternoon  of  Monday,  the  24th ^^  of 


16 For  example,  Bigler,  who  worked  nnder  bini,  says  of  him,  Diary,  MS., 
57,  'An  entire  stranger  to  us,  bnt  proved  to  l)e  a  gentleman;'  and  again,  7'i, 
'  in  a  tirst-rate  good  hnnior,  us  he  most  alwaj-s  M-a^.'  He  was  a  truthful  man, 
so  fur  as  he  knew  the  truth.  '  Whatever  Mr  Maniliall  tells  you,  you  may  rely 
on  as  correct,'  said  tlie  people  of  Coloma  to  one  writinj^  in  HuffhiiigH'  May., 
ii.  '201.  This  is  the  impression  ho  made  on  his  men.  On  tlic  other  hand,  Sut- 
ter, who  surely  knew  him  well  enougli,  and  would  be  the  last  person  to 
nuiligu  any  one,  says  to  the  editor  of  tlie  Lnwanter  Examhit  r:  '  Marshall  was 
like  a  crazy  man.  He  was  one  of  those  visionary  men  who  was  always  dream- 
ing about  something.'  And  to  nie  Siitti  .•  rcmarke<l:  '  He  was  a  very  curious 
man,  quarrelled  with  nearly  everybody,  though  I  could  get  along  with  him.' 
Prrs.  Hem.,  MS.,  IGO. 

"  Passionate,  he  was  seldom  violent;  strong,  he  was  ca|)able  of  drinking 
deeply  and  coming  well  out  of  it;  but  he  did  not  care  much  for  the  pleasures  of 
intoxication,  nor  was  he  the  drunkard  and  gandder  that  some  have  called  him. 
He  was  not  always  actuated  by  natural  causes.  Once  in  a  restiurant  in  San 
Francisco,  in  company  with  Sutter,  he  broke  out:  '  Are  we  alone?'  'Yes,' 
Slitter  said.  '  Xo,  wc  are  not,'  Marshall  replied,  '  there  is  a  Ixxly  there  which 
yi)U  cannot  see,  but  which  I  can.  I  have  been  inspired  by  heaven  io  act  as  a 
medium,  and  I  am  to  tell  ^Iajor-( ieneni!  Sutter  what  to  do.'  But  tliougli 
foolish  in  some  directions,  he  was  in  others  a  shrewd  observer,  Sutter,  Pcrs. 
Hem.,  MS.,  KiO,  and  Bid  well,  Cat.  IS4I-S,  MS.,  2-J8,  l<oth  praise  him  as  a 
meclianic;  and  though  in  some  respects  a  f(x>l,  he  is  still  called  '  an  lionest 
man.'  Baratow'n  Stat.,  MS.,  14;  S.  F.  Alfa  Col.,  Aug.  17,  1S74.  To  dress, 
naturally,  he  paid  but  little  attention.  He  was  frefjuently  seen  in  white 
linen  trousers,  buckskin  leggings  aiul  moccasous,  and  Mexican  sombrero. 

"The  IDth  of  January  is  tlie  date  usually  given;  but  I  am  satislicd  it  is 
incorrect.  There  are  but  two  authorities  to  cho<jse  Ixitweeu,  Marshall,  the 
discoverer,  and  one  Henry  W.  Bigler,  a  Mormon  eugag-d  uiKin  the  work  at 
tlie  time.  Besides  confusion  of  mind  in  other  respects,  Marshall  a<^lmits  that 
he  does  not  know  the  date.  'On  or  about  the  lOth  of  January,'  he  says, 
Jltifrhiiiijn'  Maijazlne,  ii.  'JOO;  'I  am  not  quite  certain  to  a  «hiy,  but  it  was 
between  the  1 8th  or  'iOth. '  \Vherenpou  the  19th  baa  been  generally  accepted. 
Itigier,  on  the  other  hand,  was  a  cool,  clear-headeil,  methodical  man;  morc- 
oviT,  he  kept  a  journal,  in  which  he  entered  occurrences  on  the  spot,  and  it 
is  from  this  journal  I  get  my  date.  If  further  evidence  lie  wanting,  we  have 
it.  Marsliall  states  that  four  days  after  the  discovery  lie  procei-ded  to  New 
Helvetia  with  specimens.  Now,  by  reference  to  another  journal,  N.  Helvetia 
Diary,  we  tind  tliat  Marsliall  arrived  at  the  fort  on  the  evening  of  the  2Sth. 
If  we  reckon  the  day  of  discovery  as  one  of  the  four  days,  allow  Marshall  one 


IX  THE  TAIL-RACE. 


33 


the  obscure 
iiper  it  was 
tes  he  was 
[  the  world 
and  surly.*" 
,  linked  to 
made  him 


est  leas, 
it  was 


yot 
fre- 


e  24th ^*  of 


im,  Diary,  MS., 
'  and  again,  7-, 
^atinithfulniau, 
OH,  you  may  rely 
lutchingn'  Mmj., 
other  hand,  Sut- 
)  last  person  to 
;  *  Marshall  was 
IS  always  dream- 
IS  a  very  curious 
.long  with  liini.' 

ible  of  drinking 
■  the  pleaauros  of 
have  called  him. 
istjiiirant  in  San 
alone?'     'Yes,' 
«ly  there  which 
ivcn  to  act  as  a 
.'    But  though 
Sutter,  I'll-.-'. 
)raise  him  as  a 
ed  '  an  honetit 
"4.     To  dress, 
seen  in  white 
|i  sombrero, 
u  satislicd  it  is 
Marshall,  the 
n  the  work  at 
11  ailmits  tliat 
ary,'  he  says, 
y,  but  it  was 
■ally  accepted. 
.1  man;  more- 
spot,  an<l  it 
ing,  we  have 
ded  to  New 
,  N.  Uefvffid, 
<>(  the  2Hth. 
Marshall  one 


Ol 
b 


I 


January,  1848,  while  sauntering  along  the  tail-raoe 
inspocting  the  work,  Marshall  noticed  yellow  particles 
minified  with  the  excavated  earth  which  had  been 
washed  by  the  late  rains.  He  gave  it  little  heed  at 
first;  but  presently  seeing  more,  and  some  in  scales, 
the  thought  occurred  to  him  that  possibly  it  niight  be 
gold.  Sending  an  Indian  to  his  cabin  for  a  tin  plate, 
he  washed  out  some  of  the  dirt,  separating  thereby  as 
n)uch  of  the  dust  as  a  ten-cent  piece  would  hold;  then 
%e  went  about  his  business,  stopping  a  while  to  ponder 
on  the  matter.  During  the  evening  he  remarked 
nee  or  twice  quietly,  .somewhat  doubtingly,  "Boys,  I 
elieve  I  have  found  a  gold  mine."  "I  reckon  not," 
was  the  respon.se;  "no  such  luck." 

Up  betimes  next  morning,  according  to  his  custom, 
he  walked  down  by  the  race  to  see  the  efiect  of  the 
night's  sluicing,  the  head-gate  being  closed  at  day- 
break as  usual.  Other  motives  prompted  his  investi- 
gation, as  may  be  supposed,  and  led  to  a  closer  exam- 
hiation  of  the  debris.  On  reaching  the  end  of  the 
race  a  glitter  from  beneath  the  water  caught  his  eye, 
and  bending  down  he  picked  from  its  lodgement 
again.st  a  projection  of  soft  granite,  some  six  inches 
below  the  surface,  a  larger  piece  of  the  yellow  sub- 
stance than  any  he  had  seen.  If  gold,  it  was  in  value 
e(|ual  to  about  half  a  dollar.  As  he  examined  it  his 
heart  began  to  throb.  Could  it  indeed  be  gold!  Or 
was  it  only  mica,  or  sulphuret  of  copper,  or  other 
ignis  fatuus!  Marshall  was  no  metallurgist,  yet  he 
had  practical  sense  enough  to  know  that  gold  is  heavy 
and  malleable;  so  he  turned  it  over,  and  weighed  it  in 
his  hand;  then  he  bit  it;  and  then  he  hammered  it 
between  two  stones.  It  mu.st  be  gold!  And  the 
mighty  secret  of  the  Sierra  stood  revealed! 

^Marshall  took  the  matter  coolly;  he  was  a  cool 
enough  man  except  where  his  pet  lunacy  was  touched. 
On  further  examination  he  found  more  of  the  metal. 

night  on  the  way,  which  Parsons  gives  him,  and  count  the  28th  one  day,  wp 
have  tlie  •24th  as  tlie  date  of  discovery,  trebly  proved. 
Hist,  Cai..,  Vol.  VI.    J 


w 


34 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 


He  went  to  his  companions  and  showed  ittothcni,nn(l 
they  collected  some  three  ounces  of  it,  flaky  and  in 
grains,  the  largest  piece  not  quite  so  large  as  a  peu, 
and  from  that  down  to  less  than  a  pin-head  in  size. 
Half  of  this  he  put  in  his  pouch,  and  two  days  later 
mounted  his  horse  and  rode  over  to  the  fort.^* 

'•Tho  events  which  happened  at  Coloma  in  January  1848  arc  descriliwl 
by  four  persons  wlio  were  actually  present.  Tiicse  are  Bigler,  Marsiiall,  ami 
^Vi^lme^  and  his  wife.  Of  these  Bigler  has  hitherto  given  notliing  to  the 
public  except  a  brief  letter  published  in  the  San  Fraiiriico  Didktin,  Dec.  .'!!, 
1870.  To  me,  however,  he  kindly  presented  an  abstract  of  the  dinry  wliicli 
lie  kept  :it  the  time,  with  elaborations  and  comments,  and  which  I  esteem  m 
one  of  the  most  valuable  original  manuscripts  in  my  possession.  The  version 
given  in  this  diary  I  have  mainly  followed  in  the  text,  as  the  most  com])lL'te 
and  accurate  account.  The  others  wrote  from  memory,  long  after  the  event; 
and  it  is  to  be  feared  too  often  from  a  memory  distorted  by  a  desire  to  exalt 
tiieir  respective  claims  to  an  important  share  in  the  discovery.  But  Bi;4liT 
has  no  claims  of  this  kind  to  support.  He  was  not  present  when  the  first  paiti- 
cles  were  discovered,  nor  when  the  first  piece  was  picked  up  in  the  race; 
hence  of  these  incidents  he  says  little,  confining  himself  mostly  to  wliat  he  saw 
with  his  own  eyes.  Marshall  claims  to  have  been  alone  when  he  made  tlib 
discovery.  It  is  on  this  point  that  the  original  authorities  disagree.  Bigler 
says  Marshall  went  down  the  race  alone.  Mrs  Wiumier  and  her  husband  ilu- 
clare  that  the  latter  was  with  ^Marsiiall,  and  saw  the  gold  at  the  same  momtiit, 
though  both  allow  that  Mai'shall  was  the  first  to  stoop  and  pick  it  up.  Latir 
Mrs  Wimmer  is  allowed  to  claim  the  first  discovery  for  her  children,  who  show 
their  findings  to  their  fatlier,  he  info)'ming  Marshall,  or  at  least  eiiligliteniii^ 
him  as  to  the  nature  of  the  metal.  Marshall  tells  his  own  story  in  a  com- 
munication signed  by  hini  and  published  in  Ifnli-hiiujn''  Mnij.,  ii.  1H{)-'201,  ami 
less  fully  in  a  letter  to  V.  E.  Pickett,  dated  Jan.  "28,  IS.IG,  in  JIUti'll'n  Umi'l- 
Book  of  Miniwj,  12;  mijijiiix^  h'em.,  MS.,  17-18;  and  in  various  brief  accounts 
given  to  newspapers  and  interviewers.  ParHoiis'  Life  of  Murahall  is  based  di; 
mformation  obtained  directly  from  the  discoverer,  and  must  ever  constitute,'. 
leading  authority  on  the  subject.  P.  L.  Wimmer  furnished  a  brief  account  u: 
the  discovery  to  the  Coloma  AnjiiA  ia  18."»5,  which  is  reprinted  in  J/i/i'l  ■ 
Miniwj,  13.  Mrs  Winimer's  version,  the  result  of  an  interview  with  Mary  I' 
Winslow,  was  first  printed  in  the  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  1!),  1874,  though  ti.t 
substance  of  a  previous  interview  with  another  person  in  18.V2  is  given  in  t!n 
O'ilroy  Adoornfi',  Aiml2-i,  1875.  Another  class  of  authorities,  us  importan; 
as  the  foregoing,  is  composed  of  those  who  were  the  first  to  hear  of  the  div 
covery,  and  appeared  on  the  ground  immediately  afterward.  Foremost  {iiuoii. 
these  ia  Sutter.  This  veteran  has  at  various  times  given  accounts  of  the  e\  lu; 
to  a  number  of  persons,  the  best  perhaps  being  those  printed  by  J.  Tyrwiii;: 
Brooks  in  his  Four  Moiith-t  amouy  the  <J  old-Jin  iters,  40-71,  in  the  Oitroy  A'l" 
cute  of  Aiir.  '24,  1875,  and  in  t\ie  Snnta  Cruz  Sentinel,  July  17,  1875,  the  lattt: 
ttikauirom  tUii  Laneiu</er  Examiner.  Sutter's  most  complete  priiite<l  nana 
tive  appears,  however,  in  Hutrhinijs'  Maij.,  ii.  194-8.  But  more  importai;: 
than  any  of  these,  because  more  detailed  and  prepared  with  greater  cart',  t 
the  version  ccmtained  iu  the  manuscript  entitled  Sw^tej-'a  Personal  Heminr 
cencea,  which  I  personally  obtained  from  his  lips.  The  same  may  be  sail' 
those  given  ia  the  maimscripts  of  John  Bidwell,  California  ISJil-S,  ami  ' 
Gregson,  Jltntorical Statement,  botli  of  whom  were  at  New  Helvetia  when  ti, 
news  first  reachetl  there,  and  at  once  visited  C!oloina.  Provoked  by  an  artitl 
in  the  Oreijon  linlletiu,  with  not  very  flattering  reflections,  Samuel  Braiina: 
made  a  statement  in  the  Coltttoi/a  Tribune,  which  changed  matters  in  nu  iii 
portant  particular.    To  attempt  to  give  a  list  of  all  who  have  touched  tiiio: 


ANCIENT  GOLD-FIELDS. 


SB 


to  them,  and 
flaky  and  in 
rite  as  a  l)Oii, 
head  m  sizo. 
vvo  days  liitor 
fort."' 

1848  aro  ile9crilie<l 
gler,  Marshall,  imd 
veil  nothing  to  the 
■o  Bnlktiii,  Dec.  :!1, 
of  the  aiftiy  which 
,1  which  I  csteom  as 
ission.     Tlio  vorsion 
s  the  most  coiniiltte 
long  after  the  cvint; 
by  a  desire  to  exalt 
icovery.    But  Bi-'.cr 
t  when  the  first  parti- 
ked  up  in  the  race; 
noatlytowhathesaw 
B  wlien  he  made  tli* 
ties  disagree.     Bijikr 
■  and  her  hushaml  Ue 
I  at  the  same  mouu  lit, 

md  pick  it  up.     Later 

er  children,  who  shuw 

at  least  enlightening 

own  story  in  a  coin- 

J/«,/.,ii.  ltn)-20l.aii 

,.-,G,  in  JlUU'll'i  H'liid- 
ivai-ious  brief  accounts 
[•J/ttrn/fa/iiabasetl  "i: 
must  ever  constitute ;. 
^hed  a  brief  account  >• 
reprinted  in  7/;'/'  ■ 
Iterv-iew  with  Mary  1 
1(),  1874,  though  ti.t 
,n  18.V2  is  given  lui.i. 
jhorities,  as  iinpoitaii: 
to  hear  of  the  .lir 
ird.    Foremost  aiu'iu; 
accounts  of  the  even; 
•intedbyJ.  Tynv.iiv. 
1,  in  the  «;/*-o(/ .•!■'" 
uly  17,  187,'),  the  latt.: 
iniplcto  printed  nam 
lint  more  impoitaK 
with  greater  care,  t 
;,',•'«  Pernonal  li'iuinf 
lesame  may  be  sail' 
[fornin  mi-i^^  »i"'' .' 
few  Helvetia  when  ti. 
Provoked  by  an  artu! 

tions,  Samuel  Branny 

Ued  matters  in  w>  it 

ho  have  touched  ui* 


Great  discoveries  stand  more  or  loss  connected  with 
accident;  that  is  to  say,  accidents  which  are  sure  to 
hai)|)en.  Newton  was  not  seeking  the  law  of  gravi- 
tati(jn,  nor  Columbus  a  new  continent,  nor  Marshall 
gold,  when  these  things  W(!re  thrust  upon  them.  And 
had  it  not  been  one  of  these,  it  would  have  been 
some  one  else  to  make  the  discovery.  Gold  fevers 
have  had  their  periodic  run  since  time  immemorial, 
when  Scythians  mined  the  Ural,  and  the  desert  of 
Gobi  lured  the  dwellers  on  the  Indus;  or  when  Ophir, 
the  goal  of  Phoenician  traders,  paled  before  the  splen- 
dor of  Apulia.  The  opening  of  America  caused  a  re- 
vival which  the  disclosures  by  Cortes  and  Pizarro 
turned  into  a  virulent  epidemic,  raging  for  centuries, 

the  discovery  of  gol.l  in  California  would  be  of  no  practical  benefit  to  any  one. 


JjOikIoh  (^narterli/  Heriew,  xci.  507-8;  Cnli/oriiia  Fiixt  and  Prrmid,  73-10."i; 
Wfik,  Cid.  wie  fS  ist,  2!)  .">1;  Brooks'  Hist.,  5:U;  Mason's  Official  Ri'iil;  Lar- 
iiii'a  Li'ltera  to  Sfcy  State;  Robinson's  Ould  Region,  33-4G;  Fotittr's  Gold 
Jftf/ioiiH,  17-'22;  Shinii'^  Miiiitiij  Camps,  105-22;  Wiijrjins'  Rem.,  MH.,  17-1>>; 
yrosl'-i  Hist.  Cal.,  3!»-")5;  Jenkim'  U.  S.  Expl.  Ex.,  4:n-2;  Oakland  Tim<s, 
Mar.  6,  1880;  Reiyre'x  Tour  of  Dvty,  228-52;  SrMnfiintweit,  Cal.,  216;  W<'st 
Shore  Odz.,  15;  San  Jose  Pioneer,  Jan.  19,  1878;  Vieitter,  Sec^'id  Jonrtiey,  2!»0, 
who  is  as  accurate  as  excursionists  generally  are;  Fri'jiief,  Hist.  C(d.,  79-80; 
ilirri'd  Peojtle,  June  18,  1872;  Minin;f  Rev.  and  Stork  Ledijcr,  1878,  120; 
BarstDir's  Sfnt.,  MS.,  3;  Bnffnm's  Six  Months,  67-8;  Treiisuri/  of  Travel,  92-4; 
Leiritt's  Scrap- Book;  Xevada  Gazette,  Jan.  22,  1868;  Holinski,  La  Cal.,  144; 
Crass  Vidlry  Union,  April  19,  1870;  Sacramento  f II ust.,  7;  Saxon's  Five  Years 
Hcithin  the  UoldeiiGate;  Anijer,  Voywje.en  Call/oiiiie,  149-56;  Annals  of  S.  F., 
:l.S0-2;  Cal.  Assoc.  Pioneer,  F%rst  Annual,  42;  Capron's  California,  184-5; 
■  iBennelt's  Rec,  MS.,  ii.  10-13.  I  have  hardly  thought  it  worth  while  to 
notice  tlie  stories  circulated  at  various  times  questioning  Marshall's  claim 
Is  discoverer;  as,  for  example,  that  "Wiminer,  or  his  boy,  as  before  mentioned, 
K'as  the  first  to  pick  up  gold;  or  that  a  native,  called  Indian  Jim,  observeil 
Ihc  shining  metal,  a  piece  as  large  as  a  brass  button,  which  he  gave  to  one  of 
^lie  workmen.  Sailor  Ike,  who  showed  it  to  Marshall.  Even  men  away  from 
lie  spot  at  the  time  do  not  decline  the  honor.  Gregson  wi-ites  in  his  State- 
ment, MS.,  9,  'we,  the  discoverers  of  gold,' and  in  his  History  of  Stockton, 
"f;?,  Tinkham  says:  'To  those  two  pioneers  of  1839  and  1841,  Captain  Jolin 
\..  .Sutter  and  ("aptain  Charles  M.  Weber,  belong  the  honor  of  uiscoverintj 
bhe  first  gold-fiehls  of  California,  and  to  them  the  state  owes  its  wonderful 
jiowtli  and  prosperity.'  These  men  were  neither  of  them  the  discoverei-s  of 
gold  in  any  sense,  nor  were  they  the  builders  of  this  commonwealth.  Some 
lave  claimed  that  the  Mormons  discovered  the  gold  at  Mormon  Island, 
Dcfoie  Marshall  found  it  at  Coloma.  Bidwell  says  that  Brigham  Young  in 
lS''4  assured  him  tiiat  this  was  t!ie  caae.  Cal.  IS4I-S,  MS.,  214.  Such  man- 
fi'st  errors  and  misstatements  are  unworthy  of  serious  consideration.  There 
not  the  slightest  doubt  that  Marshall  was  the  discoverer. 


86 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 


ever  stimulated  by  advancing  ex])loration  and  piratical 
adventure.  Every  step  northward  in  Mexico  con- 
firmed the  belief  in  still  richer  lands  beyond,  and  gave 
food  for  flaming  tales  like  those  told  by  Friar  Marcos 
de  Niza. 

Opinions  were  freely  expressed  upon  the  subject, 
some  of  them  taking  the  form  of  direct  assertions. 
These  merit  no  attention.  Had  ever  gold  been  found 
in  Marin  county,  we  might  accredit  the  statement  of 
Francis  Drake,  or  his  chaplain,  Fletcher,  that  they 
saw  it  there  in  1579.  As  it  is,  we  know  they  did  not 
see  it.  Many  early  writers  mention  gold  in  California, 
referring  to  Lower  California,  yet  leading  some  to 
confound  the  two  Californias,  and  to  suppose  that  the 
existence  of  the  metal  in  the  Sierra  foothills  was 
then  known.  Instance  Miguel  Venegas,  Shelvocke, 
and  others  of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centu- 
ries, and  early  encyclopasdia  makers.  It  has  always 
been  a  favorite  trick  of  navigators  to  speak  of  things 
they  either  greatly  feared  or  greatly  desired  as  exist- 
ing. Vizcaino,  Knight,  and  fifty  others  were  certain 
that  the  mountains  of  California  contained  gold.  The 
developments  along  the  Colorado  River  led  to  the 
sanie  conviction;  indeed,  it  was  widely  assumed  that 
the  Jesuits  knew^  of  rich  mines  within  and  beyond 
their  precincts.  Count  Scala  claims  for  the  Russians 
of  Bodega  knowledge  of  gold  on  Yuba  River  as  early 
as  1815,  but  he  fails  to  support  the  assertion.  Dana 
and  other  professional  men  of  his  class  are  to  be  cen- 
sured for  what  they  did  not  see,  rather  than  praised 
for  the  wonderful  significance  of  certain  remarks. 
The  mine  at  San  Fernando,  near  Los  Angeles,  where 
work  was  begun  in  1842,  is  about  the  only  satisfactory 
instance  on  record  of  a  knowledge  of  the  existence  of 
gold  in  Alta  California  prior  to  the  discovery  of  Mar- 
shall. And  this  was  indeed  a  clew  which  could  not 
have  failed  to  be  taken  up  in  due  time  by  some  one 
among  the  host  of  observant  fortune-hunters  now 
pouring  in,  and  forced  by  circumstances  into  the  for- 


UNSUPPORTKD  PRKTHNSIOXS. 


87 


and  piratical 
Mexico  con- 
ik1,  and  gave 
?^riar  Marcos 

the  subject, 
;t  assertions, 
d  been  found 
statement  of 
n\  that  they 
they  did  not 
in  Caht'ornia, 
injj  some  to 
>ose  that  the 
foothills  was 
»,  Shelvocke, 
eenth  oentu- 
;  has  always 
ak  of  thini>s 
red  as  exist- 
vvere  certain 
lj;-old.     Tiie 
■  led  to   the 
ssumed  that 
and  beyond 
ho  Russians 
ver  as  early 
ion.     Dana 
to  be  cen- 
han  praised 
remarks, 
les,  where 
atisfactory 
xistence  of 
ry  of  Mar- 
could  not 
some  one 
nters   now 
Ito  the  for- 


'ests  and  foothills  in  quest  of  slumberin<]f  resources. 
The  Sierra  could  not  have  long  retained  licr  secret.-" 
The  (hscovery  by  Marshall  was  the  first  tliat  can 
be  called  a  California  gold  discovery,  aside  from  the 
pettv  {>lacers  found  in  tlie  southern  part  of  the  state. 
Jt  is  not  impossible  that  white  men  may  have  seen 
gold  in  the  Sierra  foothills  before  him.  This  region 
had  been  traversed  by  trai)pers,  by  emigrants,  and 
eviii  by  men  of  science;  but  if  they  saw  gold,  either 
they  <^lid  not  know  it  or  they  did  not  reveal  it.  Xo 
sooner  was  the  discovery  announced  than  others 
claimed  to  have  been  previously  cognizant  of  the  i'act; 
but  such  statements  are  not  admissible,  ^[ost  of 
tlicm  are  cvitlent  fabrications;  as  for  the  rest,  not  one 
has  been  proved.  They  were  made  in  the  first  in- 
stance, as  a  rule,  to  de[)rive  Marshall  of  the  fame  of 
liis  discovery,  and  they  failed. 

'^"Conspicuous  among  tliose  not  before  mcntionc<l  arc  tlie  opinions  general 
(if  Artliur  l)ol)l)s,  Siiimiel  iiearne,  Jouatliun  Carver,  l)ullot  de  ^lol'ras,  Catala, 
I'itkctt,  Bitlwi'll,  l^urkin,  liandiiii,  Oslo;  the  statements  of  Antonio  tie  Aleedo, 
AU.uado,  Vallejo,  Jedediali  Smith,  lilake,  Hastings,  and  others.  Herewitii 
I  civo  a  list  of  authorities  on  tiie  subject.  (>.<)o,  Jlistaria  de  ( 'utij'oriihi,  'S\'S., 
.'mi;  Ciil.  J)(ftt.  St  Pap.,  viii.  (5,  16,  etc.;  Lrir/yiu's  (>lf'.  Cor.,  .MS.,  i.  !(ti;  Jlaii- 
(lii'i,  Jlist.  t'.iL,  MS.,  17-18;  BhlweWg  Cal.  i.s',^2-,S',\MS., '.'U;  Vnlli'jo,  Dm:, 
-MS.,  i.  140-1;  Dij).  l{i<-.,  MS.,  ix.  136;  Vallejo,  Nolan  J/isliiricn.'i,  MS.,  X); 
Clf/iiKDi'-f  Jiiitn/,  AIS. ;  Jhtrls'  d'Uni/im'/i,  MS.,  14!)-r>0;  >S'riH  JJifi/'i,  Arrh.  liithx, 
-MS.,  {»•-';  CaKhiuun'S,  Col.  Doc.  Cal.,  MS.,  L'S;  Ah-arado,  i'.iM.  CiL,  MS., 
i.  77,  and  iv.  llil;  O'aliinlo,  Apiintcx,  M.S.,  68-1);  .Siillcr's  /'cri.  Oh.t.,  .MS.,  171; 
//'(./'.•(  iSoHorn,  M.S.,  2.")2;  Castrov'dic  Anjnx,  Sept.  7,  187'2;  h'(iliiii><oi:''it  Li/r  in 
C'ti.,  1!»();  J)rowni'\t  Miii.  Nns.,  13-16;  Moideni/  Jhralil,  Oct.  l.'i,  187--);  />/','/• 
(ii'''sCal.,  4r>l;  Mex.,  Mi-m.  lid.,  IS.'C),  no.  6;  M«l'ra.i,  Or.  H  Cal.,  i.  137;  ■*»'. 
/■'.  Alta  Cal.,  Mar.  28,  18r)7,  and  Jan.  '28  and  May  18,  1878;  .S\  /•'.  Herald, 
.luiic  1,  is,')');  JtisiK'riiiii  Maij.,  vii.  oOO;  JJrake'n  Voij.;  Shilrocke'it  Voy.; 
J)tihlis^  Hiiihon.H  li'i'i;  JIanli/ff  Trarcln  in  Me.r.,  331-2;  Diudiar'n  h'liinanri'  of 
tlieAi/f,  93-4;  J/inj/n-.i'  Cal.'.  11!);  Mendorhin  Donorral,  Feb.  1,  1872;  Lul^e 
CoHiilii  liei'.  Mar.  18,  1873;  I'piuyas,  Jlii'.  Cid.,i.  177-8;  Aiiliorh  l.cdiji  r,  Feb. 
:>.  bs7'2;  IIUuII'a  Mhiimj,  10-1 1";  JJiijI'iim'.t  Si.c  Moiitfi.<,  4,V6;  iViilb'r'ii  Xar., 
II;  Mirccd  Jr</»,i,  Sept.  2,  1874;  Cronisc'n  Xal.  Wealth,  10!);  Nai/es'  Col. 
M'litiinf  Cal.,  i.  I;  S.  F.  nidlelin,  Ji\\y  12  and  Oct.  1,  18t!0,  Aug.  14,  !8(m; 
T'ltlilir.'i  IIU.  Cal.,  231;  arai/.i  JIiKf.  Or.,  364;  I)ajia\H  Tiro  Year.^,  .324;  lied 
liliiffliiil.,  Jan.  17,  1866;  J/idchhiijii'  Ma;/.,  v.  3.-)2;  /Iniil'.'i  Mer.  Mikj.,  xxiv. 
7tiS,  xxxi.  3S.'>  6,  xxxiv.  631  2;  Cal.  Chronlrle,  Jan.  28,  18.'>6;  Diriih'lle,  Ad., 
18(16,28;  Jier.^n  Jiir.  Jt'eivi/le,  Ang.  10,  18(i.'.,  and  Jan.  2!t,  1,S72;  Car.tou'.i  S/a/f. 
//-';/.,  Jan.  27,  li<&2i  EUo  Lidepeiideiit,  .Inn.  15,  1870;  .S'ar  (Jiiioit,  Jiim:  1, 
lN6l;  Sra/a,  Xoiir.  An.  (/ex  Voy.,  clxiv.  .SS8-!)0;  Qnarterlif  Her.,  no.  87,  18.-»0, 
41(1;  (.'()/»( J, /^o  (/((fiiSi;/)*',  MS.,  228-9;  IIiKjIie.i'  CftU/nriiia,  110;  fV(/-,w/r.s />'.'-■., 
ThS  !);  li„t,trt>t  Rec,  MS.,  10;  Voile,  Doc,  MS.,  07;  Dept.  St  Pap.,  MS.^  xii. 
63-,");  Ji'tijuena,  Doc,  MS.,  4-5;  Los  Amjtle»,  Arch.,  MS.,  v.  331. 


3S 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 


It  was  late  in  the  aftornoon  of  tlie  28th  of  Januarv 
when  Marsliall  (lisiiiountod  at  New  llclvetia,'"*  t'liturcd 
thuortico  whuro  Sutter  was  busy  writing,  and  al>rui>tl\' 
reijuosted  a  private  interview.  The  horseman  was 
drij)|»ing  wet,  for  it  was  raining.  Wondering  what 
I'ould  have  happened,  as  but  the  day  before  lie  had 
sent  to  the  mill  all  that  was  required,  Sutter  led  the 
way  into  a  private  room.  "Are  you  alone?"  demanded 
the  visitor.  '*  Yes,"  was  the  reply.  "Did  you  lock 
the  door?"  "Xo,  but  I  will  if  you  wish  it."  "I 
want  two  bowls  of  water,"  said  ATarshall.  Sutter 
rang  the  bell  and  the  bowls  were  brought.  "  Now  I 
want  a  stick  of  redwood,  and  some  twine,  and  -some 
sheet  copper,"  "  What  do  you  want  of  all  these 
tilings,  j\[arshall  ? "  "  To  make  scales."  "  But  I  have 
scales  enough  in  the  apothecary's  shop,"  said  Sutter; 
and  he  brought  a  pair.  Drawing  forth  his  poucli, 
^Marshall  emptietl  the  contents  int(j  his  han<l,  and  hclil 
it  before  Sutter's  eyes,  remarking,  "  I  believe  this  is 
gold;  but  the  ])eo})le  at  the  mill  laughed  at  me  and 
culled  me  crazy."  Sutter  examined  the  stuff  atten- 
tively, and  finally  said:  "  Itcertaiidy  looks  like  it;  wo 
will  try  it."  Fir.st  aquafortis  was  a[)plied;  and  the 
subi^tancc  stood  the  test.  Xext  three  dollars  in  silver 
coin  were  put  into  one  of  the  scales,  and  balanced  by 
U'old-dust  in  the  other.  Both  were  then  innnersed  hi 
water,  when  down  went  the  dust  and  up  the  silver  coin. 
Finally  a  volume  of  the  Aiiwvicaa  Enct/clo/ni'tUa,  ^f 
which  the  fort  contained  a  copy,  was  brought  ont,  and 
the  article  on  gold  carefully  studied,  whereupon  all 
doubts  vanished.-^ 

"'  Dunbar,  Romnure  of  the  Age,  48,  dates  the  arrival  at  the  fort  Feb.  iM, 
and  iiitiiiijitos  ili.it  tiu;  disoovory  was  made  the  siiiiie  inorniiig.  Acconliiij.'  tu 
I'lirsoii.-i,  .Marsliall  reachi'd  tlie  fort  aliout  9  o'clock  in  the  morning,  having  hit 
Colonia  the  (hiy  b('f(ji'o,  and  passed  the  preceding  nigiit  under  a  tree.  On  liio 
journey  lie  discovered  gold  in  a  ravine  in  tlie  foothills,  and  also  at  the  phii  e 
afterward  called  Mormon  Island,  while  examining  the  river  for  a  Iuml)er-y,uil 
Bite,  l/ij'e  of  MnrxhnU,  84.  Sutter,  however,  both  in  his  Di'ary  and  in  his  Jt'i  m- 
iiim-piiii'H,  says  that  Marsiiall  arrived  at  the  fort  in  tlu  afternoon.  Marsli.iU 
himself  makes  no  mention  of  discovering  gold  on  the  journey. 

'"  Suflcr'K  J'<'r.i,  Rem.,  MS,,  10;t-7,  In  my  conferences  with  .Sutter,  at  Liiiz, 
I  endeavored  to  draw  from  him  every  detail  respecting  the  interview  licto 


MARSHALL  AND  SUTTER. 


t,h  of  Jiinuarv 
etia,'"*  eiitored 
,  and  al)rui>tl y 
lorscmaii  was 
lulcrintjf  wliat 
of'ore  ho  had 
kitter  led  the 
D?"  deiuuiKkd 
Did  you  lock 
^vish  it."  "I 
shall  SutttT 
ht.  "  Now  I 
luc,  and  .sonio 

of  all    thc'su 

"  But  I  have 
"  said  Sutter; 
:h  his  iKtUfh, 
land,  and  held 
jclicve  this  is 
xl  at  nie  and 
e  stuff  attcn- 

:s  like  it;  Ave 
ed;  and  the 
lars  in  silver 
balanc'otl  hy 
iniiuorsud  in 

le  silver  coin. 

ught  ont,  and 
leroupon  all 


the  fort  Feb.  'Jl, 
ing.  Acconliiij.'  t.j 
loruiiig,  haviuf,'li  It 
ilera  tree.     On  t.iu 

also  at  the  phue 
•for  a  luiiil)ur-yMtl 
fir// ami  iu  iii.syi'i  m- 
;crnooii.     Mar.sli:ill 

itli  Sutter,  at  Litiz, 
;lic  interview  Iilid 


^[ar  .  proposed  that  Sutter  should  return  with 
liiin  to  .no  mill  that  night,  but  the  latter  declined, 
saving  that  he  would  be  over  the  next  day.  It  was 
n<»w  su|i|)er-ti!ne,  and  still  drizzling;  would  not  the  vis- 
itor rest  himself  till  morning/  No,  ho  must  be  olF 
iiiiincdiately;  and  without  even  waiting  to  eat,  ho 
\\  ia])i»e<l  Ids  saraj>e  about  him,  mounted  his  horse,  and 
rode  off  into  the  rain  and  darkness,  Sutter  shjpt  little 
that  night.  Though  he  knew  nothing  of  the  magni- 
tude of  the  affair,  and  did  not  fully  realize  the  evils  he 
had  j>resently  to  face,  yet  he  felt  there  would  soon  be 
<.ii()Ugh  of  the  fascination  al)r()ad  to  turn  the  heails  of 
liis  men,  and  to  disarrange  his  plans.  In  a  word,  witli 
jiioj)hetic  eye,  as  he  expressed  himself  to  me,  he  saw 
that  night  the  curse  of  the  thing  upon  him. 

On  the  morning  of  the  29tli  of  Jaimary-^  Sutter 

piisi'iit'cl  in  a  conilcnst'd  form.  Some  accounts  assert  that  when  Marshall 
di'siifd  tliu  door  to  he  lookud  Sutter  was  frightened,  and  looked  ahout  fcjr  hin 
j;un.  Till!  gunenil  assured  nie  tiiis  was  not  the  ease.  Neither  wns  tlio  mind 
dt'  M;ir.-'  '  wi(>ui,'lit  into  such  a  fever  as  many  represent.  His  manner  was 
liurrit'  'xcited,  hut  he  was  saneenou;4h.     JIo  was  peculiar,  and  lie  wislictl 

to  dcsi  is  iMLsiiicss  and  ho  hack  at  the  mill.     IJjiistow,  iu  his  S'a/'  mciit, 

MS.,  '.-i,  i,.  .its  that  he  did  not  rush  down  to  the  fort,  hut  waited  until  he  had 
liusiiuss  there.  All  the  evidence  indicates  that  neitiier  Marshall  nor  Sutter 
h.id  any  idea,  as  yet,  of  tlie  importance  of  tlie  discovery,  flow  tiould  they 
have?  Tiiore  migiit  not  he  more  than  a  handful  of  f{old-dust  iu  the  whole 
Sii  rra,  from  any  fact  thus  far  appearing.  See  BhUrMit  Ca/ijoniia  iJ^'jl-S, 
MS.,  'J.'^);  nijlrr'.t  Diary,  MS.,  (i4:  /iruoks'  Four  Months,  40  :\;  /''//•soz/n'  A(/« 
or'  Mdrshall,  84-5;  llnlchiinjf''  J/rw/. ,  ii.  1!)4.  (Jregson,  Sliifimnit,  MS.,  8, 
hlacksMiithing  for  Sutter  when  Marshall  arrived,  saw  the  gold  in  a  greenish 
oiin<c  vi;d,  ahout  half  tilled,  liigler  gives  Marshall's  own  words,  as  re])eate(l 
on  his  icturu  to  the  mill.  In  every  essential  particular  his  account  corresponds 
with  thiit  given  to  me  hy  Sutter. 

■'■'  Thi!  diiy  on  whieii  Sutter  followed  Marshall  to  Coloma  is  questioned.  In 
his  I'l  tninhi-ciirt'ii,  and  his  stjitement  in  llntvhhuj't'  Maij'r.'tiif,  Sutter  distinctly 
says  tliat  he  left  for  the  saw-mill  at  seven  o'ch)ck  on  the  morning  after  Mar- 
shall's visit  to  the  fort;  hut  in  his  Dkirij  is  written  Felt.  1st,  w  liich  would  he 
the  fouith  day  after  the  visit.  IJigler,  in  his  Oifirii,  says  that  Sutter  rtii>'hed 
the  mill  on  the  third  or  fourtli  day  after  Marshall's  return.  Marshall 
shows  his  usual  carelessness,  or  lack  of  memory,  hy  stating  that  Sutter 
I'laihed  Coloma  'about  the  '-'0th  of  February.'  Dlncon'ri/  of  Void,  in  J/iifr/ihii/s' 
M-iij.,  ii.  '_'()!.  Parsons  is  nearly  as  farMTong  in  saying  that  Sutter  '  returned 
with  Marshall  to  Coloma.'  Life  of  Murithall,  8().  Mrs  Winnni^r  also  says  that 
'  Sutter  came  rigiit  up  with  Marshall.'  Tiiis  is  indeed  partly  true,  as  Marshall 
in  his  restlessness  went  back  to  meet  Sutter,  and  of  course  camo  into  camp 
V  ith  him.  On  the  whole,  I  have  determined  to  follow  Sutter's  words  to  me, 
!n  I  know  them  to  be  as  he  gave  them.  If  Sutter  did  not  set  out  until  Feb. 
I  -t,  then  .Marshall  did  not  reach  the  mill  until  the  31st  of  January,  else  >Sut- 
ttrs  whole  statement  is  erroneous. 


■'#;' 


40 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 


^ 
J 


i 


:i  pi 


started  for  the  saw-mill.  When  half-way  there, 
or  more,  he  saw  an  objecc  moving  in  the  bushes 
at  one  side.  **  What  is  that  ?  "  demanded  Sutter  of 
his  attendant.  "  The  man  who  was  with  you  yester- 
day," was  the  reply.  It  was  still  raining.  "  Have 
you  been  here  all  night?"  asked  Sutter  of  Marshall ;  for 
it  was  indeed  he.  "  No,"  Marshall  said,  "  I  slept  at 
the  mill,  and  came  back  to  meet  you."  As  they  rode 
along  Marshall  expressed  the  opinion  that  the  whole 
country  was  rich  in  gold.  Arrived  at  the  mill,  Sutter 
took  u})  his  quarters  at  a  house  Marshall  liad  lately 
built  for  himself,  a  little  way  up  the  mountain,  and 
yet  not  far  from  the  mill.  During  the  night  the  water 
ran  in  the  race,  and  in  the  morniiig  it  was  shut  off. 
xVU  ])resent  then  proceeded  down  the  channel,  and 
jumping  into  it  at  various  points  began  to  gather 
gold.-*  With  some  contributions  by  the  men,  added 
to  what  he  himself  picked  up,  Sutter  secured  enough 
for  a  ring  weighing  an  ounce  and  a  half,  which  he  soon 
after  exhibited  with  great  pride  as  a  specimeji  of  tlio 
lirstgold.  A  ])rivaLe  o.vaniination  by  the  partners  up 
the  river  disclosed  gold  all  along  its  course,  and  in  the 
tributary  ravines  and  creeks.-* 

Sutter  regarded  the  discovery  as  a  misfortune. 
Without  laborers  his  extensive  works  must  come  to 
a  stop,  presaging  ruin,  (jladly  would  he  have  shut 
the  knowleuj^'^  from  the  world,  for  a  time,  at  least. 
With  the  men  at  the  mill  the  best  he  coulti  ilo  was  to 
make  them  promise  to  continue  their  work,  and  say 
nothing  of  the  gold  discovery  for  six  weeks,  by  which 
time  he  hoped  to  have  his  Hour-mill  comj)leted,  and 

"Biglor,  DInri/,  MS.,  G.Vfi,  gives  a  joke  wliich  they  un<lerto(ik  to  play  on 
tlic  OM  Cap,  as  MaCHliall  onll('<I  Sutter,  Thit)  was  nutliiii>;  !'.'o.4  lliaii  In  suit 
tlio  mine  in  order  that  Sutter  in  liis  excitement  nii^^ht  pass  tiie  liottle.  Wini- 
nier's  boy,  running  on  before,  pieketl  ui)  tlie  gohl  scattered  in  the  lace  for  the 
hurndess  surprising  of  Sutter,  and  thus  spoiled  their  sport, 

'■''  Indeed,  Sutter  elaiuta  that  lie  picked  with  a  small  knife  from  a  dry  gorge 
a  solidduinp  weighing  nearly  an  ounce  anil  a  half,  and  regarded,  the  triliutancs 
PS  the  richer  sources.  The  work-peonlo  obtained  an  inkling  of  their  discovery, 
although  they  sought  hencufortli  todampen  the  interest,  (hieof  the  Indiana 
wiio  seems  to  have  worked  iuuBouthoru  luiuo  published  his  knowledge.  J'trv, 
Jiem.,  MS. 


■m 


TREATY  WITH  THE  CULUMAS. 


41 


-way   there, 
the   bushes 
id  Sutter  of 
you  yester- 
ig.     "  Have 
[arshall ;  f\)r 
"I  shipt  at 
-S  tJiey  rode 
b  the  whole 
mill,  Sutter 
I  had  lately 
untaiii,  and 
it  the  water 
as  shut  off. 
laiinel,  and 

to  gather 
men,  added 
red  enough 
ich  he  soon 
inen  of  thn 
>artners  up 

and  in  the 

nisfortunc. 
st  come  to 
have  shut 
),  at  least. 
do  was  to 
c,  and  say 
l>V  which 
cted,  and 


his  other  nffairs  so  arranged  as  to  enable  him  to  with- 
stuiid  the  result.  The  men,  indeed,  were  not  yet 
prci'urcd  to  relinquish  good  wages  for  the  uncertain- 
ties in"  gold-gathering. 

If  (iiily  the  land  could  be  secured  on  which  this 
cTold  was  scattered — for  jirobably  it  did  not  extend  far 
ill  any  direction — then  interlo})ing  might  be  {prevented, 
milling  controlled,  and  tlie  discovery  made  profitable. 
It  was  worth  trying,  at  all  events.  ]\Iexican  grants 
Itcing  no  longer  possible,  Sutter  began  b}-  opi>ning 
negotiations  with  the  natives,  after  the  manner  of  the 
English  colonists  on  the  other  side  of  the  continent. 
Calling  a  council  of  the  Culumas  and  some  of  their 
neighbors,  the  lords  aboriginal  <»f  those  lands,  Sutter 
and  Marshall  obtained  fntm  them  a  three  years'  lease 
of  a  tract  some  ten  or  twelve  miles  s(juare,  on  payment 
<»f  some  shirts,  hats,  handkerchiefs,  flour,  and  other 
aitieh's  of  no  great  value,  the  natives  meanwhile  to 
be  left  unmolested  in  their  homes.'^''  Sutter  then  re- 
tuiiieil  to  Xew  Helvetia,  and  the  lifreat  discovery  was 
consunmiated. 

■'''/)'/';//')••<"  ninni,  MS.,  fid.  Marshall  spcnkf  of  this  as  tlie  consiiniinnlior) 
of ',111  ML't'coiiiciit  wo  li.id  iiiiide  with  this  tiihe  of  liulians  in  the  iiiniith  (if 
■•'•I'litiriihti-  iPit'viDUs,  to  wit,  that  wo  kIioiiIcI  live  with  thi'in  in  poacu  on  the 
siiinu  i.iiul.'  JJincowri/  o/Gold,  in  Jliitchiiiijn'  Maij.,  ii,  200. 


rwik  to  play  on 
than  III  Kult 
lottlc.  Wiiii- 
10  laco  fur  the 


)iii  a  dry  ^"'■so 
Lho  trilintai'ioM 
loir  (liHoovoi'V, 
)('  tilt!  Inilians 
« lodge.   Vliu. 


m 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE  SECRET  ESCAPES. 

FEBKrAKY,   1848. 

BEXNKTr  Goes  to  Monterey — See.s  Pkistek  at  Besicia — 'There  is  What 
wiij.  Bkat  Coal!'— Bennett  Meets  Isaac  Hisii'mkey  at  Sa>  Fuaxiiso 
—  UNstctEssKrL  Ai  MoNTEKEY— SrTTEu's  SWISS  Teamstei! — The  lioY 
AViM.MEK  Tells  Him  of  the  Gold— The  Mother  Wimmer,  to  I'koye 

HER  }Ji>Y  NOT  A  LlAIt,  SHOWS  It— AnI)  THE  TeaMSTEU,  Who  IS  TlIIRSTY, 

Shows  It  at  the  Fort— Affairs  at  the  Mill  PiiofEEH  as  Uspal— 
Busler's  Sunday  Meditations — Gold  Foi'nd  at  Live  Oak  Bar— 
Bitii.ER  Writes  his  Three  Friends  the  Secket— Who  U:>te  with 
Them  Other  Thkee  to  Hei.i-  Them  Keef  It — Three  Come  to  Coloma 
— Discovery  at  Mormon  Island — The  Mormon  P^.vit. 

Occasionally  instances  occur  where  one's  destiny, 
liitlierto  .seeniiuoly  confined  in  the  clouds,  is  let  out. 
in  a  Hood,  and  if  weak,  the  recipient  is  ovt.TW helmed 
and  carried  down  the  stream  by  it;  it'  he  be  strong-, 
and  makes  avail  of  it,  his  fortune  is  secnired;  in  any 
event,  it  is  his  opportunity. 

()[iportunity  here  })resented  itself  in  the  first  in- 
stance to  a  chosen  tlozen,  none  of  whom  a[)pear  to 
have  taken  due  advantai^e  of  it.  Havinij  no  realiza- 
tion of  their  situation,  tliey  left  tlie  field  to  after- 
comers,  who  by  direct  or  imhrect  means  drew  fortune 
from  it.  The  chief  actors,  MarsJiall  and  Sutter,  with 
j)i'opoi'tionately  greater  interests  at  stake,  primarily 
displayed  no  more  skill  than  the  others  in  making  avail 
of  opportunity,  the  former  ilrifting  away  withi>ut  on*' 
successful  grasp,  the  latter  making  a  brief  stand 
against  the  torrent,  oidy  in  the  end  to  sink  amidst  thu 
ruins  of  his  j)rojects  and  belongings. 

(  i'2  ) 


•f 


I 


f 


•3 


BENNETTS  MISSION. 


43 


■'TiiEKE  IS  What 

AT  Sa>  FhANCISO) 
MSTKlt — TllK  1$()Y 
IMMKK,  TO  TkoVE 

Who  is  Thiksty, 
•kkd  as  u.si'al— 
^iVE  Oak  Bak— 
Vint  UrsTE  with 

CoMK  TO  CoLOMA 
IT. 

le's  (lostiiiv, 

s,  is  let  out 

(Twholined 

1)0  strono', 

rui\;  in  any 

10  first  in- 
u|)|»e;ir  to 
no  realiza- 
il  to  Jit'tor- 
•o\v  fortune 
utter,  with 
',  j»riniarily 
jikiiiLi;'  avail 

itliout  Olli' 

>rief   .stand 
amidst  tliu 


Suttor  disclosed  hh  weakness  in  several  ways.  Al- 
thou*(h  enjoining  secrecy  upon  all  concerned,  and  show- 
iiuT  extreme  fear  lest  the  discovery  should  bo  known  by 
those  about  him,  the  inconstant  Swiss  could  not  him- 
self resist  the  temptation  of  telUng  it  to  his  friends  at 
a  distance.  Writing  Vallejo  the  10th  of  February, 
he  says:  "I  have  made  a  discovery  of  a  gold  mine, 
which,  according  to  experiments  we  have  made,  is  ex- 
traordinarily rich."^  Moreover,  not  wholly  satisfied 
with  his  Indian  title,  Sutter  determined  to  desj)atch  a 
messenger  to  Monterey,  fur  the  puqiose  of  further 
seruring  the  land  to  himself  and  Marshall  through 
(.'olonel  11.  B.  Mason,  chief  representative  of  the 
I'nited  States  government  in  California.  For  this 
mission  was  chosen  Charles  Bennett,  one  of  ^Marshall's 
asscK'iates,  and  standing  next  to  him  in  intelligence 
ami  ability  at  the  saw-mill.  The  messenger  was  in- 
structed to  say  nothing  about  the  discovery  of  gold, 
but  to  secure  the  land  with  mill,  pasture,  and  mineral 
privileges,  giving  as  a  reason  for  including  the  last 
the  appearance  of  lead  and  silver  in  the  soil."  The 
man,  however,  was  too  weak  for  the  purpose.  With 
him  in  a  buckskin  baij  he  carried  some  six  ounces  of 
the  secret,  which,  by  the  time  he  reached  Benicia, 
becanio  too  heavy  for  him.  There,  in  Pfister's  store, 
hearing  it  said  that  coal  had  been  foun<l  near  Monte 
del  Diablo,  and  that  in  conse(|uence  California  would 
assume  no  small  importance  in  the  eyes  of  her  new 
owners,  l^ennett  could  contain  himsi^lf  no  longer. 
"Coal!"  he  exclaimed;  "I  have  something  here  which 
will  beat  coal,  and  make  this  the  greatest  country  in 
the  world."  Whereupon  ho  produced  his  bag,  and 
jtassed  it  around  among  his  listeners.^ 

'  Tlie  nofoiiiplislu'd  |M>tt'iitiito  writes  every  man  in  his  own  lanjjnage,  tliiniL;li 
IiIh  S|)iinisli  is  not  much  better  than  liis  English.  "V  he  heelio  un  desnihii- 
niiento  tie  niina  tie  oro,  tj"  .nigiin  lieinoH  e.si)eiinieiittulo  es  exti-uoi'diniiiiMiente 
litii.'    Vii/l,Jn,  Dori,  MS.,  xii.  ;«'J. 

'This  on  the  nnthority  of  lliglcr.  I)ii;nj  of  a  Mormon,  MS.,  •>(!.  Some 
fa;,  ihdt  Bennett  held  foiUraets  with  Murshall  under  Sutter.  IItiiil''<  M' r.  Miii/., 
A.\.  olt;  hut  fortius  there  is  no  good  authority,  lie  set  out  for  Monterey 
towiird  the  middle  of  Felinnirv. 

•*  Several  eluini  the  honor  of  earrying  the  first  gold  iHjyoud  the  jirecincts  of 


44 


THE  SECRET  ESCAPES. 


On  roach in<:]f  San  Francisco  Bennett  licard  of  one 
Isaac  Hinnphrey,  who, among  other  thinj^s,  knew  sonie- 
thiiiLj  of  gold-mining.  He  had  followed  that  occupa- 
tion in  (leorgia,  but  luu-dly  expected  his  talents  in 
that  direction  to  be  called  in  requisition  in  California. 
Bennett  sou<jht  an  introduction,  and  aijain  broULrht 
forth  his  purse.  Thus  Sutter's  secret  was  in  a  Hue 
way  of  being  kept  I  Humphrey  at  once  pronounced 
the  contents  of  the  purse  to  be  gold.  At  Monterey 
ISTason  declined  to  make  any  promise  respecting  title  to 
lands,*  and  Bennett  consoled  hitiiself  for  the  failure  of 
his  mission  by  offering  further  glimpses  of  his  treasure. 

In  order  to  prevent  a  spreading  infection  among 
his  dejtendents,  Sutter  determined  that  so  far  as  p(ts- 
sible  all  comnmnication  with  the  saw-mill  should  for 
the  present  be  stopped.  Toward  the  latter  end  of 
February,  however,  he  found  it  necessary  to  sentl 
thither  provisions,®     To  a  Swiss  teamster,  as  a  jjer- 

tlie  fiilifoniia  Valley.  Biihvcll,  Cnlifornia  lSJ,d-S,  MS.,  231,  says  he  was 
tlie  first  to  pnii'laiiii  tlie  news  in  Soiiuiiia  and  S.  F.  '  I  wuU  renioniljer  ValleJD's 
Words,'  he  writes,  'when  I  told  him  of  the  discovery  and  wliere  it  iiad  taken 
place.  Ho  said,  "As  the  water  flows  through  Sutter's  mill-race,  may  the  gold 
flow  into  Sutter's  nurse."'  This  must  have  been  after  or  at  the  time  of  IJen- 
iiett's  journey;  I  do  not  think  it  preceded  it.  Hidwell  calls  the  chief  rulerat 
Monterey  (iov.  Riley,  instead  of  Col  Mason;  and  if  his  memory  is  at  fault 
npoii  8o  conspicuous  a  point,  he  niii^iit  easily  overlook  the  fact  that  lienuett 
preceded  him.  Furthermore,  we  have  many  who  s^xiak  of  meeting  Hennctt  at 
S.  F.,  and  of  examining  his  gold,  hut  not  one  who  mentions  iJiilwell's  name 
in  that  connection.  Sutter  was  adopting  a  singular  course,  certainly,  to  have 
his  secret  kept,  (jregson.  Slat.,  M.S.,  8,  thinks  tiiat  the  first  gold  was  taken  l)y 
McKinstiy  in  Sutter  s  launch  to  S.  F.,  and  there  delivered  to  Folsom.  Such 
otatcments  as  the  following,  though  made  in  good  faith,  amount  to  little  in 
determining  as  to  the  first.  That  fu'st  seen  or  known  l)y  a  person  to  him  is  first, 
notwitiistanding  anotlier's  first  may  have  Injen  prior  to  his.  '  1  .saw  the  first 
gold  that  was  brought  down  to  S.  F.  It  was  in  Howard  &  Melius'  store, 
anil  in  tiieir  charge.  It  was  in  four-ounce  vial,  or  near  that  size.'  Ai/<  r''<  I'lf' 
aoiKtl  All  v.,  MS.,  2. 

*  Sherman,  Mnnoim,  i.  40,  states  that  this  application  was  made  by  two 
persons,  from  wliicii  one  might  infer  that  Humphrey  accompanied  Jk'niiett 
to  Monterey.  Tliey  there  displayed  'ab<mt  half  an  ounce  of  placer  gold.' 
They  presented  a  letter  from  Sutter,  to  wiiicli  Mason  replied  '  that  Calitor- 
liia  was  Yeta  Mexican  province,  simply  held  by  us  as  a  coni(uest;  tiiat  no  laws 
of  the  if.  S.  yet  applied  to  it,  much  less  the  land  laws  or  preemption  laws, 
wi\icli  could  oidy  apply  after  a  public  survey.'  See,  further,  liiifl'iiin  ■<  Si.e 
Mmtthntii  llolil  Mini.*,  08;  liii/lrr'n  iJitin/of' a  Mnrmoii,  MS,,  (Ui;  IiiilnrU'n  ( 'at- 
tji>.;ii,i  1S4I  S,  MS.,  '2'M;  Ji'roinir*  Mhi.'  /{.„.,  14;  UittilVs  J/kl.  S.  /',,  125. 
(jregson,  Slut.,  MS.,  usiya  that  Reunett  died  in  Oregon. 

*  '  We  had  salt  salmon  and  Ixjiled  wheat,  and  we,  the  discoverers  of  gold. 


THE  DRUNKEN  TEAMSTER. 


45 


loard  of  one 
,  knewsoino- 
that  occupa- 
is  talents  in 
n  California, 
ain  brouLjlit 
ras  in  a  Hno 
pronounced 
i-t  Monterey 
eting  title  to 
lie  failure  of 
his  treasure. 

ction  anionjx 
1)  tar  as  pos- 
1  should  for 
itter  end  of 
iry  to  send 
3r,  as  a  ))er- 

!31,  says  lie  was 

nfinl)er  Vullejo's 

1010  it  Iia<l  takoii 

,01',  limy  tliogolcl 

liu  time  of  lioii- 

lie  oliii'f  nilorat 

iiory  is  at  fault 

lot  tliat  Ik'iiiiott 

■ting  Jieiiiiott  at 

liidwelTs  name 

itaiiily,  to  liiivo 

111  was  taken  l»y 

Folsom.     Siioli 

Hint  to  little  in 

toliimisfirst, 

'  1  saw  the  lirst 

Melius'  store, 

:o.'  Ay>r'sJ\i'- 

mnilc  liy  two 
l)ani<-.l  Iknnott 
])f  j)l.i.or  golil.' 
that  ('alitor- 
t;  that  no  laws 
fein|ition  laws, 
\,  liiijf'iun  H  Si.e 

Hhhrfll'M  ( ■((/. 
I^•<^  .S'.  /',.  1  •_>,■}. 

'erers  of  gold, 


son  specially  reliable,  this  mission  was  intrusted. 
Tlie  man  would  indeed  die  rather  than  betray  any 
suLTut  of  his  kind  countryman  and  master;  but  alas  I 
he  loved  intoxication,  that  too  treacherous  felicity. 
Arrived  at  Coloma,  the  teamster  encountered  one  ttf 
tho  Wimmer boys,  who  exclaimed  triumphantly,  "We 
hivu  found  gold  up  here."  The  teamster  so  ridiculed 
tic  idea  that  the  mother  at  length  became  some- 
what nettled,  and  to  prove  her  son  truthful,  she  not 
onlv  produced  the  stuff,  but  gave  some  to  the  teamster. 
Returned  to  the  fort,  his  arduous  duty  done,  the  man 
u'ust  have  a  drink.  Often  he  had  tried  at  Smith  and 
Brumian's  store  to  quench  his  thirst  from  the  whis- 
k  y  barrel,  and  pay  for  the  same  in  promises.  On 
til  is  occasion  he  presented  at  the  counter  a  bold  front 
and  demanded  a  bottle  of  the  delectable,  at  the  same 
time  laying  down  the  dust.  "  What  is  that?  "  asked 
Smith.  "  Gold,"  was  the  reply.  Smith  thought  the 
fellow  was  quizzing  him;  nevertheless  he  spoke  of  it 
to  Sutter,  who  finally  acknowledged  the  fact." 

About  the  time  of  Bennett's  departure  Sutter's 
scliooner  went  down  the  river,  carrying  specimens  of 
the  new  discovery,  and  Folsom,  the  quartermaster  in 
Sun  Francisco,  learned  of  the  fact,  informed,  it  is  sai<l, 
\)X  ^[cKinstry.  Then  John  Bid  well  went  to  the  Bay 
{UK I  spread  the  Lews  broadcast.  Smith,  store-keeper 
at  the  fort,  sent  word  of  it  to  his  partner,  Brannan; 
and  thus  by  various  ways  the  knowledge  became  gen- 
eral. 

It  was  not  long  before  the  saw-mill  society,  which 
numbered  among  its  members   one  woman  and  two 

Wore  living  on  that  when  gold  was  fonnd,  and  we  were  suffering  from  sourvy 
fiftorwunl.  Uri'<i'*oii'x  Statement,  M.S.,  9.  An  intiiction  this  man  might  un- 
('uTL'o  almost  anywhere,  bviug,  if  like  his  manuscript,  sonietliiug  of  a  scurvy 
iVlliiw.  Mark  the  'we,  the  discoverers 
was  not  at  the  mill  wheu  gold  was  found. 


iscnpt,  son 
d,'  fief  ore 


noticed.     (.Srogfon 


'' '  I  should  have  sent  my  Indians,'  groaned  .Sutter  28  years  afterward.  It 
«n'iiis  tiiat  the  gentle  .Swiss  always  found  his  beloved  alHiriginals  far  lesa 
trenolierous  than  the  white-skinned  parasites.  See  SiUter'n  Hem.,  MS.,  171-3; 
/■.'/  r^cnla,  this  series;  J/utchiiiya'  Jlciy.,  ii.  llKi;  Dunbar' s  Itomu  ace  of  Ih* 
d'jr,  114-15. 


-hi 


i' 


46 


THE  SECRET  ESCAPES. 


boys,  found  the  matter,  in  common  Mi'th  tlie  others, 
too  weighty  for  them.  For  a  time  affairs  liero  pro- 
ceeded much  as  usual.  The  men,  who  for  tlie  most 
part  were  honest  and  conscientious,  had  pledged  their 
word  to  six  weeks'  work,  and  they  meant  to  keep  it. 
The  idea  of  self-sacrifice,  if  any  such  arose,  was  tem- 
pered by  the  thought  that  perhaps  after  all  there  was 
but  little  gold,  and  that  little  confined  within  narrow- 
limits;  hence  if  they  abandoned  profitable  service  for 
an  uncertainty,  they  might  find  themselves  losers  in 
the  end.  As  a  matter  of  course,  thev  could  have  no 
conception  of  the  extent  and  power  of  the  spirit  they 
had  awakened.  It  was  not  necessary,  however,  that 
on  Sundays  they  should  resist  the  worship  of  ^lain- 
mon,  w  ho  was  indeed  now  fa.st  becoming  the  chief  god 
hereabout. 

The  historic  tail-race,  where  first  in  these  parts  bo- 
came  incarnate  this  deity,  more  potent  presently  than 
either  Christ  or  Krishna,  conunauded  first  attention; 
indeed,  for  some  time  after  gold  had  been  found  in 
other  places,  it  remained  the  favorite  picking-ground 
of  the  mill-men.  Their  only  tools  as  vet  were  their 
knives,  and  with  these  from  the  seams  and  crevices 
each  person  managed  to  extract  metal  at  the  rate  of 
from  three  to  eight  dollars  a  day.  For  the  purpose 
of  calculating  their  gains,  they  constructed  a  light 
pair  of  wooden  scales,  in  which  was  weighed  silver 
coin  against  their  gold.  Thus,  a  Mexican  real  do 
plata  was  balanced  by  two  dollars'  worth  of  gold, 
which  they  valued  at  sixteen  dollars  the  ounce,  less 
than  it  was  really  worth,  but  more  than  could  be  ol> 
tained  for  it  in  the  mines  a  few  months  later.  Gold- 
dust  which  balanced  a  silver  quarter  of  a  dollar  was 
deemed  worth  four  dollars,  and  so  on. 

On  the  6th  of  February,  the  second  Sunday  after 
Marshall's  discoverv,  while  the  others  were  as  usual 
busied  in  the  tail-race,  Henry  Bigler  and  James  Bar- 
ger  crossed  the  river,  and  from  a  bare  rock  opposite 
the  mill,  with  nothing  but  their  pocket-knives,  ob- 


THE  GOLD-FIELDS. 


47 


taincd  together  goltl  to  the  value  of  ten  dollars.  The 
Saturday'folloNving,  Bigler  descended  the  river  half  a 
mile,  when,  seeing  on  the  other  side  some  rocks  left 
bare  hy  a  land-slide,  he  stripped  and  crossed.  There, 
ill  the  seams  of  the  rocks,  were  particles  of  the  pre- 
cious stuff  exposed  to  view,  of  which  the  next  day  he 
oatht^red  half  an  ounce,  and  the  Sunday  following  an 
ounce.  Snow  preventing  work  at  the  mill,  on  Tues- 
day, the  22d,  he  set  out  for  the  same  place,  and  ob- 
tained an  ounce  and  a  half.  Up  to  this  time  he  had 
kept  the  matter  to  himself,  carrying  with  him  a  gun 
on  pretext  of  shooting  ducks,  in  order  to  divert  suspi- 
cion. Questioned  closely  on  this  occasion,  he  told  liis 
comrades  what  he  had  been  doing,  and  the  following 
Sunday  five  of  them  accompanied  him  to  tlie  same 
spot,  and  .spent  the  day  hunting  in  the  sand.  All 
were  well  rewarded.  In  the  opposite  direction  suc- 
cess proved  no  less  .satisf{ictf)ry.  Accompanied  by 
James  Greg.son,  Marshall  ascended  the  river  three 
miles;  and  at  a  place  which  he  named  Live  Oak  I^ar, 
if  we  may  believe  Gregson,  they  picked  up  with  their 
fingers  without  digging  a  pint  of  gold,  in  pieces  up  to 
tlie  size  of  a  bean.^  Thus  was  gradually  enlarged  the 
area  of  the  gold-field 

About  the  21st  of  February,  Bigler  wrote  to  certain 
of  his  comrades  of  the  Mormon  battalion — Jesse  ]Mar- 
tin,  Israel  Evans,  and  Ephraim  Green,  who  were  at 
work  on  Sutter's  flour-null — informing  them  of  tlie 
discovery  of  gold,  and  charging  them  to  keep  it  secret, 
or  to  tell  it  to  tho.se  only  who  could  be  trusted.  The 
result  was  the  arrival,  on  the  evening  of  the  27th,  of 
three  men,  Sidney  Willis,  Fiefield,  and  Wilford  Hud- 

'  -tdfement  of  JamPA  OrrrfKon,  M.^.,  passim.  Tlie  author  was  an  Enjflish- 
ninn,  wliu  came  to  California  in  184.)  and  engaged  witli  Sntter  as  a  wiiip- 
H.iwyt'r.  Lundicr  then  cost  $30  a  thousantl  at  .Sutter's  Foit.  Hi- served  iii 
till'  w.-ir,  and  after  the  diseovcry  of  jfohl  went  to  Colonia,  ai'conipaiiicd  liy  ids 
viiV.  Tlirowing  up  his  engagement  with  Marshall,  he  secured  that  year 
?H.(HH)  in  gold-dust.  Mutter  appears  to  liave,  in  Fehruary,  alretnly  set  some 
IikIIums  to  pick  gold  rooud  the  mill.  His  claim  tu  tills  ground  was  long 
rt'Si)ei;ted. 


I  i!l  V 


46 


THE  SECRET  ESCAPES. 


son,  who  said  they  had  come  to  search  for  gold. 
Marshall  roceived  thoiii  graciously  enough,  and  gave 
them  permission  to  mine  in  the  tail-race.  Accord- 
ingly, next  morning  they  all  went  there,  and  soon 
Hudsion  |)icked  up  a  piece  weighing  six  dollars.  Thus 
encouraged  they  continued  their  labors  with  fair 
success  till  the  2d  of  March,  when  they  felt  obliged 
to  return  to  the  Hour-mill;  for  to  all  except  Martin, 
their  informant,  they  had  intimated  that  their  trip  to 


yi  1 


,f|, 


?    N 


T^MJL^,. .^■.. ,„ 


J^:'^:iEL-f^"       "^^ 


MoKMoN  Island. 

the  saw-mill  was  merely  to  pay  a  visit,  and  to  shoot 
deer.  Willis  and  Hudson  followed  the  stream  to  con- 
tinue the  search  for  gold,  and  Fiefield,  accompanied 
by  Bigler,  pursued  the  easier  route  by  the  road.  On 
meeting  at  the  flour-mill,  Hudson  expressed  disgust 
at  being  able  to  show  only  a  few  fine  particles,  not 
more  tiian  half  a  dollar  in  value,  which  he  and  his 
companion  had  found  at  a  bar  opposite  a  little  island, 
about  half-way  down  the  river.  Nevertheless  the 
disease  worked  its  way  into  the  blood  of  other  Mor- 


THE  MORMONS. 


49 


nion  boys,  and  Ephraim  Green  and  Ira  Willis,  brother 
of  Sidney  Willis,  urged  the  prospectors  to  return, 
that  together  tliey  might  examine  the  place  which 
had  shown  indications  of  gold.  It  was  with  difficulty 
that  they  prevailed  upon  them  to  do  so.  Willis  and 
Hudson,  however,  finally  consented;  and  the  so  lately 
slifiited  spot  presently  became  famous  as  the  rich 
Mormon  Diggings,  the  island,  Moriijon  Island,  taking 
its  name  from  these  battalion  boys  who  had  first 
found  gold  there. 

It  is  told  elsewhere  how  the  Mormons  came  to 
California,  some  in  the  ship  Brooklyn,  and  some  as  a 
battalion  by  way  <jf  Santa  Fe,  and  how  they  went 
lieiice  to  the  Great  Salt  Lake,  part  of  them,  however, 
remaining  permanently  or  for  a  time  nearer  the  sea- 
l)oard.  1  will  onl}'^  notice  here,  amidst  the  scenes 
now  every  day  becoming  more  and  more  absorbing, 
bringing  to  the  front  the  strongest  passions  in  man's 
nature,  how  at  the  call  of  what  they  deemed  duty 
these  devotees  of  their  religion  unhesitatinglv  laid 
down  their  wealth-winning  implements,  turned  their 
hack  on  what  all  the  world  was  just  then  making 
ready  with  hot  haste  and  mustered  strength  to  grasp 
at  and  stru<jr«>le  for,  and  marched  through  new  toils  and 
dangers  to  meet  tiieir  exiled  brethren  in  the  desert. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  some  of  the  emiffrants 
l)y  the  Ih'ookli/n  had  remained  at  San  Francisco,  some 
at  New  Helvetia,  while  others  had  settled  on  the 
Stanislaus  River  and  elsewhere.  A  large  detachment 
iif  the  late  Mormon  battalion,  disbanded  at  Los  An- 
geles, was  on  its  way  to  Great  Salt  Lake,  when,  arriv- 
ing at  Sutter's  F(jrt,  tlie  men  stopped  to  work  a  while, 
no  lews  to  add  a  little  to  their  slender  store  of  clothing 
and  provisions  than  to  await  a  better  season  for  the 
perilous  journey  across  the  mountains.  It  was  while 
thus  eni})loyed  that  gold  had  been  discovered.  And 
now,  refreshed  and  better  fitted,  as  spring  approached 
their  minds  once  more  turned  toward  the  original  pur- 

HiST.  Cai...  Vol.  VI.    i 


flO 


THE  SECRET  ESCAPES. 


11 


pose.  They  had  promised  Sutter  to  stand  by  him  and 
finish  the  saw-mill;  this  they  did,  starting  it  running' 
on  the  1 1th  of  March.     Henry  Bigler  was  still  there. 

On  the  7th  of  April  Bigler,  Stephens,  and  I^rowii 
presented  themselves  at  the  fort  to  settle  accounts 
with  Sutter,  and  discuss  preliminaries  for  their  jour- 
ney with  their  comrades.  The  1st  of  June  was  tixtd 
upon  for  the  start.  Sutter  was  to  be  informed  ol 
their  intention,  that  he  might  provide  other  workmen. 
Horses,  cattle,  and  seeds  were  to  be  bought  from  him; 
also  two  brass  cannon.  Three  of  their  number  had 
to  precede  to  pioneer  a  route ;  eight  men  were  ready 
to  start  as  an  t)verland  express  to  the  States,  as  the 
loved  land  east  of  the  Mississippi  was  then  called.  It 
was  not,  however,  until  about  a  month  later  that  the 
Mormons  could  move,  for  the  constantly  increasiiin^ 
gold  excitement  disarranged  their  plans  and  drew 
from  their  numbers. 

In  the  mean  time  the  thrifty  saints  determined  to 
improve  the  opportunity,  that  they  might  carry  to 
their  desert  rest  as  nmch  of  the  world's  currency  as 
possible.  On  the  11th  of  April,  Bigler,  Brown,  and 
Stephens  set  out  on  their  return  to  Coloma,  camping 
fifteen  miles  above  the  flouring  mill,  on  a  creek.  In 
the  morning  they  began  to  search  for  gold  and  found 
ten  dollars'  worth.  Knowin<jf  that  others  of  their 
fraternity  were  at  work  in  that  vicinity,  they  fidlowed 
the  stream  upward  and  came  upon  them  at  Mormon 
Island,  where  seven  had  taken  out  that  day  ^250/ 
No  little  encouragement  was  added  by  this  hitherto 
unparalleled  yield,  due  greatly  to  an  improvement  in 
method  by  washing  the  dust-speckled  earth  in  Indian 
baskets  and  bowls,  and  thus  sifting  out  also  finer  parti- 
cles.    Under  an  agreement  to  divide  the  product  of 

•The  seven  men  were  Sidney  Willis  and  Wilford  Hudson,  wlio  had  fust 
found  gold  there,  Ira  Willis,  Jesse  B.  Martin,  Ephraim  (Jreen,  Israel  Evans, 
and  James  Sly.  In  regard  to  the  names  of  tlie  last  two  Bigler  is  not  positive. 
Diary  of  a  Mormon,  MS.,  70.  Heo  altio  Mfiidociiio  JJrmorrnt,  Feh.  1,  1 87-; 
J/Uteir»  Mininij,  14;  Shermaii'n  Mem.,  i.  51;  Gold  Dis.,  Arrouut  hi/  a  Monn"n, 
in  Hnyen'  Cnl.  Miiiinii,  iii.  8;  Onifoii  Biiltefhi,  Jan.  12,  IH7-;  Aiitioch  Lvdjir, 
Feb.  3,  187'-';  FtndMaStcU.,  MS.,  6;  Rons'  Stat.,  MS.,  14. 


."3 


EXODUS  OF  THE  SAIXTS.  ' 


61 


tlieir  liilior  with  Sutter  and  Marsliall,  wlio  funiisshed 
tools  and  provisions,  Bi.Ljler  and  liis  associates  mined 
lor  two  njonths,  one  mile  below  the  saw-mill."  They 
sto|»|K'd  in  the  midst  of  their  sucees.s,  however,  and 
tiurini,'  themselves  away  from  tlie  fascination,  they 
utarti'd  on  June  17th  in  search  of  a  suitable  rendez- 
vous, where  all  the  saints  mijjfht  conj^regate  prior  to 
ht  ^;inning  their  last  pilgrimage  across  the  mountains. 
'I'iii'V  found  such  a  spot  the  next  day,  near  where 
I'lacVrville  now  stands,  calling  it  Pleasant  Valley. 
J'aities  arrived  one  after  another,  some  driving  loose 
horses  into  a  jirepared  timber  corral,  others  swtjlling 
the  camp  with  wagons,  cattle,  and  eft'ects;  and  so  the 
gathering  continued  till  the  3d  of  July,  when  a  gen- 
iial  move  was  made.  As  the  wagons  rolled  up  along 
the  <livide  between  the  American  River  and  the 
( 'osumnes  on  the  national  4th,  their  cannon  thundered 
independence  before  the  high  Sierra.  It  was  a  strange 
sight,  exiles  for  their  faith  thus  delighting  to  honor 
the  power  that  had  driven  them  as  outcasts  into  the 
wiidei'noss. 

The  i)arty  consisted  of  forty-five  men  and  one 
woman,  the  wife  of  W^illiam  Coory.  It  was  by  almost 
incredible  toil  that  these  brave  men  cut  the  way  for 
their  wagons,  lifted  them  up  the  stony  ascents,  and 
let  them  down  the  steep  declivities.  Every  step 
added  to  the  danger,  as  heralded  by  the  death  of 
the  three  pioneers,  iJaniel  Brow^ett,  Ezra  H.  Allen, 
and  Henderson  Cox,  who  were  found  killed  by  the 
Indians  of  the  Sierra.  And  un«launted,  though  sor- 
rowful, and  filled  with  manv  a  foreboding,  the  survi- 
vols  descended  the  eastern  slo})e  and  wended  their 
way  through  the  thirsty  desert;  and  there  we  must 
itave  them  and  return  to  our  gold-diu:<;ers. 

"'  Having'  an  iinderstaiulin^  with  Mr  Marshall  to  <lig  on  shares. .  .so  lon^ 
as  we  uorketl  on  Ilia  cluiins  or  laud.'  Biijler,  Diary  of  a  Mormon,  MS.,  ~'t. 
A  .MuriiKin  writing  in  thu  TiniPH  and  Transcript  says:  'They  unik'rtook  to 
tM,ik(!  lis  giM!  tliuni  half  tho  gold  wo  got  for  the  iirivili'ge  of  iliggini,'  on  their 
luiid.  Thia  was  afterward  reduced  to  one  third,  and  in  a  few  weeks  was 
fiiviii  u|>  iiltogetlier.'  Mrs  Winiriier  states  that  Sutter  and  Marsliall  elainie<l 
tliir  ty  p'.'r  cent  of  the  gold  found  on  their  grunt;  Uruaniin  for  a  time  secured 
toi  per  cent  oil  the  pretext  of  tithes. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

PROXIMATE  KFFECT  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 

Makcii-Aitcjust,  1848. 

TiiK  People  Sceptical  at  Fik.st — Atiitphk  t)K  the  Press — TiiEronirrRY 

C«).NVEKTEI»   IIY   A   MlUH  T  Of  THE   M  ETAL  — TllE  Eni>E.MIC  AT  S.\N    Fkan 

CISCO — At  San  Jos^,,  Montekey,  and  imiwn  the  Coast — The  Exours 
—  De-sertion  of  Soi.oier.s  am>  Saiu)Rs-  Abandonment  ;>k  Uisinkss, 
OF  Farms,  anu  of  All  Kinds  of  Positions  ani>  PRtiPERiy. 

As  wlioii  some  carcass,  hiddon  in  sequestered  nook, 
draws  from  every  near  and  distant  point  myriads  of 
discordant  vultures,  so  drew  these  little  Hakes  ot'^dld 
the  voracious  sons  of  men.  The  stron«»est  lium.iii 
apjvjtite  was  aroused — the  sum  of  appetitt  • — tlii«i 
yellow  dirt  embodying  the  means  for  gratifving  love, 
hate,  lust,  and  domination.  This  little  scratch  upon 
the  earth  to  make  a  backwoods  mill-race  touched  tln' 
cerei)ral  nerve  that  quickened  humanity,  and  sent  a 
thrill  throughout  the  system.  It  tin«;led  in  the  lai 
and  at  the  finger  ends;  it  buzzed  about  the  brain  ami 
tickled  in  the  stomach;  it  warmed  the  blood  and 
swelled  the  heart;  new  tires  were  kindleil  on  tin 
hearth-stones,  new  castles  builded  in  the  air.  It 
Satan  from  Diablo's  peak  had  sounded  the  knell  ••! 
time;  if  a  heavenly  angel  from  the  Sierra's  heiglit 
had  heralded  the  millennial  day;  if  the  blessed  Christ 
himself  had  risen  from  that  ditch  and  proclaimed  t" 
all  mankind  amnesty — their  greedy  hearts  had  novir 
half  so  thrilled. 

The  effect  of  the  gold  discovery  could  not  be  Ion,' 
confined  to  the  narrow  limits  of  Sutter's  domain.     TIk 


UTTLE  THOUGHT  OF  IT  AT  FIRST. 


:OVERY. 


jm.H_TiiKrori<rTRY 
KM  10  AT  San  Fkav 
DAST— Tub  Kxoins 

MKNT  '.IK  BlMISfcSS, 
I'BorKRTY. 

lestored  nook, 
nt  myriiuls  nt 
Hakes  ot'goM 
HiTt'st   huiiiiiii 
H)otitc'' — tin-; 
atityiug  love, 
scratch  upon 
>  touclied  til* 
,  ami  sunt  a 
led  in  the  car 
Ithe  hrain  aiitl  ; 
ic    blood  ami 
ulled  on    tlif 
the   air.     !> 
the  kneU  <>t' 
crra's  heii^lit 
lessed  Christ 
)rocUuined  t" 
ts  liad  never 

ll  not  be  Ions 
loniain.     The 

(W) 


jjifonnation  scattered  by  tlio  S\viH«and  liis  dependents 
had  been  further  dissoniinated  in  ditterent  directions 
bv  others.  Nevertheless,  while  a  few  like  Hum- 
l»hrey,  the  Georj^ia  miner,  responded  at  once  to  the 
iiiriuence,  as  a  rule  little  was  thought  of  it  at  first, 
particularly  by  those  at  a  distance.  The  nature  and 
extefit  of  the  deposits  being  unknown,  the  significance 
or  importance  of  the  discovery  could  not  be  ap[>re- 
ciated.  It  was  not  unconum)n  at  any  time  to  hear  nf 
u(»i(l  or  other  metals  being  found  iiere,  there,  or  any- 
wlierc,  in  America,  Europe,  or  Asia,  and  nothing 
<i»iiic  of  it.  To  emigrants,  among  other  attractions, 
yt»l(l  Iwul  been  njentioned  as  one  of  the  j)ossible  or  prol>- 
;il)le  resources  (»'"  California;  but  to  plodding  agricul- 
turists or  mechanics  the  idea  of  searching  the  wilder- 
ness for  gold  would  have  been  deenu'd  visionary,  or 
the  fact  of  little  moment  that  some  one  somewhere 
had  found  gold.'  When  so  intelhgent  a  man  as  Sem- 
ple  at  Henicia  was  told  of  it  he  said,  "I  would  give 
iiiuic  for  a  good  coai  mine  than  for  all  tiie  gold  mines 
in  the  universe."  At  Sonoma,  Vallejo  passed  the 
I'latter  by  with  a  i>Ie-  e  of  ))leasantry.' 

Tlie  tirst  smal'  M-'.es  of  gold  that  Captain  Folsom 
examined  at  San  Francisco  he  pronounce<l  mica;  he 
did  not  believe  a  man  wh<>  came  down  .some  time  after 
with  twenty  ounces  when  he  claimed  to  have  gathered 
it  in  eight  days.  Some  time  in  April  Folsom  wrote 
to  Mason  at  ^Tonterev,  making  casual  mention  of  the 
existing  rumor  of  gold  on  the  Sacramento,  In  May 
iJiadley,  a  friend  of  Folsom's,  went  to  Afonterey,  and 
was  asked  by  Mason  if  he  knew  anvthiuii  of  this  <ifold 
discovery  on  the  American  River.     "I  have  heard  of 

'  Tlie  [H-opIo  here  <liil  not  believe  it,'  aaya  FiixUn,  '  tliey  thought  it  was  a 
hoax.  Tliey  hud  foiiiid  in  Tai'iuu.s  phices  iil)oiit  S.  K.,  iioUilily  on  racitic  Stret't, 
ypi  riinens  of  different  minerals,  gohl  and  sil\-er  anioni;  tliein,  lint  in  very  Hinall 
i|iiantitii's;  and  so  they  were  not  inclined  to  Indievu  in  the  discovery  at  Siit- 
til's  mill.'  (iillespie  teatities  tothesame.  He  did  notat  all  crcditthu  story. 
'riiiir  samples  in tiuilUand  vials  were  displayed  liefore  the  infection  took  in  the 
t.wn.  GillfH/,itn  Ihj.  Com,,  MS.,  4;  Findlu'i.  Stat.,  MS.,  4-6;  Wittvu'a  Thirtu 
)m,/<,  1<J-i»0. 


fi',: 


(■ 


54 


PROXIMATE  EFFKCT  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


it,"  replied  Bradley.  "A  few  fools  have  hurried  to 
the  |)lace,  but  you  may  be  sure  there  is  nothing  in  it." 

On  Wednesday,  the  15th  of  March,  the  Calijhrnian, 
one  of  the  two  weekly  newspapers  then  pubhshed  at 
San  Francisco,  contained  a  brief  paragraph  to  the 
cffet^t  that  gold  had  been  discovered  in  considerable 
quantities  at  Sutter's  saw-mill.^  The  editor  hazardf.d 
the  remark  that  California  was  probably  rich  in  min- 
erals. On  the  following  Saturday  the  other  weekly 
paper,  the  California  Star,  mentioned,  without  edito- 
rial conuuent,  that  gold  had  been  found  forty  miles 
above  Sutler's  Fort. 

The  items,  if  noticed  at  all,  certainl}'^  created  no 
excitement.  Little  if  any  more  was  thought  of  gold 
])i()babilities  than  those  of  silver,  or  quicksilver,  or 
coal,  and  not  half  as  much  as  of  agriculture  and  fruit- 
growing.^    This  was  in  March. 

In  April  a  somewhat  altered  tone  is  noticed  in  ac- 
cording greater  consideration  to  the  gold  discoveries.* 

'Thi.s,  the  tintt  priiiteil  notice  of  the  discovery,  ran  as  follows:  '  (Sold  niiii" 
fouiiil.  In  the  newly  umde  raceway  of  the  saw-mill  recently  erected  by  (Jii|i 
tuin  .Sutter  on  the  Ainericun  fork,  gold  lias  lieen  found  in  eoimitlerablu  (|uaii 
titles.  One  person  broilght  thirty  dollars'  worth  to  New  Helvetia,  gatheicil 
there  in  a  8iir)rt  time.  Diilifornia  no  doubt  is  rich  in  mineral  wealth;  ^rcai 
cliuiiL'csi  hoi°c>  for  scientilic  capitalists.  Gold  haa  lieen  found  in  every  part  ut 
tlie  country.' 

'The  editor  of  the  .S^/ar,  writing  the 'i.'ith  of  March,  says:  'A  gootl  mnvi' 
it  Would  be  for  all  property  hoKlers  in  the  place,  who  have  no  vory  settlcil 
purpose  of  improving  the  town,  and  <listant  ideait  of  raiv  chances  at  speculii 
tiou,  to  employ  upon  their  unoccupied  lantls  some  few  of  our  liquor-hoiisr 
idlers,  and  in  the  process  of  ploughing,  harrowing,  hoeing,  and  planting  it  is 
not  idle  to  believe  some  hidden  treasure  would  bo  brought  out.  Some  silvi  r 
mines  iti'e  wanted  in  this  vicinity,  couhl  they  bo  had  without  experiencing' 
the  ill  elfects  following  in  the  train  of  their  discovery.  Monterey,  our  cii|i 
itul,  rests  on  a  IhmI  of  ((uicksilver,  so  say  the  cute  and  knowing.  We  say  il 
MO  can  discover  ourselves  upon  a  Imd  of  silver  we,  for  our  single  self,  shall 
straigiitway  tiirow  up  the  ncn  and  cry  aloud  with  Hood:  'A  pickaxe  or  ii 
S|iade.'  On  the  .same  date  he  says:  'Si>  great  is  tlie  ipiantity  of  gold  takrii 
fi'oiu  tiie  mine  I'ecently  found  at  \ew  Helvetia  that  it  has  l>eeouio  an  article 
of  ti'ullic  in  that  vicinity.' 

*  Fiiurgeaud.  in  a  serial  article  on  '  The  Prospects  of  California,'  writes  in 
the  Slur  the  1st  of  April;  '  Wo  saw,  a  few  days  ago,  a  iNJikUtiful  s|)euimen  nf 
g.ild  from  the  mine  ne'.vly  discovered  on  the  Americi'ii  fork.  From  all  ii>' 
counts  the  mine  is  immensely  rich,  and  alreaily  we  learn  that  gold  from  ii, 
collected  at  random  and  without  any  trouble,  hiis  become  ait  article  of  tnuli' 
at  the  upper  sottleinents.  This  precious  inetul  ulM>un<ls  in  thid  countrv.  W'' 
li.ive  heanl  of  several  other  newly  discovered  mines  of  goUl,  but  as  these  h' 

Enrts  are  not  yet  authenticiited,  we  shall  jtass  over  tln"n.     However,  it  is  w  ill 
uowu  that  there  is  u  plaoero  of  gold  u    :vf  utiles  from  the  Ciudad  du  Ion  Au- 


I 


»co^'l•:ll\'. 


THK  MIGRATION  QUIKTLY  SETS  IN. 


56 


ive  hurried  to 
nothing  in  it." 
le  Ctdlfornian, 
n  publislied  jvt 
agraph  to  tlie 
n  conHiderablo 
ditor  hazardt'd 
y  rich  in  min- 
!  othor  weekly 
without  edito- 
:id  forty  miles 

\\y  created  no 
lought  of  gold 
quicksilver,  or 
ture  and  fruit- 

I  noticed  in  ac 
Id  discoveries.* 

follows:  '  (told  mill'; 
[ntly  ercicttMl  liy  (j.ip 

II  (:(>iiHi<lcrablu  ((tiun 

|v  Helvt^tia,  Ki^tliLTol 
iiiural  wealth;  great 
luiul  in  every  part  ot 

says:  'A  good  hidvc 

iav<.'  no  vory  settlnl 
cliances  at  spectiU 

[of  our  lii{U<>r-ii()iisi' 
;.  and  pliiiiting  it  is 
t  nut.      Some  sIIm  I 

litlioiit  ex|H.Tieiic'iii>,' 
Monterey,  our  rap 
lowing.  We  say  it 
|ur  HJiigle  self,  ttli.ii: 
1:  'A  pickaxe  oi-  :i 
tity  of  gold  takrii 
l>eL-oine  an  article 

ilifornia,'  writes  in 

jllltiful    H|)ecillU'M  nt 

lirk.  From  all  ii<' 
j  that  gold  from  n. 
Ian  artit'iu  of  ti'.'i<i>' 
Ithiacountrv.  NV' 
Id,  but  as  these  lo 
1  However,  it  iswrll 
Ciuditd  du  lo«  .Vu 


Yot  tlio  knowing  ones  are  backward  about  committing 
themselves;  and  when  overcome  by  curio.sity  to  see 
the  mines,  they  pretend  business  elsewhere  rather 
than  admit  their  (h;stination.  Thus  E.  C.  Kend)le, 
editor  (»f  the  SfiW,  announces  on  tho  15th  his  inten- 
tion to  "ruruli/x'  among  the  rustics  of  the  country  for 
a  few  weeks."  Hastening  to  the  mines  he  makes  his 
observations,  returns,  and  in  jerky  diction  flippantly 
iiinarks:  "(Jreat  country,  ti!ie  climate;  visit  this  great 
vallev,  we  would  advise  all  who  have  not  yet  done  so. 
See  it  now.  Full-Howing  streams,  mighty  tind)er, 
!;irge  croj).s,  luxuriant  clovtr,  fragra  it  flowers,  gold 
;iii(l  silver."  Tliis  is  all  Afr  Kemble  Kays  t)f  his  journey 
ill  his  i.s.sue  of  the  Gth  of  ^[ay,  the  iirst  Mumbi'r  after 
his  return.  Whether  he  walked  as  out  blind  and  void 
"f  intelligence,  or  saw  more  than  his  interests  seem- 
iiii^dy  permitted  him  to  tell,  does  not  oi)pear. 

There  were  men,  however,  more  observant  and  out- 
spoken than  the  astute  editor,  some  of  whom  left  town 
singly,  or  in  small  part  os  of  seldom  more  than  two 
or  three.  They  said  little,  as  if  fearing  ridicule,  but 
cros.sed  tpiietly  to  Sauzalito,  and  thence  took  the  di- 
ivclion  of  Sonoma  and  Sutti'r's  Fort.  The  mystery 
nt'the  movement  in  itself  [)roV('d  an  incjcntive,  to  which 
accumulating  rejtorts  and  specimens  gave  intensity,  till 
it  reached  a  (Tnnax  with  the  arrival  of  several  well- 
laden  <liggers,  bringing  bottles,  tin  cans,  a n< I  buckskin 
lla^fs  filled  with  the  i)recious  metal,  which  their  owners 

L'l  li's,  anil  another  on  tho  S;in  .lontjuin.'  la  aiiotlicr  ooluinnof  the  same  issue 
vm:  lead  that  at  thu  American  Hiver  di^riiini^s  tlie  goM  '  in  found  at  a  depth 
I  if  tliicc  fi'i't  Ih'Iow  t!ie  Miirtiici;,  and  in  iiHtiaUiof  soft  Hand -rock.  Kxploratioiia 
iii.iie  MiiiKJiwjird  to  the  di.'ttiince  of  twelve  miles,  and  to  the  north  Mvo  miles, 
ii'|ii>i't  the  continuance  of  this  strata  an<l  the  mineral  ei|iiully  ahundant.  The 
Mini,  fniin  tweb'e  to  eighteen  feet  in  tiiiekiii'ss.  .Most  advantu;:eously  to 
tills  ii.\v  mine,  r.  stream  (  t  water  (lows  in  its  imme<liate  r.tMghhorliood,  ami 
till' washi-.ig  v. ill  be  attended  with  (;oni|iarative  east!.'  These,  and  tiie  two 
III  in  .already  alluded  to  in  the  .SVfiy  of  tlie  ISth  ami  ■2.">tli  of  .Miiich,  are  the 
only  iK'tiees  in  this  paper  of  the  di;^i,'ings  priur  to  tin;  "JJd  of  .April,  when  it 
^:.lt^■s:  'Wo  have  bi^cn  informed,  frnii  iiinniestionalile  iiiithority,  that  another 
v^till  iimre  extensive  and  valuable  gold  mine  has  been  discovered  towards  the 
lieail  <if  till!  .American  fork,  in  the  Sacriimento  Valley.  We  have  seen  several 
"liiiitiieiiH  taken  from  it,  to  the  amuniit  of  ei;,'ht  or  ten  ounces  of  pure  virgin 
K'M.'    The  Cujy'oriiiaii  said  even  less  on  the  stibjeut  during  the  same  (wriotl. 


66 


PROXIMATE  EFFECT  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERT. 


J," 


h5i  iii- 


treated  with  a  familiarity  hitherto  unknown  in  these 
parts  to  such  worshipful  wealth.  Among  the  comers 
was  Samuel  Brannan,  the  Mormon  leader,  who,  hold- 
ing up  a  bottle  of  dust  in  one  hand,  and  swinging  his 
hat  with  the  other,  passed  along  the  street  shouting, 
" Gold !     Gold !     Gold  from  the  American  River  t"» ' 

This  took  place  in  the  early  part  of  May.  The 
conversion  of  San  Francisco  was  complete.  Those 
who  had  hitherto  denied  a  lurking  faith  now  unblush- 
ingly  proclainsed  it;  and  others,  who  had  refused  to 
believe  even  in  specimens  exhibited  before  their  eyes, 
hesitated  no  longer  in  accepting  any  re})orts,  however 
exaggerated,  and  in  speeding  them  onward  duly  mag- 
nified."  Many  were  tin  >wn  into  a  fever  of  excitement,' 
and  all  yielded  more  or  less  to  the  subtle  intluence  of 

*  'He  took  his  hat  off  and  swung  it,  shouting  alou'l  in  theaireets.'  Biffler* 
Diary,  MS.,  7!K  Kvansin  tlie  Onijou  litiltHiu  makes  clicMlate  'al>outthe  I'JtIi 
tif  May.'  Sue  also  Fliidln'.i  Sinf.,  MS.,  4-0;  Nnx^'Stnt.,  MS.,  I'i;  A'.  J/<h: 
IHiiry,  passint.  (lillcspie,  r/;/.  Com.,  MS.,  4,  refers  to  tlirco  sampler  seen  liy 
liiin,  tlic  third  'was a  whole (luininc-lHittle  full,  wliich  set  all  the  people  wild.' 

"By  the  10th  of  June  the  sapient  seeptic,  K«ndde,  turned  coniplet<'ly 
around  iu  expressing  his  opiiuon,  denying  that  he  had  ever  diseouragctl,  nut 
to  say  denoiuiced,  'tlie  cniploynient  in  which  over  two  thirds  of  tlic  whiti> 
population  of  this  ecmntry  are  engaged.'  Uut  it  was  too  late  to  save  either 
his  reputiktion  or  his  journal.  Tliere  were  not  wanting  others  still  to  denounce 
in  vain  and  loudly  all  mines  and  ininera.  'I  dcndit,  sir,'  one  exclaims,  in  tlie 
i'ltli/oniiuii,  'if  ever  the  sun  shone  u|Kni  suoli  a  farce  as  is  now  heiiig  cnivcted 
in  California,  though  1  fear  it  may  prove  a  tragedy  before  tlie  curtaia  drov'.). 
I  con.-iider  it  your  duty,  Mr  Kilitor,  as  a  conservator  of  the  puhlic  morals 
and  welfare,  to  raise  yjur  voice  against  the  thing.  It  is  to  he  hoi)ed  that 
(Seneral  Mason  "ill  tlespatch  the  voluntei'i-s  to  the  scene  of  a(;tion,  and  .si'inl 
these  unfortunate  people  to  their  homes,  and  prevent  otliers  fr-om  goiiii,' 
thither.'  Tills  man  quickly  enough  belied  a  wisdom  winch  led  him  unwit- 
tingly to  perform  the  part  of  heavy  simpleton  in  the  drama.  Uunbar,  llomam'' 
ofiht'  A'jv,  lO'i,  with  his  usual  accuracy,  places  this  ccimnuuiication  in  the 
Alia  ('iili/oruiii.  May  iJ4,  1S48 — impos.sililc,  from  the  fact  that  on  that  day  no 
paper  was  issued  in  Californi.  i,  and  the  yl//a  never  saw  the  light  until  the  fol- 
lowing January. 

'Carson,  Jirr.,  4,  who  f<»r  a  long  time  had  rejected  all  report.s,  w.is  tinally 
convinced  by  a  returning  digger,  who  opened  his  well-lilled  bag  l>efore  him. 
'1  looki'il  on  for  a  moment;'  he  v, ;ites,  'a  frenzy  seized  my  soul;  unbidileii 
my  legs  perfiii  ineil  some  entirely  new  movements  of  polka  steps  - 1  took 
several— houses  were  too  snuill  for  me,  to  st.iy  in;  I  was  8(x»n  in  the  street  iu 
search  of  neciissary  outtits;  ])iles  of  gold  rose  up  before  me  at  every  step; 
castles  of  marble,  da/zling  tho  eye  with  their  rich  appliances;  thousjinds  ot 
slaves  bownig  to  my  In-ck  and  <:all;  myriads  of  fair  virgins  eimtending  with 
each  other  for  my  love  were  among  tlic  fancies  of  my  fevered  imagination. 
The  Rothscliilils,  (iirards.  and  Astors  appeared  to  me  but  no<ir  people;  in 
short,  I  had  a  very  violent  attack  of  the  gold  fevpr.'  For  further  particulars, 
see  LiirkiiCa  Doc.,  MS.,  iv.  passim. 


ROUTES  '"0  THE  MINES. 


67 


the  malady.^  Men  hastt  ned  to  arrange  their  affairs, 
dissolving  partnerships,  disposing  of  real  estate,  ai'.d 
converting  v)ther  effects  into  ready  means  for  depart- 
ure. Witlii.i  a  few  days  an  exodus  set  in  that  startled 
those  who  had  placed  their  hopes  upon  the  peninsular 
nietroi'.olis."  "Fleets  of  launches  left  this  place  'M1 
Sunday  and  Monday,"  exclaims  Editor  Ken/.^^  , 
"closely  stowed  with  human  beings.  .  .Was  there 
ever  anything  so  superlatively  silly  !""'"  But  sneers, 
expostulations,  and  warnings  availed  not  with  a  multi- 
tude so  possessed. 

The  nearest  route  was  naturally  sought — by  water 
up  the  Buy  into  the  Sacramento,  a:id  thence  where 
fortune  beckoned.  The  few  available  sloops,  lighteis, 
and  nondescript  craft  were  (piickly  engaged  and  filled 
for  the  mines.  Many  who  could  not  obtain  |)assage 
in  tlie  larger  vessels  sold  all  their  possessions,  vvhen 
necessary,  and  bought  a  small  boat;"  every  little 
rickety  cockleshell  was  made  to  serve  the  pur))ose; 
and  into  these  they  bundled  their  effects,  set  up  a  sail, 
and  steered  for  Carquines  Strait.  Then  there  were 
two  routes  by  land:  one  across  to  Sauzalito  by  launch, 
and  tlience  by  mule,  mustang,  or  on  foot,  by  way  of 
San  Rafael  and  Sonoma,  into  the  California  ^'alley; 
and  the  other  round  the  southern  end  of  the  Bay  and 
through  Livermore  Pass. 

"Hrook.s  writes  in  liis  <liary,  under  date  of  May  10th:  'Nothing  has  boon 
tiilkcd  of  l)iit  tiio  new  jjold  plticer,  im  jx'ople  cull  it.'  'Several  i>nrtie.s,  wo 
Iwar,  ure  already  made  up  to  visit  the  ili^'giiigs.'  .May  13th:  'Tiie  gold  exeite- 
iiu'iit  iuoreaHes  daily,  as  Hcvcral  fresh  arrivals  from  the  mines  have  l)eeu  re- 
in irtcil  at  Sau  FraiU'isco.'  Four  ^fotlth■^^  amomj  the  Gohl-limli  i-k,  14-1."». 

"'Several  hundred  jieople  must  have  h'ft  here  during  the  last  few  (lays,* 
writes  Brooks  in  his  iliary,  under  date  of  May  'Jdth.  '  In  the  month  of  .May 
It  was  eomputed  that  at  least  l.">0  people  had  left  S.  F. ,  and  every  day  simo 
was  adding  to  their  nund)cr.'  Aiiiki/h  S.  /■'.,  'JU3.  Tlie  ecirtus  taken  tlio 
March  previous  showed  MO,  of  whom  177  wen;  Momen  and  (il)  children;  so 
tliiit  !■">()  would  he  oAer  one  fourth  of  the  male  iHijinhition.  See  also  letter  of 
llasslium  to  Cooper,  .May  l."ith,  in  Viilhjo,  />(><•.,  .\|,S.,  xxxv.  47.  'i'hosu  with- 
out nurans  have  only  to  go  to  a  mereliiint  and  borrow  from  .^l.tXIK  to  ^•J,(MMI, 
iiiid  1,'ivo  him  an  order  on  the  gold  mines,  is  the  way  Coutts,  IHmy,  .MS.,  1 18, 
l>iits  it. 

'"(Vi/.  ,SVrtc,  .May  20,  1848.  Kemhle,  who  is  fast  coming  to  grief,  ourscii 
till'  whole  Imsiness,  and  pronounces  the  mines  'all  sham,  a  supurli  (sic)  take- 
in  as  was  ever  got  up  to  giizy.le  the  gnllihle. ' 

"  'Little  row  iMiats,  thiit  before  were  prolwibly  sold  for  $50,  '.vero  Hold  for 
$»!H»  or>ii,)00,'  «*7/,sy,i,.,   \;,j.  Cum.,  MS.,  :<. 


1 1 


% 


?i^;.!. 
»";, 


\i^ 


.Mir' 


58 


PROXIMATE  EFFECT  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


Roads  there  were  none  save  the  trails  between  larger 
settlements.  With  the  sun  for  compass,  and  moun- 
tain peaks  for  finger-posts,  new  paths  were  marked 
across  the  trackless  plains  and  through  the  untrodden 
woods.  Most  of  the  gold-seekers  could  afford  a  horse, 
and  evei  a  pack-animal,  which  was  still  to  be  had  for 
fifteen  dollars,"  and  thus  proceed  with  greater  speed 
to  the  goal,  to  the  envy  of  the  number  that  had  to 
content  themselves  with  wagons,  wiiieh,  though  white- 
covered  and  snug,  with  perhaps  a  family  inside,  were 
cumbersome  and  slow,  especially  when  drawn  by  oxen. 
Often  a  pedestrian  was  passed  trudging  along  under 
his  load,  glad  to  get  his  effects  carried  across  the  stream 
by  sonjc  team,  although  he  himself  might  have  to 
breast  the  current  swimming,  perchance  holding  to 
the  tail  of  some  horse.  There  were  ferries  only  at 
rare  points.  Charles  L.  Ross'^  had  left  for  the  mines 
the  last  of  April,  by  way  of  Alviso,  and  crossed  the 
strait  of  Can|uines  by  Semple's  ferry  at  Martinez. 
At  this  time  he  was  the  only  person  on  the  boat. 
Wiien  he  returned,  less  than  a  fortnight  after,  there 
were  200  wagons  on  their  way  to  the  foothills,  wait- 
ing their  turn  to  cross  at  the  ferry." 

In  the  general  eagerness  personal  comfort  became 

''■'One  rilU-r  rented  liix  animuls  at  the  mines  for  8100  per  week.  Hrooks 
crosHeil  to  Siiiizjilito  with  tuiir  c(>in|>aition8  who  wero  utteuiletl  hy  nn  Iii(liaii 
Hcrviint  to  drive  their  itix  lioraes  hiilun  with  liugKUgu  mid  cump  ciiiiipnieiitx. 
Vidlejo,  //m/.  (Jal.,  MS.,  iv.,  points  out  that  Suiioinu  reaped  benefit  us  u  wuy- 
station. 

^■'h'xiterieitcea  of  a  Piomer  of  1S47  in  diiyornia,  hy  Charles  L.  Ross,  is  thu 
title  of  a  manuscript  written  at  tlie  dictation  of  Mr  Ross  l)y  my  stenograplier, 
Mr  Loij^hton,  in  1878.  Mr  Iloss  left  New  Jersey  in  Xov.  1840,  passed  rouud 
('a|ie  Horn  in  tljo  l)ark  Whiton,  arriving  in  I'al.  in  April  1847.  The  very  in- 
tt'resting  information  contained  in  this  nituuisuript  is  all  embodied  in  the 
pages  of  this  history. 

'*  'They  having  eoUecteil  tiiere  in  that  short  time — men,  women,  and  chil- 
dren, families  who  had  left  their  homes,  and  gathered  in  there  from  down  tiie 
coast.  They  had  orguni/ed  a  cotnnuttee,  ami  each  man  was  registered  on  his 
arrival,  and  each  took  his  tin°n  in  crossing.  The  Umt  run  nigiit  and  day, 
carrying  each  time  two  wagons  and  horses  and  the  people  connected  with 
the  1.  Some  of  Ihcnt  had  to  cump  there  (juite  a  while.  After  a  time  somebody 
else  got  a  scow  and  started  another  ferry,  and  they  got  across  faster.'  /^isn' 
Ervcr'u'Hrei*,  MS.,  11-12.  'Semple  obtains  from  passengers  some  ^20  |)er  day, 
and  hot)  not  a  single  boatman  to  help  him.  Only  one  man  has  offered  to  re- 
main, and  he  only  for  two  weeks  at  ^'J')  n  ^veek.'  Letter  of  Lurkiii  to  Mason 
from  San  JowS,  -Nluy  20,  1848,  in  Do--.  J '.int.  Cal.,  MS. 


m 


EXCITEMENT.  M 

of  sof'oiulary  conHideratioii.  Somo  started  without  a 
dollar,  or  with  iiisufticient  supplies  and  covering,  often 
to  suffer  severely  in  reaching  the  ground;  but  once 
there  they  expected  quickly  to  till  their  pockets  with 
what  would  buy  the  services  of  their  masters,  and  oi)- 
tain  for  them  abundance  to  eat.  Many  were  fed  while 
on  the  way  as  by  the  ravens  of  Midas;  for  there  were 
few  in  Califor.iia  then  or  since  who  would  see  a  fellow- 
bring  starve.  But  if  blankets  and  provisions  were 
neglected,  none  overlooked  the  all-important  shovel, 
the  price  for  which  jumped  from  one  dollar  to  six,  ten, 
or  even  more,"  ami  stores  were  rununaged  for  pick- 
axes, hoes,  bottles,  vials,  snuff-boxes,  and  brass  tubes, 
the  latter  for  holding  the  prospective  treasure.*^ 

Through  June  the  excitement  continued,  after 
which  there  were  few  left  to  be  excited.  Indeed,  by 
the  middle  of  this  month  the  abandonment  of  San 
Fiancisco  was  complete;  that  is  to  say,  three  fourths 
of  tlie  male  population  had  gone  to  the  mines.  It  was 
as  if  an  epidemic  had  s\v*'pt  the  little  town  so  lately 
busthng  with  business,  or  as  if  it  was  always  early 
iiioi  iiing  there.  Since  the  presence  of  United  States 
forces  San  Francisco  had  put  on  pretensiims,  and 
scores  of  buildings  had  been  started.  "  J^ut  now," 
complains  the  Star,  the  27th  of  May,  "stores  are 
cl(»sed  and  places  of  business  vacated,  a  large  nunjber 
of  houses  tenrntless,  various  kinds  of  mechanical  lai»or 
suspended  or  given  up  entirely,  aiul  nowhere  the 
pleasant  hum  of  industry  salutes  the  ear  as  of  latt;; 
l>ut  as  if  a  curse  had  arrested  our  onward  course  of 
•  iitiM[)rise,  everything  wears  a  desolate  and  sombre 
look,  everywhere   all    is    dull,    monotonous,    dead."'' 

'"I  am  iiifonnod  ^"»0  lias  boeii  offered  for  one, '  writos  Iwirkiii  on  .Inne  1st, 
'"  ■  I'liirtln-n  jui's  ttn<l     ven  barrels  have  Ix-ea  put  in  iciiuisitioii,"  oKsfrves 
tliu  ('nli/i)riii(iH  of  Aug.  otli. 

'"The  fi>llo\vin<{  ailvertiMcment  appears  in  this  issue:  'The  iii^hest  niar- 
k't  piii't'  will  Itu  )>ai«I  for  gohl,  either  casii  or  nicn'liiinilise,  liy  Melius  &  How- 
iin',  Mimtjfitinory  »lreet,'  Again,  by  the  same  lirni  goods  wi;ro  oll'cied  for 
f.di'  'for  casfi,  hides  and  tallow,  or  plaoeia  g'lld.'  '''/.  Sfur,  May '27,  IH4S. 
Ot  ipiite  a,  ditferenl  character  was  another  iiofieu  in  tlio  Hatne  issue.  '  I'jiy  up 
["•toiu  you  go —everybody  kn(»w8  where,' the  editor  orien.  'Pipers  can  be 
fiirwarded  to  .Suttcr'.s  Fort  witli  all  regularity.      But  pay  the  priutur  if  you 


\p    !" 


60 


PROXIMATK  EFFECT  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


Real  estate  had  dropjHjd  »uie  half  or  lore,  and  all 
luercliandlse  not  usod  ia  the  mines  declined,  while 
labor  rose  tenfold  in  price.'" 

Spreading  their  valedictions  on  fly-sheets,  the  only 
two  journals  now  faint  dead  away,  the  Cnlifon\inn  on 
the  29tli  of  May,  and  the  Star  on  the  14th  of  June. 
*'  The  whole  country  from  San  Francisco  to  Los  An- 
j^eles,"  exclaimed  the  former,  "and  from  the  seashore 
to  the  base  of  the  Sierra  Nevatla,  resounds  to  the  sor- 
did cry  of  (fold!  gold  1 1  GOLD! ! !  while  the  field  is 
left  half  planted,  the  house  half  built,  and  evurvthini( 
neglected  but  the  manufacture  <if  shovels  and  j)ick- 
axes,  and  the  means  of  trans[»ortJition  to  the  spot 
wiiere  one  man  obtained  ^128  worth  uf  the  real  stuff  in 
one  day's  washing,  and  the  average  for  all  concerned 
is  .^20  per  dienh"  Sadly  spoice  Kemble,  he  who  vis- 
ited the  gold  mines  and  saw  nothing,  he  to  whom 
within  four  weeks  the  wh(»le  tiling  was  a  sham,  a 
superlatively  silly  sham,  groaning  within  and  without, 
but  always  in  very  bad  English,  infonning  the  world 
that  his  paper  "  could  not  be  nuule  by  magic,  and  the 
lal»or  of  mechanism  was  as  essential  to  its  existence 
as  to  all  other  arts;"  and  as  neither  men   nor  devils 

{•loftse,  nil  you  in  (irroai*8.'  See  also  Finiila\  Sin/.,  MS.,  4-fi.  After  quite  a 
msy  litV,  (luring  which  he  giiineil  stiiiie  ]iri)iiiiiu-iK-f  tm  e<lit<ir<if  tlie  St(ir  itii-l 
('idij'oriiiiiii  uiuT  the  Alld  Cali/oruiti,  ami  latt-r  as  govi-riiiiient  otlieiiil  mi'l 
lie\vii|iupei-  uuri'eH|M>ii(U'iit,  Kuiiiltle  clietl  at  the  vant  the  lUt!>  uf  Feb.  iiSSi. 
lie  was  u  man  liiglily  estei-inetl  in  eert^iin  eirele*. 

'"  I'ay  the  cost  of  tlie  house,  ami  the  lot  wouM  l>e  thrown  in.  f)n  thi' 
tifty-vara  corner  i'iueand  Keurny  streets  was  a  house  which  hail  cost  S>4U()  to 
build;  botli  house  ami  lot  were  offered  for  $.'{."iO.  Ho^'  Ex.,  .MS.,  VI;  Liirkiii\ 
Ihtf.,  MS.,  vi.,  144.  On  the  d(K)r  of  a  si-ore  of  houses  wjis  ix)sted  the  notice, 
'(tone  to  the  Diggings!'  From  San  Jos*.'  Larkiu  writes  to  the  govcrnoi-, 
'  The  improvement  of  Yerl)a  Itueim  for  the  prest-nt  iidmit'.'   lA-ttt'r,  ilay  "JOth, 


ill  Liirkiii'H  Due,  Hixt.  Cdl.,  MS.,  vi.  74.  Even  yeV  the  nair.e  .San  Fraiiciscii 
has  not  become  familiar  to  tho.se  acciistomeil  t.>  lliat  of  Verlwi  KiD'iia.  See  also 
Jirookx'  Four  Moiithx,  in  which  is  written,  iimler  iLite  of  May  ITtli:   '  Worli- 

t)eople  have  struck.  Walking  through  the  ti>wn  to-day  1  ol)served  that 
aliorers  were  employed  only  upon  half  a  dn/eu  of  the  titty  new  buildiiiu'x 
which  were  in  tiie  course  of  being  run  up.'  May 'J'th:  '  .Sweating  tells  me 
th^t  his  negro  waiter  has  demaiideil  and  receives  ten  dollars  a  day.'  Liirkiii, 
writing  from  S.  F.  to  Secretary  Buchanan,  .lune  |i*t,  remarks  that  'some  j>fii- 
ties  of  from  tivo  to  liftecn  men  have  sent  to  this  town  and  oli'cred  cooks  810 
tt>  !|^ I ■'>  n  day  for  a  few  weeka.      Mechanics  and   teamsters,  t-atning  the  yt^ir 

Ea.st  $.'»  to  ."^S  per  day,  have  struck  and  ^onc V  mercliaut  lately  hum  China 
OS  uvea  lust  his  CUiuesc  servant. ' 


^ 


-n. 

A' 


DESERTINCJ  SAILORS. 


01 


til  of  June, 
to  Los  Aii- 
lio  Hoashoru 

to  the  sor- 
tho  field  is 
evervtliini; 
s  and  |)iek- 
:o  tlie  spot 
real  .stuff  in 
1  coucorned 
lie  who  vis- 
e   to  whom 

a  sham,  a 
lid  without, 
f  the  world 
\r\c,  anil  the 
,s  existence 

nor  devils 


rouhl  l)e  kei)t  t>  service,  the  wheels  of  progress  here 
must  rest  a  while. 

So  also  came  to  an  end  for  a  time  the  sittings  of 
tlu-  town  council,  and  the  services  of  the  .sanctuary, 
:ill  having  gone  after  other  gods.  All  through  the 
Sundays  the  little  church  on  the  plaza  was  silent,  and 
all  through  the  week  days  the  door  of  Alcalde  Towns- 
end's  office  remained  locked.  As  for  the  shipping,  it 
was  left  to  the  anchor,  even  this  dull  metal  some- 
times being  inconstant.  The  sailors  departing,  cap- 
tiiin  and  officers  could  only  follow  their  example.  One 
citmmander,  on  oh.serving  the  drift  of  affairs,  gave 
promptly  the  order  to  j>ut  to  sea.  The  crew  refused 
to  work,  and  that  night  gagged  the  watch,  lowered 
the  boat,  and  rowed  away.  In  another  instance  the 
watch  joined  in  absconding.  Not  long  afterward  a 
Peruvian  brig  entered  the  bay,  the  first  within  three 
week.s.  The  houses  were  there,  but  no  one  came  out 
to  welcome  it.  At  length,  hailing  a  ^Eexican  who 
was  passing,  the  captain  learned  that  everybody  had 
<4()ne  northward,  where  the  valleys  and  mountains 
were  i»f  irold.     On  the  instant  the  crew  were  off.*" 

"So  rnu  these  storieii.  Frrry,  Cal.,  306- l.S.  The  captain  who  souuht  to 
put  to  Hca  cniiiiiiamled  the  Flota,  according  to  a  letter  in  .luno  of  a  niercliunt. 
/,'iihiiiMoii'i  li'iilil  /li'iioHx,  '29-'Mt;  III  n  ri-'n  Tniir  of  Jiiilii,  '2.")4.  One  of  tlio  first 
vcs.scla  to  Ik:  dt-itertcil  was  a  ship  of  tiie  liudson's  liiiy  Company  lying  at 
:uK'iii>r  iM  tlieltay;  tlie  Miilors  de|>itrtint;,  tiie  uantiiin  followed  them,  leaving 
tlio  vi-Hjcl  in  charge  of  his  wife  and  dau^'liler.  AlcKinstry,  iii  t\\e  Lniicnittr 
Kj-itiiiiiiir.  Loud  coniplainta  appear  in  the  <.'r(/»/br;((aH,  Sept.  5,  IS4.S;  every 
sliililo.scsmoMtof  Ik  rcrcw  witliinforty-eightlioursnfterarrival.  See  lirni-htt, 
/'.  S.  t'limlry,  li'i  7.  The  first  steamship,  the  CnH/oniia,  arriving  Fell.  28, 
1S4!I,  \\a.i  iiiiniediately  deserted  hy  lier  crew;  ForUea  asked  Jones  of  the  U.  S. 
h'|ii!tdri>n  for  nun  to  tike  charge  of  the  ship,  hut  the  por)r  commodore  had 
none,  i'ronliy'it  Sini.,  M.S.,  VI;  AiiikiIhS.  /'. , 'J*20;  Firxt  SliniiiMfii/t  J'ioiDrni, 
1 24.  To  prevent  desertion,  the  plan  was  tried  of  giving  sailors  two  months' 
fuilough;  whereby  s<inie  few  returned,  Imt  most  of  them  preferred  liherty, 
wcaitli,  an<l  dissiiMttion  to  the  tyranny  of  service.  Sirnii'n  Trii>  fo  the  O'dlii 
Miiiis,  in  i'lil.  I'loiiffrK,  M.S.,  no.  4H.  Some  Alexionns  arriving,  and  limling 
tlie  town  di'|Hipuliite<l  of  its  natund  defenders,  hruke  into  vacant  houses  and 
tiHik  what  they  Would.  The.  J)iifirr»  Hand- Hook,  ft.'J.  See  also  the  I'dl'ifor- 
limi,  Aug.  4,  1848;  <Jeorge  McKin.'^*'y,  in  Lmininti  >•  Exoinhn  i;  SUn  ktoii  Iml., 
O.t.  lit,  IsT.'i;  liiir>tuir\tSt«l.,  MS.,.'*  4;  Sue.  HI.,!;  Foi-Uh'  Hold  Jx'niioi,, 
17  18;  Tiilhiir»l%il.,  'r.l't  44;  Th,;e  W>>i*  in  Gold  Miit>x,A;  Ciiioh'h  Fxrl;/ 
A'".,  3  4;  L'liitA,  A'<»/.,  U4  31 ;  J/iii/ih'  Col.  Ciil.  Aotfn,  \.  SiS;  /{i  rue  ttfx  J)iiix 
Moiidis,  Fell.  1,  l.S4»,  4«i!»;  Qnnrte'rly  R,^tu,  >i\  no.fll,  l8.V_',r)0S;  //itleirn  .Win- 
iii'j,  17;  lirooks'  Four  Month",  IS;  Orrrlniiil  AMoulhly,  xi.  I"2  l.'l;  /{ytiii's  Jiidi/i i 
uii'i  Criiii.,  7--7:  Am.  (Jnnt.   ll^j.,  ii.  •J88-U.'t,  giving  the  rejiorts  of  Ijirkin, 


1)!:'!    ' 


IP 


I*     'Is 

IS 


62 


PROXIMATE  EFFECT  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


>!{!    : 


Other  towns  and  settlements  in  California  were  no 
less  slow  than  San  Francisco  to  move  under  the  new 
fermentation.  Indeed,  they  were  more  apathetic,  and 
were  finally  stirred  into  excitement  less  by  the  facts 
tlian  by  the  example  of  the  little  metropolis.  Yet  the 
Mexicans  were  in  madness  no  whit  behind  the  Amer- 
icans, nor  the  farmers  less  impetuous  than  townsmen 
when  once  the  Jury  seized  them.  May  had  not  wholly 
passed  when  at  San  JosiS  the  merchant  closed  his 
store,  or  if  the  stock  was  perishable  lel't  open  the  doors 
that  ))eople  might  helj)  themselves,  and  incontinently 
set  out  upon  the  pilgrimai^e.  So  the  judge  abandoned 
his  bench  and  the  doctor  his  patients;  even  the  alcalde 
dropped  the  reins  of  gt»vernment  and  went  away  with 
his  subjects.""     Criminals  slipped   their   fetters   and 

Miiaon,  Jonea,  and  Paymnstcr  Rich  on  gold  excitement;  WiU^y\  Drraflr  Ser- 
vioiix,  \'2-\';  VlKiHong  I'dth.  Church,  ii.  l7">-!),'{;  Shiriiian'M  iMi'„i<.ii:i,  i.  40-11; 
.S".  /'.  J)irirfory,  18.VJ  .'{,  8  !t;  S.  I.  Xew8,  ii.  14'2  8,  giving  tlio  extmctof  a 
letter  from  S.  F.,  May  '2~,t\\;  Viillijo  Ift-rordii;  Maicli  14,  1848;  Cnl.  Pas/ 
uiiil  I'risnit,  77;  tiiHrs/iii'H  Ki;/.  Com.,  MS.,  3-4;  Findhi's  Slut.,  MS.,  4-6. 
The  Ciili/<»'iii'iii  ne\v»i)ai)er  revived  shortly  after  ita  siispeii.sion  in  May. 

'■""The  alguacil,  Henry  Bee,  lia<l  ten  Indian  prisoners  under  his  charge  in 
the  liick-np,  two  of  them  ciuirged  with  murder  These  he  would  have  turiieil 
over  to  the  alcalde,  hut  that  functionary  had  already  tjiken  his  depjirture. 
Bee  was  puz/.led  how  to  dispose  of  his  wards,  for  tliougli  ho  was  deternnned 
to  go  to  the  mines,  it  wouhl  never  do  to  let  tiiem  loose  u|ton  a  couiniunity  of 
Women  and  children.  Finally  he  took  all  the  prisoners  with  him  to  tlie 
di|jj.'ini,'s,  where  they  worked  contentedly  for  him  until  other  nnncrs,  jealous 
(if  lice's  success,  incited  them  to  revolt.  By  that  time,  however,  tiie  alguaeil 
had  made  his  fortune.  So  goes  the  story.  Sail  •/(»-e  I'lowvr,  .Ian.  27,  1877. 
Writing  Mus(m  the  'J(ith  of  May  from  San  Jos»^  Larkin  says:  '  Last  niglit  sev- 
eral of  the  most  resiiectahle  American  residents  of  this  town  arrived  hoiiu- 
from  a  visit  to  the  gold  regions;  next  week  they  with  tiicir  families,  and  I 
tiiink  nine  tenths  of  tiiu  foreign  store-keepers,  mechanics,  and  day-laborers  of 
this  place,  and  perhaps  of  Sun  Francisco,  leave  for  the  Sacramento.'  West,  a 
stable-keeper,  had  twobrotliers  in  the  ndnes,  who  urged  him  at  once  to  hasU'ii 
tintiier  and  bring  his  family.  '  liurn  tiie  l>arn  if  you  cannot  dispose  of  it 
otherwise,'  they  siiid.  < '.  L.  Ross  writes  from  the  iiunes  in  April,  J'Jrjx  riniri  s 
from  JS.'f7,  MS.:  'I  found  .John  M.  Horner,  of  the  ndssion  of  San  Jost?,  who 
told  me  ho  had  left  aliont  50(>  acres  of  splendid  wheat  for  tiie  cattle 
to  roam  over  at  will,  he  and  his  family  having  tleserted  their  place  en- 
tirely, and  started  oil'  for  the  nnnes.'  .1.  lielden,  Nov.  (ttii,  writes  Lar- 
kin from  San  .lost'-:  'The  toM'n  is  full  of  people  coming  from  an<l  going  to 
tiie  gold  mines.  A  man  just  from  there  told  inc  ho  saw  the  governor  ami 
Siiuiro  Coltoii  there,  in  rusty  rig,  scratching  gravel  for  gold,  but  with 
little  success.'  Lnrkiii'H  /)oc.,  MS.,  vi.  210.  And  so  in  the  north.  Seniple. 
writing  Larkin  May  lOtli,  says  that  in  three  tlaya  there  would  not  be  two 
men  li'ft  ill  IVMiicia;  and  (.'oojier,  two  days  later,  declared  that  everylKxly  was 
leaving  except  Binnt  and  Semplc.  LarkiuK  Dor.,  Mf>.,  \'\.  Ill,  I  Hi;  Vallfjo, 
Dor.,  Ms.,  xii.  344.  From  Sonoma  some  one  wrote  in  the  Cnli/orniait,  Aug. 
5th,  that  the   town   was  wcllnigh  deiK>pulat«>d.     'Not  u  tailoring  man   or 


IN  THE  SOUTH. 


63 


hastened  northward;  their  keepers  followed  in  pur- 
suit, it'  indeed  they  had  not  preceded,  but  they  took 
care  not  to  find  them.  Soldiers  fled  from  their  posts; 
others  were  sent  for  them,  and  none  returned.  Val- 
uable land  grants  were  surrendered,  and  farms  left 
tenantless;  waving  fields  of  grain  stood  abandoned, 
perchance  opened  to  the  roaming  cattle,  and  gardens 
were  left  to  run  to  waste.  The  country  seemed  as  if 
smitten  by  a  plague.-' 

All  along  down  the  coast  from  Monterey  to  Santa 
Barbara,  Los  Angeles,  and  San  Diego,  it  was  the 
same.  Towns  and  country  were  wellnigh  depopu- 
lated. There  the  fever  raged  fiercest  during  the  throe 
summer  months.  At  the  capital  a  letter  from  Jjarkin 
gave  the  impulse,  and  ab<)ut  the  same  time,  up((n  tiie 
statement  of  Swan,  four  Mormons  called  at  Monterey 
en  route  for  Los  Angeles,  who  were  reported  to  caiiy 
100  pounds  avoirdupois  of  gold  gathered  in  less  than 
a  month  at  Mormon  Island.  This  was  in  June.  A 
t'oitnight  after  the  town  was  dej)opulated,  1,000  start- 
ing from  that  vicinity  within  a  woek,-"^     At  San  Fran- 

niruliaiiic  can  1)0  uhtained  in  town.'  Vallejo  says  that  the  first  notiooof  gDltl 
liaA'ing  lifun  iliMoovered  was  convoyed  to  Sonoiiiii  tliroiigli  a  tlask  of  fjold-diist 
hint  liySutttT  toi-lfarti  hout-loadof  wliuat  wliiuli  liud  lu'cii  forwarded  in  part 
|>.iyinent  for  tlie  /loss  |)roperty,  Imt  lay  8cize<l  for  «lfl)t  at  Sonoma.  M!ov. 
I>iiuri,'.s,  then  aK'iildo  of  Sonoma,  and  I,'  says  Valh-jo,  'stitrted  at  once  for  Sao- 
raiiirnto  to  test  the  truth  of  the  report,  ami  found  that  Sutter,  Marshall,  and 
dtlicrs  hail  lieen  taking  out  jjold  for  some  time  at  ( 'ohnna.  .  .  Woeanie  liaik  to 
Sonoma,  and  such  was  the  enthusia.sni  of  the  people  that  the  town  and  (  utile 
country  was  soon  desertecl.'  Vnllejo'!<  Oration  at  Sonoma,  .July  4,  ISTti,  in 
SiiiMiiiit  IhmocnU,  July  8,  ISTti.  The  general  evidently  forgets,  or  at  all 
events  ignores,  the  many  rumors  current  ju'lor  to  the  reception  of  the  tla.sk, 
as  Well  as  the  ])ositivo  statement  with  proofs  of  friends  and  i)assei-8  hy. 

■'Such  is  Mason's  report.  Maria  Antonia  I'ieo  do  Castro,  announcing 
from  Monterey  to  her  son  Manuel  in  Mexico  tlio  grand  discovery,  says  that 
evcryliody  is  crazy  for  the  gold;  meanwhile  stock  is  comparatively  safe  from 
thieves,  hut  on  the  other  hand  hides  and  tallow  are  wortii  nothing.  l)o>-. 
liixt.  Cal.,  .MS.,  i.  50.-).  At  Santa  Cruz  A.  A.  Hecox  and  eleven  others  jieti- 
tioncd  the  alcalde  the  JiOtli  of  Dec.  for  a  year's  extension  of  time  in  comply- 
ing with  the  conditions  of  the  grants  of  land  ohtained  by  them  accoi-ding 
to  till)  usuid  form.  Un<lcr  the  j)ressure  of  the  golil  cxcitenu'nt  lah.ir  li:ol 
hccoine so  scarce  and  high  that  they  found  it  impossible  to  have  luniljer drawn 
for  li>iM.scs  ami  fences.     The  petition  was  granted. 

•■Sll■all'■^  '/'/i/i,  I  ,3;  liiiffiiiii'H  Six  Month",  «)S;  Curxou'n  /iVc.,  4.  'One 
day,'  says  ( 'arson,  who  was  then  at  Monterey,  ■  I  saw  a  form,  hent  an<l  filthy, 
iipprMiuliing  me.  and  soon  a  cry  of  recognition  was  given  between  us.  He  w  as 
an  ol.l  acipi.'iintance,  and  had  bei'n  one  of  the  first  to  visit  the  mines.  Now 
lie  stood  before  me.     His  hair  hung  »ut  of  his  hat;  his  chin  with  beard  was 


i: 


P:  ::4 


»  i' 


04 


PROXIMATE  EFFECT  OF  THE  GOLD  DIS(^OVERY. 


cisco  coimnercc  liad  been  chiefly  uftbrted;  lierc  it  was; 
govorimient  that  was  stricken.  Masim's  stnall  forco 
was  (|uickly  thiiiiied;  and  by  the  n.\i»I(ll.M)t' July,  if  we 
may  believe  the  Keverend  C'oltovi,  nnIio  never  was 
j^uilty  of  spoiling  a  story  by  too  strict  adherence  tu 
truth,  the  governor  and  general-in-chief  of  Calift)rniu 
was  cooking  his  own  dinner.** 

In  a  proclamation  of  July  25th,  Colonel  Mason 
called  on  the  people  to  assist  in  apprehending  desert- 
ers. He  threatened  the  foothills  v'ith  a  drairo(»ii 
force;  but  whence  were  to  come  the  draixoons .^  Tlui 
orticers  wi;re  as  eager  to  be  oft'  as  the  men;  many  nt' 
them  obtained  leave  to  jjfo,  and  liberal  TuiloUirhs  weic 
granted  to  the  soldiers,  for  those  who  c«>uld  not  (tbtaiii 
leave  went  without  leave.  As  the  ofticers  who  rt  - 
mained  C(»uld  uo  longer  aftord  to  live  in  their  accus- 
tomed way,  a  co<)k's  wages  being  $."{00  a  month,  tiiey 
were  allowed  to  draw  rations  in  kind,  which  they  ex- 
changed  for   board   in   private  families.^*     J:iut  even 

l)l;ick,  1111(1  Ilia  ljuckHkiiiH  ro.ai'licd  to  lils  knoi's. '  Tlio  niiin  liail  a  Iwig  <>f  goM 
on  liis  luu'k.  'J  liu  nigtit  uf  iu  coiitontH  sturtt'il  ('iirHini  dii  liis  way  nt  oirc.  Id 
May  l^rkiit  had  jiroplicHicil  tliat  liy  .Iiiiiu  tliu  town  woiilil  )io  witlioiit  iiilmlii- 
taiitM.  Juno  Ist  MiiMon  nt  Montt-rt-y  wrute  Liirkiii  at  S.  F. :  'Tlio  finMfii  yil- 
low  fever  Iia8  not  yet,  I  liuliove,  iiiiHUinud  iiero  its  w  trnt  typi-,  tlioiigli  tim 
]ir('iiioiiitory  Hyiiiiitoiii!)  aro  l>ogiiiiiiiig  to  cxiiiint  tliuiii.sitlvi'M,  unil  (loiil)tl('.s:i 
iliu  ei)iileiiiiu  wiil  ]iaN8  uvur  Moiitoruy,  leaving  the  murks  of  its  ruva^eH,  as  it 
liiiH  «lciiitt  nt  S.  K.  anil  elsewhere,  i'uku  eare  you  don't  iH-ooiiie  ho  eiiai';.'rr| 
vitli  its  malaria  as  to  iiKuiilato  ami  infect  iis  ull  when  you  return.'  .lackMoii 
McDuHee,  addreNHiiig  ]<arkin  on  the  same  date,  Siiys:  *  Monten'y  is  very  dull, 
iKitliing  doing,  the  gold  ft^ver  is  iH^ginning  tu  Uike  a  ilecided  etl'ecb  here,  aii<i  a 
large  jiarty  will  leave  for  the  Sacramento  tlie  last  of  the  Meek.  Sliovels, 
Rpades,  picks,  and  other  articles  wanted  liy  these  wihl  ttd\<iiturers  are  in 
great  (leniand.'  Sclialleiiherger  oii  the  Stii  of  .June  tells  l^u'kin  that  'a  gnat 
many  nre  leaving  Monterej'.  Times  duller  than  when  you  left.'  In  Sc|it. 
there  was  not  a  doi^tor  in  the  town,  and  Mrs  I<arkiii  who  was  lying  ill  >vitli 
fever  had  to  do  without  medical  attendance. 

''"Mien.  Mason,  Lieut  I^anmaii,  and  myself  forma  mesa... This  niurnini; 
for  the  fortieth  time  we  ha  I  to  take  to  the  kitchen  and  eook  our  own  break- 
fiist.  A  general  of  the  U.  S.  army,  the  commander  of  a  man-of-war,  and  the 
alcalde  of  Monterey  in  a  smoking  kitchen  grinding  coU'ee,  toasting  a  herring', 
and  peeling  onions!'  Thni-  Yiiirii  in  Ta/., '247  H.  'Ui'duit  h  faire  lui-mcme 
M  cuisine,'  as  one  says  of  this  incident  in  the  Iteriif  den  Deux  Moiidex,  Fei>. 
]84!». 

'■"'I  of  course  could  not  escapo  the  infection,'  says  Sherman,  Mem.,  i.  4(1, 
'and  at  last  convinced  ('olonel  Mason  that  it  was  our  duty  to  go  up  and  mc 
with  our  own  eyes,  that  wo  might  report  the  truth  to  our  government.'  Swan 
relates  an  anecdote  of  a  party  of  sailors,  including  tlio  master-ut-arms,  Im-Ioii^'- 
iiig  to  the  Wurn'H,  who  deserted  in  a  boat.     They  hid  theiuselvvs  in  the  pinu 


rERY. 

lioru  it  \va«i 
Ktnall  fiiirri! 
f  July,  if  we 
>  never  was 
iliiereiico  to 
f  California 

Duel  Mason 
liii^  (lesert- 

a  dragoon 
;oon.s?  The 
jn;  nianv  of 
loui;hs  weio 
il  not  obtain 
ers  who  n- 

their  accus- 

moiith,  they 

ieh  they  ex- 

J^ut  even 


m<l  a  lia<j;  of  gold 

way  nt <>iii«'.     la 

\\  itluiut  iiilmlii- 

'"I'lio  mililfii-ytl- 

yju',  tl>i>ii).'li  tlio 

M,  iiml  (l<iiil>tl('s:i 

its  ravai^fH,  us  it 

•(line  8(>  cliiUf.'til 

|t'luru. '     .liickwiii 

k'i'i'y  in  very  dull, 

llect  liurc,  aihi  ii 

M't't'k.     Sliovi'ls, 

xiiitiircrs  aru  in 

viii  that  'a  great 

loft.'     Ill  Sfj.t. 

lying  ill  witli 

.  .This  iiiorniii^' 

oiir  own  break- 

l-of-war,  and  tlic 

litttiiig  u  llelTill^^ 

fairo  Ini-inriiie 

\x  Mufides,  Fci>. 

nn,  Affin.,  i.  4i), 
go  up  and  me 
j-nnicnt.'  Swiin 
lit-itriiiH,  iM'iong- 
lives  ill  the  piiiv 


PHILOSOPHY  AND  DESTINY. 


6ft 


tlicn  they  grew  restless,  and  soon  disappeared,  as  Coni- 
nn»dore  Jones  asserts  in  his  report  to  the  seeretary  of 
the  navy  the  25th  of  October.**  Threats  and  entreat- 
ies we'-e  alike  of  little  avail.  Jones  claims  to  have 
eheck(  .1  desertion  in  his  ranks  by  ottering  large  re- 
wards but  if  the  |)ublication  of  such  notices  produced 
any  marked  effect,  it  was  not  until  after  there  were 
few  left  to  desert." 

In  the  midst  of  the  excitement,  however,  there  were 
niei.  who  remained  calm,  and  here  and  there  were 
those  who  regarded  not  the  product  of  the  Sierra 
foothills  as  the  greatest  good.  Luis  Peralta,  who 
had  lived  near  upon  a  century,  called  to  him  his  sons, 
themselves  approaching  threescore  years,  and  said: 
"^[y  sons,  God  has  given  this  gold  to  the  Americans. 
Had  he  desired  us  to  have  it,  he  would  have  given  it 
to  us  ere  now.  Therefore  go  not  after  it,  but  let 
others  go.     Plant  your  lands,  and  reap ;  the§e  be  your 

woodn  till  dark,  and  then  came  into  town  for  provisions,  hut  got  so  drunk 
that  on  Htarting  they  loHt  the  road,  and  w<"^';  to  sleep  ou  the  l>each  opjiosite 
tJH'ir  own  ship.  Just  before  <Iay light  one  of  them  awoke,  and  hearing  tlie 
nhip'H  bell  strike,  roused  the  others  barely  in  time  to  iiiuke  go(i<l  their  csuape. 
Swan  afterward  met  them  in  the  mines.  Trip  to  the  Gold  Minin,  MS.,  3. 
Certain  volunteers  from  Lower  California  arriving  in  Mcmteroy  formed  into 
emiiiiHiiies,  helped  themselves  to  stores,  and  then  started  for  the  iniiies.  i/irrn'ii 
Li/fi  uiid  A'hr.iUiirm,  MS.,  11;  Cuiy'omiaii,  Aug.  14,  1848.  The  offer  of  flOO 
per  nmnth  for  sailors,  made  by  Capt.  Allyn  of  the  Ihiuic  Walton,  brought 
forward  no  accepters.  FrUhie'H  Rrmin.,  MS.,  30-2;  Ferry,  Cat.,  325-G;  Sher- 
Mitii'i  Mini.,  i.  .'>7;  UiijIer'H  Diary,  MS.,  78. 

'■'''  Nov.  'Jd  he  again  writes:  '  For  tiie  present,  and  I  fear  for  years  to  come,  it 
will  bo  ini|M)S8ible  for  the  United  States  to  maintain  any  naval  or  military  es- 
talilixhineiit  in  California;  as  at  the  present  no  hope  of  reward  nor  fear  of 
piiiii.sliiiient  i.s  sutiicient  to  make  biiitling  any  contract  between  man  and  man 
<i|i<in  the  soil  of  Californi'..  To  send  trooiis  out  here  would  lie  needlcHs,  for 
tlu'V  would  immediately  dec'ert.  .  .Among  tlie  deserters  from  the  siiua<Iron  are 
>>oinc  of  the  best  petty  o'.ticcrs  and  seamen,  having  but  few  months  to  serve, 
(ind  larj^tt  Imhui'jv.^  due  them,  amounting  in  the  aggregate  to  over  $10,000.' 
William  Hich,  Oct.  2^d,  writes  the  paymaster-general  that  nearlyall  of  Com- 
iiaiiy  K,  ."Jd  nrtillery,  htt<l  deserted.  The  five  men-of-war  in  port  tlareil  not 
taii<l  a  man  through  fear  of  desertion.  Two  companies  alone  remained  in  Cat., 
one  of  the  first  dragoons  and  the  other  of  the  ',M  artillery,  'the  latter  reibicetl 
to  a  mere  skeleton  by  desertion,  and  the  former  in  a  fair  way  to  share  the 
«ame  fate.'  Jlevere'a  Tour  of  ihtli/, '2ii2-G;  Shfrmans  J/tm.,  i.  5<J-7;  LaiUn, 
Kal.,  '.'4  31. 

•'''Ill  Nov.  the  commander  gave  notice  through  the  Cal{fominn  that 
$40,(H)0  would  lie  given  for  the  capture  of  deserters  from  liisBqua<lroii,  in  the  fob 
lowiiii{  sums:  for  the  first  four  deserting  since  .Inly,  8-'>00  each,  and  for  any 
others,  $'200  each,  the  reward  to  be  paid  in  silver  dollars  iiniucdiately  on  the 
delivery  of  any  culprit. 

Hmt.  C'al.,  Vol.  VI.    5 


^i 


ill . 


I  il 


16  rrtOXIMATK  KFFKCT  OF  Til.''  COLD  DISCOVERV. 

bfst  «,ntl<I-fii!l(l.s,  for  all  must  oat  wliilo  tlu-y  live."" 
Others  looketl  aroiiiul  and  saw  with  ])ro|i]uti<'  eve  tlu' 
tiiiii  in  the  ti<le  whfti  ditrt'iciit  roHouiccs  iiiiist  sjniny 
into  |)i-<>iniiu>iici>;  not  only  land  <; rants  with  t'arnis  and 
orchards,  and  lorrsts  with  tluir  varied  products,  but 
metals  and  min<'rals  of  a  baser  kind,  as  ijuicksilver. 
(•o|»|>er,  coul.'^"'  They  foresaw  the  rush  from  ahroiul  oi' 
<4;old-sei'kers,  the  «(atherin<(  of  vast  Heets,  the  irdlux 
of  merchandise,  with  their  eonHuquent  How  of  traffic 
an<l  trade,  the  rise  of  cities  and  the  growtii  of  settle- 
ments, Tlu>so  were  the  days  of  j^reat  o|>i>ortunities, 
when  a  hundred  properly  investe<l  would  soon  havti 
yielded  millions.  Wo  mi^ht  have  improved  an  oppor- 
tunity like  Sutter's  better  than  he  did.  S«»  we  tliink ; 
yet  opportunities  just  as  j^reat  jierhaps  present  tluni- 
Helves  to  us  every  ilay,  and  will  })re8ent  themselves, 
but  we  clo  not  see  them. 

" .1  »vAiir.i  Simla  Cruz,  MS.,  107;  //nl/'^  IliM.,  I!t0-1;  l.ark'iii*  J)or., 
MS.,  vi. 

"■  Mt^n  I)cgan  to  (iimrrcl  nfrcsli  ovor  tlic  Kcw  Almailcn  claim,  now  hImiii- 
iloiii'il  Ity  i'.s  wcii'kiiu'ii  for  tiioi'u  f.-iHciniitiii^'  (iclil8;  in  thf  spring  uf  tliiit  yuur 
tla  cuuutry  I'uuuil  Clcur  Lako  liuil  bcu;;  Hcurcliol  foi'  copiicr. 


P'l 


iJi 


CTTAPTKH  V. 


l^arkiit'M  /)o<-.. 


rUHTHKIl    IHSCOVKRIES. 

Mvlic  II    ItKlKMHKR,  IH48. 

Isaac   MiMrnuKY   a<;ain  -Hidsvi-.i.i,   am>  iiis  lUii— Readixo  and  nw  In- 

lUANS  (IS  Cl.KAIl  ClU.KK  I'IMTI.MIOS  IS  TIIK  MiNKS  On  FkATMKR 
l;i\KK    AM'     TIIK     Yl  IIA      .IitllS     S|S(  I.AIU      )N     IIIK    AmKUICAN    PiVKIl — 

Till  IiiisiniAN  Yankkk  Jim  — l>ii  Toim  in  Toim  Vai.i.ky — Kk.i.skv— 
\Vi  iKi:  UN  Wki.kii  f'UKKK  Till.  SriMKinN  Mininu  Companv  .Mriiniv 
^IlwcToWN  On    TIIK   St\msi.ai  s     IvNUiiiT,    Wiiiiii,    S.\vAi;i-.,    ask 

HKKtKllNAN  — I'AKTV  UtiiM  OliKHiiS  ()n  TIIK  MoKKI.r  M  S  K  AN|)('l»iM- 
NK.S  -TllK.  SuSilKANS  UN  TIIK  Tl  (il.r  MNK— (JoltONKI,  ANI>  pAKTV. 


Onk  of  tlio  first  t(»  rcjilize  the  iin|)ortaiici!  of  ^Tar- 
s'^all's  (liscovcrv  was  .'saac  I  fumplirov,  ilif  (Jooi-ina 
miiit'i'  lu'toio  iiioiitioned,  who  accoiupaiiit'd  IJt'iiiictt 
(•II  liis  ivtuni  to  SutttTs  Fort,  after  the  failure  to 
ohtaiii  a  <n'ant  of  tlie  <;«)l(l  roi^io};,  JIumphi't'V  advised 
Miiio  of  his  friends  to  !lj(»  with  him  to  st'ck  Lfohl,  hut 
t'lU'V  oiilv  laughed  at  liiiii.  lie  reached  ("oloma  on 
tlio  7th  of  March;  tlu*  Sth  saw  liini  out  prospeetin*^ 
witli  a  pun;  tlie  'Jth  found  him  at  work  witli  a  i-oeker. 
The  a[>pheation  tif  machinery  to  mining  in  California 
was  heijfun.  A  day  or  two  later  eamo  to  the  mill  a 
Ki'ench  Canadian,  .lean  J^aptiste  lluellt!  hy  name,  com- 
monly called  Haptistt',  who  had  heen  a  miner  in  ^Ti-x- 
icM,  a  trapper,  and  n-en«!ral  hackwoodsmaii.  Impressed 
hy  till!  n,. ((logic  features  of  that  I'egion,  anil  yet  mure 
|Kilia|»s  hy  an  ardent  fancy,  lu;  had  five  years  In^fore 
applied  to  Sutter  for  aii  outfit  to  go  and  search  for 
gold  in  the  mountains.  Sutter  deelint>d,  deeming  him 
iiiiivliahle,  hut  gave  him  occui)ation  at  the  whiji-saw 
ell  W  ehe-r  Creek,  ten  miles  east  of  Coloma.      After 


IT 


1 1 

! 


li-i 

'  .  ill  1.  i 

U' 


!■' 


I  in 


cs 


FURTHER  DISCOVERIES. 


Mcrifi  ivy 


Tmk  (liii.ii  Hkiiion  is   1H4H,  kkom  Tiiim'mnk  to  Tkinity. 


EXTENSION  OF  THE  MIXING  DISTRICT. 


exaniiiilnj^  the  digjjfinj»s  at  Coloma,  ho  declared  there 
must  bo  gtilJ  also  on  the  creek,  wondered  ho  had  never 
Idund  it  there;  indeed,  the  failure  to  do  so  seeniH 
stupidity  in  a  pcrs.m  so  lately  talking  about  gold-find- 
ing. 1^  everthele.ss,  he  with  Humphrey  was  of  great 
service  to  the  inexperienced  gold-diggers,  initiating 
them  as  woll  in  the  niysterie.s  of  prospecting,  or  seok- 
iiig  for  gold,  as  in  washing  it  out,  or  se[)arating  it 
from  the  earth.* 

So  it  was  with  John  Bidwell,  who  came  to  Coloma 
toward  thu  latter  part  of  March."  Seeing  the  gold 
and  the  soil,  he  said  there  were  similar  indications  in 
the  vicinity  of  liis  rancho,  at  Chioo.  Keturninghonie 
iio  soarc'hod  tho  streams  thereabout,  and  v;a8  soon  at 
work  with  his  native  retainers  on  Feather  River,  at 
the  rich  placer  which  took  tho  name  of  Bidwell  Bar.* 
Xot  long  after  Bidwell's  visit  to  Coloma,''  P.  B. 
Heading  arrivetl  there.  He  also  was  satisfied  that 
tliere  was  j;old  TiOar  his  rancho  at  tiie  northern  end 
of  the  great  valley,  and  finding  it,  he  worked  tho 

'  llumiilirry  -li'-'l  nt  Vi.torin.  KC,  Dpi-.  1,  ISfl?.  Attn  Cnl.,  Dec.  4,  IWiT. 
Ilittt'll,  .Uiiii.'ij,  l.'>,  UHOi'ilioH  t(>  tliv  Fi'uiu'liiniui  thu  tiret  Udo  uf  poii  liiut  ruckir 

oil  tll)^  C(*IUlt, 

•'  lie  nays  th«t  Hum|)lipey,  Rudlp,  and  otliont  wi'ie  at  work  'with  p(in!»  in 
sciiiif  i-iivincu  on  tlio  nortli  Hide  of  tlie  rivt-r. '  /iiihrJI'n  Cat.  IS)l  -S,  aMN.  ,  •_'.'!•.•. 
Ill'  iiiakvx  no  niuntiim  of  any  rockiT,  nlthouuli  tho  nuichiue  muvt  liavo  Ix-uu 
iifw  tu  him.     It  may  havu  liccn  tlu'if  for  all  that. 

"Oil  my  n^turn  to  Cliico  I  8to|i|H!il  o\vv  ui^\\t  nt  Hamilton  on  th»  wt'><t 
Imiik  i.f  Fi'iithiT  Kiver.  On  tryi'ijii;  hhiiiu  of  thu  siuwl  in  tho  river  hero  I  fouinl 
lih;lit  luii'tieleN  of  ^iM,  ami  ruckoiicil  that  if  li^'ht  ^olil  iniihl  Imi  f<iun(i  that  far 
iliiwii  tilt!  river,  thu  heavier  |)»rticluti  would  cerhiinly  remain  near  tho  hilU. 
Oil  ii'iirhing  Chii'ii  an  expedition  w.-m  orguni/ed,  l>ut  it  t<H;i:  aioiiiu  time  t«i  j^rtt 
eMrythiiig  ivady.  We  liud  to  Hund  twiee  up  to  Pete.  Iauhh  'm  mill  to  olitaiil 
llniir;  meat  hud  to  he  dried,  niid  wc  liad  t)  send  in  ^'aii'iinieiito  for  tools. 
Our  |M»rty  wore  Mr  l)icky,  i'otter,  John  Williious,  \Vi||iai<i  NorthgroM!*, 
mill  iiiyfudf.  Wo  |)ati<ted  near  Churokuoiuid  up  o.i  Uio  north  fork.  In  nearly 
nil  tlie  plneen  no  iiri>M'^<o«jted  wo  fouiiil  tho  color.  Oiiue\ening,  wliilo  cuuiped 
at  Wiiltu  Koekit,  Oieky  and  1  in  a  bhort  tiiiiu  piiniu'd  out  alH)i)t  an  ounee  of 
liiiii  uiild.  The  othera  rofiiitotl  to  nrimptvt  any,  am'  luiid  the  gold  wo  hud 
<il>taiiied  wiM  Hu  li^ht  th.vt  it  woiihf  nut  wu'^h  anything.  At  thin  time  wi< 
vii'e  all  unfuiiiiliar  with  tho  weight  of  gold-dust,  hut  I  am  Mitixtied  tlii.t 
vliat  wu  had  v  mild  huvo  w>'ighed  an  ounce.  At  lonuth  wo  eatiie  homo  and 
Millie  of  thu  mm  went  to  th  Amurican  Rivor  to  mine.  I'icky,  Northgrnvi's, 
iiimI  I  wont  to  what  ia  now  ]  idweUB  liar,  and  there  found  gold  ami  w.nt  to 
ii.iiiiiii;.'  nitliifir.s  (',,1.  lS4i   S,  MS.,  i>3-2-S:  Srir.  irnion,  tKa.  '24,  1864. 

'Sutter,  ill  A'^.  Ilvlr.  l>ii  ri;  nays  ho  left  tho  fort  April  IHth  with  Keadiu^ 
nml  Kilwiii  Koniblu,  wunaU  lU'w  four  dayH,  and  bvaido  gold  aaw  uilvvr  aud  iron 
ill    hiiudauce. 


f'. 


<1 


It': 
-  '4\  < 


70 


FURTUER  DISCOVERIES. 


deposits  near  Clear  Crock  with  liis  Indians.  Mean- 
while the  metal  wan  discovered  at  several  intei- 
nicdiate  points,"  especially  along  the  tributaries  and 
ravines  of*  the  south  fork,  whic'w  first  disclosed  it. 
Thus  at  t>ne  leaj)  the  <»'old-fields  extended  their  line 
northward  two  hundre<l  miles.  It  will  also  be  noticed 
tiiat  after  the  Mormons  the  foremost  to  make  avail 
of  ATarshaH's  discoverv  were  tl>e  settlers  in  the  y^rent 
valley,  who,  gatherint;  round  them  the  Indians  of 
their  vicinity,  with  such  allurements  as  food,  finery, 
alcohol,  went  tluMr  several  ways  huntiniif  the  yellow 
stuff  Uj)  and  tlown  the  creeks  and  t^ulches  in  eveiy 
direction.  Sutter  and  Marshall  had  been  working 
their  tamed  hulians  at  Colonia  in  February." 

As  the  field  enlarged,  so  did  the  visions  of  its  occu- 
pants. Reports  of  vast  yields  and  richer  and  ii<her 
diggings  began  to  fly  in  all  directions,  swelling  under 
distoited  fancy  and  lending  wings  to  flocking  crowds. 
In  May  the  influx  assumed  consitlorable  proportions, 
aii<l  the  streams  and  ravines  for  thirty  nuies  on  either 
side  of  Coloma  were  occupied  one  after  another.  The 
estin»at(!  is,  that  there  weie  then  alrea<lv  HOO  miner> 
at  work,  and  the  number  was  rapidly  increasing. 
Early  in  .lune  Consul  Larkin  e.stinuited  them  at  2,000. 
mo.stly  foreigners,  half  of  whom  were  on  the  branches 
of  the  American.  Theie  might  have  been  100  fanii 
lies,  with  teams  an<l  tints.  He  saw  none  who  had 
worked  steadily  a  montii.  Few  had  come  prepaietl 
to  stay  over  a  week  or  a  f)rtnight,  and  no  matter  how 
rich  the  prosptjcts,  they  weie  obliged  to  return  home 
and  arrauije  their  business.  Tho.se  who  ha<l  no  home 
or  business  must  go  somewhere  for  food. 

Wiien  Mason  visited  the  mines  early  in  July,  he 
undi-rstood  that  4,000  men  wen;  then  at  work,  which 
certaiidy  cannot  be  called  exaggerated  if  Indians  arc 

'Ah  on  the  land  of  Lciilesdorff,  on  the  Amcricnii  Kiver  jiiHt  nlNjve  Mnttt'i  i 
flour  mill,  about  the  mitldle  of  April.  S.  F.  Cdli/oniiaii,  Ajiril  I!),  184H;  Cut 
(loriiiu  Star,  April  'it*.  IMS. 

"  In  1)18  Diary,  under  dat«  of  April,  Suttur  ■ays  tlmt  aoinc  of  biit  ueiglibur.i 
hud  bveu  very  sucvuMtful. 


1 


I 


MIXES  AND  MIXINc;  CAMPS. 


71 


included.  By  tlio  turn  of  the  season,  in  October,  the 
iiuml)cr  liiid  ccitaitdy  doubled,  alth<>Ui;h  the  white 
jiiiiiiiiij^  Mopuiatioii  tor  the  year  could  not  have  exceeded 
10,000  MKMi.  Arrivals  in  1848  have  as  a  rule  heeii 
(.vctcstiniated.  Xewstlid  not  reach  the  outside  world 
in  time  tbr  jieople  to  come  t'n»ni  a  distance  durin^j 
that  vear.'  It  is  impossible  t<t  trace  the  drift  ot"  the 
miners,  hut  I  will  <^ive  the  movements  of  the  leatliui^ 
men,  and,  so  far  as  they  have  come  undei-  my  observa- 
tion, the  founders  of  mininj^  cai  ;j)s  and  towns, 

'I'lie  success  of  Bidwell  in  the  north  was  (|uickly  re- 
peated hv  otluTs,  Two  miles  froui  his  camp  on  the 
north  fork  of  Feather  Jiiver,  one  Potter  from  the 
l'\'U\\('ll  n'l'ant  opened  another  har,  known  l)y  his  name. 
Helow  liidwell  J^ar  lay  Long  l^ai-;  »»pposite,  Adams- 
ti»\\  n,  first  W(»rked  by  Neal.  From  Jjassen's  rancho 
went  one  Davis  and  camped  below  Mollis  Jiuvine, 
near  Thomjison  Flat,  Suhse«piently  J)ye  and  coin- 
pan  v  of  Monterey  with  50  liulians  took  out27;{  |»ounds 


ni  seven  wee 


ks.  f 


rom  mines  on 


tl 


lis  river. 


Tl 


K'   JIOO- 


rigines  begun  t<    w.jk  largely  on  their  own  account, 


'Simpson  should  not  my  there  were  .3.000  or  -l.WK)  minerH  at  work  tlin-e 
nMiiitlis  iiftiT  tlir  discovery  of  )-'i>li|,  lici-.ui.sc  then'  were  Uss  tiiun  .">IK»;  ii.iir 
iiiiiiitliMafti'i'  tlic  ilisi'ovi'iy  tliere  wrrv  li'ss  tliiui  l,(MKl;  imh  »Im>uIiI  the  IvfM  Tcnil 
('•iltnii  Hpfiik  of  ."»(»,tHX(  in  Nov.,  vvlicii  less  Mian  ltl,(MHt  w  liilr  men  were  at  vMiik 
ill  till'  mines.  .My  researolius  inilieatr  a  |io|iulatioii  in  ( 'alitoniia  in  tli>'  iiil<Mle 
ol  l^'tiS  ot  7,.'>0()  IlispanO'C'ulitornians,  exelmling  Imlians,  un<l  <!,,')(N)  .Xiiicii- 
eaiiM.  with  a  sprinkling  uf  foreiifiiers.  Ot  the  C'alifornian.i,  prol)alilv  l,.'{.)0 
went  to  till'  liMiies,  out  of  a  pimsllili'  iiia\iiiiiiin  of  '.',(MM)  alile  to  ^'o,  allnwini' 
for  tlieir  laixer  families.  Of  tlie  .\iiii'rie;ins,  with  snialh'r  funiilies  an'  of 
mni'e  riiviii^'  ilispiisition,  mililieis,  etc.,  t,(NH)  jiiiiUMi  the  rush.  Aclil  l,.'i(H) 
Oii'iiiiiiiaiis  and  nortin-rnc'iN.  arriving  in  iS-tH,  and  •J,."i(H)  Mexie.ans,  Mawai 
iiui.'*.  ete.,  anil  we  have  a  total  mining  population  of  somewhat  over  tl,(HH>. 
Ot/.  .NV<i;-,  Sept.  '2,  I.S4S,  l>ee.  !t,  I.S4H,  allows  2,000  Oregonians  tn  ariiM'  in 
IMS.  and  100  wagons  with  U.  .S.  miigiants.  The  gov.  agent,  T.  15.  King, 
iinli.ati's  his  iK^lief  in  a  |K)pnlution  at  tlie  end  of  1S4S  uf  l.'i,<KIO,  oi'  a  litlft! 
nii'iv  h'l/iiirt,  l.">;  U.S.  (t'ov.  Dors.,  ',i\^t  cong.  1st  sess.,  H.  Kx.  Ddc.  ,"»!(,  7. 
'I'lir  Kiiiiinittee  of  the  Cal,  const,  convention.  In  stateinent  uf  March  I8.'>0, 
UHsiiiii  d  ,1  popiiliition  of  26,000,  w  lu'reof  8  (M)0  Americans,  5,000  foreigners, 
and  l.'I.IHX)  Calitoriuaim,  iiut  the  la.st  two  estimates  are  excessive.  .See  alMi 
SiilhiKtii's  d'lililin  Fli-ccf,  .'{"J;  Mitiiii'n  Mix.  Az/f  ,  ii.  ;{".l.'{;  (iriinshaw,  Xnrr., 
Ms.,  eiiiiiiieratoH  only  live  sea  going  vessids  at  .San  l''i'ancisii)  early  in  Nov. 
IMS, 'iiid  these  evidently  all  on  trading  trips,  and  as  late  as  Keh,  IH4!),  the 
Fn-il  Slemiis/ii/i  Pioim  rt,  found  only  a  few  ships  hi'ie.  It  is  dillinilt,  tlieio- 
fnii',  to  make  up  ri,(M)0  foreiLrn  arrivals  Ixifore  LSI'),  fur  the  iutiux  ti'uui  tSuuura . 
u  ^lluwn  eUtiwhure  to  liavc  Leuu  luuderute  su  fur. 


ill 


\%  1  m 


A 


W 


FURTHER  DISCOVERIES. 


ami  Bidwoll  found  more  advantage  in  attending  to  a 
trading  post  opened  by  liini." 

The  success  on  Feather  River  led  to  the  explora- 
tion of  its  main  tributary,  the  Yuba,  by  Patrick  Mc- 
Christian,  J.  P.  Leese,  Jasper  O'Farrell,  William 
Leery,  and  Samuel  Norris,  who  left  Sonoma  in  July, 
and  were  the  first  to  dig  there  for  gold,  making  in 
three  m<mths  $75,000"  The  diggings  on  the  Yuba 
were  subsequently  among  the  most  famous  in  Califor- 
nia, and  form  the  scene  perhaps  of  more  of  the  incidents 
anti  reminiscences  characteristic  of  the  mining  days 
than  any  other  locality.  The  leading  bars  or  camps 
were  those  of  Parks,  Long,  and  Foster,  where  miners, 
although  poorly  supplied  with  implements,  made  from 
$00  to  $100  a  day;  and  it  is  supposed  that  thoy 
lost  more  gold  than  they  saved,  on  account  of  the 
clumsiness  of  their  implements. '°  Below,  on  Bear 
River,  J.  Tyrwhitt  Brooks  camped  with  a  party." 
Reading  extended  his  field  to  Trinity  River,  the  most 
northerly  point  reached  in  1848;  but  he  had  the  mis- 
fortune to  encounter  a  company  of  Oregonians  (»ii 
their  way  south,   and   these,  imbittered  against,  all 

•  RhIwIVh  Cal.  fS41-S,  MS.,  231   .1:  Sceton,  in  ih-oi<Ulf  Mt-r.,  Deo.  31.  lS7.->. 

•  Mr( 'hrixtiitn,  in  f'itiHfir  Sketrh»/<,  MS. ,  9.  .Jonas Spoot fitoteH  in  liiH  IHanj, 
MS.,  tliut  he  fnnnil  aiM  on  the  Yiilw,  near  Lon^j  Iktr,  June  iHt.  See  uIno 
Yolit  Co.  Hint.,  33;  Yuh<i  Co.  Hint.,  M. 

'"  I'lirks  Bar  on  the  Vnba  wna  discovered  in  August  by  .Steplien  Cooper, 
John  Marah,  John  I'.  Long  nnd  two  lirotiiers,  Clay,  Williii,  und  NiclHiliia 
Hunsakcr,  who  afterward  held  inip«)rtaiit  positions  iit  Contru  Costa  uoinity. 
Charles  Covillaud  opened  a  store  there  later,  anil  eniploye<l  a  nnnilier  of  In- 
tlians  to  dig  gold  for  him.  Hu  married,  on  i'hristnms,  1848,  Miiry  Murpli>, 
one  of  the  survivors  of  the  Donner  party.  He  pure  hosed  tliv  runclio  wln-ru 
Marysville  now  stands,  laid  out  the  town,  an<l  named  it  for  his  wife.  I'm  ks, 
from  whom  the  liar  was  named,  uame  across  the  plains  in  IH4K.  Althiiu>.'li 
fifty  miners  were  at  work  when  he  arrived,  and  had  liecn  for  somi-  time,  tlic 
Iwr  was  christened  after  him,  liecause  he  was  a  man  with  a  family,  and  mori! 

SMirsons  answered  t«)  the  name  of  i'arks  than  to  any  other.  See  account  liy 
liianita,  in  Snrrammto  Hfnriie,  Jon.  'M,  1871.  .luaniUi  was  a  young  Scotili- 
man,  John  C.  Mcl'herson  hy  name,  with  consideraltle  literarv  ability.  Winltt 
mining  at  l/ong  Kar  he  com|Mi8ed  a  song  in  praise  of  the  Vulta,  which  iH'i'ame 
a  favorite  among  the  miners,  nnd  has  Wen  frequently  printed.  I»ug  l>ar 
was  named  after  Dr  Long,  liurnett  and  a  number  of  his  companions  from 
Oregon  t)egan  their  gold-seeking  at  this  point.  The  population  was  then  HO 
men,  3  women,  and  .'i  children.  Foster  Kar  was  one  of  the  laatonened  in  IH4S, 
The  gravelly  ciny  dirt,  often  twelve  feet  from  the  surface,  was  nard  to  work. 
^^Itroohf  Four  .Months  I  ID- '28.  His  party  obtaiuud  11&  Ibi  of  gold  by 
Sept     Later,  BuSiun  tried  and  failed. 


TOWN-BUILDING. 


78 


against. 


.1)00.  31.1  f^T''. 

ten  ill  lii«  /'i'"  y. 
IhI.     Set  "'•■*" 


Iiulians  1)V  tlic  recont  bloculy  wars  in  which  tlioy  had 
been  cngajjfed  with  their  own  aborigines,  drove  him 
and  liis  party  of  natives  awav  from  what  afterward 
proved  to  l^e  an  exceedingly  rich  locality.''^ 

Early  in  June  John  Sinclair  went  from  his  rancho, 
near  New  Helvetia,  to  the  junction  of  the  north  and 
south  branches  of  the  American  River,  twelve  miles 
above  his  house,  and  there  worked  fifty  natives  with 
good  sucijess.  During  the  same  month  a  party  of 
^[ormons  abandoned  their  claim  on  the  south  branch 
of  the  American  River,  and  crossing  to  the  middle 
tributary,  discovered  the  deposits  on  what  was  later 
known  as  Spanish  Bar,  twelve  miles  north-east  from 
Coloma.  This  stream  was  the  richest  of  any  in  all 
that  rich  region,  this  one  spot  alone  yielding  more 
than  a  million  of  dollars. 

Into  a  ravine  between  the  north  and  middle  branches 
of  the  American  River,  fifteen  miles  nortli-east  of 
Coloma,  stumbled  one  day  an  Iri.diman,  to  wiiom  in 
raillerv  had  been  given  the  nickname  Yankee  Jim, 
which  name,  applied  to  the  rich  deposit  he  there  found, 
s<M)n  became  famous.  A  few  miles  to  the  n(»rth-east 
of  Yankee  Jim  were  Illinoistown  and  Iowa  Hill, 
found  and  named  by  persons  from  the  states  indicated. 
\V.  R.  Longley,  once  alcalde  at  Monterey,  was 
followed  by  I)r  Todd  into  the  placid  named  Todd 
N'aliey.  Ilercabout  remained  many  \[ormons,  who 
forgot  their  desert  destination,  turned  publicans,  and 
waxed  fat.  There  were  Hannon,  one  wife  an<l  two 
(laughters,  who  kept  the  Mormon  House;  VV'iekstm 
and  wife,  the  house  to  which  under  their  sueei'ssor 
Mas  given  the  name  Franklin;  whili>  I^laekman  kept 
ail  inn  at  one  of  the  fifty  Dry  Diggings,  which,  at 
tlie  great  renaming,  became  known  as  Aul)uni." 


"  IVfarrrrillr  Triniln  Journal,  .Tune  20,  1H74;  I'lirifir  h'lirnl  /V<«s,  <|ii<it<'<| 
ill  M>ri;,l  /',of,/f,  .ItinuK,  1872. 

'^  Firry,  Cnl.,  10.')-fl;  Oakland  TrnHMrript,  .\\^r\\  l.'l,  Ifil'.V,  Ahimoln 
<'i>.  Unutli,  April  19,  187.1j  /lutfhiinjs'  Mnj.,  vi>l.  ii.  I!»7.     (Mi  tins.-  Htitaiiis 

""' ItsortiTi  reali/t>(l  within  a  few  (laystiom  $.*>,0<H)  to  jCJO.IMH)  oa.li,  uikI 

till  II  lift  (^lifuruia  by  this  lirst  couvtiyiuict:.  (artoti'ii  Jilurly  /{noUtcttuna,  0; 


I'l  I 


74 


FURTlIKIi  DISlOVERIEi 


Xortli  (»f  Coloiua  Krlst'V  ami  party  ojjoiicd  tlic 
•  lij^'ulii'L;:^  which  ti»ok  his  iiaiiif.  SMijth  ol"  it  \\\I»fi' 
(ittk  lo.si'  into  iiiUH'  umler  tht;  ilisi'ovfrics  «)t'  a  coiii- 
jtaiiy  tVoiM  Wcht'i's  yiiujt,  now  Stocktun,  iiicludiiin 
sol  IK'  ms|«ai:i)-('aliri»niians,  Afu-r  a  trip  to  the  St.iii 
islaus.  ami  a  more  hivorahlc  trial  on  the  Mokuluiiiiic, 
with  (h't'i>  <li;4}Jfini;s,  tht-y  proccvdnl  on  their  ruutt , 
hnchti"^^  f^old  fverywhire,  and  paiis«d  on  the  creek, 
at  a  p(;iiit  alxmt  twelve  iiiiles  iVom  the  saw-mill. 
There  tlufy  made  tiieir  camp,  which  later  to(»k  tlit; 
name  <*}'  NVelnivilie;  and  while  M»me  remained  Ut 
5nine,  tiie  rest  I'eturned  to  Weher s  rancho  t(»r  sup|)liis. 
I'radi'  no  less  than  <^oM-di^i;in:^  Ix'ini^  the  ohj(.'ct,  .i 
joint-stock  asHociation,  called  the  Stockton  Miniiii,' 
('ompany,  was  orL(anize«l,  with  Charles  ^T.  Weher  iis 
the  leadiniT  memher."  The  comiianv,  althouiih  vei  v 
successl'iil  with  its  larLjo  native  cor|ts,  was  di.>ssol\»il 
in  ISi'pti'mher  ot'tlu!  satm;  year  hy  Wche-r,  who  wishnl  |1 
to  turn  liis  attention  exchisivelv  to  huildini^  a  town 


U!». m  Ills  <j: 


rraiit, 


On   the  creek  Were  also  Suhol  ami 
company,  who  emj)loyed  thirty  Indians,  and   Xi  liyli. 
The  Stockton  comiianv  had  -^can-elv  hei-n  i-staMisl 


at  \V(;hei'  ("reek  when  a  man  iM-lonj^in;^  to  the  ]tarty  nt 
William  Davloi",  a  raiahero  trom  the  vicinitvof  New 
lleKetia,  struck  into  the  hills  one  niorninLf,  and  I'ouinl 
the    mine  first  called,  in  common  with    manv  otIi>  r 


J  III  in 


inn  4 


Sir  Mdiilhs. 


Siiicliiir  wa.s  oui-  ot   tlio  tinit  to  iind  uoM  on  I 


liul'tll   hntlK'll. 


M.C 


ii'istiiiii. 


ill  /• 


sk, tih' ».  y. 


II 


rill!  titliiT  iiii'IiiIh'I's  wcr>!  .Iiiliii  M.   Murphy,  •l<»H.'|ili  ItiiKrtcl,  .\ii>ly  liiiki 


)'vlis  I  S,  IiIh'I,  iiikI  <  lUiu'L'ti  Fra/i'i'.  Not  Itavint;  st  liaiicl  ail  tlic  rt'c|iii.iiti.s 
for  tlic  oiitlit,  wliilo  till!  roiii|Hiiiy  j.riKi  t.<lf«l  i.)  \\  .  Imt  Crick,  \Vi  In  r  went  lu 
Sun  KtaiKiMco  anil  San  iloxi',  ami  thi'io  iMni^ht  lM-a<l«,  I'aliro,  ilntliiiik;,  ^lu- 
rurii's,  ami  toni.i.  «  liii  h  wire  s<  nt  liy  ln>ut  to  Suttfr'nt'iiiluircailfro,  anil  tluMm 
traii-iHiriiil  liy  \\ll^!onK  to  WcIh-i' ( 'ri-rk,  w  ln-re  a  «t<>ro  was  oik-iiimI.  Aiiii>n;;.>t 
till)  (iilur  articles  imrcliaHi'il  was  a  i|iiantity  of  )»iU<-r  coin,  atti'utivc  to  llif 
nativis  aM  <irii.iiii('iit.s.  From  tin;  rani  lio  wlti-  M.-iit  \>v*-i,  oatlii',  uikI  w  liiiti'Mi' 
cUu  waa  uMiiialilu  for  line  oi'  (wlc.  Wi'U-r,  in  I'inLtutmif  lli«*.  Slorhiini,  '1. 
Accorilinn.lo  Snii  Joaquin  i.'n.  l/i-i.,  '2\,  tlu-ru  wtrcotluT  prmnini'iit  iiK/nilii  i ., 
Iiiit  tiny  Willi  iiioio  likoly  to  liaM-  U-cu  only  of  the  ji.irty  ainl  may  li^ive 
juiucil  at  r.notlivr  tiino  ami  plai'u. 

'•■  litili'iiiii,  iS'i.f  Miiiilli't  ill  I'  :  <}"lil  Mill**,  W.  nay*  that  Williiim  Daylor,  ;i 
ramliiMo  near  Siittrr'n  l'"i>it,  wan  with  WelM-r  at  \V«-I>fr  Cr«-i'k,  ami  that  tlu' 


t\(oi-iii|iloyi'il  1,0(10  Iniliansuiiil  t<Mik  out  ^'lO.OUil.  St-r,  fiirtliei ,  ''■(  ':m)ii'*  A' 
A'.c.,  ,'i;  S.  r.  Uiillitiii,  Aug.  13,  iSwO;  Alia  Lai..  July  31,  ISiO;  L>uuk»'  t'ttiit 
MunUm,  U3. 


INDIAN*  MIXKRS. 


7« 


lOiU'd   tlio 

it  \\\\nv 
1)1'    il   COMl- 

iiicludiii:;' 

tin!  StMIl- 

jkuluuiiif, 
cir  route, 
Mc  crcfk. 

sjiw-iiiill. 

took  tilt' 
iiiaiiit'd  til 
ir  su|>|>ru'>. 

>    oUjot't,  il 

n    Milling 

\\\1m'I"  as 
()n<;h  v»iv 

(lissttlvi'il    ^1 
rlio  wislu'tl 
111^  a  town 

Sunol  ami 
»(l  N\li-ii. 

stal»lislii<l 
ilir  jtai'ty  I't' 

tv  of  New 

ami  i'ouinl 
liaiiy   otli.  r 

Ll     ^,'ol<l     nil     till 

1.  Aii.ly  lliik.r, 

I'l    t  lir  ri'c(ui-«ili  s 

]\\  .  In  r  Willi  t'l 
I  Intliiiiji,  ^;i"- 
lii'i,  mill  tlnii" 
lu'ii.     Aiii"ii-'-i 

|tr'liti\u  to   I'll 
illl'l  w  luiti'^'  I' 
I'.  Sli)'  Lii'i',  '-■ 

ilirllt  nii.'llll"  '  -1 

ami  iiiiiy  Iwi^D 

lliam  Uiiyliir,  a 
ami  that  tlio 

Ir.i  •■miii'm  /'-'"  ','/ 


sjiots.  I)rv  l>i.ijLriii";s  aft*  rwanl  I[aM<;t()\vn,  and  later 
ri.K' rvillV'."'  It  j»r«»vetl  t-Xfeodin^ly  rich,  yiuldiijt^ 
tVoiii  three  ounces  to  five  pounds  ot"  Ljold  (Uiily  to  the 
niiiii;  and  from  tin-  middle  of.lune,  through  Julyaiul 
.\iiL;ii>t,  the  :{iJO  lluiigtown  men  were  the  happiest 
III  the  universe. 

Thus  far  extended  the  northern  district,  which  em- 
htaced  the  t!  ihutaries  of  the  Sacrament<»  and  the  north 
sidf  of  the  Hay,''  antl  centred  in  CNtlomaas  the  point 
of  primary  attra«'tion,  and  whence  fresh  iliscoveries 
i.idiatcd.     The    region   i)elow,  trihutary  to   the  San 


,l(ia(|iiiti,  was  lap^ely  opened  hy  Indians 


IS 


(  Ml  the  {Stanislaus,  where  afterwanl  was  Kiii<dit'.s 


{' 


ll  rv 


lived 


an 


Ind 


iaii   known   U>  white  men  as  Jost; 


,li>iis.  He  lia<l  InMii  instructed  in  the  mysteries  of 
)•(  liojoji  and  civilization  hv  the  missionaries,  and  was 
uiiii'  alcalde  at  San  Jose.  Throu^di  sonu;  n-al  or 
fjiiiiicd  wroiii^  he  l)e«'ame  oflonded,  left  San  .lose,  an«l 
w  ,i>  iver  afttr  liostiK-  to  the  Mexicans,  thouiih  fi  iendlv 
to  ntluTs.  Tall,  Well-proportioned,  and  possessed  <)f 
itiiiaikahlf  ahilitv,  with  the  <lri;ss  and  di^niitied  man- 
IK  r  of  a  Mi-xican  of  the  better  class,  he  commande«l 

'■  Hfiir-'iii'-  Six  Month',  ft-2  3:  F-rry,('<il..  10."i  (i.  '  TIk;  >.mi1cIics  hikI  ra- 
vines wiir  (p|>i'in  ll  all". lit  t»"»  f«ft  »i-li-  and  ><w  tnnt  ill  ili|itli  iildiit;  tiifir  «.-»'ii- 
tics,  anil  tlir  gi>l<l  I>icke(l  out  fruiil  umuii^'st  tiie  ilirt  witli  u  Ivnitc'  i'nrs-i,'n 
y;-/W7  A'"-.,  5. 

"  'J'lit'  ( '(dijoriii'iH  Rtatoi  that  alMiiit  this  time  thiiri;  witc  iiiiiny  pilil-Mtkii-s 
iii>.';,'iii.!,'  ill  the  vicinity  of  S)iioiiia  ami  Santa  Itoxii. 

'■'A  map,  <-iititle«l  Ptfilimut  (if  Un'  f'/i/ur  luul  Loirrr  Hohl  Miii<  -  on  thr. 
Sii/i/i  h'uikiij  llif  Amrrii-itit  li'inr,  I'liUhTuin,  .Inly  "JO,  IS4.S,  is  |ii'i>lHil>ly  tin' 
r.n'.u'st  Ilia))  inailf  «'xprt'*«ly  to  »lio-.vaii>  )Mirt  of  tlicpilil  r<->iiiiii,  unliss  it  \\;i- 
|iri  Tiili'il  l>y  uiiiitlicrona  liir;r«T  iKale  ui  the  siiniu  <li^.'nini:s,  wliiili  livai^  H'. 
il.tti'.  'riiiTL'  IS,  hoWfviT,  aiiotht-r  map,  wliirli  i»  datfil  only  live  .lays  lat«T 
lli.iu  the  liist  im-iiti«>in-il,  nml  is  .  ntitj.-d,  'r<ijiii'ir<i]ilii<'<tl  Sk-i<  ii  ■  i'  t/u:  (in/it 
«ii<l  (JiiiiL-'ilrir  Jti^'nrf  «/r.i/./..r,.«./.  July  •.•.■>,  IH4.S,  K.  O.  ('.  !>.,  I.t  f.  S.  A. 
Tills  is  lint  coiiliiu-.l  to  out;  litciilitv,  lint  finliiaifs  thi'  loiintiy  wvst  of  tins 
Siiiia  Ncvaila  trom  j.it.  37'  t<»  40  ,  niiil  has  inurknl  on  it  all  tlin  plaics  wlnit; 
i.'i'lil  liail  U'tii  tniiml  nt  that  (lato.  A  Mnj)  nj' t/i'  Siutlfn  ra  Mii.i  •>,  In/  ('.  /), 
lliliL.i,  IS.V.',  aifonilHUiii-H  ' ''Oi«'<M'«  A/»'/.'/  /.'<'(»//('»7'(.;.s.  'I'lio  iiiaii\  liLukM  ;iml 
|'^iMi;>iili't.s|)iililislii  linlNiut*  'ali(<>nii;iiii  Kiirnpouiiil  tlit'oasti'i  n  siatiH  in  IM'^  :) 
^'riii'ially  coiitaiiii'il  inferior  niupx,  ami  in  Home  caxt's  an  attempt  ^^a^t  inaiii-  to 
^llln^•  tliu  Ki.l.l  iTgiouH.  SiK'h  my  li«  found,  for  iiiHtancc,  in  Funl'i'.-i  <.n/./ 
A'.  .;iii/i.v  ■  (r./ii.  <'  Writtrm  Atfro'i;  Hrookt'  F«iir  MmiiliH  tniionii  ihi"  (htlil- 
f  mil  I'l*;  llnrlin'iiiiit  (Ifffj.  Slal.;  !>• 'rlirtiKuint  rnii  i 'nl.:  //u/iin's  <\il,  1,'iiiu- 
mti-l;  (i.iirnlil,  1  'n/i/nrnirn;  <'<.//<.(«'«  'I'hr>e  Y'lir^;  ami  many  otli<r  similar 
wiirks.  'i'lu!  carliiitt  piindy  gt^do^dcal  map  upitcartt  in  Tymtu't  Jitjiui't,  pub> 
liitbi'il  hy  tile  wur  deiMiitmcut  iu  1^'J. 


76 


FURTHER  DISCOVERIES. 


universal  respect,  and  on  the  death  of  Estanislao,  that 
is  to  say,  Stanislaus,  chief  of  the  Wallas,  Josd  Jesus 
was  cht»sen  his  successor.  Courting  the  friendship  nf 
this  savage,  Weber  had  through  the  intervention  of 
Sutter  made  him  his  firm  ally.  On  organizing  the 
Stockton  company,  Weber  requested  of  Josd  Ji;su.s 
sojne  able-bodied  members  of  his  tribe,  such  as  would 
nmke  goo<l  gold-diggers.  The  chief  sent  him  twenty- 
five,  who  were  despatched  to  Weber  Creek  and  given 
lessons  in  mining;  after  which  they  were  directed  to 
return  to  the  Stanislaus,  there  to  dig  for  gold,  and  to 
carry  the  proceeds  of  their  labor  to  French  Camp, 
where  the  niayordomo  would  pay  them  in  such  articles 
as  they  best  loved.'" 

This  shrewd  plan  worked  well.  The  gold  brought 
in  by  the  natives  proved  coarser  than  any  yet  found. 
Wi'bor  and  the  rest  were  delighted,  and  the  Stockton 
comjiany  determined  at  once  to  abandon  Weber  Crcik 
and  remove  to  the  Stanislaus,  which  was  done  in  Au- 
gust. The  news  spreading,  others  went  with  thciii; 
a  large  emigration  set  in,  including  some  subsequently 
notable   persons  who  gave    their  names  to  difl[ei\  nt 

iilaces,  as  Wo<»d  Creek,  Angel  Cam[),  Sullivan  lin, 
amestown,  Don  Pedro  (Sansevain)  Bar.  Murjihy 
Camp  was  nanjed  from  John  M.  Mur[>hy,  one  t)f  the 
partners.*'  William  Knight  established  the  trading 
post  at   the  point   now  known  as   Knight's  Feiiv, 

"Tliey  met  with  rare  success,  if  the  writer  in  San  Jmiquin  Co.  Ilht.,  "J I, 
is  to  he  believed.  They  found,  iiu  Hnys,  in  July  a  lump  uf  pure  gohl,  >m  v.l 
ina  8U^  uuncea  nvoinhipois,  the  general  form  of  the  nugget  lic-ing  th^it  i! 
a  kidney.  Its  rare  l>eauty,  purity,  and  size  prompted  the  firm  of  t'r(»s  ,v 
Hohson  of  San  Francisco  to  pay  for  it  1^3, 000... to  send  to  tlie  Itiiiik  ■; 
Ent;lnnd,  as  a  specimen  from  the  newly  discovered  gold-fields  of  Cnliforui^i 
(iold-dnst-was  selling  at  that  time  for  $1*2  per  ounce,  and  the  specimen,  Ii.kI  i! 
sold  only  for  its  value  as  metal,  would  have  yielded  the  Stockton  Miiiin: 
Company  only  9966. 

""•SVirt  Jonquin  Co.  Hi»l.,  21.  Carson  says.  Early  Rer.,  0:  •  In  August  tin 
old  diggings  Mere  pronounced  as  lieing  dug  out,  and  many  prosiMicting  pai  tu' 
hud  gone  out.  Fart  of  Wet>er'8  trading  establishments  had  secretly  (lisi|' 
neare<l,  ami  rumors  were  atlttat  that  the  place  where  all  the  goM  came  Iron 
hud  been  discovered  south,  and  a  general  rush  of  the  miners  commenced  th;it 
day.'  Tinkham  asserts  that  Weber  proclaimed  the  discovery  on  thi  Stiiiii^ 
laus,  anil  was  willing  every  one  should  go  there  who  wished.  The  gii:itir 
the  number  of  people  the  more  goods  would  be  required. 


■:» 


TOWARD  THE  SOUTH. 


w 


Such  was  tlio  richnuss  of  the  fiold  that,  at  Wood 
CiiL'k,  Wood,  Savajjo,  and  Hcftbrnan  were  said  to 
have  taken  out  for  some  time,  with  pick  and  knife 
al(»no,  $200  or  $300  a  day  each. 

The  interii.ediate  rej^ion,  aK)ntj  the  Mokelumne  and 
CoNimines,  had  already  become  known  through  parties 
(11  route  from  the  south,  such  as  Weber's  partners. 
J.  H.  Carson  was  directed  by  an  Indian  to  Carson 
Creek,  where  he  and  his  companions  in  ten  days 
(^fathered  IHO  ounces  each.  Angel  camped  at  An- 
ofl  Creek.  Sutter,  who  iiad  for  a  time  been  mining 
tiMi  miles  above  Mormon  Island  with  100  Indians  and 
;")0  kanakas,  canie  in  July  to  Sutter  Creek.  Two 
months  later,  when  further  gold  placers  on  the  Co- 
siiiiines  were  discovered,  Jose  de  Jesus  Pico  with  ten 
111(11  left  San  Luis  Obispo  and  proceeded  through 
Livermore  [)ass  to  the  Arroyo  Seco  of  that  locality 
and  bejjfan  to  mine.  In  four  months  he  obtained  suf- 
litiiiit  to  pay  his  men  and  have  a  surplus  of  $14,000." 

^^()kelunme  or  Big  Bar  was  now  fast  rising  in 
iiii|M»rtance.  A  party  from  (Oregon  discovered  it  early 
ill  October  and  were  highly  successful.  Their  num- 
ber induced  one  Syrec  to  drive  in  a  wagon  laden  with 
provisions,  a  venture  which  proved  so  fortunate  that 
lie  oj)ened  a  store  in  the  beginning  of  Novembrr,  on 
a  hill  one  mile  from  where  the  first  mine  was  disci )V- 
ciid.  This  became  a  tratle  centre  under  the  name  of 
Mokelumne  Hill. 

The  richest  district  in  this  region,  however,  was 
beginning  to  appear  on  the  head  waters  of  the  Tuol- 
iiniiie,  round  the  later  town  of  Sonora,  which  took  its 
name  from  the  party  of  Mexicans  from  Sonora  who 
discovered  it.*'  The  Tuolumne  may  be  regarded  as 
the  limit  of  exploration  southward  in   1848.     It  was 

"/'/''■'),  Aronterimiintox,  MS.,  77. 

•  AnioMUMt  till-  first  who  helpeil  to  settle  Sonora  in  I84S  9  were  .losluia 
IjcMcii,  Kniamiel  Lindlierg,  CuHiinir  Ijilietour,  Alon/.<)  <iroe!i,  Hiram  W. 
'i'lir.ill,  U.  S.  Ham,  (!!fiarle.'j  F.  Itoilge,  TlieonliiluM  l)o<ljie,  Terencn  i'lurli, 
.1 11I1..S  Lane,  William  Sliepperd,  Alfreil  W.  Luekett,  Keujaniin  K.  Mnore, 
\\  illiiiiii  Niiilinn,  FrantiHco  t'avia,  .Jo8i^  M,  Kosu,  Elurdi,  Uviiiigiu  Rivurtui, 
tiiiil  .lamts  Frauier.   Ilityis  Cal.  Minimj,  i.  33. 


I 


ill 


]J  m>< 


• 

: 
1 

■ 

■ 

1 

t     ■ 

' 

i 

■,    ( 

1 

I 

* 

1 

1 

■ 

.■ 

ll  il,' 


7i 


FURTIIKI!  nisroVKKIKS. 


n^arlic.I  ill  August,  su  that  In  roru  i\\v  sinimu'r  iiiontli-i 
<'|oM»'(lall  tlic  loiiiT  Sieira  Itast'-line,  as  I  liavt*  (U'scrilwd, 
liad  Im'cii  oNcnim  l>y  tin*  jnold-si'ckfi's,  tin-  .snlisf(|m;iit 
iiiuiillis  of  lilt'  vi'ar  Ixiiin:  (U'vutt'<l  to  clostT  (lc'Vi'l(»|i- 
iiKiits/'  ( )iii'  reason  tor  till.'  liiiiitutioii  was  tlio  lios- 
tilitv  of  the  natives,  who  had  in  |>arti('ulai'  taken  an 
aversion  to  the  Mexican  people,  or  llispaii(»-(  "aliloi- 
niaiis,  their  o|<|  taskmasters,  and  till  lately  prominent 
in  pnrsnin^'  them  tor  enslavement. 

Tliest!  ('alil'orniaiis  very  naturally  halttid  aloiij^  tiie 
San  ,loa(|uin  trihutarios,  which  lay  on  the  route  taken 
i'roin  the  southern  settlements,  and  were  reporte«l  even 
ridu'r  than  the  northern  mines.  Amonu;  them  was 
Antonio  Kr!inc<»  Coi-oiiel,  with  a  party  ("t'  thirty,  who 
had  left  Los  Antrcles  in  Auijust  hv  way  of  San  .lost- 


\\\i\    Livermore  pass 


I 


liests  as  well  as  puhlican 


it  appears,  wore  possessed  hy  the  dciinon  in  those  days; 
for  at  till!    San    .foaipiin    (yoi'oiiel    nut    J*adie    J 


OM' 


Maria  Snare/ del  Ileal  who  showed  him  a  ha'.^  of  oojd 
which  he  claimed  to  have  l>i'ono;ht  from  the  Stanislaus 
i'amp,  that  is  to  say,  Sonora,  recently  discoveied. 
This  di'cide«l  Colonel  and  paity  to  <ro  to  the  Stanis- 
laus, where  they  found  a  company  of  Xew  Mexii-aiis, 


lately    arrived,  a  1 


I'W 


.niericaiis,  as  w* 


II 


as  native 


(  alih 


oiniaiis  IVoiii  SaiitJosoand  |>roximate  places 


'V 


the  cann>  where  Coronel   halted  came  seven  savages, 

''^  I'lii'Hiiii's  fCiirlif  /'ifiilfirlliniM,  (J  7;  f>litrkl(in  fiiili  /h  iitliiil,  Si'pt.  It,  Is7'.'; 
I'liiilliiM  .^luli  iih  III,  MS,,  7;  Sim  Anilmit  /mli  fa  m/i  iit,  Jaii.  iMil;  Jiih-k, 
]'iil'i  //  .\i''  'iliiruK,  l!IS  •.'(HI;  /'iro,  Ai'iiiihiiniiiiit'i^,''.  Aci'oiiliiiL;  to  .1  nt:ilr- 
incut  pMliliMlicil  in  tiiu  Alhi  of  Oct.  ITi,  is.'il,  in  \,\w  Huinnicr  of  INKS  one  Koninii, 
iiS|i;iiiis|i  iliK'lor',  w  liilf  tr'aM'llin;^  w  illi  a  liii';^('  partv  of  S|iuniunts,  ItaiiiinH,  ujmI 
Ftciii'luniii  in  tlic  soutlii'in  |iai't  of  the  Ktatc,  ranic  iijuin  u  vwvv  ho  rich  iii  |;oli| 
tliut  will)  tlicir  knivcM  they  took  out  lixf  or-  wix  oiinccn  ii  day  to  tiic  man. 
'I'hcy  ).'(it  into  troiililc  with  the  natixi's,  liowcvcr,  u  ho  kiUcil  IS  of  the  paily, 
mill  loi'ccij  the  lest  to  llct)  for  their  livi-H.  li<iiiioii  Ht-t  out  Ironi  Mari|io.sa  iliu' 
(iilii^.s  uitli  some  eoinjiaiiioiiH  in  |>S,*)I  in  Heaii  ii  of  this  plaeer,  ami  at  the  sann' 
time  II  I'li'liili  eom|Miiiy  left  the  same  plaee  with  a  similar  olijeel;  hut  hntli 
«'\|>ei|itioiis  laih'ii.  The  narrator  thinks  that  this  might  have  lieen  Kcia 
Kim  r,  lint  the  whole  story  is  piohalily  tietion. 

"  Tiu'  aei'oiint  1  take  from  the  v.iiiialile  niaiiiiseript,  written  at  tlu^  ilicia- 
tioli  of  ( 'oi'onel  liy  Mr  Sava^ji^   in  IS77,  Cii'tin  ilr  ('nJijuriiKt,  I'm-  1 1  Svi'iur  /imi 

Allti'iliii    h'i'illlin    CnfiHii  I,   riiiini  ilr  III  Cillililil   ill    /,ufi  AilililiK.       (till 'I  III  l/i"   1 1 

tiiiliir  I  mill  /iiii'iiriilnriHi  iiti'  ilf  lu  ijiir  ticoiitniii  in  In  jMi'lc  dil  nur  iluninli-  Im 
itiiiiH  ill'  IS  iH  If  IS.'f^. 


COUOXF.L  AXI)  PARTY, 


?• 


11  lit  tlic  (li'l:i- 

%ir  1 1  Sfi'mr  l>"» 

(tlii'i  I II  i/ii'' '' 

«(((•    itlllUIll'-    I'l* 


wishiiii;  to  Imv  (Vnin  liiiii  and  Iiis  party,  iiiid  (iHrrint; 
lai^'f  niiaiititirs  (if  ;;<»1<|  I'oi"  siicli  arhcK-s  as  took  tlu-ii" 
liiiicv.  Ono  ofCoroiii'l'M  sttrvaiits,  Hoiiito  Pfit/,  was 
,111  .xiwrt  ill  plat)  r-iiiiiiiiii,'.  Stiiick  with  tlu*  display 
iiiadf  l»V  tlif  natives,  ho  jH(i|M>s('d  to  his  master  to  h-t 
liiiii  hav(!  our  of  liis  (hiiiih  Iiahaiis  as  a  roiiipaiiioii,  so 
thiit  he  liiinht  follow,  and  set-  w  hciir*'  the  savai^'ts  ul»- 
t.iiii'd  tluir  j^old.  Jt  was  dark  hcfoic  th»'  Indians 
linii  finished  their  purchases  and  set  out  for  Iioiim'.  hut 
r.iiiito  IV-re/,,  witli  Indian  Ai^ustin,  kept  stealthily 
iijion  their  tiaeks,  to  the  lanelu-iia  where  ( 'aptaiii 
Iv-t.MiisIao  liiid  formerly  lived. 

|'(  re/,  passed  tin.'  niyht  upon  a  hill  opposite  the  ran- 
rjieiia  hidden  aiiKWiLjthe  tiH'es,  and  waitiiit;;  Wn  the 
I  iiili.iiis.  ICarly  the  followiiiLj  moniiiiLT  (he  sjiine  ^rven 
>t.iited  foi"  the  ^old-fields,  l;ikiliin-  their  way  toward  (he 


r;i 


<t.  I 


o||(iWe( 


I   hv  the    .Mexican    and    hi 


s    colilliaillnn 


Al  a  place  afterward  calle<l  ('aha<la  del  JJarro  the 
seven  lienan  to  din^  with  sharp-pointed  stakes,  w  hero 
ilpon  Pele/.  jin'seiited  himself.      'I'lie  I  lidiaiis  w ere  e\  i- 


ih  Iitiv  aniioved;    hut    l*ere/,  set  t 


o  Wo 


I'k  with  his  kiiifi 


iiid  in  !i  short  time  ohtained  three  ounces  in  c/i 


nsiius. 


or  iiii!;^ets.  Satislied  with  his  discovery,  he  went 
h.irk  Ut  Corollel.  'I'lie  two  (h  terillilKMl  to  take  Mcret 
[".Nsosioii ;  hut  evt'iitually  ( 'oronel  tliou<;ht  it  would 
ill'  i»ut  ri^ht  to  inforiii  his  coni|iaiiions,  especially  as 
WuA    ie|»ort  indicated   the  mine  to  he  rich.       Seci-eey 


w.e 


iiioi'eover   of   little   Use;    tlii'ii"  movement 


s    Wel'e 


^\.•lt(•lled.  Inonler  not  to  delay  mattei's,  I'eit/  was 
(li-|i;itclled     with     two    duillh     Indians    to    seem-c    the 

riilii'st  jilats.  This  done,  ('oronel  and  the  i-est  of  his 
iVieiids  started,  thoun-h  late  in  the  ni'^ht.  Such  was 
their  enm'I-nes.;,  tIi;itoll  reach  in<J  the  «>rnMnd  thev  SI  lent 

the  iii'^lit  iu  allotinjj'  claims  in  onh'r  to  he'dii  Wdik  at 


<l;ivlire;ik. 


.\t  rvoodv  was  we 


atisfied   with   the  first  dav 


Wii 


ikin^-.  ( 'oronel,  with  h's  two  diimh  Indiaiis.  ol»- 
t.iliied  forty-five  ounces  of  cojuse  n'old.  |)o|oifs  Se- 
puUeda,  who  was  husy  a  few  yards  aw  ay,  picked  up  a 


^%.. 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


12.5 


12.2 


12.0 


1.8 


1.25      1.4      16 

« 6"     

► 

Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


'*",«.  ^%''-  "'*'o^ 


'ib" 


23  WUST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  NY    1^580 

(716)  872-4503 


>% 


80 


FURTHER  DISCOVERIES. 


nugget  fully  twelve  ounces  in  weight;  and  though 
there  were  more  than  a  hundred  persons  round  about, 
all  had  great  success.  On  the  same  bar  where  Sepiil- 
veda  found  the  nugget  worked  Valdes,  alias  Cha- 
pamango,  a  Californian  of  Santa  Barbara,  who,  by 
digging  to  the  depth  of  three  feet,  discovered  a 
pocket  which  had  been  formed  by  a  large  rock  break- 
ing the  force  of  the  current  and  detaining  quantities 
of  gold.  He  picked  up  enough  to  fill  a  large  towel, 
and  then  passed  round  to  make  known  his  good  for- 
tune. Thinking  that  he  had  money  enough,  he  sold 
his  claim  to  Lorenzo  Soto,  who  took  out  in  eight  days 
52  pounds  of  gold.  Water  was  then  struck,  when  the 
claim  was  sold  to  Machado  of  San  Diego,  who  also, 
in  a  short  time,  secured  a  large  quantity  of  gold. 

Coronel,  leaving  his  servants  at  his  claim,  started 
to  inspect  the  third  bar  of  the  Barro  Canada,  with  an 
experienced  gambusino  of  the  Sonorans  known  as 
Chino  Tirador.  Choosing  a  favorable  spot,  the  gam- 
busino marked  out  his  claim,  and  Coronel  took  up  his 
a  little  lower.  The  Chino  set  to  work,  and  at  the 
depth  of  four  feet  found  a  pocket  of  gold  near  an  un- 
derground rock  which  divided  the  two  claims.  From 
nine  o'clock  in  the  morning  till  four  in  the  afternoon 
he  lay  gathering  the  gold  witli  a  horn  spoon,  throw- 
ing it  into  a  wooden  tray  iie  purpose  of  dry-wash- 
ing. By  this  time  the  ti.*  liad  become  so  filled  with 
cleaned  gold  that  the  man  could  hardly  carry  it. 
Tired  with  his  work  he  returned  to  camp,  giving  Co- 
ronel permission  to  work  his  claim.  The  latter  was 
only  too  glad  to  do  so,  for  with  a  great  deal  more  labor, 
and  with  the  assistance  of  his  servant,  he  had  not 
succeeded  in  obtaining  six  ounces.  During  the  brief 
daylight  remaining  Coronel  made  ample  amends  for 
previous  shortcomings.  The  Chino's  luck  caused 
great  excitement  in  the  camp,  where  he  offered  to 
sell  clean  gold  for  silver;  and  had  disposed  of  a  con- 
siderable quantity  when  Coronel  arrived  and  bought 
seventy-six  ounces  at  the  rate  of  two  dollars  and  a 


i 

3 


o 
o 

A\ 

n 


• 


MINING  LIFE. 


81 


lialf  the  ounce.  The  next  day  the  Chino  returned  to 
his  claim;  but  as  large  numbers  had  been  working  it 
bv  night,  with  the  aid  of  candles,  he  decided  on  aban- 
doning the  mine  and  starting  upon  a  new  venture. 
Purchasing  a  bottle  of  whiskey  for  a  double-handful 
of  gold,  and  spreading  a  blanket  on  the  ground,  he 
oj)oned  a  monte  bank.  By  ten  o'clock  that  night  he 
was  both  penniless  and  drunk.'"'  Such  is  one  of  the 
many  phases  of  mining  as  told  by  the  men  of  1848. 


^Coroni'!,  Corns  de  CaL,  MS.,  146-51. 
Hist.  Cal..  Vol.  TI.    6 


CHAPTER  VI. 

AT  THE  MINES. 

1848. 

Vakibtt  of  Social  Phases — Indimdualityof  the  Year  1848— Noticeablk 
Absence  of  Bad  Characters  dukino  This  Year — Mining  Operations 
— Ignorance  of  the  Miners  of  Mining — Implements  and  Processes 
— Yield  in  the  Different  Districts — Price  of  Gold-dust — Pricks 
of  Merchandise — A  New  Order  of  Things — Extension  of  Develop- 
ment—Affairs AT  Sutter's  Fort — Bibliography — Effect  on  Sdttkr 
and  Marshall — Character  and  Career  of  These  Two  Men. 


Society  in  California  from  the  beginning  presents 
itself  in  a  multitude  of  phases.  First  there  is  the 
aboriginal,  wild  and  tame,  half  naked,  eating  his  grass- 
hopper cake,  and  sleeping  in  his  hut  of  bushes,  or 
piously  sunning  himself  into  civilization  upon  an  adobe 
mission  fence,  between  the  brief  hours  of  work  and 
prayer;  next  the  Mexicanized  European,  priest  and 
publican,  missionary  and  military  man,  bland  yet  co- 
ercive, with  the  work-hating  ranchero  and  settler; 
and  then  the  restless  rovers  of  all  nations,  particularly 
the  enterprising  and  impudent  Yankee.  With  the 
introduction  of  every  new  element,  and  under  the  de- 
velopments of  every  new  condition,  the  face  of  society 
changes,  and  the  heart  of  humanity  pulsates  with 
fresh  purposes  and  aspirations. 

The  year  of  1848  has  its  individuality.  It  is  dif- 
ferent from  every  other  California  year  before  or 
since.  The  men  of  '48  were  of  another  class  from 
the  men  of  '49.  We  have  examined  the  ingredients 
composing  the  community  of  1848 ;  the  people  of  1841) 
will  in  due  time  pass  under  analysis.     Suffice  it  to  say 


(82) 


THE  INFLOWING  CURRENT. 


8S 


here,  that  the  vile  and  criminal  element  from  the  con- 
tinental cities  of  civilization  and  the  isles  of  ocean, 
which  later  cursed  the  country,  had  not  yet  arrived. 
Those  first  at  the  mines  were  the  settlers  of  the  Cali- 
foriiia  Valley,  just  and  ingenuous,  many  of  them  with 
their  families  and  Indian  retainers;  they  were  neigh- 
bors and  friends,  who  would  not  wrong  each  other  in 
the  mountains  more  than  in  the  valley.  The  inuni- 
*»Tants  from  the  Mississippi  border  were  accustomed 
to  honest  toil;  and  the  men  from  San  Francisco  Bay 
aiitl  the  southern  seaboard  w^ere  generally  acquainted, 
and  had  no  thought  of  robbing  or  killing  each  other. 

After  the  quiet  inflowing  from  the  valley  adjacent 
to  tlie  gold-fields  came  the  exodus  from  San  Francisco, 
M'liich  began  in  May;  in  June  San  Josd,  Monterey, 
and  the  middle  region  contributed  their  quota,  followed 
in  July  and  August  by  the  southern  settlements. 
The  predominance  thus  obtained  from  the  start  by 
the  A Uijlo- American  element  was  well  sustained, 
])artly  from  the  fact  that  it  was  more  attracted  by 
the  glitter  of  gold  than  the  lavish  and  iiulolent  ran- 
ehero  of  Latin  extraction,  and  less  restrained  from 
yiehling  to  it  by  ties  of  fannly  and  ])ossessions.  The 
sub.se({uent  influx  during  the  season  from  abroad  pre- 
ponderated in  the  same  direction.  It  began  in  Sep- 
tember, although  assuming  no  large  proj)ortions  until 
two  months  later.  The  first  flow  came  from  the 
Hawaiian  Islands,  followed  by  a  larger  stream  from 
Oregon,  and  a  broad  current  from  Mexico  and  beyond, 
notably  of  Sonorans,  who  counted  many  experienced 
miners  in  their  ranks.  Early  in  the  season  came  also 
an  accidental  representation  from  the  Flowery  king- 
dom.' 

It  is  not  to  be  denied  that  this  mixture  of  natii^ial- 
ities,  with  a  tinge  of  inherited  antipathy,  and  variety 

'  Charles  V^.  Gillespie,  who  reached  S.  F.  from  Hong-Kong  in  the  brig  En;//", 
Feb.  2,  1848,  brought  three  Chinese,  two  men  and  u  woman.  The  men  sub- 
8t(jiu'ntly  went  to  the  mines.  These,  he  says,  were  tlie  first  Chinamen  in  Cal., 
with  the  exception  of  a  very  few  who  had  come  over  as  cooks  or  stewards  of 
vessels.  aUkspit's  Viij.  Com.,  MS.,  1. 


84 


AT  THE  MINES. 


of  character,  embracing  some  few  aimless  adventurers 
and  deserters  as  well  as  respectable  settlers,  could  not 
fail  to  bring  to  the  surface  some  undesirable  features. 
Yet  the  crimes  that  mar  this  period  are  strikingly  few 
in  comparison  with  the  record  of  the  following  years, 
when  California  was  overrun  by  the  dregs  of  tlit; 
world's  society.  Indeed,  during  this  first  year  theft 
was  extremely  rare,  although  temptations  abounded, 
and  property  lay  almost  unguarded.''  Murder  and 
violence  were  almost  unknown,  and  even  disputes 
seldom  arose.  Circumstances  naturally  required  the 
miners  to  take  justice  into  their  own  hands;  yet  with 
all  the  severity  and  haste  characterizing  such  admin- 
istration, I  find  only  two  instances  of  action  by  a 
popular  tribunal  in  the  mining  region.  In  one  case  a 
Frenchman,  a  notorious  horse-thief,  was  caught  in  the 
act  of  practising  his  profession  at  the  Dry  Diggings; 
in  the  other,  a  Spaniard  was  found  with  a  stolen  bag 
of  gold-dust  in  his  possession,  on  the  middle  branch 
of  the  American  River.^  Both  of  these  men  were 
tried,  convicted,  and  promptly  hanged  by  the  miners. 
It  has  bejn  the  fashion  to  ascribe  most  infringe- 
ments of  order  to  the  Latin  race,  mainly  because  the 
recorders  nearly  all  belonged  to  the  other  side,  and 
because  Anglo-Saxon  culprits  met  with  greater  leni- 
ency, while  the  least  infraction  by  the  obnoxious 
S|)anish-speaking  southerner  was  met  by  exemplary 

''Degroot,  Six  Months  in  '49,  in  Overland  Afonlhly,  xiv.  321.  'Honest 
miners  left  their  sacka  of  golil-dust  exiwaed  in  their  tents,  without  fear  of  loss. 
Towanls  the  close  of  the  year  a  few  robberies  and  murders  were  comniitteil.' 
Burnett's  Recollections,  MS.,  ii.  142-3.  Gov.  Mason  writing  to  L.  W.  Has 
tings  from  New  Helvetia  Oct.  24,  1848,  says:  'Although  some  murders  have 
been  committed  and  horses  stolen  in  the  placer,  I  do  not  find  that  things  are 
worse  here,  if  indeed  they  are  so  bad,  as  they  were  in  our  own  mineral  re- 
gion.s  some  years  ago,  wlien  I  was  stationed  near  them.'  U.  S.  Gov.  Dock, 
31st  coiig.  1st  sess.,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17.  On  the  other  hand,  I  find  complaints  of 
outrages  committed  by  disbanded  volunteers  at  Monterey.  Ccd.  Stur  ami 
I'ali/oruian,  Dec.  9,  1848;  of  robbery  and  horse-thieving  around  the  bay 
missions,  by  a  gang  from  the  Tulare  Valley,  said  to  be  composed  chiefly  of 
deserters,  Dr  Marsh's  residence  on  the  Pulpuues  rancho  being  plundereil. 
fill.  Star,  Feb.  26,  June  3,  1848. 

'  Hancock's  Thirteen  Years'  Residence  on,  the  Northwest  Coast,  MS.,  119-20; 
Carson's  Early  Recoil.,  26.  Early  instances  of  popular  punishment  of  crime 
at  San  Jo8(5  and  elsewhere  are  mentioned  in  Popular  Tribunals,  i.  67-9,  etc., 
tills  series. 


QUALITY  OF  DIGGINGS. 


88 


punislimcntat  the  hands  of  the  overbearing  and  donii- 
iiaiit  northerner.  Even  during  these  earl}''  days,  some 
(if  the  latter  rendered  themselves  conspicuous  by 
eiicroachnients  on  the  rights  of  the  former,  such  as 
unwarrantable  seizure  of  desirable  claims.*  While  the 
strict  and  j)rom[)t  treatment  of  crime  tended  to  niain- 
t;iiii  order  in  the  mining  regions,  the  outskirts,  or 
liitlier  tiie  southern  routes  to  the  placers,  became  to- 
ward the  end  of  the  season  haunted  by  a  few  robbers." 
Another  source  of  danger  remained  in  the  hostil- 
ity of  the  savages,  who,  already  imhittered  by  the 
cticroachnients  and  spoliation  suffered  in  the  coast 
vullcys,  and  from  serf-hunting  expeditions,  naturally 
ohjccted  to  an  influx  that  threatened  to  drive  them 
out  of  this  their  last  retreat  in  the  country.  This 
iittitude,  indeed,  served  to  check  the  expansion  of  the 
mining  field  for  a  time.  In  the  south  it  was  mainly 
due  to  Mexican  aggression,  and  in  the  north  to  incon- 
.sidcrate  action  on  the  part  of  immigrants  and  Orego- 
uiau  parties,  whose  prejudices  had  beeti  roused  by 
conflicts  on  the  plains  and  in  the  Columbia  region.® 


]V[ining  operations  so  far  endiraced  surface  picking, 
shallow  dii<«i[in<)f  aloni'  the  rivers  and  the  tributary 
ravines,  attended  by  washing  of  metal-bearing  soil, 
and  dry  diggings,  involving  either  laborious  convey- 
ance, or  ']>acking,'  of  'pay-dirt'  to  the  distant  water,  or 
the  bringing  of  water,  or  the  use  of  a  special  cleaning 
process.  This  feature  rendered  the  dry  diggings  more 
]irccarious  than  river  claims,  with  their  extensive  veins 


*  A.  Jansscns  declares,  in  Vida  1/  Are)if.,  MS.,  that  lie  and  several  friends 
Wire  tlireatoned  in  life  and  property;  yet  in  their  case  all  was  amicably 
ui'r;inj,'od,  after  many  contests. 

^  Men  whose  lack  of  success  in  the  gold-tields  prompted  to  an  indulgence 
of  hitherto  restrained  propensities.  Tliere  are  always  travellers,  liowever,  who 
liivc  to  tell  thrilling  tales.  Janssens  relates  that,  on  tuining  liomev  unl  in 
l>ec.,  his  small  party  was  recommeniled  to  avoid  the  main  road  to  and  from 
Stockton,  and  speaks  of  the  two  headless  bodies  they  found  in  a  hut  of 
i)raiiclie8. 

''As  related  in  the  Merci-d  Pio/ih',  .Tune  8,  187'2,  on  the  authority  of  R.^ad- 
iiif,'.  Brooks,  Four  Months,  states  that  his  party  was  attacked  on  Bear  Kiver, 
liuil  one  kille<l  and  two  wounded,  and  Mas  subsequently  robbed  of  70  pounds 
of  gold  by  bandits. 


',i  '  .  -! 


86  AT  THE  MINES. 

of  fine  and  coarse  gold,  yielding  a  comparatively  steady 
return,  with  hopes  centred  rather  in  rich  finds  and 
'pockets,' 

The  prii\cipal  dry  diggings  were  situated  in  the 
country  since  comprised  in  Placer  and  El  Dorado 
counties,  particularly  about  the  spots  where  Auburn 
and  Placerville,  their  respective  capitals,  subsequently 
rose.  Smaller  camps,  generally  named  after  their 
discoverers,  were  thickly  scattered  throughout  the 
gold  region.  They  were  among  the  first  discovered 
after  the  rush  set  in  from  the  towns,  and  were  worked 
by  a  great  number  of  miners  during  June,  July,  and 
part  of  August.  After  this  they  were  deserted, 
partly  because  the  small  streams  resorted  to  for  \vasli- 
ing  dried  up,  but  more  because  a  stampede  for  the 
southern  mines  began  at  that  time.'  A  few  prudent 
and  patient  diggers  remained,  to  collect  pay-dirt  in 
readiness  for  the  next  season;  and  according  to  all 
accounts  they  did  wisely. 

It  was  a  wide-spread  belief  among  the  miners,  few 
of  wh(mi  had  any  knowledge  of  geology  or  mineral- 
ogy, that  the  gold  in  the  streams  and  gulches  hud 
been  washed  down  from  some  place  where  it  lay  in 
solid  beds,  perhaps  in  mountains.  Upon  this  source 
their  dreams  and  hopes  centred,  regardless  of  tlie 
prospect  that  such  a  discovery  might  cause  the 
mineral  to  lose  its  value.  They  were  sure  that  the 
wonderful  region  would  be  found  some  day,  and 
the  only  fear  of  each  was  that  another  might  be 
the  lucky  discoverer.  Many  a  prospecting  party  set 
out  to  search  for  this  El  Dorado  of  El  Dorados;  and 
to  their  restless  wanderings  may  be  greatly  attributed 
the  extraordinarily  rapid  extension  of  the  gold-fields. 
No  matter  how  rich  a  new  placer,  these  henceforth 

'  Kelsey  and  party  discovered  the  first  dry  diggings,  which  were  named 
Kelsey's  diggings.  Next  were  the  old  dry  diggings,  out  of  which  so  many 
thousands  were  taken.  Among  tiie  discoverers  were  Isbel,  and  T)aniel  uiid 
Jno.  Murphy,  who  were  connected  with  Capt.  Weber's  tradin ;  fc£»^*,blisli- 
ments,  Murray  and  Fallon  of  San  Jose,  and  McKenseyand  Aram  ot  Moutere}-. 
Carnon^s  Early  RecoUectvms,  5.  See  also,  concerning  the  dry  diggings,  Oakland 
Traiucript,  Apr.  13,  1873,  and  Oakland  Alameda  Co.  Gazette,  Apr.  19,  1873. 


MINING  METHODS. 


91 


fa  toil  rovers  remained  there  not  a  moment  after  the 
news  canie  of  riclier  diggings  elsewhere.  In  their 
wake  rushed  others;  and  thus  it  often  happened  that 
iiicii  abandoned  claims  yielding  from  $50  to  $200  a 
(lav,  and  hurried  off  to  fresh  fields  which  proved  far 
Itss  valuable  or  utterly  worthless.  Then  they  would 
return  to  their  old  claims,  but  only  to  find  them  fallen 
into  other  hands,  thus  being  compelled  by  inexorable 
necossity  to  continue  the  chase.  They  had  come  to 
gather  gold  now,  and  bushels  of  it,  not  next  year  or 
l)y  the  thimbleful.  At  $200  a  day  it  would  take 
ten  (lays  to  secure  $2,000,  a  hundred  days  to  get 
,^20,000,  a  thousand  days  to  make  $200,000,  when  a 
million  was  wanted  within  a  month.  And  so  in  the 
midst  of  this  wild  pursuit  of  their  ignis  fatuus,  multi- 
tudes of  brave  and  foolish  men  fell  by  the  way,  some 
dropping  into  imbecility  or  the  grave,  while  others, 
less  fortunate,  wore  not  permitted  to  rest  till  old  age 
and  decrepitude  came  upon  them. 

Altliough  in  1848  the  average  yield  of  gold  for 
each  man  engaged  was  far  greater  than  in  any  sub- 
sequent year,  yet  the  implements  and  methods  of 
mining  then  in  use  were  primitive,  slow  of  operation, 
and  wasteful.  The  tools  were  the  knife,  the  pan, 
and  the  rocker,  or  cradle.  The  knife  was  only  used 
in  '  crevicing,'  that  is,  in  picking  the  gold  out  of  cracks 
in  the  rocks,  or  occasionally  in  dry  diggings  rich  in 
coarse   gold."     Yet   the  returns  were   large  because 

""riie  pan  was  made  of  stiff  tin  or  sheet-iron,  with  a  flat  bottom  from  10 
to  14  iiiulifs  across,  and  sides  from  4  to  6  inches  high,  rising  outward  at  a 
varying  angle.  It  was  used  mainly  for  prospecting,  and  as  an  adjunct  to  the 
)'i>cker,  but  in  the  absence  of  the  latter,  claims  were  sometimes  systematically 
worked  with  it.  In  'panning,' as  in  all  methods  of  placer-mining,  the  gold 
V  as  separated  from  earth  ana  stones  chiefly  by  relying  on  the  superior  spe- 
cilic  gravity  of  the  metal.  The  pan  was  partly  tilled  with  dirt,  lowered  into 
tlie  water,  and  there  shaken  with  a  sideway  and  rotary  motion,  which  caused 
tlie  diMsulving  soil  and  clay,  and  the  light  sand,  to  float  away  until  nothing  was 
left  but  the  gold  which  had  settled  at  the  bottom.  Gravel  and  stones  were 
raked  out  with  the  hand.  Except  in  extremely  rich  ground,  such  a  process 
«as  slow,  and  it  was  therefore  seldom  resorted  to,  save  for  the  purpose  of  as- 
certaining whether  it  would  pay  to  bring  the  roeker  to  the  spot.  The  cradle 
resembled  in  size  and  shape  a  child's  cradle,  with  similar  rockers,  and  was 
rocked  by  means  of  a  perpendicular  handle.  The  cradle- lx>x  consisted  of  a 
wuodun  trough,  about  20  in.  wide  and  40  long,  with  sides  4  in.  high.     The 


is 


AT  THE  MINES. 


:!■! 


there  wore  fewer  to  share  the  spoils,  and  because  they 
liad  the  choice  of  the  most  easily  worked  placers;  and 
alth(Jiugh  they  did  not  materially  diminish  the  quantity 
of  gold,  they  picked  up  much  of  what  was  in  sight. 


J'  it! 


i         ;> 


lower  end  was  left  open.     Oi.  the  upper  end  sat  the  hopper,  or  riddle,  a  box  20 
ill.  B(|iiuro,  with  wooden  sides  4  in.  nigh,  and  a  bottom  of  slieut  iron  or  y.'inc 
pierced  with  holes  i  in.  in  diameter.     Under  the  hopper  was  an  apron  of 
wood  or  canvas  wiiicli  sloped  down  from  tlio  lower  eml  of  the  hopper  to  tlio 
npper  end  of  the  cradle-box.     Later  an  additional  apron  win  ailded  by  niany, 
al)ovo  the  original  one,  sloping  from  the  upper  to  the  lower  end.     A  strip  of 
wood  ail  inch  square,  called  a  ritllu-bar,  was  nailed  across  tlie  bottom  of  tin; 
cradle-l>ox,  al>out  its  middle,  and  another  at  its  lower  end.     Under  the  whole 
were  nailed  the  rockers,  and  near  the  middle  of   the  side  rose  an  upright 
handle  for  imparting  motion.     The  rocker  was  placed  in  the  siwt  to  wliicli 
the  pay-dirt,  and  especially  a  constant  supply  of  water,  could  most  courun- 
i(^ntly  lie  brought.     The  hopper  being  nearly  tilled  with  auriferous  earth,  the 
operator,  seated  by  its  side,  rocked  the  cradle  with  one  hand,  and  with  the 
other  poured  water  on  the  dirt,  using  a  half-gallon  dipper,  until  nothing  wan 
loft  in  the  hopper   but  clean  stones  too   large   to  pass  through   the  sieve. 
'J'hese  being  thrown  out,  the  operation  was  repeated.     The  dissolved  dirt  fell 
through  the  lioles  upon  the  apron,  and  was  carried  to  the  upper  end  of  tiio 
cradle-box,  whence  it  ran  down  toward  the  open  end.     Much  of  the  finer 
gold  remained  upon  the  canvas-covered  apron;  the  rest,  with   the   heavier 
particles  of  gravel,  was  caught  behind  the  rifile-bars,  while  the  water,  thin 
mud,  and  lighter  substances  were  carried  out  of  the  machine.     This  descrip- 
tion of  the  rocker  I  have  taken  from  f/ittdl'n  Mininij  in  the  Parijic  States  of 
North  America,  S.  F,,  1861,  ami  from  the  Mintrii'  Own  Book,  8.  F.,  IWS. 
The  former  is  a  well  arranged  hand-book  of  mining,  and  exhausts  the  subject. 
The  latter  work   treats  only  of  the  various  methods  of  mining,  which  are 
lucidly  described,  and  illustrated  by  many  excellent  cuts,  including  one  uf 
the  rocker.     Earlier  miners  and  Indians  used  sieves  of  intertwisted  willo\v.s 
for  Washing  dirt.     Sonoriuis  occasionally  availed  themselves  of  cloth   for  a 
sieve,  the  water  dissolving  the  dirt  and  leaving  the  gold  sticking  to  it.     Sev- 
eral times  during  the  day  the  miner  'cleaned  up'  by  taking  the  retained  dirt 
into  his  pan  and  panning  it  out.     The  quantity  of  dirt  that  could  be  washeil 
with  a  rocker  depended  ujion  the  n.iture  of  the  diggings  and  the  number  of 
men  employed.     If  the  diggings  were  shallow,  that  is  to  say,  if  the  gold  lay 
near  the  surface,  two  men — one  to  rock  and  one  to  fill  the  hopper — could 
wash  out  from  2.50  to  SOO  pans  in  a  day,  the  pan  representing  about  half 
a  cubic  foot  of  dirt.     But  if  several  feet  of  barren  dirt  had  to  be  stripiMd  otl' 
before  the  pay-dirt  was  reached,  more  time  and  men  were  required.     Again, 
if  tough  clay  was  encountered  in  the  p'ay-dirt,  it  took  an  hour  or  more  to 
dissolve  a  hopperful  of  it.     Dry-washing  consisted  in  tossing  the  dirt  into 
the  air  while  the  wind  was  blowing,  and  thus  gradually  winnowing  out  the 
gold.     This  method  was  mostly  confined  to  the  Mexicans,  and  could  be  used 
to  advantage  only  in  rich  diggings  devoid  of,  water,  where  the  gold   was 
coarse.     The  Mexican  generally  obtained  his  pay-dirt  by  'coyoting;'   that 
is,  by  sinking  a  scjuare  hole  to  the  bed-rock,  and  then  burrowing  from  the 
bottom  along  the  ledge.     For  burrowing  he  used  a  small  crowbar,  pointed  at 
both  ends,  and  with  a  big  horn  spoon  he  scraped  up  the  loosened  pay-dirt. 
This,   pounded  into  dust,  he  shook  with  great  dexterity  from  a  bcUed,  or 
wooden  bowl,  upon  an  extended  hide,  repeating  the  process  until  the  wind 
had  left  little  of  the  original  mass  except  the  gold.     In  this  manner  the 
otherwise  indolent   Mexicans  often  made  small  fortunes  during  the   dry 
summer  months,  Vhen  the  rest  of  the  miners  were  squandering  their  gains  in 
the  towns. 


ABSENCE  OF  MINING  REGULATIONS.  N 

^Forcover,  they  M'ere  fettered  by  no  local  rcf^ulatioiis, 
(If  delays  in  obtaining  posHession  of*  claims,  but  could 
liastuTi  from  j)lacer  to  placer,  skimming  the  cream  from 
iMch.  In  1  ebruary  Governor  Mason  had  abolished 
till!  old  Mexican  system  of  'denouncing'  mines,"  with- 
out establishing  any  other  niiniiig  regulations.*"  In 
this  way  some  ten  millicms"  were  gathered  by  a  pop- 
ulation of  8,000  or  10,000,  averaging  an  ounce  a  day, 
or  ."?  1,000  and  more  to  the  man  for  the  season,  and 
this  notwithstanding  the  miners  were  not  fairly  at 
work  until  July,  and  most  of  them  went  d«)vu  to  the 
coast  in  October.  Some,  however,  made  .$100  a  day 
for  weeks  at  a  time,  while  $500  or  $700  a  day  was  not 


usual 


uu 

•Mnson'a  order  to  this  effect  is  dated  at  Monterey,  Feb.  12,  1848.  'From 
anil  iiftor  tliia  date  the  Mexican  hiws  anil  custunia  now  prevailing  in  Califor- 
nia ri'lative  to  tlie  denoniieenient  of  mines  are  hereby  uholislied.  The  legality 
of  tliu  ilenounccinents  which  have  taken  place,  and  tiic  possession  obtained 
iimlt'r  tliein  since  tlie  occupation  of  the  country  by  tiie  United  States  forces, 
uit)  (juestions  which  will  be  disposed  of  by  the  American  government  after  a 
(Iflinitive  treaty  of  peace  simll  have  been  estal)li8hed  between  tlie  two  repub- 
111.'!*.'  U.  S.  ('ou.  Does,  31st  cong.  1st  sess.,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  477;  Snn  D'teijo 
Airh.,  MS.,  .325;  San  Joxii  Arch.,  MS.,  ii.  69;  Arch.  CuL,  Unhonnd  Doc^,  MS., 
;{IS;  S'.  F.  t'alijbrnian,  Feb.  2.3,  1848.  This  order  caused  dissatisfaction  in 
Kcvcral  quarters,  chiefly  because  many,  after  expense  and  trouble  in  looking 
for  veins,  had  denounced  them  after  Feb.  12lh,  but  befor  •  the  decree  was 
known  to  them.  Mason  to  J.  S.  Moerenhout,  consul  of  Fraice  at  Monterey, 
.lime  5,  1848,  in  U.  S.  Gov.  JJoct,  as  above,  50;  Mason  to  alcalde  of  San  Jos6, 
March  !),  1848,  in.S'.  Jose  Arch.,  MS.,  42;  Peopleof  Monterey  to  Mason,  March 
9,  1S4S,  in  Arch.  CuL,  Unhonnd  Docs,  MS.,  408-11. 

'"Tlie  desirability  of  regulations  is  spoken  of  by  Mason  in  a  letter  to  J.  11. 
Snydur  as  early  as  May  23,  1848,  as  the  latter  is  about  to  visit  the  gold  region; 
and  he  is  requested  to  obtain  information  and  submit  a  plan.  U.  S.  Gov.  JJocs, 
nl)i  tup.  5.')4-G.  In  his  letter  to  the  U.  S.  adjt-gen.  of  Aug.  17)  1848,  Mascm 
wiites:  '  It  was  a  matter  of  serious  reflection  to  me  how  I  could  secure  to  tlio 
government  certain  rents  or  fees  for  the  privilege  of  obtaining  this  gold;  but 
upon  considering  the  large  extent  of  country,  the  character  of  the  people  en- 
gaged, and  the  small  scattered  1  "ce  at  my  command,  I  resolved  not  to  inter- 
fore,  but  to  permit  all  to  work  lively,  unless  broils  and  crimes  should  call  for 
interference. ' 

"This  is  the  figure  accepted  in  HUtell's  Mining,  39,  although  the  same 
autlior,  in  Hist.  S.  F.,  155,  writes:  'The  monthly  gold  yield  of  1848  averaged 
IKihaps  §:}00,000.'  The  officially  recorded  export  for  1848  was  S2,0(K),- 
0:)l),  hut  tliis  forms  only  a  proportion  of  the  real  export.  Velasco,  Son.,  289- 
00,  for  instance,  gives  the  official  import  into  Sonor.a  alone  at  over  half  a 
million,  and  assumes  much  more  unrecorded.  See  oXso  An nnh  8.  F.,  208. 
V/('(/7.  n<ciiir,  Ixxxvii.  422,  wildly  calculates  the  yield  for  1848  at  $45,000,000. 

"'.loiin  Sullivan,  an  Irish  teamster,  took  out  $2(5,000  from  the  diggings 
iianii'd  after  him  on  the  Stanislaus.  One  Hudson  obtained  some  $20,000  in 
six  weeks  from  a  cai\on  between  C'olomaand  the  American  middle  fork;  wiiile 
a  liiiy  mimed  Davenport  found  in  the  same  place  77  ounces  of  pure  gold  one 
(liy,  and  1)0  ounces  the  next.     At  the  Dry  Diggings  one  Wilson  tooli  $2,000 


I       : 


90 


AT  Till-:  M1XE.S. 


In  a  oountry  wliuro  tnulo  had  boon  chiefly  ooiuluctod 
l>y  Imiter  with  hides  and  other  produce,  coin  wuh  iiat- 

fnmi  uikUt  liitt  own  (l(K)r-8tep.  Three  Frenchmen  iHscoverecl  j^old  in  roniov- 
iiig  n  Htiinip  which  oljMtruuted  the  road  from  Dry  I)igi;inga  to  Colnuiu,  uinl 
witliiii  n  weeii  Bi'diriul  l9.'>,000.  On  tiie  Yuba  iniihllu  forit  one  iium  picked  u[) 
in  '20  (Uiys  nearly  'M)  ponnd/i,  from  a,  piece  of  urouiid  letts  than  four  feet  n(|iiart'. 
Aniailor  rehitea  tliat  lie  wiw  digginji^H  wliicTi  yielded  $8  to  every  8])adeful  of 
ei'.i'th;  and  he  hiniHelf,  with  a  companion  anil  20  native  lalK)rerH,  took  out 
from  7  tu  ))  poundH  of  gold  a  day.  Uobert  Uirnie,  an  emphjyu  of  C(msni 
ForhcH,  Haw  minerH  at  l>ry  Digj;{inKfi  making  from  5U  to  lUO  ounces  daily. 
Jiiijl'iim's  Sijc  Months,  rj(M»;  Cnl.  Slur,  Nov.  18,  Dec.  2,  IS48;  Ammlni;  Mr- 
7n<irinM,  MS.,  177  80;  Hirnie's  Hiog.,  w  I'lomir  Soc.  Arih.,  MS.,  »;{  4.  .V 
cori'espondent  of  the  ('<il{l\iriiiati  writoM  from  the  Dry  J)igging8  in  the  nddilli! 
of  August  that  'at  the  lower  mines  the  Buecess  of  the  day  is  counted  in  dollarH, 
at  the  up]>er  mines,  near  the  mill,  in  ounces,  and  heroin  pounds!'  'Thoeartli,' 
he  continues,  'is  taken  out  of  the  ravines  M'hieh  make  out  of  the  mountain, 
and  is  carried  in  wagons  and  packed  on  horses  from  one  to  three  miles  to  Mut 
water,  where  it  is  washed;  ^100  has  heen  an  average  for  a  cart-load.  In  oik; 
instance  five  loads  of  earth  which  had  heen  dug  outsold  for  47  oz.  (f75'2),  oml 
yielded  after  washing  $l(),000.  Instances  have  occurred  hero  where  men 
have  carried  the  earth  on  their  bucks,  and  collected  from  ^SOO  to  $I,.5U0  in  a 
tlay.'  'The  fountuin-hea<l  yet  remains  undiscovered,'  continues  the  writer, 
who  is  of  opinion  that  when  proper  machinery  is  introduced  and  the  hills  aru 
cut  down,  'huge  pieces  nmst  bo  found.'  At  this  time  tidings  had  just  arrived 
of  new  placers  on  the  Stanislaus,  and  '200  miners  were  accordingly  prepariiii,' 
to  leave  ground  worth  $400  a  load,  in  the  hope  of  finding  something  better  in 
the  south.  This  letter  is  dated  h'om  the  l>ry  Diggings,  Aug.  15,  1848,  and 
is  signed  J.  H.  Similar  stories  are  told  by  other  correspondents;  for  instance, 
'Co8mop(»lite,'  in  the  ('uli/oniiaii  of  July  lath,  and  'Sonoma,'  in  that  of  Auj,'. 
14lh.  Coroncl  states  that  on  the  Stanislaus  in  three  days  he  took  out  4,"),  3f), 
and  59  ounces.  At  the  same  placer  Vahk'S  of  Santji  Biirbara  found  under  a 
rock  more  gold-dust  than  he  could  carry  in  a  towel,  and  the  man  to  whom 
he  sold  this  claim  took  out  within  8  days  52  pounds  of  gold.  Close  by  a  So- 
noran  filled  a  largo  batea  with  tlust  front  the  hollow  of  a  rock,  and  went  about 
olToring  it  for  silver  coin.  Cokhh  de  Cal.,  MS.,  146-51. 

Ami  yet  the  middle  fork  of  the  American  surpassed  the  other  streams  in 
richness,  the  yield  of  Si>auish  Bar  alone  being  placed  at  over  a  million  dollars. 
Those  tributaries  also  boasted  of  nuggets  as  big  as  any  so  far  discoverecl. 
I.iarkin  writes:  'I  have  had  in  my  hands  several  pieces  of  gold  about  23  carats 
line,  weighing  from  one  tt.  wo  pounds,  and  have  it  from  good  authority  that 
pieces  have  been  found  w.ighing  16  pounds.  Indeed,  I  have  heard  of  one 
specimen  tliat  weighed  '25  pounds.'  Colton  heard  of  a  twenty-pound  piece, 
and  a  writer  in  Sail  Joaquin  Co.  //int.,  21,  relates  that  the  Stockton  company 
obtained  from  the  Stanislaus  a  lump  'of  pure  gold  weighing  80^  ounces  avoir- 
dupois,' of  kidney  shape,  which  was  brought  as  a  specimen.  Mason  reports 
that  'a  party  of  four  men  employed  at  the  lower  mines  averaged  $100  a  day.' 
On  Weber  Creek  he  found  two  ounces  to  be  a  fair  day's  yield.  'A  small  gut- 
ter, not  more  than  100  yards  long  by  four  feet  wide  and  two  or  three  feet 
ilcep,  was  pointed  out  to  me  as  the  one  where  two  men,  William  Daly  and 
I'erry  McCoon,  had  a  short  time  before  obtaine«l  ^17,000  worth  of  gold.  Caii- 
tnin  Weber  informed  me  that  he  knew  that  these  two  men  had  employed  four 
white  men  and  about  100  Indians,  and  that  at  the  end  of  one  week's  work 
they  paid  off  their  party  and  had  $10,000  worth  of  this  gold.  Anotiier  small 
ravine  was  ^hown  me,  from  which  had  been  taken  upwards  of  $12,000  wortli 
of  gold.  Hundreds  of  similar  ravines,  to  all  appearances,  are  as  yet  un- 
touched. I  could  not  have  credited  these  reports  had  I  not  seen  in  the  abun- 
dance of  the  precious  metal  evidence  of  their  truth.  Mr  Neligh,  an  agent  of 
Com.  StOL-ktou,  had  been  at  work  about  three  weeks  in  the  neighborhood,  and 


h: 


PLETHORA  OF  OOLD. 


01 


iluctod 
UK  iiat- 

in  rcniov- 
Imiiu,  uimI 
jiifkfil  up 

jia«U'ful  of 
,  took  out 
of  C'onsul 
ices  duily. 
uidor,  Ml 

m  4.  A 
thu  initlill>' 
I  in  <U)llurH, 
Tlioeartli,' 

nimuititiu, 
niles  to  Mil! 
id.     In  ou(i 
(^75-2),  111'.! 
wlicre  int'U 
$l,r)00iaa 
,  tlie  writi'v, 
tlio  hilla  aio 
just  luriveil 
ly  prepariiii^ 
ing  liettor  iu 
3,  1848,  and 
for  instance, 
tlmt  of  Auj4. 

t  out  4.-),  :w, 

luml  unilir  a 

an  to  wiitiMi 

lose  by  a  So- 

went  about 


If 


urally  scarce.  Thia  no  less  tlum  the  sucUleii  abundance 
ot  <»-(»l(l  tended  to  depress  the  value  ot'the  metal,  so  much 
.so  that  the  miners  often  sold  their  dust  for  four  dol- 
lars an  ounce,  and  seldom  obtained  at  first  niore  than 
(•i<'ht  or  ten  dollars. ^^     The  Indians  were  foremost  in 

mIiciwciI  nie  in  l)ag»  nml  bottles  over  9*2,000  wortii  of  gold;  and  Mr  Lyninn,  a 
L'UtU'nian  of  education  and  wortliy  of  every  credit,  said  lie  had  been  engaged 
witli  four  others,  with  a  niucliinu  on  the  American  fork,  juHt  below  Sutter's 
mill;  tluit  they  worked  eight  days,  ainl  that  his  share  was  at  the  rate  of  $^0 
,1  iliiv;  but  healing  that  others  were  doing  letter  at  Weber's  ]ilaco,  they  had 
icMiiiM'd  there,  and  Mere  then  on  the  paint  of  resuming  optTations.  I  migiit 
tuU  of  hundreds  of  similar  instances,'  ho  uoncludes.  John  Sinclair,  at  the 
juuution  of  the  north  and  middle  branches  of  the  American  Kiver,  displayed 
14  poimils  of  gold  as  tiie  result  of  one  week's  work,  with  fifty  Indians  using 

I  lo.sidy  woven  willow  l)askets.  He  had  secured  !$H),(K)0  in  five  M'eeks.  Lar- 
kiu  writers  in  a  siinilar  strain  from  the  American  fdrks.  Itefeiring  to  a  party 
111  ciglit  miners,  he  says:  'I  suppose  they  made  each  ^.in  ]•'  ,  day;  their  own 
cilriilution  was  two  pounds  of  golil  a  day,  four  ounces  to  a  /  ;\,  $M,  I  saw 
two  brothers  that  worked  together,  and  only  wcn-ked  by  wusi  ing  tiie  dirt  in 

II  till  pan,  weigh  the  gold  tiiey  obtained  in  one  day.  The  i^'sult  was  If"  to 
(Pill'  and  ^'Ai  to  the  other. '     HutFum  relates  his  own  experiences  on  the  mid'Mc 

III  audi  of  the  American.  Scratching  round  the  Kise  >  a  grcaL  boN\ldi'' .  and 
H'liioving  the  gravel  and  clay,  he  and  his  compani.i.ii  came  to  b^'  k  sand, 
iiiiiii,'led  with  which  was  gold  strewn  all  over  the  surface  of  tli"  rock,  ami  of 
wlii'li  f  .'  of  them  gathered  that  day '2(j  ounces.  'The  next  d.i^  ,  i>ur  machine 
lieii.g  .L,.  ly,'  he  continues,  'we  looked  for  a  place  to  woi-V  it,  and  soon  found 
w  little  beach  which  extended  back  some  five  or  six  y.irds  before  it  reached 
tiie  locks.  The  npiier  soil  was  a  light  blacK  sand,  on  the  surface  of  whicli  we 
eoiilii  see  the  particles  of  gold  shining,  and  could  in  fact  gather  them  up  with 
ii'ir  lingers.  In  digging  below  this  we  struck  a  red  stony  gravel  that  ap- 
jiciiicil  jierfectly  alive  with  gold,  shining  and  pure.  We  threw  off  the  top 
cirth  and  cominonced  our  washings  with  the  gravel,  which  proved  so  rich 
tliat,  excited  by  curiosity,  we  weighed  the  gold  extracted  from  the  first  wash- 
ing of  oO  paufuls  of  earth,  and  found  ^la,  or  nearly  five  ounces  of  gold  to  be 
tiie  result.'  The  whole  day's  work  amounted  to '25  ounces.  A  little  lower  on 
tlie  river  he  struck  the  stony  l>ottom  of  'pocket,  which  appeared  to  be  of 
pure  gold,  but  upon  probing  it,  I  found  it  to  be  only  a  thin  covering  whish 
liy  its  own  weight  and  the  pressure  above  it  had  spread  and  attached  itself  to 
the  rock.  Crossing  the  river  I  continued  my  search,  and  after  digging  somo 
time  struck  upon  a  hard,  retldish  clay  a  few  feet  from  the  surface.  After  two 
hours'  work  I  succeeded  in  finding  a  pocket  out  of  which  1  extracted  three 
liiiiips  of  pr.re  gold,  and  one  small  piece  mixed  with  oxydized  ipiart/' — '2!t| 
iiiinces  for  the  day;  not  much  short  of  3o00.  There  are  a  class  of  stories,  sucii 
lis  those  related  by  H.  L.  Simpson  and  the  Rev.  Colton,  of  a  wilder  and  more 
iiiiiiantic  nature,  apparently  as  easy  to  tell  as  those  by  writers  of  proved 
Veracity,  and  which,  whether  tme  or  false,  I  will  not  trouble  my  readers  with. 
For  additional  information  on  yiehl,  see  more  particularly  Larkin's  letters  to 
the  U  S.  secty  of  state,  dated  S.  F.,  June  1,  Monterey,  June  28,  July  1,  July 
•-'(),  and  Nov.  16,  1848,  in  Larkiii's  Official  Conrsp.,  MS.,  1.31--4I;  Mason  to 
to  tlie  adjt-gen.,  Aug.  17,  1848;  U.  S.  Gov.  Dock,  3l8t  cong.  Ist  sess.,  H.  Ex. 
Hoc.  17,  5J8-36;  Sh'rmaii'a  Memoirs,  i.  46-54;  SonWit  Annals  of  S.  F.,  '210; 
CdrKoii'H  Early  Hecollections,  passim;  IlittM'H  Miiiiwj,  *21;  McCliristiau,  in 
I'lMUfcr  SkrtrlieH,  9;  BurnetCa  tti'i-oUi-rtionn,  i.  374-5;  and  a  number  of  miscel- 
liiiieous  documents  in  Foster's  Gold  Htijion-i.  Also  Simpnou'n  Three  ]\'ceki  in  the 
Vol  I  MiiwH,-  Colton  »  Three  Years  in  Col. 

'■'  Jones  writes  in  Nov.  1848  that  miners  o'ten  sold  an  ounce  of  gold  for  a  sil- 
ver dollar.     It  had   been  bought  of   ludianu  for  50  cents,   llerere'n  Tour  of 


lil'^'i 


62 


AT  THE  MINES. 


lowering  the  price,  at  least  in  the  early  part  of  the 
season.  They  had  no  idea  of  the  value  of  gold,  and 
would  freely  exchange  it  for  almost  anything  that 
caught  their  fancy.  Although  honest  enough  in 
dealings  among  themselves,  the  miners  did  not  scruple 
to  cheat  the  natives,"  the  latter  meanwhile  thinking 
they  had  outwitted  the  white  man.  Presently,  how- 
ever, with  growing  experience,  they  began  to  insist 
upon  a  scale  of  fixed  prices,  whereui)on  the  trader 
quoted  ])rices  of  cotton  cloth  or  calico  at  twenty 
dollars  a  yard,  plain  white  blankets  at  six  ounces, 
sarapes  from  twenty  to  thirty  ounces  each,  beads 
equal  weight  in  gold,  handkerchiefs  and  sashes  two 
ounces  each.  Care  was  moreover  taken  to  arrange 
scjdes  and  weights  especially  for  trade  with  the  sav- 
ages. To  balance  with  gold  the  great  slugs  of  lead, 
which  re|)resented  a  'digger  ounce,'  the  savages  rv- 
garded  as  fair  dealing,  and  would  pile  on  the  ])reci<)us 
dust  until  the  scales  exactly  balanced,  using  every 
j)recaution  to  give  no  more  than  the  precise  weight. 
The  scales  usually  em|)loyed,  often  improvised,  were 
for  from  reliable;  but  a  handful  of  gold-dust  more  or 
less  in  those  days  was  a  matter  of  no  great  moment.'' 
The  inliuwing  miners  arrived  as  a  rule  well  sup- 
plied with  provisions  and  other  requirements,  but  they 
had  not  counted  fully  on  wear  and  tear,  length  of  stay, 
and  accidents.  As  a  consequence,  they  nearly  all  came 
to  want  at  the  same  time  toward  the  close  of  the  sea- 


Dnty,  2r)4.  Cnrson  says  that  gold  was  worth  but  $6  per  ottnce  in  liio  mines. 
Edrlif  Ui'colU'ctioii!*,  14.  Butt'uin  siiys  from  .^(i  to  .§8.  Six  Monthx,  iMi;  Dally 
tliiifr  it  could  not  l)e  8(j1i1  tor  more  than  ^  or  $!(.  ynrru(iri\  MS.,  5.S;  Sh.iii 
says  !*4  to  .'5>8.  Tri/ifo  the  Gold  Mhiex  Birnie  bought  a  ((Uaiitity  of  dust  at 
$4  per  oz.  in  Mexican  coin.   Biog.  in  Pioneer  Sor.  Arch.,  MS.,  f(:{-4. 

'■*  We  hear  of  ragged  blankets  and  the  like  selling  for  tiieir  weight,  2  lbs, 
3  07..  of  dust  being  given  for  one.  /iKjfinn'x  Six  Mouths.  OH-4,  12l)-!t;  Cunni'/, 
CoscMde  Cat.,  MS.,  142-3;  Fernandez,  Cosan  de  Cat.,  MS.,  l?'"),  178;  Tuhnr 
Time.'t,  Sept.  10,   1874. 

'5  Carwn'it  Early  liernUecfionn,  .35-6.  Green  relates  that  on  the  Tulare 
plains  he  sold  his  cart  and  pair  of  oxen  to  a  Frenchman  for  $(i(X).  The  g(»ld  was 
weiglied  by  the  F^'renchman  with  improvised  scales.  Green  fancied  the  Freui  h- 
man  was  getting  the  better  of  him,  but  said  nothing.  On  reaching  Suttii's 
Fort  he  weiglied  the  gold  again  and  found  it  worth  .*!2,000.  Li/e  and  Adviu- 
turen,  M8. ,  17.     A  somewhat  fanciful  story. 


ALONG  THE  ROAD  AGAIN. 


03 


Tulare 

jj;(ilil  «iis 

Fivnrli- 

Adfdf 


son,  and  the  supply  and  means  of  transportation  being 
uiuqual  to  the  demand,  prices  rose  aceordingly.^**  It 
did  not  take  men  long  toadai)t  themselves  to  the  new 
incasurements  of  money ;  nor  could  it  be  called  extra  v- 
aii^ance  when  a  man  would  pay  $300  for  a  horse  worth 
Si)  a  month  before,  ride  it  to  the  next  camp,  turn  it 
loose  and  buy  another  when  he  wanted  one,  provided 
liL'  could  scrape  from  the  ground  the  cost  of  an  animal 
more  easily  than  he  could  take  care  of  one  for  a 
week  or  two.  Extravagance  is  spending  much  when 
one  has  little.  Gold  was  too  plentiful,  too  easily 
obtained,  to  allow  a  little  of  it  to  stand  in  the  way  of 
wliat  one  wanted.  It  was  cheap.  Perhaps  there 
were  niounains  of  it  near  by,  in  which  case  six  barrels 
of  it  might  be  easily  given  for  one  banel  of  meal. 

And  thus  it  was  that  all  along  this  five  hundred  miles 
of  foothills,  daily  and  hourly  through  this  and  the 
following  years,  went  up  the  wild  cry  of  exultation 
mingled  with  groans  of  despair.  For  even  now  the 
unfortunate  largely  outnumbered  the  successful.  It 
may  setm  strange  that  so  many  at  such  a  time,  and 
at  thix  Oi  cupatioti  above  all  others,  should  consent  to 
work  for  wages;  Out  though  little  capital  save  a  stock 
of  l>read  was  re(|uired  to  work  in  the  mines,  some  had 
lost  all,  and  had  not  even  that.  Then  the  excitement 
anil  j)ressure  of  eager  hope  and  restless  labor  told  upon 
the  constitution  no  less  than  the  hard  and  unaccus- 
tomed task  under  a  broiling  sun  in  moist  ground,  per- 
lia[»s  knee-deep  in  water,  and  v/ith  poor  shelter  during 
the  night,  sleeping  often  on  the  bare  ground.  The 
result  was  wide-spread  sickness,  notably  fevers  and 

'"Sales  are  reportevl,  for  example,  flour  $800  a  bbl;  sugar,  coffee,  and 
pmk,  S4(H};  a  pick,  shovel,  tin  pan,  pair  of  boots,  blanket,  a  gallon  of  wliis- 
kiv,  and  500  other  thingn,  §100  each.  Kggs  were  $."}  each;  drugs  were  $1  a 
ilii>]i;  pills,  §1  each;  doctor's  visit,  ^100,  or  $.")0,  or  nothing;  cook's  wages, 
?<'.'.")  a  (lay;  hire  of  wagou  and  team,  ^')0  a  day;  hire  of  rocker,  $ir>0  a  day.  If 
tlioru  liappeiic'vl  to  be  an  tiverstock  in  one  place,  which  waa  not  often  the  case 
iliiriii^  tills  year,  prices  were  low  accordingly.  Any  price,  almost,  would  be 
pai'l  for  an  article  that  was  wanted,  and  nothing  for  wliat  was  not  wanted. 
A  Colonia  store-keeper's  Inll  in  Dec.  1848  nins  thus:  1  box  sardines,  !?10;  1  lb. 
lwrilliroad,{!i-2;  1  lb.  butter,  *();  i  lb.  cheese,  §3;  2  bottles  ale,  IglO;  total,  §43; 
uinl  tlii.s  for  liot  a  very  elaborate  luuuheou  for  two  persona. 


94 


AT  THE  MINES. 


'  i! 


iiv  <\ 


'■<  #r 


I'   ifei 


dysentery,  and  also  scurvy,  owing  to  the  lack  of 
vegetables." 

The  different  exploitations  resulted  in  the  establish- 
ment of  several  permanent  camps,  marked  duriii;^' 
this  year  by  rude  shanties,  or  at  best  by  log  huts, 
for  stores,  hotels,  and  drinking-saloons.  Some  of  tiieiii 
surpassed  in  size  and  population  Sutter's  hitherto  sol- 
itary fortress,  yet  this  post  maintained  its  preemi- 
nence as  an  entrepot  for  trade  and  j)()int  of  distribution, 
at  least  for  the  nortliern  and  central  miningf  fields, 
and  a  number  of  houses  were  rising  to  increase  its  im- 
portance. On  the  river  were  several  craft  beatiiisjf 
up  with  passengers  and  goods,  or  unlading  at  tin; 
landing.  The  ferry,  now  sporting  a  respectable 
barge,  was  in  constant  operation,  and  along  the  roads 
were  rolling  freight  trains  under  the  lash  and  oaths  of 
frantic  teamsters,  stirring  thick  clouds  of  incandescent 
dust  into  the  hot  air.  Parties  of  horsemen,  with 
heavy  packs  on  their  saddles,  moved  along  slowly 
enough,  yet  faster  than  the  tented  ox-carts  or  nude- 
wagons  with  their  similar  burdens.  A  still  larger 
proportion  was  foot-sore  wanderers  trudging  aloni,' 
under  tlieir  roll  of  blankets,  which  enclosed  a  few 
supplies  of  flour,  bacon,  and  coffee,  a  little  tobaecD 
and .  whiskey,  perhaps  some  ammunition,  and,  sns- 
))eiuled  to  the  straps,  a  frying-pan  of  manifold  utility, 
the  indisj)ensable  pick  and  shovel,  tin  pan  and  euji, 
occasionally  a  gun,  and  at  the  belt  a  pair  of  })istols 
and  a  dirk.  Up  the  steep  hills  and  over  the  parclitd 
))lains,  toiling  on  beneath  a  broiling  sun,  such  a  load 
became  a  heavy  burden  ere  nightfall. 

Within  the  fort  all  was  bustle  with  the  throng  of 
coming  and  going  traffickers  and  miners,  mostly  rough, 
stal\\art,  bronze-faced  men  in  red  and  blue  woollen 
shirts,  some  in  deerskin  suits,  or  in  oiled-skin  and 
fishermen's  boots,  some  in  sombrero,  Mexican  sash,  and 
sjlurs,  loaded  with   purchases   or  bearing    enticingly 

"  RuflTuni  was  nttaekeil,  but  found  a  remedy  in  some  bean-sprouta  which 
had  sprung  up  fruui  tin  tiuoidvutul  spill. 


in 


THE  COMING  WINTER. 


95 


e  roads 
►athis  of 
descent 
II,  will  I 
slowly 
Ir  inulc- 
larL'or 
al()n;4 
a    tew 
bacci) 
I,  sus- 
utility, 
id  cup, 
pistols 
irelit'il 
a  loud 

rong  of 
rouyli, 
voollcu 
ill  and 
5h,and 
icinu'ly 

uts  which 


iilethoric  pouches  in  striking*  contrast  to  their  fre- 
(jiu'iitly  ragij^ed,  unkempt,  and  woe-begone  appear- 
ance. Hardly  less  numerous,  though  less  conspicuous, 
wore  the  happy  aboriginals,  arrayed  in  civilization's 
cotton  shirts,  some  with  duck  trousers,  squatting 
in  groups  and  eagerly  discussing  the  yellow  hand- 
korcliicf's,  red  blankets,  and  bad  muskets  just  secured 
Ity  a  little  of  this  so  lately  worthless  stuff  wliich  had 
been  lyiiiir  in  their  streams  with  the  other  dirt  these 
past  thousand  years. 

Every  storehouse  and  shed  was  crammed  w'ith  mer- 
chandise; provisions,  hardware  and  dry  goods,  whis- 
key and  tobacco,  and  a  hundred  other  things  heaped 
in  indiscriminate  confusion.  The  dwelling  of  the 
lios[iitable  proprietor,  who  had  a  word  for  everybody, 
and  was  held  in  the  highest  respect,  was  crowded 
with  visitors,  and  presented  the  appearance  of  a  hotel 
rather  than  private  quarters.  The  guard-house,  now 
deserted  by  its  Indian  soldiers,  and  most  of  the  build- 
ings had  been  rented  to  traders  and  hotel-kee})ers,''^ 
wlio  drove  a  rushing  business,  the  sales  of  one  store 
from  ^[ay  1st  to  July  10th  reaching  more  than  J?30,- 
000.'"  The  workshops  were  busy  as  ever,  for  the 
])hu'(;s  of  deserting  artisans  could  be  instantly  filled 
from  passers-by  in  temporary  need. 

In  October  the  heavy  rains  and  growing  cold  ren- 
dered mining  difficult,  and  in  many  directions  impos- 
sihlc.  The  steady  tide  of  migration  now  turned 
toward  the  coast.  Yet  a  large  number  remained, 
800  wintering  at  the  Dry  Diggings  alone,  and  a  large 
number  on  the  Yuba,  w^orking  most  of  the  time,  for 
the  mines  were  yielding  five  ounces  a  day.  Efforts 
})roved    remunerative   also    in    many   other    places."'* 

'*A  two-story  house  at  $")00  a  month;  rooms  for  SIOO. 

'" Sterling's  company  wroto  Liiikiii  not  to  delay  in  forwarding  stoek,  for 
fniiii  50  to  500  per  cent  could  be  made  on  everytliing.  There  were  no  fixed 
rates, 

'"llnijes'  Cal  Mininq,  i.  50;  niiriieU'-i  Iter.,  MS.,  309-70;  lhtffnm''x  Six 
Mni.tli.-,.  .-)•_';  Vul.  Star,  Dec    12,  1848;  Yuba  Co.  Jliat.,  37;  Jlall'.s  Hint.  S. 


96 


AT  THE  MINES. 


\f<>iii< 


Bh'& 


Tlie  more  prudent  devoted  a  little  time  to  erecting  log 
cabins,  and  otherwise  making  themselves  comfortable; 
but  many  who  could  not  resist  the  fascinations  of 
gold-hunting,  and  attempted,  in  ill-provided  and  cloth 
and  brushwood  shanties,  to  brave  the  inclemency  of 
winter,  suffered  severely.  From  the  beginning  of 
October  till  the  end  of  the  rainy  season  men,  disap- 
pointed and  sick,  kept  coming  down  to  San  Francisco, 
cursing  the  country  and  their  hard  fate."^  IndeotI, 
there  were  not  many  among  the  returning  crowd,  rich 
or  poor,  who  could  present  a  respectable  appearance. 
They  were  a  ragged,  sun-burned  lot,  grimy  and  bo- 
spotted,  with  unshorn  beards  and  long,  tangled  hair; 
some  shoeless,  with  their  feet  blistered  and  bandaged. 
Many  were  now  content  to  return  home  and  enjoy 
their  good  fortune,  but  many  more  remained  to  squan- 
der their  earnings  during  the  winter,  to  begin  the 
s[)ring  where  they  began  the  last  one;  yet  as  a  body, 
tlie  men  of  1848  profited  more  by  their  gains  than 
the  men  who  came  after  them.^'* 


-  ! 


^'  Tliere  was  greater  mortality  at  the  eud  of  1848  than  ever  before,  says 
Grimn/inw,  AV» ;•/•.,  MS.,  If). 

'■'■'Ainoug  the  noted  visitors  at  the  mines,  upon  whose  testimony  the  last 
chapters  are  to  ,a  great  extent  based,  I  would  tirst  mention  J.  H.  Carson,  the 
disoovcrer  of  Carson  Creek,  as  he  subscribed  liiniself  in  the  title-page  of  his 
book,  Earlji  liecolhctionn  of  the  Miuys,  ami  a  Dexcriptioii  of  the  (frvat  Tiilat-i- 
I'ulley,  a  small  octavo  of  64  pp.,  ]irinted  at  Stockton  in  18.V2,  to  accompany 
the  steamer  edition  of  the  »S'rt(t  Jom/nin  RepubUcan,  It  is  signilicaiit,  cei- 
tiiinly,  of  newspaper  enterprise,  when  a  country  journal  could  print  so  im- 
portant and  expensive  an  accompaniment  to  its  regular  issue.  It  ranks  also 
as  the  first  book  issued  at  Stockton.  Note  also  the  dedication:  'To  the 
Hon.  A.  Ilandall,  of  Monterey,  Cal.,  Professor  of  Geology  and  Botany,  wlio 
has  spared  neitlier  energy  nor  expense  in  the  Histoncal  Researches  of  Cal- 
ifornia, this  humble  work  is  most  respectfully  dedicated  by  his  obliged  and 
obedient  servant.  The  Author.'  Let  not  his  name  perish.  Mr  Carson  has  made 
a  very  good  book,  an  exceedingly  valuable  book.  He  sees  well,  thinks  veil, 
and  writes  well,  tliougii  with  some  coloring.  Already  in  1852  lie  begins  to  tilk 
with  affection  'of  the  good  old  times,  now  past,  wiien  eiich  day  was  big  with 
the  Wonders  and  discoveries  of  rich  diggings.'  The  first  16  pages  are  dcvoteil 
to  a  description  of  tiie  mines;  then  follow  some  very  good  anecdotes  ami 
sketciios;  the  wliole  concluding  with  a  description  of  the  Tulare  Valley. 
Carson,  a  sergeant  in  the  N.  Y.  reg.,  was  residing  at  Monterey  in  the  spring 
of  1848,  when  he  was  seized  with  this  new  western  dance  of  St  Vitus,  and  was 
carried  on  an  old  mule  to  tiie  cold-<liggings.  He  began  work  at  Mormon 
Island  by  annihilating  earth  in  his  wasii-basin,  standing  up  to  his  knees  in 
water,  slashing  and  splashing  ns  if  resolving  the  universe  to  its  original 
elements.  Fifty  pans  of  dirt  thus  pulverized  gave  the  fevered  pilgrim  Imt 
fifty  cents;  whereupon  a  deep  disgust  filled  his  soul,  and  iniinediately  with 


HOW  SOME  WERE  AFFECTED, 


07 


efore,  says 

y  tho  last 
Iiirson,  the 
)aj5e  of  Ilia 
■at  Ttihur 
iccompaiiy 
icaiit,  wr- 
iut  so  iiM- 
raiiks  also 
To  the 
tany,  who 
es  of  Ciil- 
iligeil  ami 
has  made 
jiika  vuU, 
ilia  to  fcilk 
_  big  with 
•e  devoteil 
.lotea  and 
•e  Valhy. 
the  spriii;^ 
I,  ami  \v;i9 
,  Mormon 
kneus  in 
orit;inal 
llgrim  liut 
ttoly  witli 


01)viouslY  the  effect  for  good  and  evil  of  finding 
<n)ld  was  first  felt  by  those  nearest  the  point  of  dis- 

thf  departure  of  liis  malady  the  man  departed.  On  passing  throngli  Welicr's 
liidiiiii  trailing'  camp,  liowever,  be  saw  sucli  heaps  of  glittering  gold  as  broujjlit 
tiie  nf.'ne  on  again  more  violent  than  ever,  resulting  in  a  prolonged  stay  at 
Kolst\  's  and  Hangtown.  Instead  of  fortune,  however,  came  sickness,  w  liich 
druvcliim  a«ay  to  other  pursuits,  and  brought  him  to  the  grave  at  Stockton 
ill  April  1S.");{,  siiortly  after  his  election  to  the  legislature.  His  widow  and 
da\i;:hter  arrive<l  from  tiie  east  a  month  later,  and  being  destitute,  were 
as;-i>tcd  to  return  by  a  generous  subscription. 

Ani'ther  number  of  the  same  regiment,  Henry  I.  Simpson,  who  started 
the  iMh  of  Aug.,  1848,  from  Monterey  to  the  mines,  wrote  a  book  cliietly 
remarkable  fniin  its  publication  in  New  York,  in  1848,  describinga  trip  to  tlie 
niims  w  hich  could  not  have  been  concluded  much  more  than  tln-ee  nionths 
1)(  t(ae  that  time.  It  was  not  impossible,  thougii  it  waa  quick  work,  if  true, 
and  we  will  not  place  Mr  Simpson,  or  his  publishers,  Joyce  &  Comjiany, 
\iiuler  suspicion  unless  we  find  them  clearly  guilty.  Tiie  title  is  a  long  one 
I'lir  so  thin  a  buok,  a  pamphlet  of  thirty  octavo  pages,  and  somewhat  preteu' 
tioMs,  as  the  result  of  only  three  weeks'  observation;  but  Mr  Simpson  is  not 
the  only  one  wlio  has  attempted  to  eidighten  tho  world  respecting  this  region 
attira  ten  or  twenty  days'  ride  througii  it,  and  to  tell  more  of  the  country 
than  the  inliabilaiits  had  ever  known,  thinkini^  that  because  things  were  new 
to  tiicmselves  they  were  new  to  everybody.  Such  personages  are  your  Todda 
and  Kiclianlsdii.s,  your  Grace  Greenwoods,  Pfeifera,  Mary  Cones,  and  lifty 
others  w  lio  cover  their  ignorance  by  brilliant  flashes  that  gleam  before  the 
simple  as  super  ior  knowledge.  Nevertiieless,  I  will  be  charitaV)le,  and  print 
this  title,  wiiicii,  indeed,  gives  more  information  than  any  other  part  of  the 
hocik.  It  reads:  The  JCiiiii/rant'K  Guide  to  the  Gold  Miuefi.  Three  IVc  t-t  in 
the  Vo'id  Millie,  or  Adveiittiren  trith  the  Gold-Diij'jent  of  Gidi/oriiin,  in  Aiiijnut, 
lS.'f.-:,  totjcfhi-r  vifh  Adoire  to  Emi<iranfK,  n-ith  full  InMructioim  ujtoii  the  lieH 
Milhodii  of  Gitliiig  There,  Liriwj,  Ex/ieiine/t,  etc.,  etc.,  and  a  Coni/i.'ete 
J)i.<rri}ifio>i  of  thr  Goinitri/.  With  a  Map  and  lUiintratioim.  And  such  a 
map,  and  such  illustrations!  I  should  say  that  tho  draughtsman  had  taken 
the  chart  of  Cortes,  or  Vizcaino,  thrown  in  some  modern  names,  and  dauljcil 
yellow  a  stiip  north  of  San  Francisco  Bay  to  rei)resent  the  gold-tields.  In- 
<leed,  there  is  very  little  of  California  about  this  map.  The  price  of  the 
liook  with  tho  map  waa  "io  cents;  without  tho  map,  1-^  cents.  It  is  to  lie 
hoped  that  purchasers  took  it  in  the  latter  form,  for  tho  less  they  had  of  it 
the  wiser  they  would  be.  As  for  illustrations,  there  are  just  four,  whose  only 
niei  it  is  their  badness.  Fourteen  pages  of  the  work  are  devoted  to  the  nar- 
rative of  a  trip  to  the  mines;  nine  pages  to  a  description  of  the  country  and 
its  inhabitants;  the  remainder  being  occupied  by  advice  to  emigrants  con- 
teniing  outfit  ami  ways  to  reach  the  country.  Mr  Simpson's  ideas  are 
ramliling  and  iiLtlated,  and  his  picturea  of  the  country  more  gaudy  than 
gurfreous.  He  certainly  tella  large  storiea — Bigler  says  wrong  stories — of 
1  iver-beds  paved  with  gold  to  the  thieknesa  of  a  hand,  of  8-0,0W)  or  §,")(),000 
worth  picked  out  almost  in  a  moment,  and  so  forth;  but  he  printed  a  book  ou 
California  gold  in  the  year  of  its  discovery,  and  this  atones  for  many  defects. 
Had  all  dune  Ps  well  as  this  soldier-adventurer,  we  should  not  lack  materiitl 
for  tin;  ,  of'  ('alifornia. 

J,  '1'  'Wiiitt  Hrooks,  an  Englisn  physician  lately  from  Oregon,  stjirted  in 
May  KS-18  from  S.  F.  for  the  gold-tield,  with  a  well-equipped  party  of  live. 
.After  a  fairly  eucf<;ssful  digging  at  Mormon  Island  they  moved  to  Weber 
Creek,  and  thence  to  Bear  Bivcr,  where,  despite  Indian  hostility,  1 1.')  pounds 
of  gold  were  obtained,  tho  greater  part  of  whicii,  however,  waa  deatinetl  to  fall 
into  the  hands  of  highwaymen.  The  scenes  and  experiences  of  the  trip  limoka 
recorded  in  a  diary,  which,  forwarded  to  his  brother  in  London,  was  there  pub- 
lished under  title  of  Four  Moiithi  amoinj  the  Qold-ffiadera  in  Alia  California. 
Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    7 


98 


AT  THE  MINES. 


covery.  Upon  the  discoverer  himself,  in  whose  miiul 
so  suddenly  arose  visions  of  wealth  and  influence,  it 

two  editions  appearing  in  London  in  1849,  and  one  in  America,  followed  liy  a 
translation  at  Paris.  A  map  accompanies  the  English  edition,  with  a  yi  How 
and  dotted  lino  round  the  gold  district  then  extending  from  'R.  d  L.  Muko- 
lemnes'  to  Bear  River.  The  book  is  well  written,  and  the  author's  observa- 
tions are  such  as  command  respect. 

After  many  sermons  preached  against  money  as  the  root  of  all  evil,  and 
after  lamenting  fervently  the  present  dispensation  for  depriving  him  of  liig 
servant,  temptation  also  seized  upon  the  Rev.  Walter  Colton,  at  the  time 
acting  alcalde  at  Monterey,  and  formerly  chaplain  on  board  the  U.  S.  ship 
Coiiifretm,  Witli  ive  companions,  inclmling  Lt  Simmons,  Wilkinson,  sou  of  a 
former  U.  S.  minister  to  Russia,  and  Marcy,  son  of  him  who  was  once  sec.  of 
war,  he  started  for  the  diggings  in  Sept.  1848,  freighting  a  wagon  with  cooking 
utensils,  mining  tools,  and  articles  for  Indian  traffic.  He  passed  tlirough 
the  Livermore  gap  to  the  Stanislaus,  meeting  on  the  way  a  ragged  but  rii  lily 
laden  party,  whose  display  of  wealth  gave  activity  to  his  movements.  Two 
months  saw  him  back  again,  rich  in  experience  if  not  in  gold, and  primed  w  ith 
additional  material  for  his  T^ree  Years  in  California,  a  book  published  in 
New  York  in  1850,  and  covering  the  prominent  incidents  coming  under  iiia 
observation  during  the  important  days  between  the  summer  of  1846  and  the 
summer  of  1849.  Cal.  life  in  mines  and  settlements,  and  among  the  Spanisli 
race,  receives  special  attention,  in  a  manner  well  calculated  to  bring  out  quuiiit 
and  ciiaracteristic  features.  Appearing  as  it  did  while  the  gold  fever  was  still 
raging,  the  work  received  much  attention,  and  passed  quickly  through  Re\-cral 
editions,  later  under  the  changed  title.  Land  of  Gold.  It  also  assisted  into 
notice  his  Deck  and  Fori,  a  diary  like  the  preceding,  issued  the  same  year,  and 
reaching  the  third  edition,  which  treats  of  scenes  and  incidents  during  the 
voyage  to  Cal.  in  1845,  and  constitutes  a  prelude  to  the  other  book.  While 
the  ])opularity  of  both  rests  mainly  upon  tiie  time  and  topic,  yet  it  owes  much 
to  tlie  style,  for  Colton  is  a  genial  writer,  jocose,  with  an  easy,  careless  tlow 
of  language,  but  inclines  to  the  exuberant,  and  is  less  exact  in  tlie  use  of 
words  than  we  should  expect  from  a  professed  dealer  in  unadulterated  truth, 
natural  and  supernatural. 

Six  Monthn  in  the  Oold  Mines;  being  a  Journal  of  Three  Years'  Itcsiilenre 
in  Upper  and  Lower  Valifoniia,  1S47-9,  is  a  small  octavo  of  17*2  pages  liy  K. 
Gould  Buflfum,  sometime  lieut  in  the  first  reg.,  N.  Y.  Volunteers,  and  bei'ore 
that  connected  witii  the  N.  Y.  press.  It  waa  published  while  the  author  re- 
mained in  Cal.,  and  constitutes  one  of  the  most  important  printed  contiilni- 
tions  to  the  history  of  Cal.,  no  less  by  reason  of  the  scarcity  of  material 
concerning  t)je  period  it  covers,  1848-9,  than  on  account  of  the  ability  of  the 
author  For  he  was  an  educated  man,  remarkably  free  from  prejudice,  a  close 
observer,  and  possessing  sound  judgment.  He  is  careful  in  his  statements, 
conscientious,  not  given  to  exaggeration,  and  his  words  and  ways  are  such  as 
ins[)ire  confidence.  The  publishers'  notice  is  dated  ilay  18.">0.  The  author's 
introduction  is  dated  at  S.  F.  Jon.  1,  1850.  Hence  his  book  cannot  treat  of 
events  happening  later  than  1849.  First  is  given  his  visit  to  the  mines,  nota- 
bly on  the  Bear,  Yuba,  and  American  rivers,  with  the  attendant  experiences 
and  observations.  Then  follow  a  description  of  the  gold  region,  tiie  possiljil- 
ities  of  the  country  in  his  opinion,  movements  toward  government,  descrip- 
tions of  old  and  new  towns,  and  a  dissertation  on  Lower  Cal.  The  style  is 
pleasant — simple,  terse,  strong,  yet  graceful,  aud  with  no  egoism  or  affecta- 
tions. 

No  less  valuable  than  the  preceding  for  the  present  subject  are  a  nuinl)er 
of  manuscript  journals  and  memoirs  by  pioneers,  recording  their  personal  ex- 
periences of  matters  connected  with  the  mines,  trade,  and  other  features  of 
early  Cul.  periods.  Most  of  them  are  referre<l  t>  elsewhere,  and  I  need  here 
only  instance  two  or  three.     A.  F.  Coronel,  subsequently  mayor  of  Los  An- 


SUTTER  AXD  MARSHALL. 


M 


fell  like  the  gold  of  Nibelungen,  in  the  Edda,  which 
brought  nothing  but  ill  luck  to  the  possessor.  And 
to  Sutter,  his  partner,  being  a  greater  man,  it  proved 
a  <'^reatcr  curse.  Yet  this  result  was  almost  wholly 
the  fault  of  the  man,  not  of  the  event.  What  might 
have  been  is  not  my  province  to  discuss;  what  was 
and  is  alone  remain  for  me  to  relate.  We  all  think 
t)i'\t  of  the  opportunity  given  these  men  we  should 
have  made  better  use;  doubtless  it  is  true.  They 
were  simple  backw^oods  people;  we  have  knocked  our 
heads  against  each  other  until  they  have  become  hard; 
our  tongues  are  sharpened  by  lying,  and  our  brains 
made  subtle  by  much  cheating.  Sutter  and  Marshall, 
though  naturally  no  more  honest  than  other  men, 
were  less  astute  and  calculating;  and  while  the  former 
had  often  met  trick  with  trick,  it  was  against  less 
skilled  players  than  those  now  entering  the  game.  In 
their  intercourse  with   the   outside  world,  although 


gelcs,  and  a  prominent  Califomian,  made  a  trip  to  the  Stanislaus  and  founil 
licli  deposits,  as  related  in  hiaCoKOS  de  Coi.,  a  volume  of  265  pp.,  which  forms 
oiie  of  the  best  narratives,  especially  of  happenings  before  the  conquest.  Ono 
of  his  fcUow-nuners  in  184S  was  Agustin  Janssens,  a  Frenchman,  who  came 
to  Cal.  in  1834  as  one  of  the  colonists  of  that  year.  He  left  his  rancho  at 
iSaiita  In(^s  in  Sept.  1S4S,  with  several  Indian  servants,  and  remained  at  the 
Stanislaus  till  late  in  Dec.  In  his  Vida  y  Avejituraa  en  California  de  Don 
Aijii^in  Jansseiis  vecino  de  Santa  Barbara,  Dictadas  por  H  tnismo  d  Thomas 
Snc'i'/f,  M.S.,  1878,  he  shows  the  beginning  of  the  race  aggressions  from  which 
tin;  Liitins  were  subsequently  to  suffer  severely.  Besides  several  hundred  of 
such  dictations  in  separate  and  voluminous  form,  I  have  minor  accounts  in 
letter  and  reports,  bound  with  historic  noUections,  such  as  Larkin,  Docs,  MS., 
i.-ix.;  Doc.  llUit.  Cal.,  MS.,  i.-iv. ;  Vallejo,  Docs,  MS.,  i.-xxxvi.  passim. 
Instance  the  observations  of  Charles  B.  Sterling  and  James  Williams,  Doth  in 
tlie  service  of  Larkin,  and  who  mined  and  traded  on  the  south  and  nortli 
hianclies  of  tiie  American,  with  some  success.  The  official  report  of  Thomas 
0.  Larkin  to  the  sec.  of  state  of  .June  28,  1848,  was  based  on  a  personal  visit 
to  the  central  mining  region  early  in  that  month.  So  was  that  of  Col  R.  B. 
Mason,  who  left  Monterey  June  17th,  attended  by  W.  T.  Sherman  and  Quar- 
termaster Folsom.  escort«d  by  four  soldiers.  By  way  of  Sonoma  they  reached 
iSutter's  Fort,  where  the  4th  of  July  was  duly  celebrated,  and  thenco  moved 
up  the  south  branch  of  the  American  River  to  Weber  Creek.  Mason  was 
siiiinnoned  back  to  Monterey  from  this  point,  but  had  seen  enough  to  enable 
him  to  write  the  famous  report  of  Aug.  17th  to  the  adj. -gen.  at  Washington, 
M liitli  started  the  gold  fever  abroad.  A  later  visit  during  the  autumn  ex- 
temlod  to  the  Stanislaus  and  Sonora  diggings.  Folsom  also  made  a  report, 
but  gave  little  new  information.  He  attempted  to  furnish  the  world,  through 
<ien.  Jesup,  with  a  history  and  description  of  the  country,  in  which  effort  he 
attained  no  signal  success.  He  did  not  like  the  climate;  he  did  not  like  the 
minus.  Yet  he  was  gracious  enough  to  say,  '  I  went  to  them  in  the  most 
sceptical  frame  of  mind,  and  came  away  a  believer.' 


100 


AT  THE  MINES. 


they  wore  adventurers,  they  proved  themselves  Httlo 
better  than  children,  and  as  such  they  were  grossly 
niisused  by  the  gold-thirsting  rabble  brought  down 
upon  them  by  their  discovery. 

Marshall  and  Sutter  kept  the  Mormons  at  work  on 
the  saw-mill  as  best  they  were  able,  until  it  was  com- 
pleted and  in  operation,  which  was  on  the  11th  of 
March.  The  Mormons  merited  and  received  the  ac- 
knowledgments of  their  employers  for  faithfulness  in 
holding  to  their  agreements  midst  constantly  increas- 
ing temptations.  Both  employers  engaged  also  in 
mining,  especially  near  the  mill,  claiming  a  right  to 
the  ground  about  it,  which  claim  at  first  was  gener- 
ally respected.  With  the  aid  of  their  Indians  they 
took  out  a  quantity  of  gold;  but  this  was  quickly  lost; 
and  more  was  found  and  lost.  Sutter  mined  else- 
where with  Indians  and  Kanakas,  and  claims  never  to 
have  derived  any  profit  from  these  efforts.  The  mill 
could  not  be  made  to  pay.  Several  issues  before  long 
arose  between  Marshall  and  the  miners  regarding' 
their  respective  rights  and  the  treatment  of  the 
natives. 

Marshall  was  less  fortunate  than  almost  any  of  the 
miners.  This  ill  success,  combined  with  an  exagger- 
ated estimate  of  his  merits  as  discoverer,  left  its 
impress  on  his  mind,  subjecting  it  more  and  more  to 
his  spiritualistic  doctrines.  In  obedience  to  phantom 
beckonings,  he  flitted  hither  and  thither  about  the 
foothills,  but  his  supernatural  friends  failed  him  in 
every  instance.^^  He  became  petulant  and  querulous. 
Discouraged  and  soured,  he  grows  restive  under  en- 
croachments on  his  scanty  property,^*  and  the  abuse 

*'  'Should  I  go  to  new  localities '  says  Marshall,  'and  commence  to  open  a 
new  mine,  betore  I  could  prospect  the  ground,  numbers  flocked  in  and  cdiii- 
nienced  seeking  all  around  me,  and,  as  numbers  tell,  some  one  M'ould  Hnd  tlie 
lead  before  me  and  inform  their  party,  and  the  ground  was  claimed.  Then 
I  would  travel  again. '  Twice  Sutter  gaVe  him  a  prospector's  outfit  and  started 
him.  He  was  no  longer  content  with  his  former  plodding  industry.  '  He 
was  always  after  big  things,'  Sutter  said.  I  have  wondered  that  he  did  not 
in  the  first  instance  attribute  his  discovery  to  the  direction  of  the  spirits. 

''*  Early  in  1849,  after  Winters  and  Bayley  had  purchased  the  half -interest 
of  Sutter  in  the  saw-mill,  and  one  third  of  the  kalf-iuterest  of  Marshall, 


^ 


THE  LUCKLESS  DISCOVERER, 


101 


5  littlo 
down 

ork  on 

us  coni- 
ilth  of 
the  ac^- 
ineHS  ill 
mcreas- 
also  ill 
•ight  to 
i  gener- 
,ns  they 
kly  lost; 
ed  else- 
tievcr  to 
rhe  mill 
ibre  long 
pgardiuj;' 
of   the 


^y 


of  tlic 


exagger- 
left  its 
inoro  to 
phantom 
>out  the 
him  ill 
lerulous. 
Inder  eii- 
le  abuse 

Ice  to  open  a 
[in  and  coin- 
tuUl  tind  the 
lined.     Then 

S  and  staiteil 
lustry.  '  He 
lit  he  did  not 

_)  spirita. 

rhalt-interest 

of  Marshall, 


niid  hiitchcry  of  his  aboriginal  proteges.  Foreod  by 
the  now  enraged  miners  to  Hee  from  his  liomo  and 
property,  he  shoulders  his  pack  of  forty  pounds  and 
tiaiiips  tiic  mountains  and  ravines,  living  on  rice.  Ho 
scuks  employment  and  is  refu!^ed.  "We  emi)loy  you  I" 
tlicv  cry  ironically.  "You  must  find  gold  for  us. 
You  i'ound  it  once,  and  you  can  again."  And  it  is 
told  for  a  fact,  and  sworn  to  by  his  former  partner, 
that  they  "threatened  to  hang  him  to  a  tree,  mob 
liiin,  etc.,  unless  he  would  go  with  them  and  point 
out  the  ricli  diggings.'"^ 

There  is  something  unaccountable  in  all  this.  !Mar- 
shall  must  have  rendered  himself  exceedingly  obnox- 
ious to  the'miners,  who,  though  capable  of  fiendish  acts, 
wore  not  fiends.  While  badly  treated  in  some  respects, 
ho  was  undoubtedly  to  blame  in  others.  Impelled  by 
tho  restlessness  which  had  driven  him  west,  and  over- 
come by  morbid  reflections,  he  allowed  many  of  his  good 
(|ualities  to  drift.  In  his  dull,  unimaginative  way  he 
out-Timoiied  Timon  in  misanthropy.  He  fancied  him- 
self f(»llowed  by  a  merciless  fate,  and  this  was  equiva 
lent  to  courting  such  a  destiny.^*' 


It  is  to  be  regretted 


minors  find  others  came  in  and  squatted  on  the  ground  claimed  hy  Marshall, 
rri.'aiillesH  of  the  posted  notices  warning  them  off.  'Thirti^en  of  Sutter  & 
Miirshiill -s  oxen  soon  went  down  into  the  ciiiion,'  says  Marshall,  'and  thence 
(lu«ii  Iniiigry  men's  tliroata.  Tiu^se  cost  .StOO  per  yok»;  to  replace.  Sex  en  of 
my  hoist's  went  to  carry  M'eary  men's  packs.'  The  mill  hands  deserted,  and 
liifiire  tho  mill  could  be  started  again  certain  white  men  at  Murderei-'s  Kar 
liiitehoiod  some  Indians  and  ravislied  tiioir  women.  The  Indians  retaliated 
and  killed  four  or  five  white  men.  So  far  it  Wiis  an  even  tiling;  the  white 
nun  liad  iiiot  onlj'  their  just  deserts.  But  tlie  excuse  to  shoot  natives  was  too 
pdod  to  lie  lost.  A  niolj  gathered,  and  failing  to  find  the  liostile  trii)e,  attacked 
till' (,'nlunias,  who  were  wholly  innocent  and  friendly,  and  many  of  them  at 
wiiiU  iilioiit  the  mill.  Of  these  they  shot  down  seven;  and  when  Marshall  iii- 
trifi'ii'd  to  defend  his  people,  the  inoii  tiireatened  him,  .so  that  he  Wiis  obliged 
t'l  tly  for  his  life.  After  a  time  he  returne<l  to  Coloina  only  to  find  the  place 
I'biiiii'd  hy  others,  who  had  laid  out  a  town  there.  Complotolj'  bankrupt, 
M  nsjiull  was<)l)lig('d  to  leave  the  place  in  search  of  food,  ami  soon  he  w.-is  in- 
fiiniu'd  that  the  miners  had  destroyed  the  dam,  and  stolen  the  mill  tirnbci's, 
iiii'i  that  was  the  end  of  the  sawmill.  'Neither  Marshall,  Winters,  nor 
ISayley  ever  received  a  dollar  for  their  property.    Parnont'  Li/i'  of  Marshall, 

hss. 

■^'  'To  save  him,  I  procured  and  secreted  a  horse,  and  with  this  he  escaped.' 
AHiil:i\  it  of  John  Winters,  in  Parsoii.t  Lije  of  Marshall,  ITS.  See  al.so  .Mar- 
shell's  statement,  in  Oiiiihar's  Romance  of  Ihi'  Ai/f,  1 17-3. 

'"  '1  wandered  for  more  than  four  years,  he  continues, .  .  . '  feeling  my.self 
iiiidiT  some  fatal  inQtieuce,  a  curse,  or  at   least  some  bad  circumstances.' 


102 


AT  THE  MINES. 


H. 


I,' 


tliat  he  sank  also  Into  poverty,  passing  the  last  twenty- 
eight  years  of  his  life  near  Coloma,  the  centre  of  his 
dreams,  sustained  by  scanty  fare  and  shadowy  hope:* 
of  recognition.^^ 

Finally  he  breaks  forth:  'I  see  no  reason  whv  the  government  sliould  give  to 
otiiers  ami  not  to  me.  In  Uod'a  name,  can  the  ciicu instance  of  my  btiiig  the 
first  to  tinil  the  gold  regions  of  California  be  a  cause  to  deprive  me  of  every 
right  pertaining  to  a  citizen  from  under  tlio  flag?'  These,  I  say,  are  not  tlie 
sentiments  of  a  healthy  mind.  The  government  was  not  giving  more  to  others 
than  to  him.  One  great  trouble  was,  that  he  early  conceived  the  idea,  wholly 
erroneous,  that  the  government  and  the  world  owed  him  a  great  debt;  timt 
but  for  him  gold  in  California  never  would  have  been  found.  In  some  way 
Marshall  became  mixed  up  with  that  delectable  association,  the  Hounds.  Of 
course  he  denies  having  been  one  of  them,  but  his  knowledge  of  tlieir  watch- 
word and  other  secrets  looks  suspicious.  Judging  entirely  liy  his  own  state- 
ments, particularly  by  his  denials,  I  deem  it  more  than  proljable  that  he  was 
a  member  of  the  band. 

"  Retunung  to  Coloma  in  the  spring  of  1857,  he  obtained  some  odd  jol)s  of 
work  sawing  wood,  making  gardens,  and  cleaning  wells.     Then  for  SI.")  he 
purchased  some  Ian  '.  ^f  little  value  on  the  hill-side  adjacent  and  planted  a 
vineyard.     He  obtamed  for  some  years  a  small  pension  from  the  state.     'An 
object  of  charity  on  the  part  of  the  state,'  says  liarstow,  Staf.,  MS.,  14.    .Sut- 
ter, Prrt.  licm.,  MS.,  205,  says  tlie  same.     Tlie  Elko  Independent,  Jan.  I'l, 
1870,  states  that  he  was  then  living  at  Kelsey's  Diggings.     'He  is  upward  of 
fifty  years  of  age,  and  though  feeble,  is  obliged  to  work  for  his  board  and 
clothes,  not  being  able  to  earn  more.'     Mr  E.  Weller  writes  me  in  Aug.  18S1 
from  Coloma:  '  Mr  Marshall  is  living  at  Kelsey,  about  three  miles  from  this 
place.     He  has  a  small  orchard  in  this  place  which  he  rents  out  for  §'_'.')  per 
year.     He  waa  never  married.     He  is  trying  a  little  at  mining,  l)ut  it  is  rather 
up-hill  work,  for  he  is  now  a  feeble  old  man. '    He  died  in  August  188.'>,  ageil 
73.    Among  authorities  referring  to  him  are /?ar.s/o!(;',iAV(e<.,  MS.,  14;  Burnett's 
liee.,  MS.,  ii.  10;  Cronby's  Evenlnin  Cat.,  MS.,  17;  Annal^qfS.  F.,  767,  wiiiie 
may  be  found  a  poor  portrait;  Satter'n  Peru.  Rec,  MS.,  IGOand  205-6;  Powen' 
Afoot,  '292-3;  Schlagintioe.it,  Cal.,  216.    The.SV;.  liecord- Union,  .Ian.  20,  1872, 
states  that  he  was  'forced  in  his  old  age  to  eke  out  a  scanty  subsistence  hy 
<lclivering  rough  lectures  based  upon  his  wretched  career.'  Furtlier  references, 
lini.sH  Valley  Union,  April  19,  1870;  Santa  Cruz  Sentinel,  July  17,  1875;  Fol- 
nom   Telei/raph,  Sept.   17,    1871;  Solano  Reimldir.an,  Sept.  '29,    1870;  Ndpit 
Peifuiter,  Aug.   1,  1874;    Vallejo  Chron.,   Oct.   10,    1874;    Truckee.    Tnlmue, 
Jan.  8,  1870;  S.  F.  Alta  Cal.,  May  5,  1872,  and  Aug.   17,  1874;  S.  F.  Ni'int 
Letter,  July  19,   1879;  History  of  Nevaila,  78;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  6,  18.".,'); 
Aug.  10-14,1885;  Yolo  Co.  Hist.,8Q;  Tinkhani'n  Hist.  Stockton,  lOS;  Lanai/'s 
(rniseof  the  Dale,  MH.,  66;  San  Joaquin  County  Hist.,  20;  SutterCo.  Hist. ,-2]. 
The  Romance  of  the  Atje,  or  the  Discovery  of  Gold  in  California,  by  Edward  E. 
Dunbar,  New  York,  18U7,  was  written  with  the  view  of  securing  government 
relief  for  Sutter.     Dunbar  writes  graphically,  and  begins  his  book  with  these 
words:  '  Somebody  has  said  that  history  is  an  incoriigible  liar. '    If  all  hi.story 
were  written  as  Mr  Dunbar  writes,  I  should  fully  agree  with  him.     Little 
that  is  reliable  has  been  printed  on  Mai-sliall  and  the  gold  discovery,  eye- 
witnesses, even,  seemingly  forgetting  more  than  they  remember.     Tiie  most 
importtmt  work  upon  the  subject  is  X,\\q  Life  and  Adventures  of  James  W. 
Marshall,  by  (ieorge  Frederic  Parsons,  published  in  Sacramento  by  James  AV. 
Marshall  and  W.  Burke,  in  1870.     The  facts  here  brought  out  with  tlie  utmost 
clearness  and  discrimination  were  taken  from  those  best  knowing  them. 
George  Frederic  Parsons  was  born  at  Brighton,  England,  June  15,  1^0.     He 
was  educated  at  private  schools.     Having  spent  five  years  at  sea,  during' 
which  he  several  times  visited  the  East  Indies,  he  was  attracted  by  tU« 


THE  UNHAPPY  SWISS. 


103 


With  regard  to  Sutter,  liis  position  and  possibilities, 
tlicrc  was  witiiin  reach  boundless  wealth  for  him,  eould 
hu  have  seized  it;  his  fall  was  as  jj^reat  though  not  so 
rapid  as  Marshall's.  Out  of  the  saw-mill  scheme  he 
came  well  enough,  gathering  gold  below  Coloma,  and 
Silling  his  half-interest  in  the  mill  for  $(5,000.  His 
troultles  began  at  the  flour-mill.  After  he  had  ex- 
piiided  not  less  than  $30,000  in  a  vain  attempt  to 
coiiiplete   it,    it    went  to   decay.**     The  men    in  the 

n  ports  of  tl)c  golil-tields  of  Cariboo  in  18G2,  and  made  an  expedition  thitlicr. 
];>  turning  from  tlic  niinea  unsuccessful,  he  entered  journiuisni  in  Victoria, 
\  ,  1.  In  \Sthi  he  started  a  paper  called  tiio  North  i'a/ijic  Thnen,  at  New 
\\  istininstir,  B.  C.  Tlie  population  was  too  small  to  support  it,  and  it  wiis 
iil'imdiinfil  in  a  few  months.  He  then  went  to  San  Francisco,  and  joined  tliu 
nt.ilf  of  tlio  Exdiiiiiwr.  In  1807  lie  left  that  paper  to  take  a  position  on  llie 
.V.  /•'.  TiiiKH.  Enteriuj;  the  local  staff,  he  finally  became  the  chief  editorial 
wiitir  of  tlie  paper,  ami  occupied  that  post  wiien  it  was  inerj^ed  in  the  Afn. 
'fills  (K'l'urri'd  at  tlie  end  of  18U!I,  and  the  same  winter  Mr  Parsons  assuiiu'd 
editorial  control  of  the  Sacramento  lifconl,  a  republican  journal.  He  con- 
tiiuiLil  to  edit  the  Nerord  until  it  was  consolidated  with  the  Sacramento 
I'li'iiii  ns  tiiu  Rfcord-i'iiiuH,  and  subsequently  to  that  until  1882,  when  he  left 
(.'alifornia  and  accepted  a  position  on  the  editorial  staff  of  the  New  York 
Triliiiiic.  Mr  Parsons  was  married  in  1809,  and  had  one  daughter,  Melanii, 
who  died  in  1881  of  typhoid  fever.  He  was  a  contributor  to  the  Ovi-rliiinl 
Mviilh'ij  during  the  editorship  of  Bret  Harte,  and  has  written  several  short 
items  besides  magazine  articles,  ordinary  press  work,  reviews,  and  his  life  of 
Marshall.  Air  Parsons'  life  has  been  notable  for  its  quietness  and  evenness. 
1  have  not  known  a  journalist  in  the  field  of  my  history  superior,  if  eipiul, 
to  lilm  in  philosophic  insight,  knowledge  of  men  and  things,  critical  famil- 
iarity with  literatur.-,  or  power  and  charm  of  style.  He  is  not  a  man,  how- 
ever, M  ho  would  ever  parade  his  name  before  the  public.  Personal  notoriety 
is  rejM'llant  to  him.  Considering  his  capacity  and  character,  the  people  of 
the  w  liolo  country  are  to  be  congratulated  that  he  has  taken  an  editorial  i)laco 
on  the  Triliinie,  a  journal  of  splendid  tiilcnt  and  national  intluence,  as  the 
sphere  of  his  influence  is  thus  greatly  enlarged.  Mr  Parsons  is  a  man  of  solid 
ueeouiplishnieiits  and  sterling  integrity.  He  is  preeminently  a  hater  of  shams 
ill  piilitics  or  society.  It  would  be  to  the  advantage  of  the  people  of  the 
Unlte<l  States  if  editors  like  him  were  more  numerous. 

"^ '  My  grist-mill  never  was  finished,  pjvery thing  was  stolen,  even  the 
stones.  There  is  a  saying  that  men  will  steal  everything  but  a  mile-stone  and 
a  mill-stone.  They  stole  my  mill-stones.  They  stole  the  bells  from  the  fort, 
and  gate-weights;  the  hides  they  stole,  and  salmon-barrels.  I  had  200  bar- 
rels which  I  had  maile  for  salmon.  I  was  just  beginning  to  cure  salmon  then. 
1  had  put  up  some  before,  enough  to  try  it,  and  to  ascertain  that  it  would  bo 
a  good  ])usiuess.  Some  of  the  cannon  at  the  fort  were  stolen,  and  some  I  gave 
to  iieighhorsthat  they  might  fire  them  on  the  4th  of  July.  My  property  was 
all  left  exposed,  and  at  the  mercy  of  the  rabble,  when  gold  was  discovered. 
My  men  all  deserted  me.  I  could  not  shut  the  gates  of  my  fort  and  keep  out 
the  ral  ihle.  They  would  have  broken  them  down.  The  country  swarmed  with 
lawless  men.  Emigrants  drove  their  stock  into  my  yard,  and  used  my  grain 
^^  ith  impunity.  Expostulation  did  no  good.  I  was  alone.  There  was  no 
law.  If  one  felt  one's  self  insulted,  one  might  shoot  the  offender.  One  man 
slint  another  for  a  slight  provocation  in  the  fort  under  my  very  nose.  Phil- 
osopher Pickett  shot  a  very  gootl  man  who  differed  with  him  on  some  ques- 


104 


AT  THE  MINES. 


i  '' 


miiu 


fields  asked  for  more  and  more  pny,  until  a  donmnd 
for  ton  dollars  a  day  eoiupelk-d  Sutter  to  Itt  tlujni  l^o, 
Tlioso  wore  tlio  first  to  K-avo  him ;  then  his  ciui'k  went, 
thou  his  cook,  and  finally  his  luochanics.*'  At  tlio 
tannorv,  which  was  now  tor  the  first  tinio  Ixiconiin^f 
•rolitaulo,  loathor  was  loft  to  rot  in  the  vats,  and  a  lar<;e 


less. 


py  !>■ 


(|iiantity  of  colloctod  hidus  wore  rendered  valucK 
So  in  all  the  manufactories,  shoe-shop,  saddlo-slu)]), 
hilt  and  hlacksnnth  shops,  the  men  dosortod,  loaviiii^^ 
their  work  in  a  half-finished  state.  Whoro  others  snc- 
eooded  he  failed;  he  tried  morchandisin^  at  Coloiiifi, 
but  in  vain,  and  retired  in  January  1841).  The  noise  of 
interlopers  and  the  bustle  of  business  about  the  fort 
discomfited  the  owner,  and  with  his  Indians  he  moved 
to  Hock  Farm,  then  in  char<,'e  of  a  majordoino.  Sut- 
ter evidently  could  not  cope  with  the  world,  partic- 
ularly with  the  sharp  and  noisy  Yankee  wctrld.^ 

Tenfold  greater  wore  Sutter's  advantaj^os  to  profit 
l)y  this  discovery  than  were  those  of  his  neighbors, 
who  secured  rich  results.  With  a  well-provisioned 
f  irtress  adjacent  to  the  mines,  a  largo  grant  of  land 

tioii.'  Sut/c/s  Per.'t.  lli'm.,  MS.,  I9."i-(i.  All  Sutter's  pains  in  eHtal)iisliiii{,'iii(liis- 
tiica  went  for  iiothiiif,'.  /iiiniitrn  Jlcr.,  MS.,  ii.  i;{;  'I'koriitoii'ri  ih\  andCii!., 
ii.  'J70;  Sac.  III.,  7;  Browne's  Hen.,  15;  Gold  Hill  News,  April  10,  1872;  Lar- 
kill's  ]>oi:<,  MS.,  vi.  (J.'J. 

'■'*  '  Tlio  MonnouH  did  not  like  to  leave  my  mill  luifmislied,'  Sutter  remarks, 
'  l)ut  they  got  tlio  gold  fever  like  everybody  else.'  JJiifchimj-i'  Mmj.,  ii.  1!)7. 
See  also  Santa  Cruz  Sfiitiml,  July  17,  187r». 

'^^  As  a  matter  of  faet,  the  Swiss  had  nothing  whatever  to  complain  of.  Ho 
was  his  own  greatest  enemy.  His  representations  of  the  disastrous  t'llict 
upon  him  of  the  gold  discovery  were  greatly  exag;,'erated.  'I'liey  wi  re  liy 
no  means  so  bad  as  he  wished  them  to  appear.  During  harvest-liiue  in  tlio 
year  ot  discovery  he  was  much  better  oH"  than  his  neighlxir.s,  who  ni'\tr 
aski'd  indemnitication  from  the  government.  Says  Col  Mason,  wiio  was  there  in 
.luly:  '  I  before  mentioned  that  the  greater  part  of  tiie  farmers  and  ranchtiDs 
had  abandoned  their  lields  to  go  to  the  mines;  this  is  not  tiie  case  with  Cqit. 
Sutter,  who  was  carefully  gathen.".;^  his  wheat,  estimated  at  40,000  bnslu  is. 
Flour  i  already  worth  at  Suttei^'s  .$.!(!  a  barrel,  and  soon  will  be  .S">0.  It  wiis 
reporte  that  Capt.  Sutter's  crop  of  wheat  for  18-16  woidd  be  7'>,000  buslnls.' 
Shcrir.'  "s  Pocket  Guide  to  C(d.,  18.  He  had  received  lii)eniUy  from  the 
Jlexici  government  what  was  lil)erally  ratilied  by  the  Aniiriean  goviiii- 
meat.  ir  more  manly,  not  to  say  respectarjle,  would  it  have  been  had  lie 
lived  mt  -istly  on  some  small  portion  of  the  fruit  of  his  labors,  or  of  gii.jil 
fortune,  stead  of  spending  his  old  if^a  complaining,  aii«l  importuning  lln; 
govcrnm.  b  for  alms.  Everything  hatl  been  given  him,  feitilo  hinds,  nil 
g  )lden  oj  lortunity.  With  these  he  should  have  been  content.  In  return  I 
gladly  v  jrd  it — lie  gave  aid  to  sulFering  emigrants,  and  nobly  exercised  a 
bounteous  hospitality,  and  that  to  many  who  afterward  treated  him  vilely. 


ll 


ci.AiMs  FOR  rkcomim;\sk 


lOB 


j^tockcd  with  caUlo  niul  horses — laiul  on  wliich  shortly 
alter  Ix  ^ai»  to  ho  huilt  the  sucoiicl  city  in  tlio  statu — 
ami  witlihroad  ticldsuiulor  cultivation;  Avith  aniarkot, 
at  laitiilous  prices,  for  cvorythiiij^'  ho  could  supply — 
liL'sliould  have  harrcllcd  a  Hchooiicr-load  of  i^^old-dust, 
INCH  tIu)UiL;h  tliticuiij^raiiis  did  encroach  ou  his  claims, 
settle  on  his  land,  steal  his  horses  and  other  effects, 
and  butcher  some  of  his  cattle  and  hojjfs.  Further 
than  this,  it  was  not  until  more  than  a  year  after  the 
(lisrovery,  during'  which  time  the  owner  of  Xew  Hel- 
vetia ahatidoned  his  thities  and  let  thinj^s  drift,  that 
aiiv  seiious  inroa<ls  were  made  on  his  droves  of  wild 
and  uncared-for  cattle.  The  truth  is,  had  the  <^rand 
discovery  heen  less,  outter's  loss  would  have  been  less; 
liad  the  discovery  bi-en  quite  small,  Sutter's  profit  from 
it  would  have  been  i^reat.  In  other  words,  Sutter 
was  not  man  enough  to  grasp  and  master  his  good 
fortune. 


There  are  those  who  have  doomed  it  their  duty  to 
censure  (  allfornia  for  not  doing  more  for  Sutter  and 
]\[arshall.  Such  censure  is  not  only  unjust,  but  silly 
and  absurd.  There  was  no  particular  harm  in  flinging 
to  tliese  men  a  gratuity  out  of  tiio  public  purse,  and 
sunietirmg  of  the  kind  was  done.  It  was  wholly 
proper  to  hang  a  poi-trait  of  Sutter  in  tlie  hall  of  the 
state  cajiitol  besiile  that  of  Vallejo  and  others. 

W  there  are  any  who  wish  to  worship  the  memory 
ot  ^[arshall,  let  his  likeness  he  also  placed  in  the  ])an- 
tlieon.  It  is  all  a  matter  of  taste.  But  when  outside 
ciilics  begin  to  talk  of  duty  and  decency  on  the  part 
of  the  state,  it  is  well  enough  to  in(iuiro  more  closely 
into  tlie  matter,  and  determine  just  what,  if  anything, 
is  due  to  those  men. 

Wlion  0  m  inber  of  the  commonwealth  by  his  genius 
or  efforts  renders  the  state  a  great  service,  it  is  proper 
that  such  service  should  be  publicly  acknowledged, 
and  if  the  person  or  his  family  become  poor  and  need 


106 


AT  THE  MINES. 


i'l>i! 


iH  i<! ' 


m 


1i 


r  ,  «■ 


pecuniary  ukl,  the  state  should  give  it  Hbcrallj  and 
ungrudgingly.  The  people  of  California  are  among 
the  njost  free-hearted  and  free-handed  of  any  in  tlio 
world;  there  never  has  been  any  pt)pular  feeling 
against  Marshall  and  Sutter;  that  more  was  not  give  ii 
them  was  neither  a  matter  of  money  nor  a  matter  i  f 
ill-will  or  })rejudice.  The  question  was  simply  asktd, 
What  had  these  men  done  to  entitle  them  to  lavish 
reward  on  the  part  of  the  peo[)le?  To  one  of  them, 
and  liim  a  foreigner,  was  secured  by  the  general  gov- 
ernment a  title  to  princely  possessions  in  the  midst  of 
princely  opportunities.  That  he  failed  to  secure  to 
liimself  the  best  and  most  lasting  advantages  of  liis 
position,  and  like  a  child  let  go  his  hold  on  all  his  vast 
possessions,  was  no  fault  of  the  people,  and  entitles 
him  to  no  special  sympathy.  Marshall,  made  of  quito 
C(>*nmon  clay,  but  still  a  free-born  American  citizen, 
Willi  rights  equal  to  the  best,  hap[)ened  to  stumble  on 
gold  a  week,  or  a  month,  or  six  months  before  some 
one  else  would  certainly  have  done  so.  The  fame  (if 
it  was  his,  and  as  much  of  the  gold  as  he  chose  to 
shovel  up  and  carry  away.  There  was  net  the  least 
merit  on  his  ])art  connected  with  the  event.  That  lie 
failed  to  ])rofit  by  his  opportunity,  assuming  that  the 
world,  by  reason  of  the  immortal  accident,  owed  him  ;i 
great  debt  which  it  would  not  l)ay;  that  he  became 
petulant,  half-crazed,  and  finally  died  in  (►bscuritv— 
was  no  fault  of  the  people.  Any  free-born  Amei'iean 
citizen  has  the  rijxht  to  do  the  same  if  he  chooses.  I 
grant  that  he  as  well  as  Sutter  could  justly  cl.iini 
recompense  for  spoliation  by  mobs — though  tliore  is 
no  evidence  that  tliey  ever  suftered  greatly  at  the 
hands  of  mobs — and  the  continuance  of  the  teuq»oraiy 
pension  granted  them  would  not  have  been  particu- 
larly objectionable,  on  grounds  similar  ti)  those  a[)[ilie(l 
to  Hargrave,  the  Australian  gold-tinder.  The  services 
of  tlie  latter,  however,  had  the  consecration  of  a  self- 
imposed  task — ex[)loration  with  an  aim.     As  a  blind 


I  I 


GIVE  EVERY  MAN  HIS  DUE. 


107 


iiistrti'.iicnt  in  the  hands  of  inevitable  development, 
as  a  Miomontary  favorite  of  fortune,  I  concede  Mar- 
sluill  tvery  credit.  I  also  admit  that  Sutter,  as  the 
bulldor  of  a  great  establishment  in  the  wilderness, 
^\  itli  industries  supporting  numerous  dependents,  thus 
liriiigiug  the  truest  method  of  culture  to  savages,  and 
as  the  promoter  of  the  untiertaking  at  Coloma,  is 
eutitlod  to  a  share  in  the  recognition  which  nmst 
connect  him  with  the  accidental  founders  of  the  golden 
era  of  California.  But  to  talk  of  injustice  or  niggard- 
liness on  the  part  of  the  state  of  California;  to  imply 
that  there  was  any  necessity  for  either  of  these  men 
to  throw  themselves  away,  or  that  the  people  of  Cal- 
ifornia did  not  feel  or  do  rightly  by  them — is,  as  I 
said  before,  silly  and  absurd.^^ 

■*' Fuller  references  for  the  preceding  six  chapters  are:  BidweWs  Cal.  in 
IS4I-S,  il.S.,  puasim;  Galimlo,  ApuntrA,  MS.,  68-0;  liuffutii's  Six  Moiilhn, 
4j  (i,  50,  5;{-5,  67-9,  104-5,  1-26-38;  JJitnb,ir's  Romance  of  the  A^c,  92-100, 
10'{,  107-10;  Kip,  in  Overland  MoiUhlij,  ii.  410;  Zamacois,  IlisI,  MeJ.,  x.  1 141 ; 
Fii-n/,  Cat.,  lOIJ-4,  315-20;  Illunt.  Atijia  Co.,  and  Jiid.  Na/ia  and  Lake, 
passim;  Aimah  of  S.  F.,  130-2,  174,  210,  311,  407,  486;  Anh.  CrU.,  Un- 
Imiiid  JJoM,  US.,  141,  318,  408-11;  Chjman'a  Diari/,  MS.;  Cullons  Three 
I'dU's,  2(i{),  451;  Bevere's  Tour  of  Duty,  228-52;  Castafiuri'H,  Col.  Doc,  MS., 
2;5;  I'a/A/of'.S'.;,  XolasJlMdrka-i,  MS.,  .S5;  JlalPa  Hut.,  192-3;  Find  la's  SUile- 
VKiit,  Ua.,  5-7;  Tinkhani's  Jli.st.  Stockton,  1-50,  71-4,  108-15,  303;  U.  S. 
ilvr.  Dors,  H.  Ex.  17,  528-36,  5C1;  Farnhnm's  Cal.,  .S54-6;  Diriudle'a  Add. 
hforc  Pioneers,  1866,  28;  Hancock's  Thirteen  Yearn,  MS.,  121-2;  Yolo  Co. 
jiiM.,  passim;  Dana's  Two  Yeai's,  324;  Coast  Rexncw,  iv.  73-5,  217,  265-S; 
V.  25-8,  65-8,  107-8;  Treasury  of  Travil,  99-101;  Nai)a  lie<jisi,;r,  Aug.  1, 
1S74;  Fir.it  Steamship  Pioneers,  ^QS;  Janssens,  Viday  Arent.,  MS.,  198-200; 
Jithmtoii's  Cal,  and  Or.;  Coutt's  Diary,  MS.,  passim;  Slocam  and  Co. 'a  Coiitra 
CiisfaCo.  Hist.,  ])assini;  Foster's  Gold  liegious,  17-22;  Ynha  Co.  Dist.,  3i{-7, 
107,  129-30;  Coronel,  Cosas  de  Cal.,  MS.;  Hist.  Atlas  Alameda  Co.,  17-26; 
Jlroie  drs  Deux  Mondes,  Feb.  I,  1849;  Tyler's  Mormon  liattalion,  3;{3;  Tut- 
hiU's  Cal.,  22()-34;  Wood's  111.4.  Alam.  Co.,  passim;  liandiui,  Apuutes  lli.tt. 
Alia  Cal.,  MS.,  7,  17-19,  48-9;  Schuck's  Scrap-Book,  76-83;  Tullid,r's  Life 
of  younij,  203-4,  207-8;  I/ist.  Maria  Co.,  passim;  Sac.  Direct.,  1871,  17; 
Fri,jH.t,  Hist.  Cal,  79-.«1;  Pahwr's  Wayon  Trains,  MS.,  43;  Truckee  Trih- 
iiiii',  Jan.  8,  1870;  Browne's  Minitiff  Jie,%,  13-16;  C(d.  Pioneers,  Celebration 
S'l-dps;  Herbert  Ainslie's  Journal,  I'ananul,  Feb.  1849;  Bri/aul's  What  I  Saio 
in  Cnl.,  451,  etc.;  Gold  Jllll  Neu-s,  Apr.  16,  1872;  Caprou's  Cal.,  184-8; 
Aii'j'-r,  Vol/,  en  Cal.,  149-56;  Baxter's  U  .  Coast  Ainer.,iOS;  OroviUe  Mercury, 
lie,'.  31,  1S75;  Biruie's  Bioy.,  in  Pion.  Arch.,  93-4;  Monti  rey  lli  raid,  Oct.  1.5, 
isr.'t;  Ccd.  Pw<t  and  Pres.,  72-105;  J.  Koss  JJrownc,  in  Oreriaud  Monthly,  .w, 
3i".;  Wills'  J  list.  Bull!  Co.,  12'J;  Calisto'ja  Tribune,  Apr.  4,  11,  12,  1872; 
(.'iilcinia  Argus,  in  Hittell's  Handlmok,  14;  Thompson  and  We.tt's  Hi.il.  Sue, 
Co.,  pjissim;  Utah,  Udbk  of  lief.,  65;  Frost's  Hist.  Cal.,  .39-55;  Dept  liec, 
ils.,  ix.  130;  Elliott  lib  C'o.'s  Hist.  Ariz.,  190;  Centenn.  Book  Alam.  Co., 
37  ."lli;  Cohisa  Co.  Jfi.tt.,  25-36;  Plmer  Tinvs,  vol,  i.  no.  48,  p.  2;  I'eln.ico, 
Soiiom,  2H8-97;  Bol.  Soc.  Mex.  Gioi/.,  xi.  108-9;  Alam.  Kucinal,  Maich  2, 
IbTS;  Butte  Co.  lllust.,  127-9;  Carver's  TraveU,   122;    Willey's  Pers.  Mem., 


108 


AT  THE  MINES. 


I:;  ■■A,.. 


?:     M 


MS.,  10-26;  Id.,  Thirty  Years,  26;  5a?«  Lale  City  Trlh.,  June  11,  1879; 
JlnucrojVn  Ptrs.  Ohs.,  MS.,  171;  J/litJif.  of  Contra  Costa  Co.,  4  ;{3;  Wkilntif* 
Mr/a/llc  Wealth,  jip.  xxi.-xxxii. ;  J.  J.  Warner,  ia  Alta  Cat.,  May  18,  1808; 
.((/.•</;«  iiV'-ve  i^y.  Jii-rciile,  July  17,  1SG4,  Aug.  10, 1805,  Jun.  29,  1872;  (a/. 
C/troidcli',  Jiui.  2S,  18.jG;  Prtscott  Mbicr,  Nov.  22,  1878;  JV^/ea'  7?c!7.,  Ixiii.  iMl; 
Ixxv.,  unlex  "gold  mines;"  ('roHm''3  i^^at.  Wealth,  109;  Ciilver'a  Sac.  Cittj 
J>ir<'c(.,  71;  DariiKt'  Or.  and  Cal.,  MS.,  II;  Oeorgo  M.  Evans,  iu  the  Oroijci 
liiiltcliii,  Jan.  12,  1872,  from  Ant  loch  Ledger,  Feb.  3,  1872,  and  Meiidwino 
Jh'iii.,  Fel).  1,  1872;  Hunt's  Merdi.  Marj.,  xxxi.  38.)-6;  BarMow's  Stat.,  Ms  , 
]  1;  Carson  State  lii'if.,  Jan.  27,  1872;  CuMroville  Argun,  Sept.  7,  1872;  Wml- 
lii/'s  Tnirds  ill  U.  S.,  22:>;  Sac.  Illmt.,  7;  Lo  Que  Sabe,  AlS.;  (Jreiiis  L[fi> 
and  Advent.,  17;  Triniti/  Journal,  Wcivvervilie,  Feb.  1,  1868;  June  20,  KS74; 
Gilroy  Adrocute,  Apr.  24,  1875;  Lake  Co.  Bee,  Marcli  8,  1873;  Monitor 
0'a-.et'te,  Aug.  19,  1865;  Lo.i  Angeles  W.  Nrwn,  Oct.  26,  1872;  JUarshairs  JJU- 
coir,  o/G  >ld,  in  II niching. ■i'  Mag.,  ii.  200;  U.  S,  Gov.  Docs,  30th  eong.  2d  se.ss., 
H.  Ex.  Doc.  1,  pti.  9-10,  51-69,  in  Mex.  Treacles,  vii.  no.  9;  Hist.  NajKtai.d 
Laic  Counties,  passim;  Iiu<.i'  Biog,,  MS.,  5;  Oakland  Times,  March  6,  I.SSH; 
Hardy's  Trav.  in  Mex.,  3S1-2;  S.  I.  News,  ii.  134,  142,  146-7,  151,  158  6(i. 
19.'}-4;  Ororilte  II'.  Mercury,  Dec.  31,  1875;  New  Twoma  W.  Ledger,  Oct.  8, 
1880;  Har/e's  Skaggs'  Husbands,  299-.TO9;  Cal.  Star,  passim;  Cali/ori.id,,, 
passim;  Cal.  Star  and  Culi/hrnian,  1848,  passim;  S.  F.  Direct.,  1852-3,  8  !i; 
Jioss'  Stat.,  MS.,  14;  Bui  (Miguel),  Consult,  Diputado,  CO;  Bed  lilujf  Lxhj,., 
Jan.  17,  1866;  Ilenshaw's  Hid,  Erents,  4-6;  Herald,  Nov.  24,  1848;  Jan.  -lu. 
1849;  Marin  Co.  Hist,,  52-3;  Sac.  Bee. -Union,  Jan.  20,  1872,  Aug.  28,  ISsO; 
S.  Diei/o  Arch.,  Index,  92;  *S.  Die</o  Union,  June  2,  1875;  Nevada  Gaz.,  Jan. 
22,  1868;  A\  /'.  Call,  Sept.  16,  J870;  Sept.  23,  1871;  S.  Joaquin  Co.  Hid., 
passim;  S.  F.  News  Letter,  Se[)t.  1 1,  1875;  S,  F.  Post,  Apr.  10,  1875;  Boswiui, 
Mctaiu,  209-106;  Sac,  Daily  Union,  Apr.  27,  1855;  Juiie  5,  1858;  Oct.  24, 
1864;  June  V.  1867,  etc.;  S.  F.  Pac.  New.'i,  Oct.  28,  1850;  S.  F,  Stock  llj,!, 
March  19, 1880;  Pj'eifi  r's  Sec,  Journey,  290;  Illiist,  Hist.  San  Mateo  Co.,  4  Iti; 
San  Joafjuin  Valley  Argus,  Sept.  12,  1874;  C.  E.  Pickett,  in  Cid.  Chrnn., 
Jan.  28,  1856;  Powers'  Afoot,  290-2;  S.  F.  Jour,  of  Comin.,  Aug.  30,  187(i; 
Hi-d.  Atlas  Santa  Clara  Co.,  9-10,  32-34,  77-8l',  96-98,  116-26,  174--JIS, 
244-77,  328-:J5,  4S4-8,  543-4;  I/i.d,  Santa  Cruz  Co.,  7-19;  S.  Josi  Pio,.,,-. 
Jan.  27,  1877;  Jan.  19,  1878;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Oct.  12,  1850;  *\  F,  Herahl. 
Dec.  31,  1855;  S.  F.  New  Age,  June  22,  1867;  (Juigley's  Irish  Bace,  lU'r. 
S/ierman's  .Mem.,  i.  40-58;  Scala,  Nouv.  Ann,  I'oi/.,  cxx.  3i)2-5;  cxliii. 
245;  cxliv.  382-90;  cxlvi.  118-21;  Saxon's  Fire  Years,  passim;  Shcnuood  < 
Cal;  Grass  Valley  Union,  Apr.  19,  1870;  Simpson's  G-'ld  Mines,  4-5,  17: 
Holinski,  La  Cal.,  142-4;  Friend  (Honolulu),  July  1,  ISl^,  Nov.  1,  1S48,  May 

1,  1849,  etc.;  Si-ientijic  Pre.is,  May  1 1,  1872;  Hist.  Sonoma  Co.,  passim;  Hid. 
Alias  Sonoma  Co.,  p.issirn;  StUlman's  Golden  Fleece,  19-27;  Stockton  In'l,):. 
Oct.  9,  1869;  Sept.  14,  1872;  Oct.  19,  2.3,  1875;  Deo.  6,  1879;  Smith's  Add  ,.., 
to  (ialreslon,  14;  Fl  Sonorense,  May  16,  ISi'J;  (lark's  Statement,  Mf'i.;  Hu'/l,"' 
C,d.,  119;  Sutter,  in  Ilutehings'  Miig. ,  ii.  194-7;  Taylor's  Eldorado,  i.  7'i; 
T.iomas  Sprague,  in  Ilutchingi'  Mag.,  v.  352;  Quart.  lieviein,  xci.  507->: 
18.',i),  no.  87,  p.  416;  Santa  Cruz  Sent'lnel,  July  17,  1875,  ^Slay  29,  1880;  Jlid. 
Tehama  Co.,  11-15,  53,  109-12;  MeX.  Mem.  Sec.  Ed.  y  Bel.,  18.35,  no.  6; 
Mendocino  Co.  Hist.,  52-3;  Monterey  Herald,  Oct.  15,  1875;  S.  F,  Chroii., 
Jan.  8,  Sept.  19,  18S0;  Simonin,  Gra.^d  Qui.d,  286-9;  /(/.,  La  I'ie  Soiiterrnim, 
3J9;  Mircid  People,  Juno  8,  1872;  i^lcKune,  in  Cal.  As.soc.  Pioneer,  l.'*! 
Annual,  42;  South.  Quart,  Her.,  viii.  199;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  6,  1855;  Oct. 

2,  Dec.  7,  31,  1858;  Aug.  13,  1859,  etc.;  S.  F.  Alta  Cal.,  Oct.  15,  1851;  .Mav 

3,  Nov.  21,  1852;  June  £9,  1854;  Dec.  22,  1855;  July  31,  1856;  March  Jn 
Nov.  11,  1857,  etc.;  Hist.  All.  Sol.  Co.,  passim;  Hist.  Solano  Co.,  passiiii; 
Seattle.  Intelli'/encer,  June  6,  1874;  Hunt's  Mer.  Mag.,  xx.  91,  111,  209:  .\\i. 
567-8;  xxii.  22(5  7,  321;  xxiv.  768;  xxxiv.  631-2;  J.  W.  Marshall,  in  Ih'i'-h- 
iiii/s'  Maij.,  ii.  199-201;  Mininif  Bev.,it',  Mining  I'lV,  and  Stock  Leili/er,  1>7S, 
l-ii;  Hid.  Suiter  tV.,21-2;  H'utchlngs'  Mag.,i\.  19()-20l;  iv.  340;  U.  S.  (A* 
Docs,  11.  Ex.  Doc.  no.  '>,  \).  158;  no.  17,  passim;  Maaon's  Bepts,  July  19,  Aug. 


I  L 


AUTHORITIES. 


109 


17,  1S48;  TTnyefl'  Coll.  Mininrf  Cnl.,  i.  1,  50;  Id.,  Coll.  Mininq  Srrapit,  v.  2, 
3.  17,  i73;  I'l.,  Coll.  Ual.  Noten,  iii.  7-8;  v.  17;  Barry's  Up  and  Down,  92  3; 
'}}ulHnno)i's  Cal.  and  lU  Gold  Itcijlon-'f,  17-27,  47-8;  Id.,  Life  iti  Cat.,  190; 
Jjiirlot  (/<'  Mofrax,  Ejq>l.  Or.  et  Cat.,  i.  137;  tt'Ukea'  Narr.  U.  S.  Ex.  Exjml., 
V.  h\,  I'JO,  ibo;  Dcdly'sNarr.,  MS.,  53;  Ohio,  Hist.  Cut.,  MS.,  50<);  Jiiijln-'n 
Dkiry  of  a  Mormon,  MS.,  pa.ssini;  Vidlfjo,  Docs,  MS.,  i.  140-1,  3ti9-70;  xii. 
33J;  Oill'xjiie'H  Vi;/.  Com.,  MS.,  passim;  Alramdo,  Hist.  Cal.,  MS.,  i,  77;  iv. 
lai;  Siit/<r's  Prrs.  Rem.,  MS.,  passim;  Id.,  Diary,  MS.,  psissim;  liurnett'a 
RfcoU.  Past,  MS.  i.-ii.  ptvasim;  Amador,  Memoriax,  MS.,  177-80;  Lurkin'a 
Docs,  MS.,  i.  116;  iii.  98;  iv.  318;  v.  25;  vi.  passim;  vii.  28,  80;  Id.,  Off. 
Corn'"/'.,  MS.,  i.  96;  ii.  ir(l-41;  Carson's  Early  J'croll.,  passim;  Polynesian, 
iv.  114,  137;  V.  passim;  Crosby's  Erents  in  Cal.,  MS.,  2,  .3,  17-19;  IlitUWa 
Handbook  Miniwj,  passim;  Friabie's  lieminisctnces,  MS.,  30-32,  34-36. 


.1 
3 


CHAPTER  VII. 


ii:  m 


m 


BROADER  EFFECTS  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 

1848-1849. 

The  Real  Effects  Eternal— How  the  Intelligence  was  Carried  over 
.  THE  Sierra — To  the  Hawaiian  Islands — British  Columbia — Oreuon 
AND  Washington — The  Tidings  in  Mexico — Mason's  Messenger  is 
Washington — California  Gold  at  the  War  Office — At  the  Phil- 
adelphia Mint — The  Newspaper  Press  upon  the  Subject — Bibluk;- 
RAPiiY— Greeley's  Prophecies — Industrial  Stimulation — Overland 
AND  Oceanic  Routes — General  Effect  in  the  Eastern  States  and 
Europe — Interest  in  Asia,  South  America,  and  Australia. 

The  full  and  permanent  effects  of  the  California 
gold  discovery  cannot  be  estimated.  All  over  the 
world  impulse  was  given  to  industry,  values  changed, 
and  commerce,  social  economy,  and  finance  were  rev- 
olutionized. New  enlightenment  and  new  activities 
succeeded  these  changes,  and  yet  again  followed 
higher  and  broader  developments.  It  was  the  fore- 
runner of  like  great  discoveries  of  the  precious  metals 
elsewhere,  in  Australia,  in  Nevada  and  Idaho  and 
Montana,  in  British  Columbia  and  Alaska.  There  had 
been  nothing  like  it  since  the  inpouring  of  gold 
and  silver  to  Europe,  following  the  discovery  of  the 
New  World  by  Columbus.  It  is  not  in  its  fullest, 
broadest  sense,  however,  that  the  subject  is  to  ho 
treated  in  this  chapter.  The  grand  results  can  only 
be  appreciated  as  we  proceed  in  our  history.  It  is 
rather  the  reception  of  the  news  in  the  different  parts 
of  the  world,  and  the  immediate  action  taken  upon  it, 
that  I  will  now  refer  to. 

By  various  ways  intelligence  of  the  gold  discovery 


DISPERSION  OF  THE  NEWS. 


in 


travelled  abroad.  The  Mormons  carried  it  over  the 
Sierra,  scattered  it  among  the  westward-bound  emi- 
grants, and  laid  it  before  the  people  of  Salt  Lake, 
uhence  it  passed  on  to  the  east.  Definite  notice  was 
conveyed  overland  by  the  courier  despatched  specially 
1)V  the  people  of  San  Francisco,  on  the  1st  of  April, 
1848,  to  carry  letters,  and  to  circulate  in  the  states 
east  of  the  Mississippi  the  article  prepared  by  Four- 
geaud  on  the  Prospects  of  California,  and  printed  in 
the  California  Star  of  several  issues,  in  order  to  stim- 
ulate  emigration.^ 

The  first  foreign  excitement  was  produced  in  the 
Hawaiian  Islands.  With  this  western  ocean  rendez- 
vous San  Francisco  merchants  had  long  maintained 
commercial  relations,  and  they  now  turned  thither  for 
su[)}ilies  incident  to  the  increased  demand  growing  out 
of  the  new  development.  By  the  intelligence  thus 
conveyed,  the  hearts  and  minds  of  men  were  kindled 
into  a  glow  such  as  Kilauea  or  Manua  Haleakala 
never  had  produced.'' 

'  The  recent  discovery  of  Marshall  played  no  part  whatever  in  originating 
the  article  and  the  enterprise.  A  mere  allusion  was  made  to  tlie  findini;  of 
gdlit;  and  nothing  more  was  thought  of  it  than  the  known  presence  of  a  dozen 
other  minerals,  nor  half  so  much  as  of  the  agrionltural  and  manufacturing 
pussi  hi  titles. 

^Asa  foremnner  announcing  the  new  Inferno,  with  two  pounds  of  the 
.netnl  as  tangible  proof,  sailed  from  8.  F.  May  31st  the  Hawaiian  schooner 
Loiii.li',  Men/ies  master,  arriving  at  Honolulu  the  17th  of  June.  In  a  half- 
cohiinn  article  the  editor  of  the  Polyneaian,  of  June  24th,  makes  known  the 
f:iot3  as  gathered  from  the  California  papers,  and  congratulates  Honolulu 
niercliante  on  the  prospect  of  the  speedy  payment  of  debts  due  them  by  C'al- 
ifornians,  'probably  not  less  than  $150,000.  By  the  store-ship  Matilda  from 
New  York  to  Honolulu,  touching  at  Valparaiso,  Callao,  and  Monterey,  Mr 
Colton  writes  to  Mr  Damon,  who  publishes  the  letter  in  the  Friend  of  July, 
witli  a  few  editorial  comments.  Afterward  arrived  the  Spanish  brig  Flf.cka, 
Viisqnez  master,  from  Santa  B4rbara,  the  Hawaiian  brig  Euphemia,  Vioget 
master,  from  S.  F.,  and  others.  The  Hawaiian  schooner  Mary,  Belcliam 
master,  though  sailing  from  S.  F,  before  the  Louise,  did  not  arrive  at  Hono- 
lulu until  the  19th.  lb..  The  Friend,  July  1848.  In  its  issue  of  July  8tli,  the 
I'lilijiii'sinn  speaks  of  the  rising  excitement  and  the  issuing  of  passports, 
except  to  absconding  debtors,  by  the  minister  of  foreign  relations  to  those 
wishing  to  depart.  'The  fever  ragea  high  here,'  writes  Samuel  Vamey,  the 
l.")tli  (if  July,  to  Larkin,  'and  there  is  much  preparation  made  for  emigration.' 
Li -kill n  Docn,  MS.,  vi.  145.  The  file  of  the  Polynesian  runs  on  as  fol- 
lows: July  15th,  one  crowded  vessel  departe!  the  11th,  and  half  a  dozen 
others  are  making  ready;  24  persons  give  notice  of  their  intention  to  depart 
this  kini^iloni;  200  will  probably  leave  within  two  months  if  passage  can 
be  procured.     Aug.   5th,  09  ptusports  have  been  granted,  and  aa  many 


11-2  BROADER  EFFECTS  OF  TUE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


m' 


m  ! 


vw.i. 


Before  it  could  scalo  the  northern  mountains  tlie 
news  swept  round  to  Oregon  by  way  of  Honolulu, 
and  wastliencu  convrycd  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  j)eo[>lo 
to  Victoria  and  other  posts  in  British  Columbia,  to 
forts  Nisquully  and  ^'ancouver,  reaching  Oregon  City 
early  in  August.^  The  first  doubts  were  dissipated  by 
increased  light  upon  the  subject,  and  streams  of  popu- 
lation set  southward,  both  by  land  and  water,  until 
more  than  half  of  Oregon's  strenjjth  and  sinew  was 
emptied  into  California.* 

more  have  left  without  passports.  Aug.  26th,  three  vessels  sailed  witliin  rv 
■Week;  one  niau  set  out  iii  a,  whale-boat.  Sept.  2IM,  excitement  increa.ses.  A 
vessel  ad  vertisL'S  to  sail,  and  innuediately  every  berth  ia  scoured.  Sept  30tli, 
real  estate  a  drug  in  the  market.  Business  low;  wliolo  country  clian^jed. 
Books  at  an  auction  will  not  sell;  shovels  fetch  high  prices.  Common  saluta' 
tion,  When  are  you  off?  Oct.  7th,  tiie  Lahiiima  sails  with  40  passengers. 
HoHohilii  to  Rail  the  9tii,  and  every  berth  engaged.  Heavy  freight  §10  p'T 
ton;  cabin  passage  $1(K),  steerage  ^SO,  deck  §140.  Oct.  21st,  27  vesscLs,  H'^- 
gregating  a  tonnage  of  3,128,  have  left  Honolulu  since  the  gold  discovery, 
carrying  300  Europeans,  besides  many  natives.  The  Islands  sutler  iu  conse- 
quence. Oct.  28th,  natives  returning,  some  with  §oOf*  Five  vessels  to  «ail 
with  15  to  40  passengers  each.  The  Sniidwirh  IhIuhu  Xoch  of  Aug.  17th 
states  that  upward  of  1 ,000  pickaxes  had  been  exported  from  Honolulu.  'I'lio 
excitement  continued  in  1840,  when,  according  to  Pla<er  Time.^,  .June  2,  18411, 
nine  scliooncrs  ami  brigs,  and  a  score  of  smaller  craft,  were  fitting  out  f^r 
Cal.  The  Frkiul,  vii.  21,  viii.  28,  speaks  of  more  than  one  party  of  sailors 
absconding  in  small  craft. 

*  In  the  Willamette  about  that  time,  loading  with  flour,  was  a  S.  F.  vessel, 
the  Honolulu,  whose  master  knew  of  it,  but  kept  it  to  himself  until  bis  cai^ro 
was  secured.  Iu  searching  the  files  current  of  the  Hawaiian  journals,  1  liiifl 
among  tiie  departures  for  the  north  tlie  following:  June  8th,  the  American  lnig 
Eriliiii',  Ooodwin  master,  for  Oregon,  too  early  for  definite  infornuition;  .liiiu; 
20th,  Russian  bark  Prince  Meushikoff,  Liudeu.^erg,  for  Sitka;  July  5th,  Aiuci  i- 
can  bark  Mari/,  Knox  master,  for  Kamchatka;  and  July  l.jth,  H.  B.  M.  hri,; 
Pandora,  destination  unknown,  and  English  brig  Mary  Dare,  >Scarboi-ou;,'li 
master,  for  tlie  Columbia  River.  It  was  undoubtedly  by  tiiis  ship  that  the 
news  was  brought,  and  the  fact  of  her  clearance  for  the  Columbia  River  diil 
not  prevent  her  first  visiting  Nisijually.  Mr  Burnett  is  probably  mistaken 
iu  saying  that  he  heard  of  it  iii  July;  aa  that,  according  to  his  own  statcTnont, 
wouhl  allow  but  a  fortnight  for  the  transmission  of  the  news  from  the  Islands 
to  the  Willamette  River — not  impossible,  but  highly  improbable.  See  J/M. 
Orei/on,  vol.  i.  chap,  xxxiv.,  this  series;  Crawford'^  }far.,  MS.,  100;  Victor  !i 
Jtir'er  of  the  WckI,  483-3;  Califoniiaii,  Sept.  2,  1848. 

'Estimated  white  population  of  Oregon,  midsummer,  1848,  10,000.  'I 
think  that  at  least  two  thirds  of  the  population  of  Oregon  capable  of  bearing 
arms  left  for  Cal.  iu  tiio  sunmier  and  fall  of  1848.'  Burnett's  liec,  MS.,  i.  HJ.). 
A  letter  from  L.  W.  Bogga  to  his  brother-in-law,  Boon,  in  Oregon,  cariicd 
weight  and  determined  many.  By  the  end  of  the  year,  says  the  Oregon  Sjkc- 
tator,  'almost  the  entire  male  and  a  part  of  the  female  population  of  Oregon 
has  gone  gold-digging  in  California. '  Gov.  Abernethy,  writing  to  Col.  Ma- 
son Sept.  18th,  said  that  not  less  than  3,000  men  had  left  the  Willamette 
Valley  for  Cal.  Arch.  Cnl.,  Unbouwl  Docs,  MS.,  141.  Star  and  Cal.,  Dec.  9, 
1848,  assumes  that  about  2,000  arrived  in  1848.  One  of  the  first  parties  to 
set  out— the  first,  indeed  with  vehicles,  and  preceded  only  by  smaller  com- 


lins  tlio 
onolulu, 
y  ])CH»[>lc 
iiibia,  to 
'•on  Citv 
lated  liy 
of  popu- 
;er,  until 
[icw  was 


led  within  a 
iicri-'a.ses.  A 
Supt  30tli, 
;ry  cliiiiii;t'cl. 
iiinon  saluta^ 
)  piisseugers. 
ight  §10  11' r 
'  vessuls,  ag- 
[(1  discovoiy, 
tlei"  ill  coiisu- 
rcssela  to  sail 
af  Aug.  17th 
nolulu.  Tlio 
June  2,  1841), 
tting  out  fir 
;-ty  of  sailors 

1  S.  F.  vessul, 
ntil  his  carp) 
urnals,  1  linl 
American  liii;,' 
ination;  Jiiiiu 
y  5tl>,  Aiiiiii- 
L.  IJ.  M.  I'ri^ 
Kcarborou^li 
sl\ip  tliat  tlie 
l)ia  River  did 
,bly  mistakfu 
vn  Btatcuioiit, 
n  thelslaiiiU 
jle.  Soe  y/i"'. 
IflG;  Mclor'a 

10,000.     'I 
ble  of  licaring 

,MS.,i.:iJ.->. 

•egon,  carried 
On'joa  Sp'C- 
on  of  Orfgim 
to  Col.  Ma- 
le Willamette 
Cat.,  Deo.  9, 
rat  parties  to 
smaller  com- 


THE  NKWS  IX  MEXICO. 


113 


Mexico,  particularly  in  her  northern  part,  though 
cruslu'd  bv  the  lato  war,  still  shared  the  disteinj)er. 
•'The  mania  that  pervades  the  whole  ef)untry,  our 
ram])  included,"  writes  an  arnij  officer,  "is  beyond 
all  description  or  credulity.  The  Mhole  state  of  So- 
iioia  is  on  the  move,  large  parties  are  passing  us  in 
L;aii;^s  daily,  and  say  they  have  not  yet  started." 
hidied,  but  for  national  indolence  and  intervening 
(liscrts,  the  movement  might  have  far  surpassed  the 
4,000  which  left  before  the  spring  of  1841).^ 

jxiiiirs  witli  pack-animals — consisted  of  150  men,  with  oO  wagons  and  ox-teams, 
ii  suiiply  of  pnivisions  for  six  months,  and  a  full  assortment  of  tools  and  ini- 
]iliiriuiits.  This  expedition  was  orgaiuzed  at  Oregon  City,  early  in  Sept.,  by 
IVi.r  H.  Burnett,  afterward  gov.  of  Cal.  It  followed  the  Applogate  route 
eastward  towaril  Klamath  Lake,  thenco  along  Lassen's  trail  from  I'it  Ivivcr, 
eiitii lug  tlie  Sac.  Valley  near  tlio  mouth  of  Feutlicr  River,  and  reaching  the 
mines  in  Nov.  This  was  tlie  general  direction;  though  as  usual  on  sucii  occa- 
.sidiis,  the  party  differed  in  opinion  as  to  the  ronte  to  bo  followed,  and  div.dcd 
IrI  ue  the  end  of  their  journey.  Burnett,  liei-ollirfiou-i,  M.S.,  i.  3J.5-70,  gives 
u  (Ktailiil  account  of  the  trip.  Gen.  Palmer,  ]Va(/oii  Tmiiis,  MS.,  4:5,  and 
A.  L.  hovejoy,  Porthtud,  M.S.,  27-8,  who  were  also  prominent  members  of 
tlie  txpedition,  give  briefer  narratives.  The  points  of  ditt'erenoo  are,  that 
acKii'iliiig  to  Burnett  tiie  expedition  Mas  organized  in  the  beginning  of  Sept. 
and  striick  south  at  Klamath  Lake,  while  I'alnier  says  that,  starting  in  July, 
tlie  party  reached  Goose  Lake  before  a  southern  course  was  taken.  One 
fiuiiiiy  accompanied  the  train.  Tom.  McKay  acted  as  guide.  JianwH'  Or, 
and  <''il.,  MS.,  11.  Anotiier  large  party  left  Oregon  City  in  Sept.  on  board 
the  hrig  lli^ury,  and  reached  S.  F.  tlie  same  niontli,  consequently  in  advance 
of  tlie  land  expedition.  Tiii/lor^f  Oniioiiiaiis,  ^IS.,  1-2.  Both  of  these  early 
CDiiipaiiit's  were  sewn  followed  by  others.  'In  1S48  [the  month  is  not  given], 
the  iiiMiiug  engineer  in  the  Russian  Colony,  Doroshin,  was  sent  to  Cal.  with 
a  iiiiiiilier  of  men  to  open  a  gold  mine,  if  possible,  in  the  placer  region^!.  In 
tliiie  iiioiiths  he  obtaiiiecl  12  lbs,  but  did  not  continue  tne  work,  as  ho  feared 
til. a  his  men  Would  runaway.'  Goloeiiin,  Voycuje,  in  Mati'rialin,  pt  ii.  l>oug- 
ias  was  on  board  the  Mary  Dare,  the  vessel  which  brought  the  information 
fium  the  Island,  but  gave  it  little  attention  until  he  saw  the  people  of  the 
ninth  lapidly  sinking  southward,  when  he  l>egan  to  fear  for  his  men.  .Some 
(if  tluiii  did  leave,  but  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  was  a  ditiicult  associatiiui 
ti)  uit  away  from.  Finlayson,  lli^t.  V.  I.,  MS.,  30,  44,  tells  the  oft-repeated 
fitiiiy  of  deserted  vessels,  and  other  aljandonment  of  duty,  which  forced  him 
to  draw  for  seamen  and  laborera  more  largely  on  the  natives.  Anderson, 
Xortliircst  Coast,  MS.,  27,  .17,  first  saw  an  account  of  the  discovery  'in  a  pri- 
vate letter  to  Mr  Douglas,  who  hatl  just  returned  from  a  trip  to  the  Santhvieh 
Islands.' 

"CuKtl't'  Diary,  M.S.,  11.3.  And  the  captain  goes  on  to  say,  in  a  strain  ob- 
vionsly  exaggerated:  'Naked  and  shirt-tailed  Indians  and  Mexicans,  or  Cal- 
ifiinii:iiis,  go  and  return  in  15  or  '20  days  with  over  a  pound  of  pure  gold  each 
per  day,  and  say  tiiey  had  bad  luck  and  left.'  Velasco,  iSom.,  28!)-9l,  writes, 
'Sin  temor  de  e  juivocacion,'  o.OOO  or  0,000  persons  left  Sonora  between  Oct. 
IMS  and  March  1849.  Yet  he  reduces  this  to  4,000,  whereof  one  third  re- 
iiiaiiK  d  in  Cal.  In  Sonorense,  Mar.  2,  '23,  28,  30,  Apr.  18,  May  11,  the  exodus 
fur  Jan,  to  Feb.  1849  is  placed  at  1,000,  and  700  were  exiHicted  to  pass 
tlirouu'h  from  other  sUites.  During  the  spring  of  18.30,  5,893  left,  taking 
14,000  animals.  /./. ,  Apr.  26,  1 S50.  Up  to  Nov,  1849  over  4,000  left.  Pinart, 
Hist.  Cal.,  Vol,.  VI.    8 


Pill 


!i 


ii: 


n 


114 


BROADER  EFFECTS  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


The  news  wafted  across  the  continent  upon  tlio 
tongues  of  devout  Mormons,  and  by  the  Fourguaud 
messenger,  was  quickly  followed  by  confirmatory  vt  r- 
sions  in  letters,  and  by  travellers  and  government 
couriers.*  The  first  official  notice  of  the  discovery 
was  sent  by  Larkin  on  June  1st,  and  received  at 
Washington  in  the  middle  of  September."  At  tlio 
same  tinie  further  despatches,  dated  a  month  later, 
were  brought  in  by  Lieutenant  Beale  via  Mexico/ 

Some  of  these  appeared  in  the  New  York  Herald 
and  other  journals,  together  with  other  less  author- 
itative statements;  but  the  first  to  create  general 
attention  was  an  article  in  the  Baltimore  San  of  Sep- 
tember 20th;  after  which  all  the  editors  vied  with 
each  other  in  distributing  the  news,  exaggerated  ami 
garnished  according  to  their  respective  fancies  and 
love  of  the  marvellous."     Such  cumulative  accounts, 

Coll.,  MS.,  iv.  174,  no.  1035;  U.  S.  Gov.  Docs,  Slst  cong.  2d  sess.,  H.  Ex. 
Doc.  i.,  pt  ii.  77.  Diary  of  two  parties,  in  Sor.  Mex.  Ocoif,,  BoL,  xi.  12G-.S4; 
Ilayps'  Diury,  MS.,  1-7,  82-100.  Gov.  Giindara  souglit  in  vain  to  check  the 
exodua  by  warning  the  people  that  Mexicans  were  muletreated  in  Cal.,  etc. 
Sonoreme,  Feb.  2,  21,  Oct.  26,  1849.  A  letter  from  San  Josd,  Ijower  Cal., 
tella  of  closed  houses  and  families  consisting  only  of  women  and  chililren. 
The  first  caravan  left  in  Oct.     Many  went  by  sea. 

®  There  was  a  Mr  Gray  from  Virginia  at  Sutter's  Fort,  the  16th  of  April, 
1848,  who  natl  purchased  for  himself  and  as.sociates  a  silver  mine  in  the  Sua 
Jo.so  Valley.  Sutter  presented  to  him  specimens  of  the  gold,  with  which  he 
started  eastward  across  the  mountains.  So  Sutter  enters  in  his  diury. 
Rogers  begins  a  letter  to  Larkin  Sept.  14th,  'Since  I  wrote  you  by  tlie  gov- 
ernment messenger,  and  in  duplicate  by  tlie  Isthmus' — which  shows  lion- 
letters  were  then  sent.  LarJdna  Docs,  M.S.,  vi.  177.  No  mention  is  htiiin 
made  of  the  receipt  of  the  intelligence  of  the  gold  discovery.  Slienii;iii. 
Mem.,  i.  47,  gives  no  date  when  he  says  of  Kit  Carson,  who  had  cariieil 
occasional  mails,  'He  remained  at  Los  Angeles  some  months,  and  was  tlien 
sent  back  to  the  U.  S.  with  despatches. ' 

'  LarkiiCa  Docs,  MS.,  vi.  185.  This  letter  of  Larkin,  Childs,  throiiiili 
whoui  his  correspondence  passed,  answered  the  27th  of  Sept.,  sending  \\\i 
reply  by  Mr  Parrott,  by  way  of  Vera  Cruz  and  Mazatlan. 

*He  had  left  Monterey  about  July  Ist  for  La  Paz  in  the  flag-ship  i>hin. 
carrying  letters  from  Larkin  of  June  28th  and  July  1st  to  Buchanan  ami 
Com.  Jones,  the  latter  sending  his  on  to  the  sec.  of  the  navy  with  a  note  of 
July  28th.  All  these  letters  were  prii.ted  by  government,  and  accompaiiieil 
the  president's  message  of  Dec.  6th.  I  have  referred  elsewhere  to  tlie  over- 
land express  which  was  despatched  by  way  of  Salt  Lake  in  April  l(i48,  chiefly 
for  carrying  a  new8pap<;r  edition  on  the  resources  of  California.  G.  M 
Evans'  erroneous  account  of  this  mail  in  the  Oregon  Bulletin  has  been  widely 
copied.  Instance  the  Mendocino  Democrat,  Feb.  1,  1872,  and  the  Lak 
County  Bee,  March  8,  1873.  Crosby's  Events  in  Cat,  MS.,  2-3. 

•The  N.  Y.  Journnt  of  Commerce  some  time  after  published  a  cominuni- 
xatiou  dated  Monterey  20th  of  August,  characteristic  of  the  reports  which 


AT  WASHINGTON  CITY. 


115 


)on  tlio 
irgoaud 
)ry  vur- 
iniinoiit 
scovorv 
ived  at 
At  the 
li  lutur, 

Herald 
author- 
general 
of  Sop- 
ed  with 
ited  ami 
cies  ami 
lcco  lints, 

38S.,  H.  Kx. 
,  xi.  1 -20-34; 
to  chuck  the 
in  Ciil.,  etc. 
Lower  <'al., 


th  of  April, 
in  tlie  Siiii 

th  which  lie 
his  diary. 

by  the  guv- 
shows  how 

ion  is  licri'iii 
Sl»enii;iii, 

had  cariieil 

id  was  tlien 

.ds,  throuL'h 
sending  1"* 

g-ship  Ohio. 
lohanan  ami 
th  a  note  of 
lecoinpuiiieii 
to  tlie  over- 
1348,  chiefly 
mia.  G.  W 
been  widely 
d  the  Lak 

a  cominuni- 
iports  wliioli 


reoehned  tliroughout  the  country,  could  not  fail  in 
their  effect;  and  when  in  the  midst  of  the  growing 
excitement,  in  November  or  December,  one  more 
snecial  messenger  arrived,  in  the  person  of  Lieuten- 
ant Loeser,  with  otficial  confirmation  from  Governor 
Mason,  embodied  in  the  president's  message  of  De- 
cember 5th  to  congress,  and  with  tangible  evidence  in 
the  shape  of  a  box  filled  with  gold-dust,  placed  on 
exhibition  at  the  war  oflSce,  delirium  seized  upon  the 
cuiumunity.*" 

now  began  to  circulate.  'At  present,'  the  writer  remarks,  speaking  of  gold- 
limlinj,'  in  (Jaliforniu,  'the  people  are  running  over  the  country  and  picking  it 
out  of  the  eai'th  here  and  there,  just  as  1,000  hogs,  let  loose  inu  forest,  would 
root  up  gruun<l-uut8.  Some  get  eight  or  ten  ounces  a  day,  and  the  least  active 
one  or  two.  They  make  the  most  who  employ  the  wilil  Indians  to  hunt  it  fi>r 
tlicin.  Tliere  is  one  man  who  has  sixty  Indians  in  his  employ;  his  profits  are 
a  dollar  a  miuute.  The  wild  Indians  know  nothing  of  its  value,  and  wonder 
what  the  ])ale-face8  want  to  do  with  it;  they  will  give  an  ounce  of  it  for  the 
Kinie  weight  of  coined  silver,  or  a  thimbleful  of  gla«s  Ijeads,  or  a  glass  of 
grog.  And  white  men  themselves  often  give  an  ounce  of  it,  which  is  worth 
iit  our  mint  $\8  or  more,  for  a  bottle  of  brandy,  a  Iwttle  of  swla  powders,  or 
a  plug  of  tobacco.  Ah  to  the  quantity  which  the  diggers  get,  take  a  few 
liicts  as  evidence.  I  know  seven  men  who  worked  seven  weeks  and  two  days, 
Sundays  excepted,  on  Feather  River;  they  employed  on  an  average  fifty 
Indians,  and  got  out  in  these  seven  weeks  and  two  days  *J75  pounds  of  pure 
gold.  I  know  the  men,  and  have  seen  the  gold;  so  stick  a  pin  theie.  1 
know  ten  other  men  who  worked  ten  days  in  company,  employed  no  Indians, 
and  averaged  in  these  ten  days  $1,<300  each;  so  stick  another  pin  there.  I 
know  another  man  who  got  out  of  a  basin  in  a  rock,  not  larger  than  a  wash- 
bowl, 2J  pounds  of  gohl  in  fifteen  minutes;  so  stick  another  pin  tliere!  Xo 
one  of  these  sbitemeats  would  I  believe,  did  I  not  know  the  men  personally, 
and  know  them  to  be  plain,  matter-of-fact  men — men  who  open  a  vein  of  g(dd 
just  as  coolly  as  you  would  a  potato-hill.'  'Your  letter  and  those  of  others,' 
writes  Childs  from  Washington,  Sept.  27th,  to  Larkin,  'have  Ijeen  running 
through  the  papers  all  over  the  country,  creating  wonder  and  amazement  in 
every  mind.'  Larkin' s  Docs,  MS.,  vi.  185. 

'"h.  Loeser,  lieutenant  third  artillery,  was  chosen  to  carry  the  report  of 
Miison's  own  observations,  conveyed  in  a  letter  dated  Aug.  17th,  together 
with  specimens  of  gold-dust  purchased  at  #10  an  ounce  by  the  quarternia.ster 
under  sanction  of  the  acting  governor,  with  money  from  the  civil  fund. 
Sliurmau,  Mem.,  i.  58,  says  'an  oyster-can  full;'  Mason,  R<-vnr''it  Tonr,  'IVl, 
*a  tea-caddy  containing  2,S0  oz.,  15  dwts,  1)  gr.  of  gohl.'  'Small  chest  wilKd 
a  caddy,  contauiing  about  $3,000  worth  of  gold  in  lumps  and  scales,'  says  the 
W'nMnijton  Union,  after  inspection.  Niks'  Reij.,  Ixxiv.  3.36.  To  Payta,  I'eru, 
tliu  messenger  proceeded  in  the  tAxvoLambayecana,  chartered  for  the  purpose 
fviini  its  master  and  owner,  Henry  D.  CVwke,  since  governor  of  the  district  of 
C'ohwnhia  and  sailing  from  Monterey  the  30th  of  Aug.  At  Payta,  Loeser  took 
tlie  English  steamer  to  PananiA,  crossed  tlie  Isthmus  in  Oct.,  proceeded  to 
Kingston,  Jamaica,  and  tlience  by  sailing  vessel  to  New  Orleans,  where  hetele- 
giai)hed  his  arrival  to  the  war  department.  On  the  24th  of  November,  about 
which  time  he  reached  N.  O.,  the  Commercial  Times  oi  that  city  semi-ofh- 
cially  confirmed  the  rumors,  claiming  to  have  done  so  on  the  authority  of 
Lo(.ser.  S.  H.  Willey.  Pfrxonai  Memoranda,  MS.,  '20-1,  a  passenger  by  the 
Fakun,  tiuuks  it  was  on  Friday,  Dec.  14th,  that  he  first  heard  the  news,  and 


Vt 


116 


BROADER  EFFECTS  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


lif:Vt' 


!:| 


The  report  of  Colonel  Mason,  as  indorsed  by  tlie 
president,  was  [)ublished,  either  at  length  or  in  siih- 
stance,  in  the  princi|)al  newspapers  throughout  tlic 
\V(»rld."  From  this  time  the  interest  in  Caliroriiia 
and  her  gold  became  all-absorbing,  creating  a  rest- 
lessness which  finally  poured  a  human  tide  into  ^iin 
Francisco  Bay,  and  sent  hundreds  of  caravans  over 
the  plains  and  mountains. 

The  political  condition  gave  impulse  to  the  move- 
ment, for  men's  minds  were  unsettled  everywhere:  la 

that  I^oeser  was  there  at  the  time.  'I  saw  Lieut  Loeser,'  he  says,  'ami  the 
gold  nuggets  in  liis  hand.'  This  is  tiie  time  the  Fni-on  M'as  at  N.  O.  Ami 
jft  tliu  president's  message  acuunipanied  by  Mason's  report  is  datod  Dec.  .'ith. 
(Jliviously  Willey  is  mistaken  in  supposing  lioeser  to  liavc  arhved  at  N.  (). 
after  the  Falcou  h  arrival;  and  to  reconcile  his  statement  at  all,  we  must  hold 
tlie  messenger  at  N.  O.  exhilntiiig  \m  gold  nuggets  on  tiie  streets  for  thrw 
weeks  after  iiis  arrival,  and  for  ten  day.s  after  the  information  brought  by  liim 
i.-i  sent  by  the  president  to  congress.  Tlie  report  of  Mason  accompanying'  tljo 
president's  message  is  given  in  U,  S.  Gov.  iJocn,  30th  cong.  '2d  se.'»9.,  H.  K\, 
Doc.  I,  no.  ?n,  .'>0-64.  The  president  says:  '  It  was  known  that  mines  of  tho 
jirecioua  metals  e.\ist"d  to  a  considerable  extent  in  Cal,  at  the  time  of  its 
ao(iui»itiou.  Recent  discoveries  render  it  probable  that  tiiese  mines  are  iiiuk! 
extensive  and  valuable  than  was  anticipated.  The  accounts  of  the  abmid:iiiie 
of  gold  in  that  territory  are  of  such  an  extraonlinary  character  as  would 
scarcely  command  belief  were  they  not  con-oborated  by  the  authentic  rcpoits 
of  ofHcer.s  in  the  public  service,  who  have  -visited  the  ndneral  district,  ami 
derived  the  facts  which  they  detail  from  personal  observation.'  Sherniiiii, 
Mi-m.,  i.  58,  consciiuently  errs  in  assuming  that  the  report  did  not  arrive  in 
time  for  the  message. 

"  '  We  readily  admit,'  says  the  lVa.ihhif/ton  Union  the  day  after  Loesci's 
arrival,  '  that  the  account  so  nearly  approached  the  niiraculous  that  we  wcie 
relieved  by  the  evid(!nce  of  our  own  senses  on  the  subject.  The  .specinniw 
have  all  the  appearance  of  the  native  gold  we  had  seen  from  the  mines  of 
North  Carolina  and  Virginia;  and  we  are  informed  that  the  secretary  \m11 
send  the  snuill  chest  of  gold  to  the  mint,  to  be  melted  into  coin  and  bar.s,  uml 
most  of  it  to  be  subsequently  fashioned  into  medals  eonnnemoi'ative  of  the 
heroism  and  valor  of  our  orticers.  Several  of  the  other  spseimeiis  he  will  re- 
tain for  the  present  in  the  war  otiice  as  found  in  Cal.,  in  the  foi'Ui  of  lurniw, 
scales,  and  sand;  the  last  named  being  of  ditFerent  hues,  from  bright  yelluW 
to  black,  without  much  appearance  of  gold.  However  sceptical  any  man  may 
have  been,  we  defy  him  to  doubt  that  if  the  quantity  of  such  specimen.s  :i3 
these  be  aa  great  as  has  l>een  represented,  the  value  of  the  gold  in  Cal.  umat 
be  greater  than  has  been  hitherto  discovered  in  the  old  or  new  continent; 
and  gi-eat  as  may  be  the  emigration  to  this  new  El  Dorado,  the  frugal  and 
industrious  will  be  amply  repaid  for  their  enterprise  and  toil.'  On  the  Stli 
of  Dec,  David  Garter,  from  S.  F.,  took  to  the  Phil,  mint  the  first  deposit  of 
gold,  on  which  Director  Patterson  reported  that  it  was  worth  some  ci-iits 
over  §18  an  ounce.  Assays  of  specimens  sent  to  private  persons  gave  similar 
I'esults.  SherwooiVa  Cal.;  Pioneer  Arch.,  161-7;  Brooks'  His.  Mi'X.  H'a/',  .">;(.'). 
barter's  deposit  in  the  Phil,  mint  was  made  the  8th  of  Dec,  and  that  of  the 
sec.  of  war  on  the  9th.  The  former  consisted  of  l,804.r)9  ounces,  and  the  latter 
of  228  ounces.  It  averaged  .894  tiue.  Letter  of  Patterson  to  VVulker,  Dec. 
11,  1848. 


INFORMATION  WANTED. 


117 


Loesoi's 
we  wcic 

iiiiiK's  (it 
tary  w  ill 
>avs,  iiiitl 
e  of  the 
!  will  it- 

of   lulll[iH, 

ht  yt'lluW 
mail  may 
iciiueiis  ud 
Cal.  imi.st 
contiiR'iit; 
fnigal  ami 
)n  tlio  Sth 
(lopo)<it  of 
)iiu;  i.i'iits 
vc  similar 
War,  .");<•'). 
hat  of  the 
the  latter 
Iker,  Dec. 


Europe  1)V  wars  and  revolutions,  whicli  disturbed  all  the 
icnioris  tVoMi  the  Sicilies  in  the  south  to  Ireland  and 
]  )('iiniark  in  the  north ;  in  the  United  States,  by  the  late 
war  with  ^fexieo,  and  the  consequent  aecjuisition  ot'ini- 
iiiciisf  vacant  and  inviting  territories.  Tliis  especially 
had  Lfivcn  zest  to  the  spirit  of  adventure  so  long  fos- 
tt'ird  in  the  States  by  the  constant  westward  advance 
ofs(>ttlenients;  and  the  news  from  the  PaciHe  served 
nallv  to  intensify  the  feelitig  and  give  it  a  definite  and 
(•(iiiiiiioii  direction.  The  country  was  moreover  in  a 
lii<4lily  prosperous  condition,  with  an  abundaiM.'e  of 
iiioiR'V,  which  had  attracted  a  large  immigration,  and 
dishaiided  armies  from  Mexico  had  east  ach'ift  a  host 
of  iiH'ii  without  fixed  aim,  to  whom  a  far  less  ])oteiit 
incentive  tiian  the  present  would  have  been  all-sufti- 
ciiiit.  And  so  from  Maine  to  Texas  the  noise  of 
]ifr|»aration  for  travel  was  heard  in  every  town.  The 
iiaiiK!  of  California  was  in  every  mouth;  it  was  the 
cunciit  theme  for  conversation  and  song,  for  plays 
and  sermons.  Every  scrap  of  information  concerning 
till'  country  was  eagerly  devoured.  Old  works  tiiat 
t(iii(;licd  upon  it,  or  even  upon  the  regions  adjoining, 
well'  dragged  from  dusty  hiding-jdaces,  and  eager 
jiiuchase  made  of  guide-books  from  the  busy  l>en  of 
caliiiiet  travellers. ^^     Old,  staid,  conservative  men  and 

'"Aiiioii!,'  the  ])ul)lication8  of  the  hour  were:  California,  ami  the'  \Va>i  to 
(!'i  lh<ix';  irilh  /hi'  Ojlirial  Doriiiiniits  I'lld/i/ni  to  tlu'  (Inld  Jlii/ion.  liy  .1. 
Fly  SlidwuDd,  New 'S'ork,  184S.  This  for  tlie  outsich' title.  'J"he  si'coiid  title 
s,iys  L'lili/uniiii,  fur  Winlth  (iiiil  yiV,so»;'i'<.f  ,•  iri'h  Man;/  Iiitiri  stiiif/  h'mtH 
r"<i"i-liiiii  till-  I'liiiiiitr  luid  J'lo/ili.  Following  a  letter  datecl  Sutter'w  Fort, 
All;;.  1 1.  1S4S,  giviim  the  e.\))eiieiiees  of  a  <lij,';,'er,  are  a  few  pages  smattering 
ol  Mcxicini  life.  'I'hin  eonie  Larkin's  letters  to  Huehanan,  and  Mason's 
rcpDrt,  everywhere   printed.     'AD  that  portion  of   the  president's  i 


•I" 

M  lli'  ll  I' 


ct    til 


(i 


eliite.s  to  Califoinia'  is  next  given;  after  which  we  have  a  '  neserijiti 


.go 
on 


licgion,'  in  which  there 


desciii)tion  whatever,  a  lettei-  ot 


\\  ;iher  ('i)ltori,  extracts  from  the  X.  Y.  ./oiiriial  of  Cunniurfc  and  Si, 
till  rcoricsliondenee  and  description,  and  tliemcnioiial  of  Aspiiiwall,  Stephens, 
aii'l  riiaiincey  to  congress  on  a  proposed  I'acitie  railway.  On  the  last  page  of 
till'  lovi  rare  jiiinted  from  the  X.  V.  Iliralil  '  Practical  Suggestions  to  Pers(jna 


aliniit  to  ('ro.'is  the  Isthmus  of  I'ananiii 


Th 


,-ho!i 


prises  an  Svo  pam- 


jililit  of  40  ]iagea,  exclusive,  of  the  cover.  The  follow  iiigyear  the  work  assumes 
a  I'Jiiio  form  of  '.(S  pages  in  a  paper  cover,  and  is  called  The  I'ork- t-Hnlli-  to 
(  nl'ijiimin;  A  Si-a  tiiid  Lninl  lionti'-liook,  I'oiitniniiii/a  Fii/l  Jiiscrijiii^niof  Ihf 
hi  li'iiii'lo,  (<■>■  Aiiriiiiltural  Jieioiircf",  (^oiiiiinrfiiil  Ailranlmii:*,  ami  Mim rul 
II '"''/(,•  iiirlHiliini  a  Chd/ilir  ondohl  FornKilionx;  iriUi  the  Coiiiirfssioiifil  .^/'t/i, 
luid  III,:  Wiriuus  lioides  and  Didancvs  to  the  Oold  Itrijioax.     To  Which,  is  Addtd 


fnir 


118 


BROADER  EFFECTS  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


woiuoii  cau<^lit  the  infoctioii,  (lo.spito  press  and  puljut 
Avariiinjjs.  After  a  parting  knell  of  exliortation  for 
calm  and  contentment,  even  niinisterst  and  editurs 
shelved  their  books  and  papers  to  join  foremost  in 
the  throng.  Hitherto  small  though  sure  profits 
dwindled  into  insigniiicancre  under  the  new  aspect,  and 
the  trader  closed  his  ledger  to  depart;  and  so  the  toil- 
inuf  farmer,  whose  niortij^ajxe  loomed  abovo  the  jrrov.- 
ing  family,  the  '  riefless  lawyer,  the  starving  student, 
tlie  quack,  the  idler,  the  harlot,  the  gambler,  the  hen- 
pecked husband,  the  disgraced;  with  many  earnest, 
enterprising,  honest  men  and  devoted  women.  Those 
and  others  turned  their  faces  westward,  resolved  to 
stake  their  all  upon  a  cast;  their  swift  thoughts,  like 
tlie  arrow  of  Acestcs,  taking  fire  as  they  flew.  Stories 
exaggerated  by  inflamed  imaginations  broke  the  calm 
of  a  million  hearts,  and  tore  families  asunder,  leaviii'' 


WW 


Prnrlind  Advice  to  Voi/nr/rra.  New  York,  .J.  E.  Sherwood,  publisher  ainl 
rroprietor;  California,  Jk'rford  &Co.,  ainl('.  AV.  Hoklen,  San  Francisco,  ls4li. 
This  is  a  work  of  more  pretcnsiona  than  the  first  edition.  Tlio  first  1!)  ]i:rj,v^ 
aro  gcoi^rnphical,  in  tlie  compilation  of  which  Bryant  and  olhera  are  fnnly 
drawn  from.  Letters  from  Folsoni  to  Quartermaster  Jesup,  printed  oiij;inally 
in  tlie  Wush'niijton  Glohe,  aro  added.  Thirty-  jno  paj^es of  advertisements  w  i ; e 
secured,  which  are  at  once  characteristic  and  interesting,  Tiio  Union  ]iiili:i 
Kul)l>er  Company,  Itesidu  portable  boats  and  wagon-floats,  oflera  tents,  M.ink- 
tta,  and  nil  kinds  of  clothing.  Califoruiaiis  are  urged  to  insure  their  lives  ami 
have  their  daguerreotypes  taken  before  starting.  Tlien  there  arc  Califoriiiaii 
houses,  slieet-iron  cottages  of  the  most  substantial  character,  at  tiirec  days' 
notice,  built  in  sections;  'oil-cloth  rotjfs  at  tliirty  cents  per  scjuare  yiinh' 
bags,  matches,  boots,  drugs,  guns,  beside  outfits  comprising  every  coiueiv- 
al)lo  thing  to  wear,  mess  hampers,  and  provisions.  Haven  &  Liviut;>tiiii 
ailvertise  tiieir  express,  Thomas  Kensett  &  Co.,  and  Wells,  Miller,  &  IVinost, 
tiieir  preserved  fresh  provisions;  E.  N.  Kent,  tests  for  gold;  half  a  ilu/cu 
their  gold  washers,  and  fiftj-  others  fifty  other  tiungs.  By  advertising  V .  S. 
passports,  Alfred  V»'heeler  intimates  that  they  are  necessary.  A.  Zuiii- 
atu/a,  through  his  ngessts,  John  Bell  at  Vera  Cruz  and  A.  I'atruUo,  New  \<n\, 
gives  notice  of  'the  pk-J.  rautestand  shortest  route  to  California  through  iMcx- 
jco.'  With  neitliei' auiiior's  name  nor  date,  but  prolwibly  in  Dec.  1S4S,  vas 
issued  at  Boston,  I'l'.fornid  Gold  Itvijioim,  With  a  Full  Account  of  its  Miin'ml 
Jirsoui-cc^;  Jluio  t<i  Let  there  and  What  to  ''"akc;  the  Lx/tcu>!e,the  Time,  aii'l  (k 
Various  J}onte>i,  etc.  Anything  at  hand,  printed  letters,  newspaper  artirKs, 
and  compilations  from  old  books,  were  thrown  in  to  make  up  tlie  48  pa^ts  ot 
this  publication.  Yet  anotiier  book  appeared  in  Dec.  1848,  The  Gold  lliijium 
of  €  ail/or  Ilia,  etc.,  edited  by  G.  (i.  Foster,  80  pages,  8vo,  with  a  niaii;  the 
fullest  and  most  valuable  eastern  publication  ou  Cal.  of  that  year.  Bcsiile 
the  oificial  reports  so  often  referred  to,  there  is  a  letter  from  A.  Ten  ¥,\xk, 
dated  S.  F.,  Sept.  Ist,  and  one  from  C.  AUyn  d.ited  Monterey,  Sept.  I'ltli. 
There  are  also  extracts  from  Cal.  and  eastern  newspapers,  and  from  Grecuhuw, 
Darby,  Wilkes,  Cutts,  Mofras,  Emory,  and  Faruhain. 


STIMULATION  OF  INDUSTRIES. 


119 


gorrowlnj^  mothers,  }»l»ii)<^  wives,  nej^lcctutl  cliildreii, 
wiih  povt-rty  ami  sorrow  to  swell  their  anjjfui.sli;  tlie 
(!(|)iut('il  meanwhile  bent  on  the  strui^j^le  with  fortune, 
r.iitlirul  or  luithless;  a  few  to  be  successful,  but  a  far 
I'lcatiT  number  to  sink  ilisa[)pointed  into  nameless 
l^Tavrs. 

And  still  the  gossips  and  the  proj)hots  raved,  and 
11.  wspapers  talked  loudly  and  learnedly  of  California 
aii<l  lur  LTold-fiilds,  assisting  to  sustain  the  excite- 
iiiciit."  It  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that,  in  tlie 
i^ieat  .seaport  towns  at  least,  the  course  of  ordinary 
husiiu'ss  was  almost  thrown  out  of  its  channels. 
"IJakers  ktu-j*  their  ovens  hot,"  breaks  forth  Greeley, 
•iiiijlit  and  day,  turning  out  immense  quantities  of 
sliip-lmad  without  supplying  the  demajid;  the  pro- 
vision .stores  of  all  kinds  are  besieged  by  orders. 
^Manul'a'  lurers  of  rubber  goods,  riiie.s,  pistols,  bowie- 
knives,  etc.,  can  .scarcely  supfdy  the  demand."  All 
sorts  of  labor-.saving  machines  were  invented  t.)  facil- 
itate the  .separation  of  the  gold  from  gravel  and  soil. 
Tateiited  machines,  cranks,  pumps,  overshot  wheel 
attacliini'nts,  engines,  dredges  for  river-beds,  supposed 
ti>  1»o  full  of  gold,  and  even  diving-bells,  were  made 
and  .sold.  Everything  needful  in  the  land  of  gold,  or 
what  sellers  could  make  the  buyers  believe  would  be 
needed,  sold  freely  at  high  prices.  Everything  in  the 
shape  of  hull  and  masts  was  overhauled  and  made 
ready  foj-  .sea.  Steamships,  cli[)pers,  schooners,  and 
brigs  sprang  fn^n  the  stocks  as  if  by  the  magician's 
wand,  and  the  wharves  were  alive  with  bu.sy  workeis. 
The  stieets  were  thronged  with  hurr^'ing,  bustling  pur- 
chaseis,  most  of  them  conspicuous  in  travelling  attire 
(if  signilicant  as})ect,  rough  loose  coats  and  blaid\et 
I'ohes  meeting  high  hunting-boots,  and  shaded  by 
huge  felt  hats  of  sombre  color.     A  large  proportion 

"  '  It  is  coming — naj%  at  hand,'  cried  Horace  Oreeley,  in  the  N.  Y.  Tribune; 
'tliiic  is  no  (loul)t  of  it.  We  are  on  tlie  l)riuk  of  tlie  Age  of  Gold!  We  look 
fiiriiii  adilition,  uithin  tliu  next  four  years,  ecjual  to  at  least  one  thousand 
inillions  ot  dollai-s  to  the  general  ungregate  of  jjold  in  ciroulatiou  and  use 
tliiciigliout  the  world.     This  is  almost  inevitable. 


1 


i^'i  li 


I  ! 


P 


H'l 


41! 


^ 


III! 


120 


BROADER  EFFECTS  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVER 


bore  the  stanij)  of  countrymen  or  villagers,  wlio  had 
fcrnied  parties  of  froni  ten  to  over  a  hundred  members, 
the  better  to  face  the  peril.'-  magnified  by  distance,  and 
to  assist  one  another  in  the  common  object.  The  im- 
mediate purpose,  however,  was  to  combine  for  the 
purchase  of  machinery  and  outfit,  and  for  reduced 
passage  rates.  Indeed,  the  greater  part  of  the  emi- 
grants were  in  associations,  limited  in  immber  Ijy 
district  clanship,  or  by  shares  ranging  as  Jiigh  as 
$1,000  each,  which  in  such  a  case  implied  the  purchase 
of  the  vessel,  laden  with  wooden  houses  in  sections, 
with  mills  and  other  machinery,  and  with  goods  tor 
trade."  In  some  instances  the  outfit  was  })rovided  l)y 
a  few  men;  perluq>s  a  family  stinted  itself  to  send  one 
of  its  members,  often  a  scapegrace  resolved  upon  a 
new  life;  or  money  was  contributed  by  more  cautious 
stayers-at-home  for  proxies,  on  condition  of  heavy  le- 
j)ayment,  or  labor,  or  shares  in  profits;^'  but  as  a  ruK', 
ol)ligati()ns  broke  under  the  strain  of  varied  attractions 
on  the  scene,  and  debtors  were  lost  in  the  throng  of 
the  mines. ^^     The  associations  were  too  unwieldy  and 

'*  Among  the  many  instances  of  such  associations  is  the  one  entitled  Ktn- 
neliec  Trading  and  Mining  Co.,  whieli  sailed  in  the  Ohcil  Mifrhil  froiii  X. 
IJodford  on  March  ."Jl,  184!),  arrived  at  S.  F.  on  Sept.  ITtli,  laid  (>ut  tlic  town 
of  New  York,  placed  the  steamer  d'ov.  Dana  for  river  trathc,  opened  a  saw- 
mill, etc.  liot/ufoii's  ^fS.,  1  et  se(j.  The  Mattapan  and  Cal.  Tradinj;  iia.l 
Mining  Co.,  of  42  tnend)ers,  left  Jioston  in  the  Ann.  Strout's  recollectiniis.  in 
.S'.  /•'  /'o-it,  July  14,  1S77;  the  Linda  Mining  and  J1re<lging  Assoc,  starteil  in 
the  hark  Lindii,  with  a  steauihoat  and  a  dredger,  the  latter  for  scoopiiii:  up 
the  metal.  Other  notable  comi)anies  were  those  hy  t\\v  Kihniril  Kri  r' u.  vi 
lo'i  mend)ers,  whieli  left  Boston  in  Dec.  1S4S;  I'ulx'rt  Ilronnic,  which  left  .New 
York  in  Feb.  '49,  with  '200  pas.sengers;  the  Matthewson  J^arty,  from  New 
York,  in  ^larch;  the  Warren  party  of  .'{()  members,  from  Xew  York,  in  Fili  ; 
the  .l/rtn/ ./(iHC  party.  One  party  of  seven  left  Nantucket  in  Dec.  Is  1:1.  in 
the  Mdnj  anil  Emma,  of  only  44  tons,  and  arrived  Siifcly  after  14!)  Aax-^. 
Others  were  known  by  the  names  of  the  town  or  county  in  which  they  oi^'aii- 
i/ed,  as  Utica,  Albany,  liullalo.  See  details  of  outfit,  passage,  etc.,  in  I)  "c- 
?v'/('.s  l)iitt  and  Foam,  12etse(j. ;  M<illhfir,ion\i  Slali'mi'nl,  MS.,  \~'A;  Ci'ri  n'l-i 
L'ainUini/K,  MS.,  04,  and  later  MS.  references;  also  r"collections  printecl  in 
dill'erent  journals,  as  Sua  Jo'«'  /'ionfcr,  Dec.  8,  1S77,  etc.;  <S«c.  Idruril-i' uptii, 
.Inly  7,  IS7.">,  Nov.  2(5,  1S7S,  etc.;  Sha,ila  C'onricr,  March  2,">,  IS(5."),  .March  Ul, 
1S()7;  Sinikina  Ini/i/i.,  Nov.  I,  1S7.'>;  Alfa  Cal.,  passim;  I'lnnr  Tim''.i,  .\\ii; 
28,  184!);  Jlroirn'.*  Slali'mcn',  M>^.,  I;  //«h/".s  J/rr'7t.  J/r;;/.,  x.\.\.  r).)-04,  x- \ii. 
3r)4-.'i;  l.nrkin'x  Dor.,  vi.  ISo,  l!)S,  etc. 

'■'Crosby,  Eventn  Cal.,  MS.,  2l),  was  deputed  by  others  to  report  on  the 
field. 

'"  Largi!  sums  were  recklesrily  advanced  to  individuals  as  well  as  socii  tn's 
by  ricii  men,  stricken  by  the  fever,  but  declining  to  go  in  jK-rson.     I'ldli.ilily 


OVERLAND  TRAVEL. 


121 


one 


fi(jiii  N. 

tllC  tnWIl 

I  a  s.i«  • 

tiiiiis.  ill 
urti'il  ill 
jiiiiLT  up 

•,,-.//.  vi 

At  Ni'W 
111  Ni'W 
in  I'Vli; 
I  Mil.  ill 

4!»  tl;i,vs. 
y  oilMII- 
in  ll'"'- 

Vii'i  nil* 
iiitcii  ill 

Sl.iivii  Mi. 
iiv'^i,  .\|ir, 
04,  X-  \ii. 

rt  1)11  ''le 

Slicil  '  11'' 

I'roii.il.ly 


too  liastllv  organized,  with  little  knowledge  of  meni- 
lu  rs  ;in(l  re(iuireincnts,  the  best  men  being  most  eager 
to  escape  the  yoke. 

Tlif  overland  route  was  the  first  to  suggest  itself, 
in  nccordanee  with  Auierican  pioneer  usage,  but  this 
could  not  be  attempted  during  winter.  The  sea  was 
iilwiivs  open,  and  presented,  moreover,  a  presumably 
sw liter  course,  with  less  preparations  for  outfit.  The 
\va\-  round  Cape  Horn  was  well  understood  by  the 
(D.isl-dwollers,  who  formed  the  pioneers  in  this  move- 
inciit,  familiar  as  they  were  with  the  trading  vessels 
and  whalers  foUowing  that  circuit,  along  the  path 
(iiKiird  by  Magellan,  and  linked  to  the  ex[^lorations  of 
Cmtes  and  Cabrillo.  There  were  also  the  short-cuts 
across  l^uianiil,  Nicaragua,  and  ^Icxico,  now  becoming 
laniiliar  to  the  people  of  the  United  States  tlirough 
the  agitation  for  easy  access  to  the  ne\/ly  ac(juired 
possessions  on  the  Pacific.  For  all  these  vessels 
(ift'ei'ed  themselves;  antl  in  November  1848  tlie  move- 
ment beii'an  with  tlie  departure  of  several  vessels.  In 
December  it  had  attained  the  dimensions  of  a  rush. 
I'mm  New  York,  Boston,  Salem,  Norfolk,  Pliiladel- 
]  hia,  and  Ijaltlmore,  between  the  14th  of  J^ecend^er, 
iS48,  and  the  I8th  of  January,  184!),  departed  (U 
sailing  vessels,  averaging  50  ])assengers  each,  to  say 
nothing  of  those  sent  from  Charlestt)n,  New  Orleans, 
and  other  ports.  Sixty  ships  were  announced  to  sail 
iVom  New  York  in  the  n'onth  of  Februarv  1845),  70 


om  JMrdadel[)hia  ami  Boston,  and  1 1  I'ntm  New  Hed- 
ird.     The  hegira  continued  thr<)Ughout  the  year,  and 
inter  of   1H4'J  and   tlie  spring  of   IS.")0 


ilunn'j 


tl 


U)    w 


Hint:  (III 


t  (if  ten  of  such  loans  wcrt!  Icf't,  less  t.li 


rouiili  ac 


tual 


(lisliuiicMtv  tiiau 


t  !!•  Hi;^li  t!iu  i'XtravaL;aiit  lialiifs  aiiioiii;  iniiici's,  who  imprdvidciitly  loi  Udik  cl 
ii:i  a  fiitiiit!  rich  timl  fur  such  (k'liiaiii's.      Few  of  the  udiiiiianics  iidd  tn^'ether, 


(■111  till  ('ill.  wim  ivaclud;  lioiii!  that  1  have  > 


hi'iii'l  of  lu 


coiiiphs 


lied 


y- 


tliiiiL',  IIS  iiii  original  Ixidy,  in  the  mines  or  towns.  If  they  did  nut  (luairel  on 
t!u'  \v;iy  and  Hepanitc  at  any  <,'ost,  as  was  ucnei'ally  tho  case,  they  found  on 
rcai'liiii"  '  tiiata.  company  had  no  jilaei^  there.  Every  miner  was  fur  liiin- 
nlf.  ,iMi|  ^  ■  It  waa  with  meehaiiies  and  lahorers,  who,  if  wiliin;^  t  >  wuilc  for 
Ml  .  s  11  c'liveil  such  dazziini^  oilers  as  to  upset  all  iirevious  calculations  and 
iii,iui>.  >^w  A^hlcij's  Jounicy,  .MS.,  '22.1,  ttc. 


iJ'Ci 


';J.l!'':^i..! 


3;   I 


I  i= 


122  BROADER  EFFECTS  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 

250  vessels  sailed  for  California  from  the  eastern  ports 
of  the  United  States  alone,  45  of  which  arrived  at  Sun 
Francisco  in  one  day.*' 

In  order  to  .supply  this  d.  .nand,  shipping  was  di- 
\  i'rted  from  every  other  branch  of  service,  oreatly  to 
the  di.sarrangenient  of  trade,  the  whaling  business 
especially  being  neglected  for  the  new  catch. ^'^  Old 
condeujned  hulks  were  once  more  drawn  from  their  re- 
tirement, anything,  in  fact,  that  could  float,*"  and  fitttd 
with  temporary  decks  to  contain  tiers  of  open  berths, 
with  tables  and  lusjfijaiije-stands  in  the  centre.^"  The 
provisions  were  equally  bad,  leading  in  many  cases  to 
intense  suffering  and  loss  by  scurvy,-*  thirst,  and 
starvation;  but  unscrupulous  speculators  cared  for 
nothing  save  to  reap  the  ready  harvest;  and  to  secuie 
pas.sengers  they  hesitated  at  no  falsehood.  Althou;:i 
aware  that  the  prospect  of  obtaining  transpc^rtati"!: 
from  Panamd  and  other  Pacific  ports  was  very  doubt- 
ful, they  gave  freely  the  assurance  of  ample  conuLc- 
tions,  and  induced  thousands  to  proceed  to  these  halt- 


& 


"  youvelleii  Anuaicx  des  Vm/rujen,  cxx.  .362-.');  Larkin'n  Dora,  MS.,  vi.  10."); 
Poll/Ill. -iiuii,  Apr.  14,  lS41t;  St'dlmansdoldcii  Flceir,  1!)  27.  Two  of  tlic  Ndv. 
departures  iirriveil  at  S.  F.  in  April  184J);  in  June  came  11,  iu  July  40,  in 
AuL-'UNt  411,  iu  Sept.  ()(},  after  wliiuli  tlie  number  fell  off,  giving  a  total  of  "J."!."} 
fruni  Amerioiui  ports  for  nine  mouths;  .31()  arrivuil  from  other  ports,  or  04!!  in 
all.  riaci'r  Tiiiit<,  ii.  no.  02;  N.  Y.  lli  ridd,  Apr.  l.'i,  1S.">0;  liartlow'^  Sini., 
MS.,  1;  lianics' Or.  and  C(d.,  MS.,  20;  JMiu.-i  Slat.,  MS.,  ];  M<,<,re\i  /'/.. 
Jixp.,  MS.,  1;  Wiiiniwi'  Snu.,  MS.,  1  W;  Nfa/rx  S/tit.,  MS.;  \\'fii'nioii'.i  Sint., 
MS.,  2-.3;  Doulilth-'ii  Slnt.,  MS.,  21;  Jioltoii  vs  U.  S.,  88;  Fay'a  Sfal.,  MS.,  1; 
Picture  P'kiii.  'Hints,  MS.,  14.">-7.  Tlie  journals  above  quoted,  notably  .!/'(» 
Cal.  anil  Iticiird-Unwii;  also  JIV.sV  Voii.st  Signal,  Apr.  l.j,  187';  Sniifit  ( V'C 
TiiiiiA,  1<V1>.  \\),  1870;  i/iuuho/dt  ThncH,  Mar.  7,  1874;  Antioch  fji'dijir,  Ueo. 
24,  1870,  together  with  allusions  to  voyage.  The  length  of  pa-ssago  avenu'ed 
about  four  months.  Later  it  was  mat!  ;  more  than  onee  by  the  I'lyiiiij  i'lmiA 
from  New  York  in  SitJ  days.  See  Alki  Cid.,  July  12,  I860;  S.  /'.  JJirLCtori/, 
18.i2,  10,  etc. 

"■  Uy  tlie  withdi-aw.al  of  71  ships.  AUaCnL,  June  6,  1850. 

'■'  Itarnes,  in  his  ()r.  and  ('a/.,  MS.,  mentions  an  old  Mexican  war  trans- 
port steamer,  wliich  iu  the  winter  of  lf>40-">0  used  to  ply  between  XewOrlciii:) 
anil  Ohagres,  and  wiiiuh  was  so  rotten  and  leuhy  that  she  wriggled  and  twistol 
like  a  willow  basket. 

'^Uorlhii-irk's  MS.,  .3.").  One  vessel  of  only  44  tons  left  Nantuiki't; 
another  passed  through  the  lakes,  Ilunl'n  Mmj.,  x'<i.  '"'8.");  a  third  was  an  ex- 
slaver,  liliixoniy'.'t  MS.,  1. 

'^'  Hyan,  /V/n.  Adrm.,  ii.  27.3-.">,  relates  that  the  firnokliiH  sctoutwitli  an 
insulticient  suppl/,  and  although  offered  .S-'iOO,  tlu  oapUiin  refu.sed  to  toiu  ii  at 
any  of  the  South  Americ<>n  ports  for  additions.  At  Rio  de  Janeiro  seNjiol 
i-uceised  wcloomo  from  Doni  I'edro.  AUuCal,,  Mar.  20,  16/0. 


THE  PASSAGE  BY  WATER. 


123 


22 


wav  stations,  only  to  leave  them  there  stranded.  A 
brief  period  of  futile  waiting  sufficed  to  exhaust  the 
skiider  means  of  many,  cutting  off  even  retreat,  and 
hundreds  were  swept  away  by  the  deadly  climate. 
Ex[»ostulati()ns  met  with  sneers  or  maltreatment,  for 
irdres.s  was  hopeless.  The  victims  were  ready  enough 
t(»  enter  the  trap,  and  hastened  away  by  the  cheapest 
route,  regardless  of  money  or  other  means  to  proceed 
I'ai  tlier,  trusting  blindly,  wildly,  to  chance. 

The  cost  of  passage  served  to  restrict  the  propor- 
tion of  tlie  vagabond  element;  so  that  the  majority  of 
the  emigrants  belonged  to  the  respectable  class,  with 
a  spriidvle  of  educated  and  professional  men,  and  mem- 
1)1  rs  »»f  influential  families,  although  embracing  many 
iliaracterless  persons  who  fell  before  temptation,  (tr 
entered  the  pool  of  schemers  and  political  vultures.-^ 
Th('  distance  and  the  prospective  toil  and  danger 
ai^ain  held  back  the  older  and  less  robust,  singling 
out  ihe  young  and  hardy,  so  that  in  njany  respects  the 
Hower  of  the  population  dej)arted.  The  intention  of 
most  being  to  return,  few  women  were  exposed  to  the 
liuidships  of  these  early  voyages.  The  coast-dwellers 
jiivdoniinated,  inHuencod,  as  may  be  su[)posed,  by  the 
water  voyage,  for  the  interior  and  western  peo[)le 
piiferred  to  avait  the  oj)ening  of  the  overland  route, 
for  wliicli  they  could  so  nmch  better  provide  them- 
.sehe,;^^ 

^Mth'^U'.di  the  Americans  maintained  the  ascend- 
an  V  in   unnbers,  owing  to  readier  access  to  the  field 

■'■  ^-1  j)'.iti  st  ill  Pannmii  Star,  Feb.  24,  1849. 

'•''  sVi)i^^  P'nti,  Timfx,  MS.,  l!K)-5,  t'stiiii.ituH  the  idle  loungers  at  less  tiian 
ti"  pel'  irt,  find  'gentle  ii;ii '  iiiid  politicians  at  tiie  saniu  {truportioii.  The 
N.  >.  T,  ■(/'»-,  ,  r.ii.  20,  IS4!),  n.ss'.inies  thiit  the  cost  of  outlit  kui)t  hauk  the 
nnvili'.'fi,  i  ill'  Ai.nah  of  S.  /'.,  (j()."),  et«.,  in  undoiihtedly  \\n)n<{  in  jL-oiiliin,' 
Imv  ohiiraoter,  morals,  and  standing  to  alargo  pioportion,  although  it  is  natural 
tliiit  nirn  loft  without  tlio  elevating  inllueuoo  of  a  suliicicntly  large  uiinilMT  of 
wiiiin  II  Mhould  have  yielded  at  times  to  a  somewhat  reckless  life.  Willcy,  in 
Ills  /'</'.  Mini.,  MS.,  2r>,  thus  speaks  of  the  \ew  Orleans  emigration  of  I.S4.S: 
'It  w.i.s  only  the  class  most  loose  of  foot  who  could  leave  on  80  (*hoit  a  nutict;. 
It  wfis  largely  such  as  frtMpiented  the  ganil)ling-8alo<ins  under  tlie  St  ('harles, 
aii>l  coidcl  leave  one  day  as  well  as  another.'  See  also  CV<l^^v'■^ /w'r»/.,  MS., 
'^'  ■!;  \'yi'  Alh'ii,  S/at.,  MS.,  HI;  LarkhCs  J)()c.,  MS.,  vi.  18:.,' I'.l.s,  -J.-.l. 

^' N'i'w  Yorkers  jiredoniiimted  'twice  told  prolialily.'  I'ljikmaan  MS.,'i^; 
^     .vuckct  alouo  lost  about  400  incu.  I'lanr  Times,  liec.  1,  1849. 


124 


liROADER  EFFECT.-'  OF  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY. 


I: 


'    f  i:l 


by  difFei'ont  routes,  and  to  which  they  were  entitled 
bv  I'lu'ht  of  i)()ssessi()n,  the  stream  of  niii»'ration  fi<.m 
foreii^n  countries  was  great,  a  current  coming  to 
Xew  York  and  adjoining  [>orts  to  join  the  How  from 
there.  The  govermuents  of  Euro[)e  became  alarnud, 
actuated  as  they  were  by  jealousy  of  the  growing 
repubHc,  witii  its  prospective  increase  of  wealth,  to  tlio 
confounding  of  finance,  perliaps  to  culminate  in  a 
woi'ld's  crisis.^''  Before  the  middle  of  January  1  S4I>  no 
less  than  five  ditFerent  Californian  trading  and  minini,^ 
companies  were  registered  at  Lcmdon,  with  an  aggre- 
gate capital  of  £1/275,000;  and  scarcely  was  there 
a  Euii')^au  port  Avhich  had  not  at  this  time  Fome 
vessel  1..  )ut  for  California.^* 

Among  'atic  nations,  the  most  severely  aftected 
by  this  western  malady  were  the  Chinese.  With  so 
much  of  tlie  gamlding  element  in  their  disposition,  so 
much  of  ambition,  they  turned  over  the  tidings  in 
their  minds  with  feverish  impatience,  whilst  tlioir 
neighbors,  the  Ja})anese,  heard  of  the  gold  discoviiy 
with  stolid  indifierence.^'  Yet  farther  east  bv  wav 
of  west,  to  that  [taradise  of  gamblers,  [VEanila,  went 

**  Russia,  France,  and  Holland  seriously  considered  the  nionotary  (iiu'.stinii, 
and  tiio  liittor  went  so  far  as  to  Jiring  in  force  an  obsolete  law,  wiiicli  eiialili.l 
lier  to  sell,  at  tlie  highest  price,  all  tiio  gold  in  the  bank  of  Anistenlam,  s>i 
tiiat  she  niiglit  lay  in  a  stock  of  silver. 

•jBipjj  Havre  ct  do  Bordeaux,  do  plusieui-s  ports  espagnols,  hoUainlais, 
alleniiinds,  et  de  pres(iuo  tous  les  priiicipaux  ports  de  la  (irande-liretagnc.  ini 
announce  dus  departs  pour  San  Francisco.  Un  biitinient  h  vapeur  tloit  nu'iiic 
j)artir  de  Londres  et  doubler  Ic  cap  Horn.  Jti'i'iie  (!!:■*  J )('ux  Mcinto',  Fili.  I, 
1849;  J'/ih/iicniui,  May  TJ,  1849.  Says  tiie  Loiitlon.  Times:  'Tlieroai'c  at  tiii< 
niouient  two  great  waves  of  population  following  towaid  the  setting  sun  over 
tins  glol)e.  The  one  is  that  ini-hty  tide  of  huinaii  beings  wiiich,  tliis  yeai',  1"- 
yond  nil  former  parallel,  is  flowing  from  Ireland,  Oreat  Britain,  (Jerniany,  inil 
some  other  parts  of  Europe,  in  one  com  pact  and  unbroken  stream,  to  the  I'niii.l 
States.  The  other,  whicli  may  almost  be  described  asui'gedon  by  thefonm  i.  is 
tliat  whicii  that  furious  impulse  (■(«/•/ ««(vvt./'frm(  sis  attracting  from  eomfortalilo 
homes  to  nn  almost  desert  siiore.'  Se\eral  hundred  Mormons  left  Swaiiswi 
in  Fel».  1849  for  (  al.  Planr  Time.%  Oct.  \:i,  1849.  Concerning  the  Fivmli 
nii;iratiiin,  see  .!?.  /■'.  Pirni/inii',  Nov.  'J7,  18.'>0;  ('(d.  Courier,  Nov.  2S,  Di,  .  S, 
1S.")0.  Many  l)anislied  army  ofiicers  came.  Hungarian  exiles  in  Iowa  [no- 
posed  to  come  in  bS.'K).  S.  J).  An/i.,  307;  J'ofi/iiesian,  vii.  \'M. 

'■"Au  English  steamer  arrived  from  Ca'ilon  direct  as  early  as  Oct.  ls+0. 
On  Feb.  1,  1849,  tlierc  were  64  Chinamen  in  Cal.,  ami  bv  .Jan.  J,  IS.'>(1,  the 
number  liad  swollen  to  7!M,  and  was  rapiilly  rising,  till  it  passed  4,(HK)  b>  tlu' 
end  of  18,V>.  AllaCiiL,  May  10,  IS.VJ;  Wii/lains'  Si'i/.,  I'2.  In  /{roolc^'  Ari>. 
Slal.,  llj,  the  number  for  lS49-oO  is  reduced  to  770  by  their  consul. 


FROM  r  AR  AWAY. 


1'25 


cntitlr.I 
on  IVoiii 
uiug    ti» 

t)\V  iVnlii 

iliiriin«l, 
ixrowiii''" 
h,  to  the 
ito    in  a 

1S4;»  IK. 

(I  iiiiniiii,' 
.11  Ji;^'|H'i'''- 
•as  tin '10 

lUO    ^■•<  ill  10 

'  affected 
"With  so 
isition,  >t> 
ulings  in 
list  tlioir 
fliscovfiy 
bv  \vav 
la,  went 


ry  (jiu'.-*tiiiii. 
oh  fiial'li  'I 
tiistenliiiLi,  ^" 


111 


hdUilliihiis, 
IJretiigiir.  I'll 
doit  liirii;'- 
,/r.S  J-Vli.   1. 

ouro  at  t  li- 

ig  sun  "^  II 

lis  yi'iii-,  I"  ■ 

crniiiiiy,  mil 

otliol'iiiti'l 

thofnnnir.  is 

Cdiiifortiil'li' 

oft  .S\v;nisij:i 

tlie  iMiiuli 

•2S,  l)i-..  :f. 

u  Iowa  piD- 


Bis  Oct.  1849. 
I,  18.')0.  tilt- 
4,(KM»l.y  till- 
Uroolc*'  Ari>- 


ir 


tlie  news,  and  for  a  time  even  the  government  lottcr- 
i(  -  were  forgotton.-*  And  the  gold  offered  by  ship- 
iiia-Ur.s  to  the  merchants  of  the  Asiatic  coast  raised 
still  Iii<'-her  the  fever  in  the  veins  of  both  natives  and 
Knulis'h.^ 

X(»t  less  affected  were  the  inhabitants  of  the  Mar- 
(luesas  I.^lands.  Those  of  the  French  colony  who 
wvrr  free  made  immediate  dejiarture,  and  were  (|uickly 
followed  by  the  military,  leaving  the  governor  alone 
to  icjtrusunt  the  government.  On  reaching  Australia 
tlir  news  was  eagerly  circulated  and  embellished  by 
.shiji-iiiasters.  The  streets  of  the  chief  cities  were 
liliHiirdeHl,  "Gold!  Gold!  in  California!"  and  soon  it 
hocame  difficult  tos  cure  berths  on  departing  vessels.^^ 
And  so  ill  Peru  aiui  Chile,  where  the  California  reve- 
l.itioii  was  unfohled  as  early  as  September  1848  by 
CoImiu'I  Mason's  njessenger,  on  his  way  to  Washing- 
ton, bringing  a  large  influx  in  advance  of  tho  d*;niinant 
Tiiited  States  emigration.^^  Such  were  the  world 
(Uiients  evoked  by  the  ripple  at  Colonia. 

■'/antwo'f<,  Ilist.  Mrx.,  X.  1141.  Says  Coleman,  The  Hound  Trip,  28, 
wiiii  lijippeiied  to  l»e  at  Manila  in  the  spring  ot  1X48  when  tlie  llhone.  arrived 
fniiii  S.  V.y  'She  brought  tho  news  of  tho  gold  discoveries,  and  tired  tlie  cidoiiy 
with  the  same  iiitoiiso  desire  that  inflamed  tiie  Spaniards  of  tlie  Itith  century.' 

2'  l.ii'se  was  ahout  to  sail  for  Manila  in  March,  and  from  there  take  in  a 
car:;i>  uf  lioe  for  IJanton.  Shcrmnn'fi  Mini.,  i.  G.j. 

''  ll'tiri/'n  /'/'.<  ami  Doiriix,  9"2-.3,  and  Larkiii'x  Doct,  MS.,  vii.  80.  'Kight 
VLfsiis  lia\e  loft  tliat  hot-ljed  of  roguery — Sidney,'  I'larer  Tinii-s,  June  2, 
bl'.l.  and  witii  thciu  came  a  mass  of  delectable  'Sidney  coves.'  The  presa 
Hiir.'lit  naturally  to  counteract  tiio  excitement  and  make  the  moat  of  sonie 
lioal  gold  finds.   Soe  Milboiirne  lltrabl,  Feb.  6,  7,  10,  1849. 

'"  \  o.-si  U  sont  to  Valparaiso  for  flour  brought  back  large  numbers  to  Cal. 
rn,iliii'<.Si'tf.,  MS..  7;  King'sRejit,  in  If.  S.  Gov.  Dock,  .SIstcong.  1st  seas.,  M. 
K\  I  too.  .V.»,  'US.  Tiie  arrival  of  the  Lamhinjccitna  of  Colombia  witli  gold-dust 
oaiisiil  no  small  exoiteiuent  in  Payta,  and  the  news  of  tiio  diaoovory  soon 
!-pi-aii;  on  the  1.1th  of  .January,  1849,  whe"  the 'Vt'/'/br^ia arrived  at  Panaiini, 
l^!lt!  iiail  eoiiie  7")  Peruvians  on  hoard.  Williij'uPvr.  Mini.,  M.S.,  (50.  'It  is 
ii|iunoil  hoio  that  California  is  all  gold,'  writes  Athorton  from  Valparaiso, 
Si].t.  lOtii,  to  Lai  kin.  'Probably  a  little  glitter  has  blinded  tlioiii.  'i"he 
f;  ilil  iii>t  nooivod  por  brig  J.  li.  S.  oold  for  2'2  roales  per  castellano  of  '21  (|ui- 
1  itis  tiiio,  tliid  having  exceeiled  tho  standard  about  1 1  quilatea,  nctteil  'I'A  realoa 
I'lr  iMstollano,  being  iif'arly  $17.')0  per  ounce.'  Liirkiii'n  l)nr»,  MS.,  vi.  17,S. 
Ill  AiiL'.  Larkin  entered  into  partnership  with  .lob  F.  Dye,  who  alnrnt  the 
iiiiilillo  of  Sipt.  sailed  with  the  Bclioouer  Mary  down  the  Mexican  coast,  tak* 
iiig  "  itii  him  placer  gold. 


CHAPTER  YIII. 


liiill 

I 

■-i; 

X 

I 


THE   VOYAGE   BY    OCEAN 

1848-1849. 

MonERx  Argonauts — Pacific  Mail  Steamship  Company — Estahlishmkxt 
(IF  THE  Mail  Line  from  New  Yokk  via  Panama  to  Ork(;()n     Sail 

INU    OF  THE   FlKST   STEAMERS— SaX    FrANCISCO   MaUE  THE   TeKMIM  >  - 

The  Panama.  Transit— The  Fikst  Risk  of  CIolo-seekkks— I>i-\i 

POINTMENTS   AT    pANAMA — SrFIERINGS   OS    THE    VoVAGE — ARKIVAI,^  nf 

Notable  Men  by  the  First  Steamship, 

SiNCK  the  voyage  of  the  Argonauts  there  had  Ir'oii 
no  such  searcli  for  a  golden  Heece  as  this  wliieh  imw 
c'ouiniandod  tlie  attentic^n  of  the  world.     And  as  tlie 
adventures  of  Jason's  crew  were  the  first  of  the  kind 
of  whieh  we  have  any  record,  so  the  present  ini[)etiit>us 
move  was  destined  to  be  the  last.     Our  planet  lias 
become  reduced  to  a  oneness,  every  part  being  daily 
known  io  the  inhabitants  of  every  other  part.     There 
is  no  longer  a  far-away  earth's  end  where  lies  Colchis 
close-girded  by  the  all-infolding  ocean.     The  cour^^c  of 
our  latter-day  gold-tieece    seekers  was  much  loiiuvr  ; 
than    Jason's    anti[)odal   voyage;  indeed,  it  was   the  j 
longest    possible    to    be    performed    on    this   planet,  * 
leadinj;   as   it   did    through    a  wide    range    of  hinel-i  [ 
and    climes,  from  snow-clad    shores  into  tropic   uiti-  ^ 
tudcs,  and  onward  throuofh  antarctic  dreariness  into  ; 
spring   and   summer   lands.      In   the    adventures  dt 
tlio  new  Argonauts  the  Syniplegades  reaiipearcd  in  ; 
the  gloomy  clefts  of  Magellan  Strait;  many  a  Tipliys 
relaxes  the  helm,  and  many  dragons'  teeth  are  sown. 
Even  the  ills  and  dangers  that  beset  Ulysses'  travels, 
in  sensual  circean  appetites,  lotus-eating  indulgence, 

(120) 


1 


THE  ARGONAUTS. 


127 


rABUSllMKNT 

lK<ii>N    -  S\ll.- 

TEKMlNt  >- 

«KKS-1>I>M'- 

Akuivai.>  "f 


had  \)vin\ 
i-hicli  n"\\' 
Lnd  as  the 
^'  tlie  l^liul 
,inpetu*>us  i 
anet  lias  ^ 

in*'"  (liii'V   f 
There  I 
los  Coh-his  ' 
courst^'  ot 
eh  l<)i>i;vr 
was   tlii- 

is    phUK't, 

of  hiiul-i 

•opic    hiti- 

iness  iiit" 

uturi's  it 

fpoarcd  iu 

'  a  Tiphy^ 

aro  s<»\vii' 

)S'  tVilVi'lN 


Culvpso  grottos  and  sirens,  may  be  added  to  the  list 
\\itiit»ut  lilling  it. 

"  The  wise  man  knows  notliing  worth  worsliippiiig 
except  wealth,"  said  the  Cyclops  to  Ulysses,  while 
pit'parini^  to  eat  him,  and  it  appears  that  as  many 
liold  the  same  faith  now  as  in  Homeric  times.  At 
iiii^ht  our  Argonauts  dream  of  gold;  the  morning  sun 
rises  golden-hued  to  saffron  all  nature.  Golil  floats  in 
their  bacon  breakfast  and  bean  diimer — which  is  the 
kind  of  fare  their  gods  generally  provide  for  them; 
and  throughout  the  l)edraggled  remnant  of  their  years 
thrv  go  about  like  men  demented,  walking  the  earth 
as  if  bitten  by  gold-bugs  and  their  blood  thereby  in- 
fected by  the  poison;  fingering,  kicking,  and  biting 
everything  that  by  any  possibility  may  prove  to  be 
oold.  They  are  no  less  victims  of  their  infatuation 
tliaii  was  Hvlas,  or  Ethan  Brand,  who  sacrificed  his 
liumanity  to  seek  the  unpardonable  sin.  Each  has 
liis  castle  in  Spain,  and  the  way  to  it  lies  through  the 
(Jdhleii  Gate,  into  the  Valley  of  California. 

The  migration  was  greatly  facilitated  by  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  Pacific  Mail  Steamship  Company 
just  l>efore  the  gold  discovery,  encouraged  by  the 
anticipation  of  new  interests  on  the  Pacific  coast  ter- 
ritory.^    Congress  fully  appreciated   the  importance 

'One  T.  M.  Shively,  postmaster  at  Astoria,  Oregon,  while  on  a  visit  to 
Wa.sliiiii;t(>n  ill  IS4."),  is  sjiid  to  have  heeii  tlie  first  to  call  the  attention  of  the 
r.  S.  j,'i)vt  to  the  atlvisaltility  of  establishing  a  line  of  niail-ste.iniers  liotwetn 
l'aii,iiii;i  and  Astoria.  His  snggestion  does  not  seem  to  have  hail  iiiiu-h 
wtiu'lit,  however.  Later  in  the  same  year  the  threatening  attitude  of  (ireat 
lliitiiiii  ill  the  north-west  caused  President  Polk  tf)  lay  before  congress  a  plan 
fur  rapiilly  increasing  the  poptdati(m  of  Oregon  by  emigration  via  the  Isthiniis, 
iisiiiij  sailing  vessels.  J.  M.  Wootlward,  a  shipping  merciiant  of  New  York, 
ashistiMl  ill  preparing  details  for  the  jdan.  His  investigations  lecl  him  to 
III  lit- ve  that  a  line  of  mail-steamers  might  profitably  be  established  liet\ve<'n 
ruiiauiii  and  Oregon,  and  a  numl)er  of  merchants  and  capitalists  were  readily 
iiiduci'il  to  join  in  forming  a  private  company.  The  most  complete  history  of 
tlio  Pac.  Mail  S.  S.  Co.  during  the  first  Hve  years  of  its  existence  is  contained 
ill  the  following  government  document:  Maih.  liejiorU  of  the  Sivr^iiirij  i>/  the 
yiiri/  mill  ihf  I'ottmnil) r-ijiiie  til,  C'oiiimHiiirntiii)/,  in  I'ompUaiiri-  irith  ft  Hi  0- 
hil'hiii  II f  the  Si'iinti',  Iiiforinntion  in  Hi'lution  to  the  Contrnrtu  for  the  J'raii/i- 
liiiii'iliiiii  0/  the  M.iiU  by  Steamships  hitmen  Sew  York  anil  Calij'oniiit,  Mareh 
~.i,  IS.'ij,  .•{•Jd  cong.  1st  sess.,  Sen.  Ex.  Poc.  flO.  An  excellent  chapter  (>n 
tlio  foniiatioii  of  the  company  is  also  to  be  found  in  firiit  Sleamnhip  Pioiieerx, 
17-33;  see  also  Larkiu's  hoc.,  MS.,  vi.  173. 


:l,t|' 


128 


THE  VOYAGE  BY  OCEAN. 


of  rapiil  coniiuunication  with  that  section,  and  liy 
virtue  of  an  act  passed  on  tlje  ,3d  of  March,  1847,  the 
jsecretary  of  the  navy  advertised  for  bids  to  carry  the 
United  States  mails  by  one  line  of  stcianiei.s  betwieii 
Xew  York  and  Chagres,  and  by  another  line  between 
Panama  and  Astoria.  The  contract  for  the  Atlantic 
side  called  for  five  steamships  of  1,500  tons  burden 
each,  all  stronj^ly  constructed  and  easily  convert! hlo 
into  war  steamers,  for  which  })urpose  the  government 
might  at  any  time  purchase  them  by  appraisement. 
Their  route  was  to  be  ''from  New  York  to  New  Oi- 
lcans twice  a  month  and  back,  touching  at  Charles- 
ton, if  practicable,  Savannah,  and  Habana;  and  from 
Habana  to  Chagres  and  back  twice  a  month."  For 
the  Pacific  line  only  three  vessels  were  required,  on 
similar  terms,  and  these  of  a  smaller  size,  two  of  not 
less  than  1,000,  and  the  other  of  GOO,  tons  burdiii. 
These  were  to  carry  the  mail  "from  Panama  to  As- 
toria, or  to  such  other  port  as  the  secretary  of  the 
navy  may  select,  in  the  territory  of  Oregon,  once  a 
month  each  wav,  so  as  to  connect  with  the  mail  from 
Habana  to  Chagres  across  the  Isthmus." 

The  contract  for  the  Atlantic  side  was  awarded  on 
the  20th  of  April,  1847,  to  Albert  G.  Sloo,  who  on  the 
17th  of  August  transferred  it  to  George  Law,  M.  0. 
Roberts,  and  B.  R.  Mcllvaine  of  New  York.  The 
amiual  compensation  allowed  by  the  government  was 
i?290,000;  the  first  two  ships  were  to  be  comi)lettil 
by  the  first  of  October,  1848.  The  contract  for  the 
l^icific  side  was  given  to  a  speculator  named  Arnold 
Harris,  and  by  him  assigned  to  William  H.  As|)iii- 
wall,  the  annual  subsidy  for  ten  years  being  $199,000.' 

'  Woodwaril  bid  §300,000,  with  side-wheol  steamera,  and  one  of  liis  asso- 
ciiitus  iiropoaed  to  do  the  work  for  half  that  sum  with  propellers.  Tlie  lust 
clier  Wiis  accepted,  but  the  bidder  withdrew,  and  Harris  received  the  awanl, 
after  arranging  to  assign  it  to  Woodward,  it  is  claiined.  He  looked  roiuul 
for  a  better  bargain,  however,  and  on  Nov.  19,  1847,  the  contract  wns  tntiis- 
fc'rred  to  Aspinwall,  despite  the  protests  of  Woodward,  who  '  was  beaten 
iu  a  long  and  expensive  series  of  litigations.'  Firnt  Sfeamsfiip  Pioneer.-',  '-'(i. 
Tlie  same  authority  states  that  Aspinwall  was  induced  to  take  the  coutruet 
by  Armtitrong,  a  relative  of  Harris,  aud  U.  S.  consul  at  Liverpool, 


I  <i!  I'  yi 


PACIFIC  MAIL  STEAMSHIP  COMPANY. 


129 


ind  l)y 
147,  the 
ii'ry  the 

JCtWCtU 

Atlantic 
bunluu 
Acrtlblo 
L'rnuR'iit 
iseuic'iit. 
s\nv  (h- 
Cluu'Ks- 
Liid  from 
1."     Fov 
aired,  on 
o  of  not 
bunU'ii. 
id  to  As- 
?y  of  the 
[1,  once  a 
mil  from 

arded  on 
lo  on  the 
X,  M.  0. 

'k.  The 
iient  ^vas 
)nii)letcd 
t  for  tlio 
I  Arnold 
Aspin- 
99,000.- 


1  of  his  as^so- 

IS.     The  last 

ll  the  uwanl, 

Jjokeil  round 

It  wns  liaiis- 

'  was  bt'iiten 

^ioneer.''.  -•»• 

the  contract 


0\vin<T  to  the  greater  prominence  meanwhile  acquired 
bv  California,  the  terminus  for  this  line  was  placed  at 
San  Francisco,  whence  Oregon  mails  were  to  be  trans- 
mitted by  sailing  vessels.^ 

Through  Aspin wall's  exertions,  the  Pacific  Mail 
Steamship  Company  was  incorporated  on  the  1 2th  of 
April,  1848,  with  a  capital  stock  of  $500,000.''  The 
three  side-wheel  steamers  called  for  by  the  contract 
were  built  with  despatch,  but  at  the  same  time  with 
care  and  of  the  best  materials,  as  was  shown  by  their 
long  service. 

On  October  6,  1848,  the  first  of  these  vessels,  the 
California,  sailed  from  New  York,  and  was  followed 
in  the  two  succeeding  months  by  the  Oregon  and  the 
PananuL"  When  the  California  left  New  York  the 
discovery  of  gold  was  known  in  the  States  oidy  by  un- 
confirmed runiors,  which  had  attracted  little  attention, 
.so  that  she  carried  no  passengers  for  California.^     On 

^ '  To  tl»e  mouth  of  the  Kaluinct  river,  in  lieu  of  Astoria,  with  the  reserved 
light  of  the  navy  departinent  to  require  the  steamers  to  go  to  Astoria,  the 
stniits  of  Kuca,  or  any  other  point  to  be  selected  on  tlie  coast  of  Oregon.  In 
coiisiilcration  of  which  the  steamers  are  to  toucli,  free  of  charge,  at  tiie  three 
points  occupied  hy  the  U.  8.  squadron,  or  at  such  ports  on  the  west  coast, 
south  of  Oregon,  as  may  be  required  by  tlie  navy  dept.'  ModiKcation  of 
.fuiic  10,  IS48.  In  IS50  steam  connection  was  required  with  Oregon.  U.  S. 
Guv.  Doc,  ubi  sup.,  p.  5-6,  30;  see  also  llii>t.  Orfijon,  i.,  this  series. 

MJardiner  Howland,  Heury  Chauncey,  and  William  H.  Aspinwall  were 
tlie  inuor[>orators,  and  the  last  mentioned  was  elected  the  first  president.  In 
!«.■)()  tlie  capital  stock  was  raised  to  f'2, 000,000,  in  18i).S  to  $4,000,000,  in  ISfi.'j 
to  .^10,000,000,  in  1800  to  $'20,000,000,  and  in  1872  it  was  reduced  to  $10,- 
000,000. 

"Their  measurements  were  l,0.'50,  1,099,  and  1,087  tons  respectively.  The 
Patinmd  .should  have  been  second,  but  was  delaycil.  The  Atlantic  company 
lirovt'd  less  pronq)t.  For  several  years  they  provided  only  three  accepted 
steiiniers,  (tidnjifi,  Ohio,  and  lUlnoU,  and  the  inferior  an<l  temporary  FcUi-on, 
iicsides  other  aid;  yet  full  subsidy  was  allowed.  Tiie  captains  were  to  be 
L'.  S.  naval  othcers,  not  below  the  grade  of  lieut,  each  assisted  by  four  passed 
niiiLshipninn.   U.  S.  Got:  JJdc,  ubi  sup. 

*And  only  four  or  five  for  way-ports.  Rio  de  .Janeiro  was  reached  Nov. 
2(1,  and  the  stiaits  of  Magellan  were  safely  threaded  l)etween  Dec  7th  and 
l'2tli.  Tlie  Cnli/oniia  was  the  third  steamship  to  pass  through  them,  the  pre- 
vious ones  being,  in  1840,  the  /Vr«  and  the  Chili,  each  of  700  tons,  built 
by  an  Knglish  company  for  tratle  l)etween  the  west  coa<it  of  South  America 
and  Kiijjlunil.  Under  the  command  of  Williani  Wheelwright  they  made  the 
passaije  of  the  straits  in  thirty  hours  sailing  time.  According  to  the  journal 
kept  hy  A.  B.  Stout,  the  Cal\f'ornia^M  sailing  time  in  the. straits  was  4U  hours, 
anil  the  time  lost  in  anchoring  during  fogs  and  high  winds  108  hours.  First 
Stiaiiishi/t  Pioneers,  111-12.  Ihis  journal  is,  I  lielieve,  the  <mly  account  ex- 
taut  of  the  Ctilijhrnia'x  voyage  aa  far  as  Panama.  A  stoppage  of  50  hours 
Hist.  Cai,.,  Vol.  VI.    » 


130 


THE  VOYAGE  BY  OCEAN. 


I."  J! 


.  i  ' 


reaching  Callao,  December  29th,  the  gold  fever  was 
eiicouiitored,  and  great  was  tlie  rush  for  berths,  al- 
thoui>h  but  fifty  couhl  be  iirovided  with  state-:  ;h)Iiis, 
owing  to  tiie  understanding  at  New  York  tliat  tlie 
steamer  shouUl  take  no  passengers  before  reaehiiin 
Pananui.''  It  was  well  for  the  Isthnms  of  Panama, 
which  fairly  swarmed  with  gold-seekers,  some  l,.o()0 
in  nundier,  all  clamorous  for,  and  many  of  them  (in- 
titled  to,  a  passage  on  the  California.^ 

This  mass  of  humanity  had  been  emptied  from  the 
fleet  of  sailing  and  steam  vessels  despatched  during  the 
nine  i)recedinj::  weeks  for  the  mouth  of  the  Chaiiics 
River,  which  was  then  the  north-side  harbor  for  the 
Isthmus.  Hence  the  peo[)le  proceeded  up  the  river 
to  Cruces  in  bomjos,  or  dug-outs,  poled  by  naked  ne- 
groes, as  lazy  and  vicious  as  they  were  stalwart." 
Owing  to  the  heavy  rains  which  added  to  the  discom- 
fort and  danger,  the  eagerness  to  proceed  was  great, 
and  the  means  of  conveyance  proved  wholly  inadecpiate 
to  the  sudden  and  enormous  inHux,  the  natives  being, 
moreover',  alarmed  at  first  by  the  invasion.     The  iii- 

waa  made  at  Valparafso,  and  on  the  illuesa  of  the  coniinander,  Cleavelaiul 
Forbes,  Jolin  Maraliall,  then  connnanding  a  ship  en  route  for  China,  was  in- 
duced to  act  as  Hrst  otiicer  in  lieu  of  I^uryee,  wlio  was  apiM>intcd  to  the  com- 
mand of  Marsliall's  siiip.  /(/., '2{(-30,  lis.     A  few  days  later  Forbes  resij;iic(l. 

Firnt  Sii'diiiMf)  Pioiieern,  Eillted  fiy  a  Commiltec  of  the  Anxociatiuii,  is  tlie 
title  of  a  (juarto  of  WM  pages,  printed  in  San  Francisco  for  the  'Joth  anni- 
versary of  the  association  in  1874.  From  the  profuse  puH'ery  witii  wiiich  the 
volume  opens,  the  reader  is  led  to  suspect  that  the  printing,  picture,  ami  wine 
bills  of  tile  society  were  not  large  tiiat  year.  Following  tliis  is  a  chajiter 
entitled  'Steam  Navigation  in  the  Pacific,'  conspicuous  only  for  the  al)siiia' 
of  information  or  ideas.  Chapter  II.  on  the  1'.  M.  S.  S.  Co.  is  better,  aii<l  the 
occurrences  of  the  voyage  by  the  passengers  on  the  first  steamsiiip  to  Cal.,  nf 
whicli  tlie  main  part  of  the  book  is  composed,  no  less  than  tiie  biograi)liical 
notices  towanl  the  end,  are  interesting  and  valuable. 

'  At  I'ay ta,  accordingly,  where  eijual  excitement  prevailed,  no  more  piis- 
senger's  appear  to  have  been  taken. 

"Six  sailing  vessels  and  two  steamers  are  n)entione<l  among  recent  ai'iivals 
with  passengers  from  tiie  U.  S.  See  I'anamd  Star,  Feb.  '24,  1849;  I'wihh' 
Arch.,  .'),  21-4;  IMhiisoii'k  Stat.,  MS.,  23-4. 

"The  boats  were  usually  from  1.5  to  25  feet  long,  dug  from  a  single  niaiiog- 
any  log,  provided  with  palm-leaf  awning,  antl  poled  by  4  or  6  men  at  tlie 
average  rate  of  a  mile  an  hour.  Often  the  only  shred  of  clothing  worn  by  the 
captain  was  a  straw  hat.  Warreti^s  Dust  and  Foam,  Xit'i-Q;  Hetishoiv's  Eirni*, 
MS.,  1;  Greijorifx  tlmle,  1-9.  A  small  steamer,  Ornit,  had  been  placcil  (iii 
the  river,  but  could  proceed  only  a  short  distance,  and  the  expense  of  tiansit, 
estimated  at  $10  or  %\b,  rose  to  .?.')0  and  more.  Protests  in  Paiiumd  ^itur. 
Feb.  24,  1849;  Dunbar's  Romance,  55-89. 


THE  ISTHMUS  TRANSIT. 


131 


er  was 
:hs,  iil- 

lat  the 
tachiiiii,' 
aiiuiiiii, 
e  1,000 
leui  eii- 

•<>m  the 
vwj;  the 

for  the 
he  river 
,ke(l  110- 
DaUvarl.' 

(lisooiii- 
is  «;r(.'iit, 
i(lo([u;vto 
|3S  being, 

The  iu- 

Cleavelaiul 
lina,  was  in- 
to tlie  i;(iiii- 
K's  resijiiR'd. 
jaliuii,  is  lli>: 
i  'i.')th  aimi 
111  wliii-li  the 
re,  aixl  wiiif 
is  a  cliupU'i- 
the  alisi'Moe 
[ter.  ami  llie 
p  to  t;al.,  "f 
iiognii>liii;al 

more  piw- 

bent  anivals 

149;    I'iull'fl- 

igle  iimlwj,'- 
■inuii  at  tlic 
Iworn  by  tlie 

|l  pUlceit  I'll 
le  of  transit, 
Vnainu  >!>'""■• 


experience  and  imprudent  indulgences  of  the  new- 
comers ijave  full  scope  to  the  malarial  germs  in  the 
swiiiiips  around.  Cholera  broke  out  in  a  malignant 
III,  following  the  hurrying  crowds  up  the  river,  and 


tol 


striking  down  victims  by  the  score.  Such  was  the 
(Iciith-rate  at  Cruces,  the  head  of  navigation,  that  the 
second  current  of  emigrants  stoj)ped  at  Gorgona  in 


Parallm  Sucla  *  U , 


0^      ^*#  * 


Isthmus  Route. 


artVi<j^ht,  thence  to  hasten  away  from  the  smittcTi  ;  I  er 
Again  they  were  checked  by  the  scarcity 


Cdtirst' 


of  )>uck-animals,  by  which  the  overland  transit  was 

"'Heferences  to  the  mifl'ering  victims,  and  causes,  in  Ronrh'n  Sfat.,  MS., 
1:  FiM  Sli'timnhip  I'ioiiiprs,  84-5;  Fremoiit'n  Anifr.  Trnrel,  G6-8;  SuUoh'm 
K'lrhj  Kx/H,:,  M8..  1;  llawley'a  Stat.,  MS.,  2-3;  NeaWn  Stat.,  MS.,  22-4; 
Adratt.  Cuptain'n  lf'(/V,  18. 


ill'  Ul 


132 


TIIK  VOYAOK  BY  OC'KAN 


!    . 


t.      : 


acconn»lishe(l.  Numbora  abandoned  tlioirluQ^'  mid 
merchandise,  or  left  them  to  tlie  i-are  of  a^,  nts  to 
be  irretrievably  lost  in  the  confusion,  and  hurried  to 
Paiuinid  on  foot.  From  Cruces  led  an  ancient  pavtd 
trail,  now  dilapidated  and  rendered  dungeroun  aloii:; 
many  of  the  step-cut  descents  and  hill-side  shelvi's. 
Fioni  (jrorgona  the  passenj^er  had  to  make  his  way  us 
best  he  could." 

Panan)a  was  a  place  of  special  attraction  to  tluso 
wayfarcirs,  as  the  oldest  European  city  on  the  Aintti- 
can  continent,"  and  for  centuries  the  great  entroitut 
for  Spanisli  trade  with  Pacific  South  America  and  tho 
Orient,  a  position  which  also  drew  upon  it  much  mistiy 
in  the  form  of  piratic  onslaughts  v\ith  sword  an<l  torch. 
With  the  decline  of  Iberian  supremacy  it  fell  into 
lethargy,  to  be  roused  to  fresh  activity  by  the  new 
current  of  transit.  It  lies  conspicuous,  before  sea  or 
mountain  approach,  upon  its  tiny  peninsula  which  juts 
into  tile  calm  bay  dotted  with  leafy  isles.  The  houses 
rise  as  a  rule  to  the  dignity  of  two  stories  '^f  stone  or 
adobe,  with  long  lines  of  balconies  and  s'  tring  ve- 
randas, dingy  and  sleepy  of  aspect,  and  ^  jd  liciv 
and  there  by  tile-roofed  towers,  guarding  within  spas- 
modic bells,  marked  without  by  time-encroachiii;,' 
mosses  and  creepers.  Along  the  shady  streets  louiin' 
a  bizarre  mixture  of  every  conceivable  race:  Africans 
shining  in  unconstrained  simplicity  of  nature;  bronzed 
aborigines  in  tangled  hair  and  gaudy  shreds;  wouuu 
of  the  people  in  red  and  yellow;  wonien  of  the  upjxr 
class  in  dazzling  white  or  sombre  black;  caballeros  in 
broad-rinmied  Panamdhats  and  white  pantaloons,  and 
now  and  then  the  broad  Spanish  cloak  beside  the  veil- 
ing mantilla;  .while  foreigners  of  the  blond  tyi)c  in 
slouched  hats  and  rough  garb  stalk  everywhere,  ogling 
and  peering. 

"Later  rose  frequent  bamboo  stations  and  villages,  with  Vunks  and  liiiiu- 
mocks,  and  vilo  licjuors.  An  earlier  account  of  the  route  is  ;{iven  in  Molm  ii'i 
TraneU,  409-13.     Little,  Stat.,  MS.,  1-4  hml  brought  supplies  for  two  ji.iis. 

''''The  oldest  standing  city,  if  we  count  from  the  time  of  its  fouudatiuu  on 
an  adjoining  site. 


AT  PANAMA. 


133 


niid 

iits  l(» 

ried  to 

;  ^)av('(l 

■ilielvi's. 

NVUV  ilS 

to  tluse 
AiiK'ri- 
jntn'|M)t 
aiul  thf 
I  misery 
1(1  torch. 
fell   into 
tlie  mw 
■0  sea  or 
liit'h  juts 
10  houses 
stout'  or 
trin*5  vi- 
jtl  luiiv 
lin  sjias- 
iroacluii'j," 
,s  louuu'.' 
lAiViciuis 
bron/til 

AVOllHU 
|io  UplMf 
^Uoros  iu 
)ous,  ami 
Itbc  voil- 

ty[ie  in 
re,  ogling 


^s  and  liii'i;- 
I  ill  Muliii  II  '^ 
Ir  two  ) I'ius. 
lumlatiuii  Oil 


"? 


Tho  nunibor  and  strength  of  the  einij^'ranis,  anned 
and  iv.«ohitt',  placed  the  town  practieally  in  their  imnds; 
l.iit  yncMJ  order  prevailed,  the  few  unruly  sjiirits  rou.sed 
li\  tlic  cup  hciii}^  jronerally  controlled  hy  their  e»»ni- 
radis."  Compelled  by  lack  of  vessels  to  wait,  they 
.settled  down  iiitoeoninmnities,  which  (juickly  imparted 
a  bustlinj;  air  to  the  [dace,  as  o^ay  as  deferred  hope, 
dawniuLf  misery,  arul  lurkinj)^  epidemics  permitted; 
with  American  hotels,  flaring  business  sign.s,  tlrinking- 
sajouns  alive  with  ili.scordant  song  and  revelling,"  and 
with  the  characteristic  newspa[)er,  the  Punnind  Sfttr, 
tht  n  founded  and  still  surviving  as  the  most  impor- 
tant journal  of  Central  Ameriea.^^ 

Tiio  suspense  of  the  Argonauts  was  relieved  on  the 
:50th  of  January,  184J),  by  the  arrival  of  the  Califor- 
iiiii,^''  to  be  as  (juiekly  renewed,  since  with  accommo- 
dation for  little  over  100  persons,  the  steamer  could 
liot  properly  [)rovide  even  for  those  to  whom  through- 
tickets  had  been  sold,  much  less  tor  the  crowd  strug- 
•  iliii''  to  end)ark.  After  nmch  trouble  with  the  exas- 
jierated  and  now  frantic  men,  over  400  wer»)  received 

o'l'liif  utteiiii>t  of  local  nuthoriticH  at  arrest  was  generally  fni.-ttnitcd  by 
iirincij  t,ii>ui;li  liiirinli-ss  bluster,  as  Hawley,  Ohsvrv.,  M.S.,  ■_'  .'!,  nlatts. 
Nraily  lialf  the  ]i<>|iiilati(in  was  foreign  by  Februaiy  1849,  two  tliiiil.-i  of  this 
lieii^'  Aiiiei  ieuii.     Tlie  niinilKT  rose  as  liigli  as  .'{,(H)0  iluriiiu;  tlie  year. 

".\s  (leseriix'il  in  tiio  Kldorwhi,  i.  2>i-7,  of  Taylor,  who  was  liiiii.telf  an 
AiUDiiaut;  in -!/'(>.•»"'■'■  humorous /.,'.(7«'rtCH('r.s,  MS.,  1-10;  liijdii^n  Jnilnt k  (iml 
<■,•;,„.,  7S. '.I;  l.iltU'i  S-'i/.,  MS.,  1-,1;  lioach'ti  Furls,  MS.,  l'.  Wa.siiin;,'toa'>* 
liirtlul.iv  was  ci?lel>ratcil  witii  procession,  volleys,  and  concert.  Pdiiatini  Star, 
Kel).  •_>»■,  1S4'*. 

''  it  w:is  started  by  ,J.  B.  Bidleman  &  Co.  on  l-'eb.  24,  1849,  as  a  weekly.  :;t 
one  leal  per  copy;  ailvertiscnients  5>2  per  8(juare,  and  contained  notiees  of 
aiiivaU,  jirote.st,  local  incidents,  etc.;  printers,  Hunarie  k  iSoehnian.  'J'lio 
hiter  llinilil  was  incorjKtrated  and  adde<l  to  tiie  title.  A<l'iitioiial  delails  on 
I'iiiiaiiia  occurrences  in  /iV/v  rt'«  Ke(-l  atid  Sadillc,  l,")l-4;  IVllli'i/'ii  J'n:i.  Mi m., 
MS.,  of>-{\-2;  .!fA/-r"-,x>'/'.t  T-e/.,  MS.,  27;  Connor's  lyirli/  CtU.,  MS.,  l-'J;  Low's 
I'lisirr.,  MS.,  1.     .Sec  also  Jiiit.  Cent.  Am.,  iii.,  this  series. 

"^•Shc  had  been  three  weeks  longer  on  tlie  trip  than  was  expected,  owing 
ti  fiLis,  etc.  The  lirst  steamer  of  the  Atlantic  line,  the  provisional  Fulron, 
h.LiI  left  New  York  on  Dec.  Ist,  before  the  real  excitement  bei,'an,  with  the 
picsiileiit's  inessaL'e  of  Dec.  Jtli,  so  that  she  carried  comjjarativcly  few  ]),i.ssen- 
,i;ri-s  fnjin  there,  among  tiieni  four  clergymen  and  some  army  men.  An  aecount 
of  tlie  S'oyage  is  given  in  Firxt  ^learner  Pioneers,  4.1  et  secj.  .See  also  W'llley'a 
I'irs.  Mem.,  M.S.,  1-,%;  Williams'  Early  Duiis,  M.S.,  2  3,  botli  written  by  |W3- 
Kinj,'ors.  At  New  Orleans,  however,  Dec.  12t!i-KSth,  she  encoutiteied  tiic  gold 
fever  and  was  ipiickly  crowded  with  over  20()  jiersous,  (Jen.  I'ersifer  F.  Smith, 
t!iu  siie.ces-'or  of  (lov.  Mason,  embarking  with  liis  stutl".  Cliagiea  was  reached 
on  iiec.  2(ith.   U.  S.  Gov.  Dov.,  32d  cong.  Ist  sess..  Sen.  Doc.  50. 


134 


THE  VOYAGE  BY  OCEAN. 


!!'!•; 


^4  i 


on  board  to  find  room  as  best  they  could.  Many  a  one, 
glad  to  make  his  bed  in  a  coil  of  rope,  paid  a  higher  fare 
than  the  state-room  holder;  for  steerage  tickets  rose  to 
very  high  prices,  even,  it  is  said,  to  ^1,000  or  nu>*-e.'' 
Even  worse  was  the  scene  greeting  the  second 
steamer,  the  Oregon,  which  arrived  toward  the  middle 
of  March,**  for  by  tha*:  time  the  crowd  had  doubled. 
Again  a  struggle  for  tickets  at  any  price  and  under 
any  condition.  About  500  were  received,  all  chafing 
with  anxiety  lest  they  should  arrive  too  late  for  the 
gold  scramble,  and  prepared  to  sleep  in  the  rigging 
rather  than  niss  tlie  passage.**  And  so  with  the 
Panamd,  which  followed.** 

^'•LitUe'it  Stat.,  MS.,  1-4;  Henahaw,  Stat.,  MS.,  1,  says  the  agents  lixpil 
steerage  tickets  at  $1,000.  A  certain  uuinber  were  sold  by  lot,  with  iniich 
trickery.  Thej  also  attempted  to  exclude  tickets  sold  at  New  York  aftir  a 
certain  date,  but  were  awed  into  coinpliauce.  Loir'n  Sfitl.,  M.S. ;  JJeaiie's  Mf>., 
1;  Jioarh'n  Stat.,  MS.,  2.     Holders  of  tickets  weri^  ottered  heavy  sunm  fur 


then 


Maori 


■«  •  H-col 


MS.,  2.     For  arrangements  on  board,  see  Vandfiliilt. 


Mmrl.  Slut.,  MS.,  32-3.  Authorities  ditt«r  somewhat  as  to  the  nunihtT  ut 
jiassengers.  About  400,  say  the  Panama  Star,  Feb.  24,  1849;  Alln  ( 'ah.  I'tli. 
29,  1872;  Bulletin,  Feb.  28,  1865;  Oakland  Traiiscrii>t,  March  1,  1S73:  the 
Dak-laiid  Alameda  County  GuziUe,  M.ircli  8,  1873,  sjiys  440;  Cro.sby,  ^■'/'^, 
MS.,  iO-14,  has  a'x.iut  4.J0;  while  Stout,  in  liis  juiiiiiiii,  says  nearly  JiOO.  l;i 
Fii-Ht  SteaiiD'hip  Pioneers,  201-300,  a  brief  biographiciil  sketch  is  given  to  cicii 
of  the  following  imssengers  of  the  California  on  her  lirst  trip,  ii;any  of  w  Ihum 
have  subsequently  been  nu)re  or  less  identiKed  witli  the  interests  of  the  .state; 
II.  Whittell,  bom  in  Ireland  in  1812;  L.  Br(K)ke,  Maryland,  KS19;  A.  M.  \  an 
Nostrand,  N.  Y.,  1816;  De  WittC.  Thompson,  Mass.,  lS-.'(i;  S.  lialey,  N.  V  . 
181(5;  John  Kelley,  Scotland,  1818;  S.  Woodbridge,  Coi.u.,  1S13;  P.  Onl, 
Maryland,  1810;  J.  McUcgall;  A.  A.  Porter,  N,  Y.,  1824;  B.  F.  Hutttilield, 
N.  11.,  1817;  P.  Carter,  Scotland,  1808;  M.  Fallon,  Ireland,  ISl.");  W .  G. 
Davis,  Va,  1804t  C.  M.  Radcliff,  Scotland,  1.S18;  11.  W.  Heath,  Md,  ksii; 
Win  Van  Vorhees,  Tenu.,  1820;  W.  P.  Waters,  Wash.,  1).  C,  1S20;  R.  IJ.  Oni, 
Wash.,  '827;  S.  H.  Willcy,  N.  H  .  1821;  S.  F.  Blaadell,  N.  Y..  1  .24;  11  F. 
AViiliams,  Va,  1828;  0.  C.  Wheeler,  N.  Y.,  1810;  E.  L.  Morga-.,  Pa,  JSiMj 
R.  iM.  Price,  N.  Y.,  1818. 

'''A  delay  caused  by  the  temporary  disabling  of  the  Panamd,  which  shoiiltl 
have  been  the  second  steamer.  The  Orrijon  had  left  New  York  in  tlu'  luttor 
part  oi  Dec.  anil  made  a  quick  trip  without  halting  in  Magellan  Straits,  thniigh 
touching  at  Valparaiso,  Callao,  and  Payta.  H.  11.  Pearson  coiinnaii>ti'(l. 
Sutton,  Exfter.,  MS.,  1,  criticises  his  ability;  he  nearly  wrecked  tlie  vcsstj. 
Lit/le'M  Slut.,  MS.,  3,  agrees. 

"She  stayed  at  Panamd 'Slavzli  j3th-17th.  Am<nig  the  passengers  sur- 
viving in  California  in  1863  were  John  H.  llcdingtoi ,  Dr  McMillan,  A.  .1. 
McCiibe,  Mrs  Petit  and  daughter,  Thomas  E.  Lindeulierger,  John  McCoinli.  Kii- 
ward  Connor,  S.  H.  Broilie,  William  Carey  Jones,  Smyth  ('lark,  M.  S.  .Mmtiii, 
John  M.  Binisall,  Stephen  F.'anklin,  Major  Daniels,  F.  Vassiudt,  C  K.  litili, 
William  Cuinmings,  Mme.  Swift,  Mr  Tuttle,  .Jutlge  AMrich,  James  Tuliiii, 
Fielding  Brown,  James  Johnson,  Dr  Martin.  Some  of  these  had  come  l>y  tlie 
second  steamer  of  the  Atlantic  mail  line,  the  lMhmu«,  which  arrivnl  at 
Clmgrrs  Jan.  10th. 

'"Which  arrived  at  Panamii  in  the  early  {wrt  of  May,  leaving  on  the  18th. 


\  :I 


M 


VESSELS  IN  DEMAND. 


18fi 


As  one  chance  after  another  slipped  away,  there 
were  for  those  remaining  an  abundance  of  time  and 
food  for  reflection  over  the  frauds  perpetrated  upon 
them  by  villanous  ship-owners  and  agents,  to  say 
nothing  of  their  own  folly.  The  long  delay  sufficed 
to  melt  the  scanty  means  of  a  large  number,  prevent- 
ing them  from  taking  advantages  of  subsequent  op- 
pcirtunities;  and  so  to  many  this  isthmian  bar  to  the 
Indies  j)roved  a  barrier  as  insurmountable  as  to  the 
early  searchers  for  the  strait.  Fortunately  for  the  iiiass 
a  lew  .sailing  vessels  had  casually  arrived  at  Panamd, 
and  a  few  more  v/ere  called  from  adjoining  points; 
hut  these  were  quickly  bought  by  parties  or  filled 
with  nu.seellaneous  passengers,''  and  still  there  was  no 
lessening  of  the  crowd.     In  their  hunger  for  gold,  and 

TluTP  liiiil  \<een  a  reprehensible  sale  of  tickets  in  excess  of  what  these  steamers 
coiiUi  carry;  7()0nccoriling  toConnor,  iSVii^.,  MS.,  1.  Lots  were  drawn  for  steer- 
uan  (ilaces  by  the  hohlers  of  tickpts  on  paying  $100  extra.  I>.  I).  Porter,  siib- 
sfiHitiitly  rear  aclniirul,  conimamled,  succeeded  by  Uailuy.  Lo^k'hSIiU.,  MS.,  2; 
S.  F.  /iiilh'tiii,  June  4,  1800;  Alia  ( 'uL,  June  4,  ISO";  BiirnHt'ii  JiecoL,  MS.,  il 
40  2;  Dmitf's  Stat.,  MS.,  !-•_';  liariies'  Or.  and  Cal.,  MS.,  '20;  Merrill's  Stat., 
MS.,  I.  Among  tlie  passengers  of  the  Fanainil  who  subsequently  attained 
rlistiiiction  in  California  and  elsewhere,  I  Knd  mention  of  (jwin  and  VVeller, 
Ijotli  snl)se(iuently  U.  S.  senators  from  Cal.,  and  the  latter  also  gov.  of  the 
state;  M.  D.  I'orter,  afterward  adniiial;  generals  Emory,  Honker,  and  Mc- 
Kinstry  — to  use  their  later  titles;  'f.  Hutlcr  King,  Walter  Colton,  Jewett, 
8iil).'<iM|U('ntIy  mayor  of  Marysvilk,  and  Koland,  postmaster  of  Sacramento; 
Hall  .M  L'.-VUister,  Lieut  Derby,  humorist  under  the  nom  de  plume  of  'l'ha;uix;' 
Treaiuir,  Hriiismade,  Kerr,  Frey,  John  V.  Plume,  Harris,  1'.  A.  Alorse,  John 
Hrinsley,  Lafayette  Maynard,  H.  H  Li'-ingstone,  Alfred  De  Witt,  S.  C.  Gray, 
A.  Ciiliins,  and  H.  Heach.  There  were  live  or  six  women,  among  them  Mrs 
Koliert  Aiifu,  wife  quart.-gen.,  Mrs  Alfred  De  Witt,  Mrs  S.  C.  Gray  of 
Benicia,  and  Mrs  Hobson  from  V'aiparafso. 

-'  One  small  schooner  of  70  tous  was  otfercil  for  sale  in  28  shares  at  $.300 
a  share;  another  worthless  old  hulk  of  50  tons  was  offered  for  $(i,000.  False 
leprex'ntutions  ha*l  been  made  by  agents  and  captains  that  there  was  a  Brit- 
ish .steam  line  from  I'anani^,  and  etjually  false  a.ssurances  of  numerous  sailing 
vessels;  but,  the  passengers  by  the  ( 'rcxci'iif  City  found  only  one  brig  at  I'auaniA, 
and  .she  was  tilled.  Hawley,  Stn(.,  MS.,  2-.'},  charges  the  cai>tjun  of  this 
Hieamer  witii  drunkenness  and  abuse;  he  had  brought  a  stock  of  fancy  goods, 
wliic'li  lie  managed  to  get  forwarded  by  dividing  among  passengers  who  had 
less  lujigage  than  the  steamer  iii'es  allowed.  Among  vessels  leaving  after 
tlie  'nlii'oriiin,  tl>e  brig  U<-IJ'(ut  of  I'.K)  tons  took  7<)  passengers  at  ^100  each 
in  the  middle  of  Feb.  Panamd  Sl.tr,  Feb.  24,  1n49.  The  Xianlir,  of  sulwe- 
(jiieiit  lodging-house  fame,  came  soon  aftor  from  Payta,  spent  three  weekn  in 
tittiiigout,  and  took  alH>ut2.')0iM;r8()nsut  ^1.50.  MrCcllinii'ii  Cal.  17,2.5  0.  I'hc 
-I/'.-  roil  llumholdt  took  more  than  1100  in  May.  Siic.  Bi'<\  Aug.  27,  1874. 
The  J  liifiiix  carried  60,  and  took  II.')  days  tc  reach  S.  F. ;  the  '/'iro  Frv-ndn, 
with  l()4  persons,  occupied  over  five  months.  .SVic.  .'^rc,  .Sept.  10,1874.  A  pro- 
jx)rti()n  of  gold-hunters  had  taken  the  route  by  Nicar^gua;  see  record  of 
voyuj;ciui/»<cAcoci-'<i.S'<a<.,  MS.,  1-7;  DooliUle's  Hiat.,  MS.,  1-21. 


i 


! 


186 


THE  VOYAGE  BY  OCEAN. 


anxiety  to  escape  fevers  and  expenses  on  the  Isth- 
mus, several  parties  thrust  themselves  with  foolhardy 
thoughtlessness  into  log  canoes,  to  follow  the  coast  to 
the  promised  land,  only  to  perish  or  be  driven  back 
after  a  futile  struggle  with  winds  and  currents.^*  Yet 
they  wore  not  more  unfortunate  than  several  who  had 
trusted  themselves  to  the  rotten  hulks  that  presented 
themselves.** 

After  a  prosperous  voyage  of  four  weeks,  prolonged 
by  calls  at  Acapulco  and  San  Bias,  San  Diego  and 
Monterey,'**  the  steamer  California  entered  the  bay  of 
San  Francisco  on  February  28,  1849,  a  day  forever 
memorable  in  the  annals  of  the  state.  It  was  a  gala- 
day  at  San  Francisco.  The  town  was  alive  with  winter- 
ing ujiners.  In  the  bay  were  ships  at  anchor,  gay  with 
bunting,  and  on  shore  nature  was  radiant  in  sunshine 
and  bloom.  The  guns  of  the  Pacific  squadron  opened 
the  welcome  with  a  boom,  which  rolled  over  the 
waters,  breaking  in  successive  verberations  between 
the  circling  hills.  The  blue  line  of  jolly  tars  manning 
the  yards  followed  with  cheers  that  found  their  echo 
in  the  throng  of  spectators  fringing  the  hills.  From 
the  crowded  deck  of  the  steamer  came  loud  response, 
midst  the  flutter  of  handkerchiefs  and  bands  of  umsic. 
Boats  came  out,  their  occupants  boarding,  and  pouriiij; 
into  strained  ears  the  most  glowing  replies  to  the 
all-absorbing  questions  of  the  new-comers  concerning 
the  mincvS — assurances  which  put  to  flight  many  of  the 
misgivings  conjured  up  by  leisure  and  reflection;  yet 


\\    1 


I 


"One  party  of  23  was  passed  far  up  the  coast  by  a  steamer,  a  month  out, 
and  olitJiincd  supplies,  but  they  soon  abandoned  the  trip.  Santa  Cruz  Time*, 
Feb.  '2G,  18V0;   T,iyhr\  hMorwlo,  i.  2«-30. 

*'It  is  only  necessjiry  to  instance  the  voyages  of  the  Snn  BloMeiin  and  the 
Dolph'v.i,  the  latter  related  in  StiVman'H  Qolilen  Flfecr,  .127- M,  from  the  MS. 
of  J.  W.  (Jrittitli  and  I.  I*.  Craut;  also  in  (JiiujIfy'H  Iri«h  /{ace,  4(W>-8;  S<ih 
Jaie  Pioneer,  Dec.  20,  1870,  etc.  Tired  of  the  slow  progress  and  the  prosixft 
of  starvation,  a  pirtion  of  the  |)a8scngers  landed  on  the  barren  coast  of  Lii>\or 
California,  and  made  their  way,  under  intense  suffering,  to  their  destination. 
Gordon's  party  sailed  from  Nicaragua  in  a  seven-ton  sloop.  Sutferings  rcluteil 
in  HUchfork'i*  St'it.,  MS.,  1-7. 

*•  When  near  here  the  coal  supply  of  the  CnliJ'nntia  was  repor*-e(i  exhauHtoil, 
and  spare  spars  had  to  he  um-d;  the  proix)sed  landing  to  out  logs  wa?  fiiitu- 
uately  obviated  by  the  diccowry  of  a  lot  uf  cual  uuder  .he  forward  deck. 


THE  'CALIFORNIA'  AND  'OREGON. 


137 


better  far  for  thousands  had  they  been  able  to  trans- 
late the  invisible,  arched  in  flaming  letters  across  the 
Golden  Gate,  as  at  the  portal  of  hell,  Lasciatb  ooni 
spERANZA,  vox  ch'entrate — all  hope  abandon,  ye  who 
enter  here.  Well  had  it  been  were  Minos  there  telling 
them  to  look  well  how  they  entered  and  in  whom  they 
trusted,'-"  if,  indeed,  they  did  not  immediately  flee  the 
country  for  their  lives. 

Before  the  passengers  had  fairly  left  the  steamer 
she  was  deserted  by  all  belonging  to  her,  save  an  en- 
oineer,'-'  and  was  c«)nsequently  unable  to  start  on  the 
ivturn  trip.  Captain  Pearson  of  the  Oreyon,  which 
arrived  on  April  1st,"  observed  a  collusion  between 
the  crew  and  passengers,  and  took  precautions,**  an- 
chored his  vessel  under  the  guns  of  a  man-of-war,  and 
]iliice<l  the  niost  rebellious  men  under  arrest.  Never- 
theless some  few  slipped  off  in  disguise,  and  others 
hy  capturing  the  boat.  He  thereupon  hastened  away, 
April  1 2th,  with  the  scanty  supply  of  coal  left,  barely 
cii(»ui(h  to  carry  him  to  San  Bias,  where  there  was  a 
(Icpo.sit.^  The  Oreyoii  accordingly  carried  back  the 
first  mail,  treasure,  and  passengers.  When  the  Pan- 
oind  entered  San  Francisco  Bay  on  June  4th,**  the 

^^Tlie  iiiiiiiveraary  of  the  arrival  has  been  fre(|ueiitly  commemorateil  with 
iiiemoiifos,  its  in  the  volume  First  SteniUHhi/t  I'lomi'm.  Sherman  tt'lU  of  ex- 
litrmcnt  cn'uted  at  Monterey,  ami  how  lie  tliere  boarded  the  straiinT  fin-  S.  F. 
.1/.//1.,  1.  :«,  Gl  5;  AltaViil.,  Feb.  29,  1872,  June 'J,  1874;  Crosby.  Sh,l.,  .MS., 
MM  1,  placeti  the  ships  then  in  the  bay  at  Sauzulito;  not  so  the  S.  K  linlUiiit, 
ill).  28,  lS(i.5;  Alanuila  Co,  Ortz.,  Mar.  8,  1873;  Oakland  TraiiiK  ri/il,  Mar.  1, 
ISTM  «1  win's  .\hm.,  MS.,  6-7;  -S'.  /'.  Dm-Hory,  I8ri2  a,  10. 

'"Tlie  third  assistant.  F.  Fougin,  who  was  siibseiiuently  rewarded  with  the 
piist  of  cliii't'  engineer.  Capt.  Forltes  accordingly  resunieil  charge,  and  asked 
C'liii.  .Iciiii'H  for  men  to  protect  the  steamer.  Crniihu'it  Slut.,  MS.,  12.  Vullrjo 
Hii.nlir.  Mar.  14,  I8<J8,  has  it  that  ('apt.  Marshall  remained  true. 

•''  r.  S.  (lor.  J)w.,  32d  cong.  Ist  sess..  Sen.  Doc.  iH);  Mniiroir'n  Vii/.  Com., 
MS..()7;  WilhijH  ; V,  ..  U"'>,  ,  MS.,  ;i;  n'iUhims'  SfnK,  MS.,  7;  M'nrysi'.llr 
.iliiuiil,  April  3,  18*14;  Pctitlnma  An/UM,  Ajii-il  4,  I87.'l.  All  agree  on  April 
I,  llvl'.t,  but  Hittcll,  lUxl.  S.  F.,  I'M),  who  s.iys  March  .SI.  Concerning  licr 
tilp,  .MIC  ('Mpt.  Pearson's  siieech  at  the  anniversary,  liHiS,  in  Vallejo  Hi-cordir, 
Mar.  14,  l8tW. 

''  Kspi'iially  after  the  desertion  of  tlie  carpenter  at  Monterey,  who  swam 
hhIidi'i.-  at  iiii^ht  ut  great  risk. 

"  llf  liail  7<1  tons.  The  refractory  Bailors  were  kept  in  irons  till  they  sub- 
niitti'il  to  accept  an  increase  of  pay  from  #12  to  #1 12  a  month.  The  coal-ship 
.Si//i. n  r  arrived  at  S.  F.  some  weeks  later. 

".!//«  r,i/.,  .Inne  4,  18«2,  and  June  4,  18«7:  Alnnn-dn  Co.  (Jnzfiu;  May 
•£K  l»75;  .'>.  /'.  UiUltliu,  June  4,  IStti);  Low'n  MuteiiuiU,  MS.,  2.     Tlie  ulUcial 


s 


n. 


■f;i' 


1  .. 

i  i 

i'i' 

!> 

11 

1. 

13S 


THE  VOYAGE  BY  OCEAN. 


California  had  obtained  coal  and  a  crew,  and  had 
departed  for  Pananid.  From  this  time  she  and  the 
other  steamers,  with  occasionally  an  extra  vessel,  made 
their  trips  with  tolerable  regularity."'  Three  regular 
steamers  were  added  to  the  line  by  1851;  and  on 
March  3d  of  this  year  the  postmaster-general  author- 
ized a  semi-monthly  service. 

statement  of  June  8th  appears,  therefore,  wrong  in  this  case.  She  was  sliort 
of  coal,  like  the  Vali/oniiu,  and  hiid  to  hnrn  some  of  her  woodwork. 

"  The  following  statement  of  mail  service  will  show  the  order  and  dates  of 
the  trips  of  the  Fananiii  steamers  during  1849  and  part  of  1850: 


Vessel. 


Left 
Paiiatu^. 


Cnliluriiia  .  . . 

Oregon 

Pauauia 

Oregon 

CHlifornla .  . . 

Pnnauiii 

Oregon  ..   .. 
CuUrornia  .  . . 
Tluii'orn(a)  .. 

PlIUHUlU 

Oregon 

Culit'oruia .  .. 

Pauaaiii 

I  uirorn(a)  .. 

Oregnn 

California  .  . . 
Tennessee  (a) 

Pantiina 

Ci)roline(a)  .. 

Oregon 

Tennessee  (a) 
Ciiliforuitt  .  .. 
Fauaiua(a). .. 


Jan.  31,  "iH 
Mar.  la,  'i'.> 
May  IH,  'i'J 
Muy  23,  'W 
June '2.'),  "49 
July  211,  '4D 
Au^'.  2S,  '■»'.) 
Sept.  17,  'i'.} 
Oct.  1,  •4!l 
Oct.  1(1.  '49 
Nov.  10,  '49 
Die.  li,  '49 
Jan.  1,  ','0 
Jan.  12,  '.'.0 
Feb.  r.,  'iiO 
Miir.  2,  T.O 
Miir.  24  U) 
Apr.  1,  .W 
Apr.  l(i,  '.-.O 
Msy  1,  '.■)() 
Miiy  30,  TM 
Jun*)  1,  'M 
June  13,  '50 


Reached 
Ban  Fran. 


Feb. 

Apr. 

June 

June 

July 

Aug. 

Sept. 

O.t. 

Oet. 

Oct. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Apr. 

Apr. 

May 


28,  '49 

1, '49 
8  (4?)  ,'49 

17,49 
Ifi,  '49 
19.  '49 
18,  '49 

9,  '49 
31,  '49 
31,  '49 

2,  '49 
28,  '49 
18,  '50(()) 

8,  '.lOlfi) 
22,  '50 
26,  '50 
13,  '60(b) 
22,  '80 

7,  '50 


VesBel. 


Left 
San  Fran. 


Rea(  lied 
Panama. 


Oregon 

California .  . 

Paniimii 

Oregon 

Caliturnia .  , 

Panamii 

Oregon 

California .  . 

Panama 

rniciirn  . ... 

Oregon  

California  . . 

Panama 

Oregon  

California  . . 
Tennessee  . . 

Panamii 

Oregon 


Apr.  12, 
May  1, 
June  19, 
July  2, 
Aug.  i, 
Sept.  1, 
Oct.  1, 
Nov.  2, 
Nov.  15, 
Dec.  1, 
Jan.  1. 
Jan.  15, 
Feb.  1, 
Mar.  1, 
Apr.  1, 
Apr.  21, 
May  1, 
June   1, 


May  4,  '411 
May  23,  '4'J 
July  1.',  '49 
July  21  '49 
Aug.  '24,  '49 
Sept. '22,  '49 
Oct.  24,  '49 
Nov.  '22.  'ig 
Dec.  4,  '4'^ 
Dec.  28,  49 
Jan.  '2;l,  "50 
Feb.  4,  '.lO 
Feb.  '23,  'oO 
Mar.  20,  '50 
Apr.  '2:1,  :») 
May  11,  '.« 
May  21,  '50 
June '22,  '50 


(a)  Extra  trips.     (6)  Understood  to  be. 

U.  a.  (,'ov.  Doc,  .S'2d  cong.  Ist  sesa.,  Sen.  Ex.  Doc.  50,  p.  42-44.  The  three 
original  steamers  plied  hoi-e  for  a  number  of  years,  but  were  in  time  replaced 
on  that  route  by  newer  vessels.  In  the  .S'.  /'.  Bulletin,  Feb.  '2»,  18(55,  wo  icii'l; 
'The  California  is  imw  lying  at  Acapulco,  whither  she  was  taken  to  niii  be- 
tween the  Mexican  ports.  The  •"aiinmd  and  Oreijon  are  plyitig  l>etweiii  this 
city  and  ports  on  the  northern  coast.'  Again,  the  Olym/'ia  Trniis<-riyl,  .lutie 
17,  1S7(J,  states  tiiat  all  three  'have  disappeared  from  the  imssenpor  tiailc. 
but  are  still  in  service.  The  (Jreijon  is  a  barkentine  engaged  in  the  I'tigct 
Sound  lumber  trade.  The  Panama  is  a  storeship  at  Acapulco;  and  tlu'  ''(i/i- 
foinia  is  a  barkentine  in  tlie  Australian  trade.'  The  tiirce  stc.imcis  ailiKil 
were  the  Coliimhin  and  Toniexm-e  in  IS.")0,  and  the  OoUliii  Oafc  in  18.'>1.  Bt- 
tweeii  Mar.-Oct.  1850,  .50  per  cent  was  added  to  the  mail  compensation,  ami 
75  jKjr  cent  after  this,  or  $;U8,"250  per  annum  in  all.  U.  S.  Qor.  hoc,  as  nliovc. 
Tetseq. ;  I'ioDnr  Arch.,  157-00;  Alta  Cnl.,  Jwiwl,  1876.  The  accoiimioda- 
tion  of  the  I'aciHc  line  has  ever  been  superior  to  that  of  the  Atlantic.  .\ 
depot  for  rei^tii's  was  early  established  at  Uenicia.  Land  was  bougiit  at  that 
place  and  at  San  Diego.  Tiie  Northfrin'r  arrived  Aug.  18.">0.  In  Marcli  18.'l 
a  rival  line  had  four  steamers,  which,  with  odd  vessels,  inade  fifteen  stcaiiien 
ou  the  route. 


BY  CAPE  HORN. 


139 


r,  and  had 
ho  and  the 
'ossel,  made 
tree  regular 
51;  and  on 
2ral  autlior- 


.     She  was  short 

[xlwork. 

trder  and  dates  of 

J50: 


Ml. 


Resi  lied 
Paiiaiuii. 


,•10 
,  '4!) 

,  -la 

,•49 
,M9 

,  '*9 
!,  '49 
i,  "49 
I.  '49 
I,  '.".0 
5,  TiO 

1,  'no 

1,  '.lO 

I,  'SO 
•60 
•M 
•50 


May     4,   lU 
May   23,  'lit 
July  1.',  '49 
July  21  '49 
Aug.  24,  '49 
Sept.  22,  '49 
Oot.    24,  '49 
Nov.  22.  '49 
Dec.     4,  '49 
Dec.  2S,  49 
Jhii.   2;t, -50 
Feb.     4,  'M 
Feb.   23,  '50 
Mar.  2U,  '50 
Apr.  t-i.  .W 
May  11,  '.tO 
May  21,  '50 
Juue'2'2,  '50 


4'2-44.    The  tlirec 

in  lime  replaceil 

2S,  18*15,  we  icit'l. 

taken  to  run  be- 

fing  lietweeu  this 

Tmiix'n]!!,  -^MW 

jmssenger  traili'. 

Ijod  in  the  I'ligit 

Ico;  and  tlie  «'((ii- 

e  ste.inieis  aeKUil 

hiti'  in  18.") I.    B<- 

mnpcnsation.  ami 

r.  />>oc.,  as  aliovt. 

The  accouiiimiia- 

Itiie  Atlantic.    \ 

liw  l)OUglit  at  that 

In  Mardi  18.'.1 

tifteen  steainera 


The  transit  of  the  Isthmus  was  facilitated  by  the 
oneuiiig  in  January  1855  of  the  Panamsi  Railway ,^'^ 
wliiih  gave  the  route  a  decided  advantage  over  others. 
Continental  crossings  drew  much  of  the  traffic  from 
the  voyage  by  way  of  Cape  Horn,  four  or  five  months 
ill  duration,  and  involving  a  quadruple  transmigration 
of  terrestrial  zones,  capped  by  the  dangerous  rounding 
of  the  storm-beaten  cliffs  of  Tierra  del  Fuego,  often 
in  half-rotten  and  badly  fitted    hulks.     Indeed,  the 


NiCARAOHA  Transit  Rohtk. 


circumna'  igation  of  the  southern  mainland  by  Amer- 
ican iTold-.seukers  was  not  undertaken  to  anv  extent 
utter  the  first  years.  As  the  resources  of  California 
(lev(>l»)ped,  sea  travel   below  Panama  began  to  stop, 

'•'Wliioli  reduced  the  expon.sc  and  lianlships  of  the  long  nnile-and-lxiat 
j'inriifv.  while  lessening  tlie  exposure  to  fevers.  I'oneerninj,'  the  eoiitraets 
!iihI  mistakes  of  the  projectors,  the  five  years  of  struggle  with  the  under- 
takiii_',  and  its  iniiiien»e  cost  in  life  and  money,  I  refer  to  the  iuteroceauic 
iliiistion  iu  J/iKt.  iynt.  Am.,  iii.,  this  series. 


140 


THE  VOYAGE  BY  OCEAN. 


■'i 


and  distribute  itself  over  the  different  crossing-places 
opened  by  explorers  for  interoceanic  coninmnicatioii: 
across  Mexico  by  way  of  Tanipico,  Vera  Cruz,  and 
Tehuantepec;  across  Central  America  via  Honduras, 
Nicaragua,  Costa  Rica,**  and  Pananid.  The  last 
named  maintained  the  lead  only  for  a  brief  period, 
and  Nicaragua,  the  chief  rival  of  the  Panamd  route, 
distanced  all  the  rest.  Many  had  taken  this  route  in 
1841)  on  the  bare  chance  of  finding  a  vessel  on  the 
Pacific  side.**  They  usually  met  with  disappointment, 
but  they  paved  the  way  for  later  comers,  and  encour- 
aged American  capitalists,  headed  by  Cornelius  Van- 
derbilt,  to  form  a  transit  company,  with  bimonthly 
steamers  between  New  York  and  California,  for  which 
concessions  were  obtained  from  Nicaragua  in  1849-51, 
under  guise  of  a  canal  contract.  With  cheaper  fares 
and  the  prospective  gain  of  two  days  over  the  Panama 
route,  together  with  finer  scenery  and  climate,  the 
line  quickly  became  a  favorite;  but  it  was  hampered 
by  inferior  accommodation  and  less  reliable  manage- 
ment, and  the  disturbed  condition  of  Nicaragua  began 
to  injure  it,  especially  in  1856,  after  which  business 
dissensions  tended  to  undermine  the  company.^' 

*^  In  1854  Costa  Rica  granted  a  charter  to  a  N.  Y.  co.  for  a  transit  route, 
whicli  gave  the  privilege  of  navigating  the  San  Juan  river.  H'rlln'  H'dlhrii 
Ex/M-d.,  2.18-9.     It  proved  al>orti\e. 

'*  Instance  the  severe  experiences  of  Hitchcock.  Slat.,  MS.,  1-7;  and 
Doolittle.  5<a<.,  MS.,  1-21.     See  also  ^W/y,  ^V»r.,  ii.  91. 

**  The  gold  rush  brightened  the  prospects  of  the  American  Atlantic  and 
Pacitic  Sliip  Canal  Co. ,  which  heUl  a  concession  for  a  canal  through  Nicaragua. 
A  new  l)ody  headed  by  Jos.  L.  White  and  C.  Vanderbilt  undertook  to  itvive 
it,  and  obtained  from  the  state  a  renewal  of  the  contract  dated  Sept.  '22,  184!), 
amended  April  11,  1850,  against  a  ye.irly  payment  of  $10,000  till  tlie  canal 
shoidd  lie  completed,  when  twenty  per  cent  of  the  net  profit,  besides  stock 
shares,  shoidd  follow;  meanwhile  paying  ten  per  cent  of  the  net  profit  on  any 
transit  route.  Several  articles  provided  for  protection,  exemptions,  etc.  .See 
U.  S.  Gov.  l)or.,  3l8t  cong.  1st  sess.,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  75,  x.  141-5;  /./.,  :Uth 
coug.  1st  sess..  Sen.  Doc.  (58,  xiii.  84-103;  Xic,  Coiitnito  de  Canal,  184!), 
1-16;  Id.,  ContnUos  Comp.  Vapor.,  1-2;  Cent.  Am.  Pap.,  v  .5.3-5.  Otiier 
dcUiils  in  /HkI.  Vent.  Am.,  iii.,  this  series.  The  incorporation  act  at  L»'on  is 
dated  March  9,  1850.  Cent.  Am.  Mixf.  Does,  45;  BeUtj,  Xi<:,  ii.  70-3.  The 
Clayton- Bulwer  treaty  of  April  19,  18.50,  between  the  U.  S.  and  Kng..  gave 
additional  guarantees  to  this  company;  but  U.  S.  Minister  Souier's  guaranty 
of  the  contract  was  not  ratified  by  his  government.  Sqaier  *  Cent.  Am.,  ii. 
202  et  seq.  The  aim  of  the  projectors  being  really  to  secure  the  rijrlit  of 
transit,  an  Accessory  Transit  Company  was  formed,  for  which,  on  Au^.  14, 
1851,  a  charter  was  obtained  from  the  Orauada  faction,  then  in  power,  which 


;i  , 


!r,    l-ii 


NICARAGUA  ROUTE. 


141 


sing-pluces 
lunication; 
Cruz,  and 
Honduras, 
The    last 
•ief  period, 
amd  route, 
lis  route  in 
ssel  on  the 
»pointu)ent, 
ind  encour- 
nelius  Van- 
bimonthly 
a,  for  which 
in  1849-51, 
leaper  fares 
the  Panama 
jliuiate,  the 
IS  hampered 
ble  mana|,'e- 
•agua  began 
ch  business 
»any/' 

a  transit  route, 

,  MS.,  1-7;  auil 

!an  Atlantic  and 
■ougli  Niiaiai.'ua. 
lertook  to  revive 
il  Sept.  •>.',  I84!l. 
()0  till  tlie  canal 
it,  besides  stooii 
net  profit  on  any 
iijtions,  etc.  See 
Ul-5;  /./.,  :Wth 
de  ('n)ial,  1S49, 
V    .')3-.").     Otiier 
n  act  at  Leon  is 
,  ii.  70-3.    The 
anil  Knj;..  g«ve 
luier's  guarantee 
'h  Cent.  A  III:  ii. 
ire  the  ri^'lit  of 
ich,  on  Auii.  1^. 
lin  power,  which 


The  voyages  of  the  first  steamers  have  naturally 
retained  a  great  interest,  as  initiating  steam  commu- 

confirmed  the  privileges  of  the  canal  eonceaaion,  while  lessening  its  obligatioiis. 
Xk.  I'oinrnio,   l-"2;  Sc'terijer'*  Vent.  Am.,  245-6.     Meanwhile  a  hasty  sur- 

foUowcd 
steamers  for 
rother  Jon- 
riihnii.  Uncle' Sam,  Pacific,  S.  ^.  Lewi»,  Indepeiulfuee,  and  Cortex.  S.  F. 
Jhfiitorii,  1852,  24;  Alta  t'al.,  June  9,  1859,  etc.  Grey  Town  on  the  east, 
anil  S.  Juan  del  8ur  on  the  Pacilic,  became  the  terminal  ports,  the  latter 
replacing'  Uealejo.  On  Jan.  1,  1851,  the  first  connecting  lake  steamer. 
Director',  reached  La  Vfrgen.  Squier,  ii.  278;  Jieichardt,  Nic.,  165;  CciU.  Am, 
I'np.,  iii.  20C;  and  not  long  after  the  line  opened.  Reichardt,  A'tc.,  173, 
18 1,  estimates  the  traffic  to  and  fro  two  years  later  at  3,000  per  month, 
faic  Si.iO  and  i<180.  From  (irey  Town  a  river  steamer  carried  passengers 
til  Casiillo  Viejo  rapids;  here  a  half-mile  portage  to  the  lake  steamer, 
\\\\\A\  landed  them  at  La  Virgen,  whence  a  mule  train  crossed  the  13  miles 
tu  .S:in  .luan  del  Sur.  Hcencry  and  climate  surpassed  those  of  Panamd.  >See 
lietaileil  account  in  my  litter  Pocitla.  But  the  management  was  inferior,  the 
internieilintc  transixirtation  iusutiicient  and  less  reliable,  owing  to  low  water, 
etc.,  and  little  attention  was  paid  to  the  health  or  comfort  of  the  passengers. 
lloliiidi,  Cal.,  246-79;  Cent.  Am.  Pap.,  i.  3,  iv.  2,  v.  100,  etc  Disasters 
cnnie,  in  the  loss  of  two  Pacific  steamers,  the  bombardment  of  Grey  Town, 
vU:  111.;  Perez,  Mem.  yic,  55-6;  Patu  Herald,  April  I,  1854;  A/ta  Cal., 
Marc!)  27,  18.)4.  With  the  advent  of  Garrison  as  manager  business  improved; 
hut  Nicaragua  became  dissatisfied  under  the  failure  of  the  company  to  pay 
tlic  stipulated  sliare  of  profit.  The  unprincipled  steamship  men  complicated 
their  accounts  only  to  cheat  Nicaragua,  relying  on  Yankee  bluster  and  the 
veakuess  of  the  Nicaraguan  government  to  see  them  out  in  their  rascality. 
Tiieu  came  Walker  the  hlibuster.  He  was  at  first  favored  by  the  company, 
l)iit  suh.sequcntly  thought  it  necessary  to  press  the  government  claim  tor 
neui'iy  liulf  a  million  dollars.  This  being  disputed,  a  decree  of  Feb.  18,  1856, 
revoked  the  charter  and  ordered  the  seizure  of  all  steamers  and  effects,  partly 
un  the  ground  that  the  company  favored  the  opposition  party.  Vantlerbilt 
cuine  forth  in  protest  and  denial,  claiming  that  the  contract  so  far  had  been 
carried  out,  and  demanded  protection  from  U.  S,  The  property  seized  mus 
valued  at  nearly  $1,000,000.  Inventory  and  correspondence  in  (f.  S.  (.'or. 
J)oe.,  ;Uth  cong.  1st  scss..  Sen.  Doc.  68,  xiii.  113  etse(|.;  Id.,  35th  cong.  2il 
8CSS.,  H.  Kx.  I)oc.  100,  ix.  doc.  ii.  Walker  transferred  the  charter  toanuther 
cunipuiiy.  Vantlerbilt  enlistetl  Costa  Kican  aid  and  recaptbred  his  steamers. 
Ciincerniug  attendant  killing  of  Americans,  etc.,  see  l)W/«'  Walker'' n  Ex fted., 
170-."i;  MicarnijueiiMe,  Feb.  23,  July  26,  1856,  etc.;  Perez,  Mem,,  27-30;  Sour. 
Aiiiiiile.i  loll.,  cxlvii.  136—41;  Sac.  Union,  Dec.  20,  ISL'm,  April  17,  June  4, 
lii,  lsri(i;  AUa  Vol.,  March  22,  Aug.  13,  1856,  etc.  Vanderbilt  resumed  busi- 
iii'8.<>  under  the  succeeding  governments,  but  with  frequent  interruptions, 
])artly  by  political  factions,  with  annulments  of  contracts,  changes  in  nian- 
ii::eincnt,  and  even  of  comi)anie8.  Vanderbilt  was  at  one  time  charged  with 
allowing  himself  to  be  Imught  off  by  the  Panama  line  for  ^0,000  \\er  month 
iiuil  pocketing  the  money.  /(/.,  Jan.  9,  1859.  In  1860  an  English  coni|>any 
iilitnineil  a  concession,  but  the  American  cumimny  resumed  its  trips,  and  in 
ISli.")  its  steerage  rates  were  J50.  In  18(i8  the  Central  American  Transit  Co., 
then  o|ierating,  was  reported  to  be  bankrupt.  The  opening  soon  aft<>r  of  the 
I'Vt'ii.-ind  railroad  to  California  rendered  a  transit  line  acru.48  Nicaragua  use- 
iiss,  Hinco  it  doi)endcd  solely  on  passengers.  In  1870  contracts  were  made 
Mith  the  Pauani4  and  other  lines  to  merely  touch  at  Nicaraguan  ports.  Air. 
liijiimie  Fimfiilo,  iii.  2-3,  iv.  4;  Gac.  A'/r.,  Jan.  11,  Feb.  22,  18«i8;  March  12. 


1S70;  Kirchhnf,  Rei'e.,  i 
contract  auuuiuieuts  in  1 


31.3-59;  Rochn,  Cixiiifo  A'i«-.,  ii.   13,1,  141  2,  with 
58-03;  AJc.  Vecritoi,  1859,  ii.  78-9;  AUa  Cal.,  Sept. 


142 


THE  VOYAGE  BY  OCEAN. 


nication,  and  as  bringing  some  of  tne  most  prominent 
pioneers,  for  such  is  tiie  title  accorded  to  all  arrivals 
during  1849  as  well  as  previous  years.  They  also  ran 
the  gauntlet  of  much  danger,  and  no  one  of  the  Argo's 
heroes  was  more  proud  of  his  perilous  exploit  than  is 
the  modern  Argonaut  who  reached  the  western  Colchis 
with  the  initial  trip  of  the  Paimmd,  the  Oregon,  or, 
better  than  all,  the  California.  Annual  celebrations, 
wide-spread  throughout  the  world,  abundantly  testify 
to  the  truth  of  this  statement.  And  it  is  right  and 
proper  that  it  should  be  so.  The  only  regret  is,  tliat 
so  few  of  the  passengers  by  early  sailing  vessels  should 
have  left  similar  records,  and  that  as  year  after  year 
goes  by  the  number  of  our  Argonauts  is  thinned;  soon 
all  will  be  with  their  pelagian  prototypes. 

16,  1857:  Jan.  21,  May  30,  July  30,  Aug.  16,  Oct.  26,  Nov.  8,  IRW;  May  26, 
June  9,  10,  1859;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Feb.  12,  May  25,  June  2,  1859;  Mnrcli  Jit, 
imOi  Aug.  21,  1862;  March  23,  1865;  H.  F.  CaU,i\x\y  19,  1865;  FMn  UiUe 
Fac.,  221-43;  BoyU'a  Jiide,  33-8. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND. 
1849. 

ORflAMZATION  OF  PARTIES — BrITTLB  CONTRACTS  OF  ThESE  ASSOCIATIONS — 

Missis;  ii'Pi  RiVKR  Rendezvocs — On  the  Trail — Ovbklanu  Routine — 
Al()n<!  THE  Platte— Throcoh  the  South  Pass— Cholera— The  Dif- 

KEKKNT  RorTES — ACROSS  THE  DesERT — TrIALSOP  THE  PiLORIMS — StAR 

vATioN,  Disease,  and  Death —Passage  of  the  Sierra  Nevada —Relief 

PAKTIES  FROM  CALIFORNIA — RODTE  THROUGH  MeXIOO — ESTIMATES  OF 
THE  NlMBERS  OF  ARRIVALS— B£WIU>EIUIK>-T  OF  THE  InCOHERS— ReUEN- 
EKATIUN  AND  A  NEW  LIFE. 


A  CURRENT  equal  in  magnitude  to  the  one  by  sea 
|)ourod  with  the  opening  spring  overland,  chiefly  froi.i 
the  western  United  States.  It  followed  the  routes 
traversed  by  trappers  and  explorers  since  the  dawn  of 
the  century,  and  lately  made  familiar  by  the  reports 
of  Fremont,  by  the  works  of  travellers  like  Bidwell, 
Hastings,  Bryant,  Thornton,  and  by  the  records  of 
two  great  migrations,  one  in  1843  to  Oregon,  and  the 
other  in  184G  to  California,  the  latter  followed  by  the 
MornK)n  exodus  to  Utah.  Organization  into  pa!ties 
became  here  more  necessary  than  by  sea,  for  moving 
and  guarding  camps,  and  especially  for  defence  against 
Indians. 

Contributions  were  consequently  levied  for  the 
purcliase  of  wagons,  animals,  provisions,  and  even 
trading  goods,  unless  the  member  was  a  farmer  in 
possession  of  these  things.  The  latter  advantage 
made  this  journey  preferable  to  a  large  number,  and 
even  the  poor  man  could   readily  secure  ro(jm  in  a 


144 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND 


wagon  for  tlio  small  supplies  alone  indispensable,  or 
obtain  free  passage  as  driver  and  assistant.^ 

The  rendezvous  at  starting  was  on  the  Missouri 
River,  at  St  Joseph  or  Independence,  long  points  of 
departure  for  overland  travel,  either  via  the  west- 
ern main  route,  which  is  now  marked  by  the  Union 
and  Central  Pacific  railroad  line,  or  by  the  Santa  Fo 
trail.  Here  they  gathered  from  all  quarters  eastward, 
on  foot  and  horseback,  some  with  pack-animals  or 
mule-teams,  but  most  of  them  in  vehicles.  These 
were  as  various  in  their  equipment,  quality,  and  ap- 
pearance as  were  the  vessels  for  the  ocean  trip,  from 
the  ponderous  'prairie  schooner'  of  the  Santa  Fo 
trader,  to  the  couunon  cart  or  the  light  painted  wagon 
of  the  down-east  Yankee.^  Many  were  bright  with 
streamers  and  flaring  inscriptions,  such  as  "  Ho,  for  the 

'  Some  of  the  associations  were  bound  by  formal  contracts,  often  by  an 
agreement  to  sustain  the  partnership  iu  C'al.  Instance  Journey  of  the  Cali- 
fornia Association,  in  AiMey'n  Doc.  Hint.  C'al.,  MS.,  '271-377.  The  asKouia- 
tion  was  formed  at  Munroe,  Mich.,  in  Feb.  1849,  and  consist^ul  of  ten 
meml>ers,  intent  on  minine  and  trading.  Two  persons  who  remained  at  home 
defrayed  the  exiienses  with  an  advance  of  ^>,0U0  in  return  for  lialf  tlic  pioit- 
pective  gains.  The  company  failed  in  its  plans  and  separated.  Ashley  settleil 
at  Monterey  as  a  lawyer,  and  representetl  the  county  in  the  state  asseiiilily  in 
1856-7.  In  18r)9  lie  was  state  treasurer,  and  subsequently  moving  to  Nt'vada, 
he  twice  represented  that  state  in  congress;  he  died  at  S.  F.  in  187').  ShHiku 
Ciiy  Inde.r,  July  24,  187.3.  Another  association  is  recorded  by  Cassiu,  Mni., 
MS.,  1,  who  left  Cincinnati  with  40  others;  'we  each  paid  in  9'20{)  to  the 
company's  fund.'  Further:  Pittsburgh  and  Cal.  Enterprise  Co.  of  soiiio '2.'>0 
meniliers,  in  lluijca^  Scriipn,  Ariz.,  v.  U9;  Mixcel.  SttU.,  MS.,  17-8;  Seneca  Co. 
of  Cleveland.  V^nn  Dyke  a  Stat.,  MS.,  1-2.  Ithaca  Co.,  in  Cal.  Pioneern,  jit  .'iO, 
2-.'}.  The  overland  express  train  of  2;W  men  under  Capt.  French,  of  KSJO, 
suffered  many  mishai^  and  horrors.  Alta  C'al.,  Dec.  17,  1850,  Mar.  5,  IST'J; 
Pur.  NewK,  Dec.  26,  18.')0;  8.  F.  Piraynue,  Dec.  18,  18."»0.  The  CuinlM-rlaiiil 
Co.  was  a  tratling  association  of  oO  men,  sul>scribing  $r>UO  each.  Most  of  tlie 
emigrants,  however,  combined  merely  for  defence  and  aid  din'inff  the  journey 
in  a  train  known  by  the  name  of  the  captain  elected  to  direct  it  Instance 
the  i>arties  under  Kgans,  Owens,  Aired,  UuUy,  Knapp,  H.  .'i.  Brown,  I^ithain, 
I'arson,  Townsend  or  Rough  and  Ready,  Lee,  SuUeuger,  Taylor,  Stajilt's, 
Word,  Cooper,  Barrow,  Thome- Beckwith,  Stuart,  etc.  Iteferences  in  A^h- 
ley'n  Doe.  Jlixt.  Cal.,  MS.,  271-377,  395-6;  Miix-fl.  Stat.,  MS.,  1  et  sni.: 
Morqaii'n  Trip,  MS.,  3-14;  Kirkpatriek'a  Journal,  MS.,  3  et  seq.;  liroiru'* 
Stat'.,  MS  ,  1-11;  S.  F.  BnllftiH,  Sept.  18,  1860;  PearMon'n  Rerol.,  MS.,  I -J: 
Nevada  and  Qraxx  Valley  Directory,  I85(i,  43;  iMmeron's  Aiitobio;/.,  MS.,  lit; 
Placer  Timet*,  Aug.  11,  1849,  etc.;  GroKH  Vidley  litp..  Mar.  8,  1872;  S'fi/''" 
Stat.,  MS.,  17;  Vallejo  Iiidep.,  June  1-8,  1872;  DayeH'  Diary,  MS.,  8  110: 
Burrow's  Twelve  NujhtH,  16iV-268;  U.  8.  Oov.  Doc.,  Slstcong.  2d  sess.,  Sen. 
Doc.  19,  p.  15. 

'  The  long  geared  prairie  schooner  dififered  from  the  square-bodied  wagons 
of  the  nortii-west,  in  its  peculiar  widening  from  the  bottom  upward,  (see 
description  iu  llutchimja'  Juet;/.,  iv.  351. 


THE  PRAIRIE  SCHOONER. 


146 


clI<ri,nn,crHl"  and  presented  within,  beneath  the  yet  clean 
wliito  aiiivass  cover,  a  cosey  retreat  for  the  faniily. 
lluavv  conveyances  were  provided  with  three  yoke 
of  oxt'U,  besides  relays  of  animals  for  difficult  passages; 
a  needful  j)recaution;  for  California  as  well  as  the  in- 
termediate country  being  regarded  as  a  wilderness, 
tile  prudent  ones  had  brought  ample  supplies,  some 
indeed,  in  excess,  to  last  for  two  years.  Others  car- 
ried all  .sorts  of  merchandise,  in  the  illusive  hope  of 
saleH  at  largo  profits.  Consequently  such  of  the  men 
art  liad  not  riding  animals  were  compelled  to  walk, 
and  during  the  first  part  of  the  journey  even  the  women 
and  ciiildren  could  not  always  find  room  in  the  wagons.'' 
Later,  as  one  article  after  another  was  thrown  away 
to  li«,d»ten  the  load,  regard  for  the  jaded  beasts  made 
walking  more  complusory  than  ever. 

It  seemed  a»  pity  to  drag  so  many  women  and  their 
charges  from  comfortable  homes  to  face  the  dangers 
and  iiardships  of  such  a  journey.  As  for  the  men, 
they  were  as  a  rule  hardy  farmers  or  sturdy  young 
villagers,  better  fitted  as  a  class  for  pioneers  than  the 
crowd  departing  by  sea;  and  appearances  confirmed 
the  impression  in  the  predominance  of  hunting  and 
rough  backwoods  garbs,  of  canvas  jackets  or  colored 
woollen  shirts,  with  a  large  knife  and  pistols  at  the  belt, 
a  rlHe  slung  to  the  back,  and  a  lasso  at  the  saddle- 
horn,  the  most  bristling  arsenal  being  dispLiyed  by 
the  mild-numnered  and  timid.*  There  was  amitle  op- 
portunity to  test  their  quality,  even  at  the  rendezvous, 
tor  animals  were  to  be  broken,  wagons  repaired  and 
loaded,  and  drill  acquired  for  the  possible  savage  war- 
tare. 


' '  Mnn,  women,  and  children,  even  women  with  infanta  at  their  hreaflts, 
triuljiiiii.'  along  on  foot.'  St  Loiiin  Union,  May  25,  1849.  'We  were  neitrly 
all  atiKit,  uiiil  tliere  were  no  seats  in  the  wagons.'  Hittell's  Hpevch  iMjfore 
tln'  pidiu'fiM.     Many  preferred  walking  to  jolting  over  the  jn-airie. 

Muilignunt  at  the  fre(|uent  alhiaions  to  Spanish-Califurnians  iw  half-civil- 
ized liidiiuiH,  Vallejo  points  to  some  of  the  Missourian  backwcMMlsnieii  ab  nvoro 
reaeinhliiig  Indians  in  habits  as  well  as  uncouth  appearance.  Vnllejo,  iJo-n, 
Ms,,  xxxvi.  "JS".  The  western  stateswere  almost  deitupulated  by  the  exodus, 
says  Borthwiuk,  Thrt-e  Years  in  Cat.,  2-3. 
Ui».  Cal.,  Vol   VI.    10 


».:■ 


<i 
.1:1! 


if: 


146 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND 


The  gathering  began  early  in  April,  and  by  the  end 
of  the  month  some  20,000,  repreHenting  every  town 
and  village  in  the  States,  were  encamped  on  the  fron- 
tier, making  their  final  preparations,  and  waiting  until 
the  grass  on  the  plains  should  be  high  enough  to  ftuil 
the  animals.  At  the  opening  of  May  the  grand  pro- 
cession started,  and  from  then  till  the  beginning  of 
June  company  after  company  left  the  frontier,  till  tiio 
trail  from  the  starting-point  to  Fort  Laramie  pie- 
sented  one  long  line  of  pack-trains  and  wagons.  Alonjj 
some  sections  of  the  road  the  stream  was  unbrokon 
for  niiles,'^  and  at  night,  far  as  the  eye  could  rcatii, 
camp-fires  gleamed  like  the  lights  of  a  distant  city. 
"The  rich  meadows  of  the  Nebraska  or  Platte,"  writes 
Bayard  Taylor,  "were  settled  for  the  time,  and  a  sip-'j 
traveller  could  have  journeyed  for  1,000  miles,  as  cer- 
tain of  his  lodging  and  regular  meals  as  if  he  were 
riding  through  the  old  agricultural  districts  of  the 
middle  states." 

For  a  while  there  is  little  to  check  the  happy  antici- 
pations formed  during  the  excitement,  and  sustained  hy 
the  well-filled  larders  and  a  new  country;  und  so,  w  ith 
many  an  interchange  jf  chat  and  rej)artoe,  between 
the  bellowing  and  shouting  of  animals  and  men,  am' 
the  snapping  of  whips,  the  motley  string  of  podostrians 
and  horsemen  advances  by  the  side  of  the  creaking 
wagons.  Occasionally  a  wayside  spring  or  brook  pro- 
longs the  midday  halt  of  the  more  sobor-miiuled, 
while  others  hasten  on  to  fill  the  gap.  Admonished 
by  declining  day,  the  long  line  breaks  into  groujw, 
which  gather  about  five  o'clock  at  the  spots  selected 
to  camp  for  the  night.  The  wagons  roll  into  a  circle, 
or  on  a  river  bank  in  semicircle,  to  form  a  bulwark 
against  a  possible  foe,  and  a  corral  for  the  animals 

'"Thursday,  June  8th.  Met  a  man  whose  train  was  on  ahead,  who  told 
U8  that  he  hail  counted  459  teams  within  nine  miles.  When  we  stnrtvi!  after 
dinner  there  were  l.')0  that  appeared  to  be  ui  one  train. . .  Friday,  Juiie  'JM. 
I'asse*!  the  upper  Platte  ferry.  The  ferryman  told  me  he  had  crosHi'il  !K)0 
teams,  and  judged  that  there  were  about  IJMO  on  the  road  ahead  ot  ua,  Vet 
Still  they  come,'  KirkpoLrkk'n  Journal,  MIS.,  14,  10, 


A  CAMP  ON  THE  WAY. 


147 


I 

4 


I 

-'1 
s 


now  turned  K)08e  to  graze  and  rest.  Tents  unfold, 
Hrcs  hhuce,  and  all  is  bustle;  women  cooking,  and  men 
tondinij  and  tinkering.  Then  conies  a  lull;  the  meal 
ovtr,  the  untrammelled  flames  shoot  aloft,  pressing 
farther  back  the  flitting  shadows,  and  finding  reflec- 
tion in  rjroups  of  contented  faces,  moving  in  sympathy 
to  the  clianging  phases  of  some  story,  or  to  the  strains 
ot'sonf  and  nmsic."  The  (lames  subside;  a  hush  falls 
on  tlio  scene;  the  last  figures  steal  away  under  tent 
and  cover,  save  two,  the  sentinels,  who  stalk  around 
to  guard  against  surprise,  and  to  watch  the  now  pick- 
I'ted  animals,  till  relieved  at  midnight.  With  the 
first  streaks  of  dawn  a  man  is  called  from  each  wag«)n 


FkuM   THK   M1S8OUKI   TU  CiKKAT   SALT   LaKK. 

to  move  the  beasts  to  better  feed.  Not  long  after 
four  o'clock  all  are  astir,  and  busy  breakfasting  and 
preparing  to  start.  Tents  are  struck,  and  horses  har- 
nessed, and  at  six  the  march  is  taken  uj)  again. 

Not  until  the  River  Platte  is  reached,  some  ten  or 
fifteen  days  out,  does  perfect  order  and  routine  reign. 
The  monotonous  following  of  this  stream  wears  away 
that  novelty  which  to  the  uninitiated  seems  to  demand 
a  change  of  programme  for  every  day's  proceedings, 
and  about  this  point  each  caravan  falls  into  ways  of 
its  own,  and  usually  so  continues  to  the  end  of  the 
journey,  under  the  supervision  of  an  elected  captain 


'Specimen  of  emigrant  song  in  WtUlon's  Oold  Regions,  28-32;  StUlman's 
Goldtii  Fleece,  23-4. 


i 


148 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND. 


and  his  staff.  Harmony  is  often  broken,  however,  at 
one  time  on  the  score  of  route  and  routine,  at  anotlicr 
in  the  enforcement  of  regulations;  and  even  if  the 
latter  be  overcome  by  amendments  and  change  of 
officers,  enough  objections  may  remain  to  cause  tho 
split  of  a  party.  Associates  quarrel  and  separate ;  tlie 
hired  man,  finding  himself  master  of  the  situation, 
grows  insolent  and  rides  on,  leaving  his  employer  l)o- 
hind.  The  sameness  of  things  often  j>alls  as  days  and 
months  pass  away  and  no  sign  of  human  habitation 
appears;  then,  again,  the  changes  from  prairies  wheio 
the  liigh  grass  half  covers  the  caravan  to  sterile  plain, 
from  warm  |>leasant  valleys  to  bleak  and  almost  im- 
passable mountains,  and  thence  down  into  miasmatic 
swamps  with  miry  stretches,  and  afterward  sandy 
sinks  and  forbidding  alkali  wastes  and  salt  flats  baked 
and  cracked  by  sun,  and  stifling  with  heat  and  dust; 
through  drencliing  rains  and  flooded  lowlands,  and 
across  the  sweeping  river  currents — and  all  with  (xra- 
sional  chilling  blasts,  sufibcating  simoons,  and  constant 
fear  of  savages. 

This  and  more  had  the  overland  travellers  to  en- 
counter in  greater  or  less  degree  during  their  jaunt 
of  2,000  miles  and  more.  Yet,  after  all,  it  was  not 
always  hard  and  horrible.  There  was  much  that  was 
enjoyable,  particularly  to  persons  in  health — bri<;lit 
skies,  exhilarating  air,  and  high  anticipations.  For 
romantre  as  well  as  danger  the  overland  journey  was 
not  behind  the  voyage  by  sea,  notwithstanding  the 
several  changes  in  the  latter  of  climate,  lands,  and 
j)eopl«!s.  Glimpses  of  landscapes  and  society  were  raio 
iVom  shipboard,  and  the  unvarying  limitless  water 
became  dreary  with  monotony.  Storms  and  other 
danyers  brouirht  little  inspiration  or  reliance  to  coun- 


pir 
Ml 


teract  oppressive  fear.  Man  lay  iiere  a  passive  t»y 
for  the  elements.  But  each  route  had  its  attractions 
and  tliscomforts,  particularly  the  latter. 

The    Indians  in    1849  were  not  very  troublesome. 
The  numbers  -  f  the  pale-faces  were  so  large  that  they 


THE  INDIANS  AND  CHOLERA. 


149 


(lid  not  know  what  to  make  of  it.  So  they  kept  pru- 
<l('iitlv  ii»  the  background,  rarely  venturing  an  attack, 
sjivi'  upon  aon»e  solitary  hunter  or  isolated  band,  with 
an  (ttmsional  effort  at  stampeding  stock.  Some  sought 
intorcourse  with  the  white  men,  hoping  by  begging, 
stoiiling,  and  offer  of  services  to  gain  some  advantage 
from  the  transit,  nevertheless  keeping  the  suspicious 
oinijjfrants  constantly  on  the  alert. 

The  Indians'  opportunity  was  to  come  in  due  time, 
however,  after  otlier  troubles  had  run  their  course. 
The  first  assumed  the  terrible  form  of  cholera,  which, 
ra^'inir  on  t;-e  Atlantic  seaboard,  ascended  the  Missis- 
si|)|)i,  and  overtook  tiie  emigrants  about  the  time  of 
their  departure,  following  them  as  fur  as  the  elevated 
iiiouiitain  region  beyond  Fort  Laramie.  At  St  Joseph 
and  Iiulependence  it  caused  great  mortality  among 
tliose  who  were  lai-o  «n  setting  out;  and  for  hundreds 
of  miUis  along  the  road  its  ravages  were  recorded  by 
newly  made  graves,  sometimes  marked  by  a  rough 
head-borrd,  but  more  often  designated  only  by  the 
(leseera„i<m  of  wolves  and  coyotes.  The  emigrants 
were  not  |)repared  tt)  battle  with  this  dreadful  foe. 
It  is  estimated  that  5,000  thus  perished;  and  as  many 
of  these  were  the  heads  of  families  on  the  march,  the 
atiiiction  was  severe.  So  great  was  the  terror  inspired 
that  the  victims  were  often  left  to  perish  on  the  road- 
side by  their  })anic-stricken  companions.  On  the  other 
hand,  there  were  many  instances  of  heroic  devotion,  of 
men  remaining  alone  with  a  comrade  while  the  rest  of 
the  company  rushed  on  to  escape  contagion,  and  nurs- 
inix  ''•»»  to  his  recovery,  to  be  in  turn  stricken  down 
and  imrsed  by  him  whose  life  had  been  saved.  It 
seemed  as  if  the  scourge  had  been  sent  upon  them  by 
a  divinity  incensed  at  their  thirst  for  gold,  and  some 
of  the  more  superstitious  of  the  emigrants  saw  therein 
the  hand  of  Providence,  and  returiKu].  To  persons 
thus  disposed,  that  must  have  been  a  spectac.'Ie  of 
dreadful  import  witnessed  by  Cassin  and  his  party. 
They  wore  a  few  days  out  from  Independence;  the 


IfiO 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND. 


'$M 


cholera  was  at  its  height,  when  one  day  they  saw  afar 
off,  and  apparently  walking  in  the  clouds,  a  processsioii 
of  men  bearing  aloft  a  coffin.  It  was  only  a  inirat^o, 
the  reflection  of  a  funeral  taking  place  a  day'sjouiiny 
distant,  but  to  the  beholders  it  was  an  omen  of  tlitir 
fate  set  up  in  the  heavens  as  a  warning. 

Thus  it  was  even  in  the  route  along  the  banks  of 
the  Platte,  where  meadows  and  springs  had  tempted 
the  cattle,  and  antelopes  and  wild  turkeys  led  on  the 
yet  spirited  hunter  to  herds  of  buflaio  and  stately 
elk ;  for  here  was  the  game  region.  This  river  was 
usually  struck  at  Grand  Island,  and  followed  with 
many  a  struggle  through  the  marshy  ground  to  the 
south  branch,  fordable  at  certain  points  and  seasons,  at 
othei's  crossed  by  ferriage,  on  rafts  or  can(x;s  lasheil 
together,'  with  frequent  accidents.  Hence  the  route 
led  along  the  north  branch  from  Ash  Hollow  to  F<frt 
Laramie,  the  western  outpost  of  the  United  Stiite.s," 
and  across  the  barren  Black  Hill  country,  or  by  the 
river  bend,  up  the  Sweetwater  tributary  into  the 
south  pass  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  The  asctUit  is 
almost  imperceptible,  and  ere  the  emigrant  is  awaiv 
of  having  crossed  the  central  ridge  of  tho  ciMitineiit, 
he  finds  himself  at  tho  head  of  the  Pacitic  v/ator  sys- 
tem, at  Green  River,  marked  by  a  butte  of  singuhir 
formation,  like  a  ruined  edifice  with  majestic  dome  and 
pillars. 

The  next  point  was  Fort  Hall,"  at  the  junctitin  of 

^  Calked  wagnii-beds  and  lihuet-iron  boats  were  brought  into  acrvici' 
'With  II  our  hearing  to-ilay  twelve  men  have  found  a  watery  grave.'  wriU'» 
Kirkpatrick,  Jnurnul,  MS.,  1(5,  at.  Pliitte  ferry,  June  '2\,  I84U;  nee  aUo  ('<i< 
aiu'ii  A  Feir  Fdch  on  «'«/.,  MS.,  '2;  Bmini'it  Eirlif  Dhj/h  in  C'll.,  MS.,  3  4. 

"For  forts  on  this  route,  see  HiM.  It.  ('.,  this  iieries;  L'.  S.  Ilor.  Iht , 
.llstcong.  Ht  sess.,  H.  Ex.  !)««.,  v.  pt  i.  2*24,  Many  desortioiia  t<»<>k  |ilai« 
fnun  the  garrison.  ro|y\  Ii„li;  l.'Mf.  The  Hrst  com |Niny  arrived  hiif  M.iy 
2'2d;  cholera  was  diHiipjMiaiing.  the  Crows  were  watching  to  carry  oir  i :ittlc 
Placer  Time*,  Oct.  IIJ,  1840.  One  emigrant  inurnal  shows  that  it  tiK.k  fully 
six  weeks  to  traverse  the  G70  miies  Uttweeii  Inde|H>ndence  and  thiH  fm  t. 

•The  fort  was  reached  by  two  p>ut4.<8  from  tlie  south  piMis,  tlie  mor«-  iliiwt, 
Sublette's  cut-off,  crosseil  the  iiead  waters  of  the  Sandy  and  down  lletir  Kivir 
to  its  junction  with  tito  Tliomaa  branch.  The  other  followed  the  Siimly  I" 
(freen  River;  crosseil  thiH  and  the  riilue  to  Fort  Uridger;  thence  m-iii'i  the 
Muddy  Fork  and  other  Oreen  Kiver  tributaries  into  Dear  Kiver  Vulh),  aiiJ 


DOWN  THE  HUMBOLDT. 


151 


i  led  on  tlie 
and  stately 
is  river  was 
Uowed  with 
;)und  to  the 
d  seasons,  at 
inoes  la.shcil 
ee  the  route 
)llow  to  Fort 
ited  States/ 
•y,  or  by  the 
ary  into  the 
le  as<'»Mit  i-i 
ant  is  Jiwaif 
coutinmt, 
ic  water  sys- 
3  of  singular 
tic  donu'  ami 


tlic  On  <,von  trail,  whence  the  route  led  along  Snake 
|{ivcr  Vuiley  to  the  north  of  Goose  Creek  Mountains, 
and  ii|)  tiiiH  stream"*  to  the  head  waters  of  tlie  Huni- 
liohlt,  also  called  Mary  and  Oj;den  Kiver.  This  was 
folic )Wi;(l  alonijf  its  entire  lentrth  to  the  lake  or  sink 
iiitn  which  it  disappears.  It  was  hereabout  that  the 
ciiii^Maiits  were  the  most  frequent!  •  riven  to  extreui- 
jtv.  Long  since  the  strain  and  hardships  of  the 
journey  hud  claimed  the  t  victims.  Many  a  man, 
ini<launted  by  the  cholera  and  the  heavy  march 
lh»  Mi:,'h  the  IMatte  country,  nUindoning  one  portion 
afttr  another  of  his  effects,  after  a  dozen  unloa<ling8 
and  rcloadings  and  toilsome  extrications  and  mount- 
ings within  as  many  hours;  undaunted,  even,  on 
ajipnia  hing  the  summit  of  the  continent,  lost  his  zeal 
ami  courage  on  nearing  the  Sierra  Nevada,  and  with 
his  ''old  fever  abated,  he  turned  back  to  nurse  con- 
tLiitiiKut  in  his  lately  abandoned  home."  A[any, 
iudcrd,  tired  and  discouraged,  with  animals  thinned  in 
■idiiitK-r  and  exhausted,  halted  at  vireat  Salt  Lake,  ac- 
(■(|itiiig  the  invitatioiiof  the  Mormons  to  stay  through 
thf  w  inter  and  recuperate.*'     The  saints  undoubtedly 

mirtli  to  th«  Tlioniiui  )>ranch.  Hi>iiev  the  rounited  traiU  nwchtHl  Fort  Hall 
liy  way  of  I'ortnoiif  Kiver. 

'"Tdwanl  tho  cixlof  lN4Uor  lK!t<iiuiiiiK  of  l!O0  ntrnil  waa  o|)«ne<l  from  Dear 
UivtTiK  ntroitliulR'uil  waters  of  tliti  lianiiiH-k,  Full,  ami  |{afttributart«ss of  Snake 
Hivir,  iiii-«'tiiig  till!  «>tliur  tniil  itl  tlit;  liuuil  of  (iiNNu.' Creek.  Ihlano'*  L{fr  oh 
I'll,,,,..,  |:|.s.  Another  iiii|)ortiiiit  hnuicli  of  tlin  route,  m>sa<lly  reconled  bytlio 
hMrMKri'iiiiipiinyof  IH4(I,  ami  tit  rather  for  lightly  (H|iii|)|Mii(  nartien  with  pack 
iiiiMiials  t  liuii  for  wagoiitt,  waa  tho  HuMtiiiKs  roml.  It  utarteil  from  Fort  Hriilger, 
\tiifMA  niiiiiil  the  itoiitherii  oiid  of  Oreat  Salt  l^ko,  onmHcii  the  ilrwrt,  ami 
I>i'>n'i'(mU'i|  ill  a  WfHterly  iliruutiuii  till  the  ea^t  Hiiniliolilt  Moimtaiiia  went 
otnick  at  Fraiikliii  Kiver;  then)  it  turned  iiliruiitly,  paaiiin){  nmiid  the 
x  iiiiIk  III  end  of  the  raugu,  and  f)dlowo<l  the  Routh  Itrunoh  of  tho  Humlioldt 
iIkwii  to  tliu  niuin  river.  Hrvant,  What  I  Smr  hi  ( 'nl.,  i.  I4'J  .1,  iNUtaod  over  it 
miirr.s^fiilly  ill  lH4tt.  The  Mornioiia  estaliliidii'd  ft-rricH  at  Welier  and  Ikiar 
riM'iH.  <'liar;.'iiii;  <jL'i  or  ^S  for  eauh  team.  Slithr'x  MoriiiDiiiHin,  li. 

"/'/(ir, ,■  Thnu,  (K't.  1.1,  1849,  alludes  to  iimiiy  ivturns,  evon  from  l^ar 
aiiiii'.  R  K.  howfll,  Lillerit,  MS.,  3,  iHtu^iit  u  liorHe  from  one  wIid  turnu<4 
Im.  k  aftvr  liuving  travelled  74K)  niilos;  'he  had  seen  tho  ele|>hiuit,  uiid  eaUin 
lU  Ills. ' 

'liiitUiu-o  Morgan,  Trip  lS4:t,  14  17.  The  numlH-r  winU^ring  in  IHTiO  I 
«»nlii>;(',  from  MM  tu  1,(NN),  wiyN  Slater.  .Vorininiiiiii,  r*  1'2,  .'<7;  uho  adds 
tli.i*  till'  Moniioiis  withhehi  or  reduced  wages  uud  su|>|ilieM,  so  that  many  suf- 
f  ri'<l  and  wi'ie  even  tinahlo  to  proceed  on  their  joiirncv.  C'hiirges  to  thia 
•'ifr.  t  vti'i'i!  piililiHhed  in  Snf.  f^H»'tn,  June  2M,  IHAI;  hut  theyshoulil  )>'■  tuken 
« iili  <liif  iillowniiee.  StaiiloM,  /mW>/. ,  M.S.,  2-3,  avcuaes  tbu  Murmuua  uf  niaai- 
fi'Dtuig  I  heir  liatred  for  MiiiaouriaiM. 


ISS 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND. 


reaped  a  harvest  in  cheap  labor,  and  by  the  ready 
exchange  of  provisions  to  starving  emigrants  for 
wagons,  tools,  clothing,  and  other  effects,  greatly  to 
the  delight  of  the  leaders,  who,  at  the  first  sight  of 
gold  from  California,  had  prophesied  plenty,  and  the 
sale  of  States  goods  at  prices  as  low  as  in  the  eas^t." 
Others,  eager  as  ever,  and  restive  under  the  frequent 
delays  and  slow  progress  of  the  ox  trains,  would  hasten 
onward  in  small  parties,  perhaps  alone,  perchance 
tempted  into  the  numerous  pitfalls  known  as  cut- 
offs, to  be  lost  in  the  desert,  overcome  by  heat  and 
thirst,  or  stricken  down  by  furtively  pursuing  savages, 
whose  boldness  increased  as  the  emigrant  force  became 
weak.^* 

But  how  insignificant  appear  the  sufferings  of  the 
men  in  comparison  with  those  of  the  women  and  chil- 
dren, driven  after  a  long  and  toilsome  journey  into  a 
desert  of  alkali.  And  here  the  dumb  brutes  suffer  as 
never  before.  There  are  drifts  of  ashy  earth  in  these 
flats  in  which  the  cattle  sink  to  their  bellies,  and  go 
moaning  along  their  way  midst  a  cloud  of  dust  and 
beneath  a  broiling  sun,  while  just  beyond  are  fantas- 
tic visions  of  shady  groves  and  bubbling  springs;  for 
this  is  the  region  of  mirage,  and  not  far  off  the  desert 
extends  into  the  terrible  Valley  of  Death,  accursed 
to  all  living  things,  its  atmosphere  destructive  even 
to  the  passing  bird.  Many  are  now  weakened  by 
scurvy,  fever,  and  exhaustion.  There  are  no  longer 
surplus  relays.  The  remnant  of  animals  is  all  pressed 
into  service,  horse  and  cow  being  sometimes  yoked 
together.     The  load  is  still  further  lightened  to  re- 

'^Thua  hau  spoken  Heber  C.  Kimball,  when  the  Mormon  gold-fiiiden 
arrivetl  from  California,  altliough  he  doubted  hia  own  words  thu  ticxt 
moment.  'Vet  it  was  the  best  prophetic  hit  of  hia  life.'  Tullidye's  Li/i:  of 
Youuij,  20.3-8. 

'* Seven  emigrants  were  surprised  in  the  Klamath  reeion  by  200  Indians, 
and  six  cut  down.  Lonl,  NaturnUnl,  27 1 ,  found  )N>nes  and  half-bunied  wai;(iti!i 
near  Yreka  ten  years  later.  Instivnce  also  in  U,  S.  Goo.  Doc,  .Sist  coii);.  il 
■CBS.,  Sen.  Doc.  19,  iii.  12.  More  than  one  solitary  traveller  ia  spoken  of. 
S*»e  Qniijli'y'i  /ruh  Race,  216;  Sae.  Bee,  Oct.  3,  1870.  One  wheeled  liis  Imij 
gage  in  a  harrow  at  the  pace  of  25  miles  ii  day,  passing  many  wh»  travelled 
with  (iuimahi.  Cofa:'!!  Hide,  160;  Solano  Co.  Hut.,  368-9. 


OVER  THE  DESERT. 


16S 


Lrmon  gol(\-fm<len 

I  words    the  next 

Tulliilije's  Liji:  oj 

Ln  by  200  Imlian'. 
lalf -burned  wau'>n« 
l)of.,  3l8t  coiig.  ij 
>Uer  is  Bpok»n  of. 
I  wheeled  Iii8  I'ag; 
lany  wh;>  travtlled 


licve  the  jaded  teams.  Even  feeble  women  must 
walk.  The  entire  line  is  strewn  with  dead  animals 
and  abandoned  effects.  Vultures  and  coyotes  hover 
ominously  along  the  trail.  Gloomy  nights  are  folloNved 
bv  a  dawn  of  fresh  suffering.  Now  and  then  some 
one  succumbs,  and  in  despair  bids  the  rest  fly  and 


Across  tbb  Deskrt. 

leave  him  to  his  fate.  Some  of  the  trains  come  to  a 
Ht«;j),  and  the  wagons  are  abandoned,  while  the  ani- 
inaL  are  ridden  or  driven  forward." 

'^The  padsage  of  this  desert  was  but  a  narrow  stretch,  from  two  to  four 
HMn-  iiiilfs,  aceonling  to  the  direction  taken,  hut  was  very  sevce,  t«|H'.cially 
to  vtauderura  worn  out  and   stricken  witii  disease.     Instances  of  suHViing 


154 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND. 


.Mr 


The  suffering  in  184  '  fell  chiefly  upon  the  later  ar- 
rivals, when  water  was  scarce  and  the  little  grass  left 
by  the  earlier  (caravans  had  dried  up.  The  savai^es, 
too,  became  troublesome.  Several  relief  parties  went 
out  from  the  mines.  In  1850  the  suffering  was  more 
severe  throughout,  partly  from  the  over-confidence 
created  by  tlie  news  of  well-stocked  markets  in  Cali- 
fornia, which  led  to  the  wasteful  sacrifice  of  stores  on 
the  way  by  the  overloaded  caravans  of  1849,  and  of 
the  scarcity  of  supplies  at  tho  Mormon  way-station. 
Hence  many  sttirted  with  scanty  supplies  and  poorer 
animals.  The  overflow  of  the  Humboldt  drove  the 
trains  to  the  barren  uplands,  lengthening  the  jour- 
ney and  starving  the  beasts.  So  many  oxen  and 
horses  perished  in  the  fatal  sink  that  the  effluvia 
revived  the  cholera,  and  sent  it  to  ravage  the  enfeebled 
crowds  which  escaped  into  Sacramento  Valley.  He- 
hind  them  on  the  plains  were  still  thousands,  battling 
not  alone  witii  this  and  other  scourges,  but  with  fam- 
ine and  cold,  for  snow  fell  early  and  massed  in  heavy 
drills.  Tales  of  distress  were  brought  by  each  arrival, 
told  not  in  words  only,  but  by  the  blanched  and  hag- 
gard features,  until  California  was  filled  with  pity, 
and  the  government  combined  with  the  miners  and 
other  self-sacrificing  men  in  efforts  for  the  relief  of  the 
sufterers.  Carried  by  parties  in  all  directions  acntss 
the  mountains  and  throi-gh  the  snow,'*  train  after 
train  was  saved;  yet  so  many  were  the  sufferers  that 
only  a  comparatively  small  number  could  be  much 
relieved.     Emaciated  men,  carrying  infants  crying  lor 


abound  in  the  journalfi  of  the  time.  Alia  CnK,  Dec.  15,  1840,  et  sen.;  Plnnr 
Thni»  of  I84!J;  S.  F.  IfenUil,  Par.  Xewn,  Snr.  Union,  etc.,  of  following  years. 
J>niic(iu'n  Southern  Hei/ioii,  MS.,  1-2.     See  following  note. 

"During  tliiH  yuur,  1840,  the  autlioritiea  appntpriatcd  $100,000  for  nlief, 
and  troops  passed  eastward  with  supplies,  partly  under  Maj.  Ku<kti'.  Sih; 
rejjorts  in  U.  S.  Oon,  Doc.,  .^Ist  cong.  Istsesa.,  Sen.  Doc.  .52,  xiii.  94  ir>4;  /'/., 
.%th  cong.  2d  8C88. ,  Acts  an<l  Resol.,  I'm;  Smitk'n  Rept,  in  Tyion'it  (lioi.,  84. 
The  public  also  sulMicrilivd  lilierally.  Placer  Titnen,  Sept.  I."*,  I84U;  Shmunii't 
Mem.,  i.  80.  In  I8.')0  the  public  in.tde  even  greater  cfforte  in  all  diri-ctidii!*, 
and  Capt.  Waldo  headed  one  relief  train.  Upham'ii  Xote»,  3.51  -2;  Col.  Jour. 
.SVm.,  18.51,  607-10;  Site.  Tromcri/tt,  Sept.  2.3, 18.50, etc.  Appeals  forsulHcnp- 
tioua  and  responses  are  given  in  all  the  jouniala  of  the  time.     8ee  next  note. 


SUFFERING  AND  DEATH. 


m 


il 


the  later  ar- 
,le  grass  left 
Mie  savaj^es, 
parties  went 
ig  was  THore 
T-confidonce 
kets  in  Cali- 

of  stores  on 
L849,  and  of 
way -static  in. 
5  and  poorer 
It  drove  the 
ng  the  j< 
ly  oxen   aiu 

the  ettluvia 
the  enfeebled 
Valley.  He- 
mds,  battling 
)ut  with  fani- 
ised  in  heavy 
[  each  arrival, 

led  and  hag- 

d  with  i>ity, 
miners  and 
relief  of  the 

ictions  across 
train   after 

,utFerers  tliat 
Id   be  niiu'h 

its  crying  for 


to,  et  setj. :  /"'a'"- 
of  following  ytars. 

tlUO.OOO  for  nlief, 
Maj.  Ru.k.'i-.  Sih; 
,xiii.94  IM:  K, 
Tyiiou'n  '<""•.  *•■ 
»,  1849;  Shrrmnu:! 
1  in  all  lUreetiiiiis 
Isai  'i:  Col.  'lo»r. 
Ipeals  for  Hiilitcnp- 
See  next  note. 


food,  stopped  to  feed  on  the  putrefying  carcasses  lining 
the  road,  or  to  drink  from  alkaline  pools,  only  to  in- 
crea.se  their  misery,  and  finally  end  in  suicide."  "The 
suffering  is  unparalleled,"  cry  several  journals  in  Sep- 
tember 1850,  in  their  appeal  for  relief;  nine  tenths  of 
the  emigrants  were  on  foot,  without  food  or  money; 
iidt  half  of  their  oxen,  not  one  fourth  of  their  horses, 
.survived  to  cross  the  mountains,  and  beyond  the  desert 
w eie  still  20,000  souls,  the  greater  part  of  whom  were 
t!^)stituto," 

After  escaping  from  the  desert,  the  emigrant  had 
.still  to  encounter  the  difficult  passage  of  the  Sierra 
Nevada,  so  dangerous  after  snow  began  to  fall,  as 
instanced  by  the  terrible  fate  of  the  Donner  party  in 
1  b4<J.  Of  the  several  roads,  the  most  direct  was  along 
Truekee  River  to  its  source  in  the  lake  of  that  name, 

''  On  tlie  Humboldt,  says  Delano,  L\fe,  2.3^9,  three  men  and  two  women 
dmwiiL-it  tlieniselveH  in  one  day. 

'"  rin!  report  of  the  VValdu  relief  party,  in  Sne.  Tramcript,fiept.  23,  1850, 
stated  thut  large  supplies  from  Maryaville  had  failed  to  pans  l>eyoud  Bear 
Niillcy,  west  of  the  Sierra,  owing  to  the  aidmuls  failing.  At  the  lower 
Ti'iii-kei!  crmwiug  buef  had  lieen  deposited,  and  a  nuuil>er  of  stout  animals 
Boiit  tu  uarry  sick  euugrants  across  the  desert.  Several  starving  men  were 
liiuoiintL-rud,  and  the  dead  iKi^Mes  of  others  who  had  succumbed.  Few  were 
fuuii'l  witli  provisions,  save  tiieir  exhausted  teams;  one  fourth,  having  no 
aniiiialii,  lived  on  the  putrefying  carcasses,  thus  absorbing  disease.  Cholera 
liniku  out  Sept.  8th,  in  one  small  train,  carrying  off  ciglit  persons  in  three 
liuiii'8,  several  more  being  expected  to  die.  BVom  the  sink  westwartl  the 
liiivcic  wiis  fearful.  Indians  added  to  the  nusery  by  stealing  animals.  Of 
'.M,*K)0  ciiiigi-aats  still  back  of  the  desert,  fully  15,000  wore  destitute,  and  their 
greatest  sulfering  was  to  come;  half  of  them  could  not  reach  the  mountains 
lii'i'iire  winter;  from  .'^,000  to  8,000  11)8  of  beef  were  issued  daily;  flour  was 
furiiiHlied  only  to  the  sick.  Those  yet  at  the  head  of  the  Humboldt  were  to 
lie  wiii'iieil  to  turn  back  to  Great  Salt  Lake.  Similar  accounts  in  earlier  and 
iatei  niniiliers.  Id.,  July  26,  Aug.  IG,  Sent.  .30,  I8.'>0,  Feb.  I,  14,  1851,  etc. 
Ovil|^f  to  tlie  number  of  applicants,  relief  rations  hud  to  be  reduced.  Id., 
Steamer  eds.  of  Aug.  .10th,  Oct.  14th.  Barstow,  Stat.,  MS.,  l'2-i;»,  who  went 
utit  witli  provisions,  declares  that  he  could  almost  step  from  one  alutndoned 
wagon  uiid  carcass  to  another.  See  further  accounts  in  Minfil.  Stat. ;  Shi'iiri-r'n 
Jniini'il,  MS.,  1.3;  CoHHor'H  Stal..  MS.,  4  5;  Dowfll't  Lftlirx,  MS.,  1-:14; 
ShniuxiiiA  Pocket  Onidf,  47-64;  Pirnyinw,  Aug.  21,  Sept.  .3-4,  12,  1850;  .V. 
F.  Cum:,  .July  13,  24,  Aug.  9,  17,  20,  26,  1850;  .S'.  /'.  Herald,  July  1.3,  27-9, 
Aug.  Jl  •>,  1850;  Degerel  Xeirit,  Oct.  5,  18."iO;  Alia  CVt/.,  Dec.  17,  18.50;  iJe/- 
""<"(  l.i/i'oii  I'lahiM,  2.34-12:  I'ae.  AVjm,  Aug.  21-2,24,  1850;  Sar.  IW,  Dec. 
7,  ;sti7;  /imitle'n  Wexlern  \VUttM,38-40;  Ali/ern  Yoitiiq  Advin.,  I8.J,  etc.;  Lou 
An.jvhH  AV;,..  Feb.  28,  Mar.  14,  1878;  Brown'*  Early  IM,/m,  .MS.,  2  4,7. 
l*evoted  men  like  WaUlo,  who  so  freely  offered  themselves  and  their  means 
fnr  the  relief  of  the  sufferers,  cannot  be  too  highly  praised  and  remembered 
l>y  t'alifuruiaus. 


156 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND. 


and  thence  down  the  Yuba  to  Feather  and  Sacranierito 
rivers.^'     The  route  so  hx  described,  by  way  of  the 

"Through  Hennera  past.  A  trail  branched  by  Donner  Lako  alon{>;  tlie 
north  branch  of  the  Ameriuan.  The  most  northern  route,  Lassen's,  tunifil 
from  the  great  bend  of  the  Humboldt  north-west  tu(iooae  Lake,  there  to  itwing 
southward  by  the  Oregon  trail  along  Pit  River  and  Honey  Lake  into  tliu  Stic- 
ramento  Valley.  Hostile  Indians,  and  snow,  and  greater  extent  of  tlemnt 
combined  to  give  this  tliu  name  of  the  Deatii  Route,  so  that  few  foUouiil  it 
after  the  early  part  of  1840.  YrekaJour.,  Feb.  18,  1871.  A  branch  from  it 
struck  acroHs  Upper  Mud  Lake  toward  Honey  Lake.  Below  Trckee  run  tlic 
Carson  River  route,  turning  south  of  Lake  Tuiioe  through  Johnson  Vsxsn  ami 
down  tiie  south  fork  of  American  River.  A  brancli  turned  to  the  we^t  fmk 
of  Walker  River  tiirough  Hunora  pass  and  Sonora  to  Stockton.  The  iiini:i 
route  from  the  east  is  well  described  in  a  little  emigrant's  guide-book  ]iiili- 
lished  by  J.  E.  Ware.  After  giving  tiie  inten.ling  emigrant  instructioiii*  m 
to  hia  outfit,  estimates  of  expense,  directions  for  forming  camp,  etc.,  tliu 
author  follows  the  entire  route  from  one  camping-place  or  prominent  point  tii 
t!)e  next,  describes  the  intervening  road  anil  river  crossings,  points  out  w  licrv 
fuel  anil  water  can  be  obtained,  and  gives  tlistances  as  well  as  he  can.  la 
\M9  Ware  set  out  for  Gal.,  was  taken  ill  east  of  Laramie,  and  lieartlusisly 
abandoned  by  his  companions,  and  thus  perished  nuserably.  Delano  says  he 
was  'formerly  from  Galena,  but  known  in  St  Jjouis  as  a  writer.'  L^f'e  on  the 
Plainit,  l(i3.  Alonzo  Delano  was  born  at  Aurora,  N.  Y. ,  July  2, 180<>,  and  eame 
to  Cal.  by  the  Lassen  route  in  1840,  and  of  his  journey  published  a  iiiiiiti^e 
account.  After  working  in  the  pl&ccrs  for  some  time  he  went  to  S.  F.  nnd 
opened  a  produce  store.  In  the  autumn  of  18.'>1  he  engaged  in  quartz-mining 
at  Gross  Valley,  which  wns  thenceforward  his  home.  A  year  or  two  later  liu 
became  suiterintendcnt  of  the  Nevaula  Company's  mill  and  mine,  and  tiieu 
agent  of  Adams  &  Co.'s  express  and  banking  ottice.  In  Feb.  1855  he  ojieneil 
a  banking-house  of  his  own.  In  his  position  of  agent  for  A<luma  &  (.'u.  at 
(irasa  Valley,  he  n  ■ctv'ed  orders  to  pay  out  no  money  either  on  public  or  pri- 
vate deposits,  winch  orders  he  did  not  oliey;  but  calling  the  depositors  i^y- 
getlier,  no  read  his  instructions  and  said:  'Come,  men,  and  get  your  depo-siU; 
you  sluill  have  what  is  yours  so  long  as  tiiere  is  a  dollar  in  tiie  safe. '  Five 
days  later,  on  Feb.  20th,  Delano  o|)«ncd  a  banking-house  of  his  own;  ami  so 
great  was  the  confidence  placed  in  his  integrity  tiiat  within  24  hours  he  re- 
ceived more  money  on  deiHwit  tiian  he  had  ever  held  as  agent  for  Adams  k 
Co.  From  that  time  on  he  led  a  successful  and  honored  career  as  a  ImnkiT 
until  the  day  of  his  death,  which  occurred  at  Grass  Valley  Sept.  8,  KS74. 
For  further  particulars,  see  Ovoxh  Valley  foothill  TidiiDjn,  Nov.  21,  1874; 
GrriMM  Valleii  Union,  Sept.  10,  1874;  Tni'kee  Rc/nMican,  Sept.  10,  1874;  Sla 
lidrhnra  Iildex,  Sept.  24,  1874;  Portland  Bulletin,  Oct.  7,  1874;  S.  F.  All', 
Sept.  11,  1874.  But  it  was  as  an  author,  not  as  a  banker,  that  Deltuiu  wiis 
best  known  to  tiie  early  Californians,  and,  by  one  of  his  books  at  least,  to  t!ie 
wider  world.  Tiiis  work,  a  vol.  of  some  400  pages,  is  an  account  of  hia  jour 
iiey  overland  to  Cal. ,  and  embodies  much  information  aliout  early  tiiiivs  in 
Cal.,  cspticially  in  the  mining  regions  and  small  towns.  Its  title  is:  J.i/e  on 
the  Pliiinn  andamoiKj  the  Diijijimjii;  Ix'inij  Scenes  and  Adventures  of  an  Oivr- 
land  Joiimei/  to  Caltfurnia:  with  Particular  InridnntH  of  the  Route,  Misiakrt 
anil  SiiJfrrinifH  of  the  EmUjrantu,  tlie.  Indian  Tribes,  the  PreaeiU  and  the  Fniitrt 
o/lhe  Great  }ViM.  Aultum,  ISTil,  and  N.Y.,  1801.  The  portion  reLiting  to  the 
j  lurney  was  written  as  a  jounial,  in  which  the  incidents  of  each  day,  tliu  l(inil 
of  country  passed  through,  and  tlio  probable  distance  accomplislied  were 
noted.  What  does  not  relate  to  the  immigration  is  more  sketchy,  but  still 
valuable  and  accurate.  Although  Delano's  most  ambitious  book,  it  was  not 
his  first.  During  the  earlier  years  of  residence  in  his  adopted  country  lie 
contributed  a  numlicr  of  short  humorous  sketches  illustrative  of  Cal.  life 
to  the  various  periodicals.     These  fugitive  pieces  were  collected  and  pub- 


SOUTHERN  ROUTES. 


157 


Roekv  Mountain  South  Pass  and  Humboldt  River, 
known  as  the  northern,  received  by  far  the  largest 
itroportion  of  travel;  the  next  in  importance,  the 
southern,  led  from  Independence  by  the  caravan  trail 
to  Siinta  V6,  thence  to  deviate  in  different  directions: 
1)V  the  old  Spanish  trail  round  the  north  banks  of  the 
Colorado,  crossing  Rio  Virgenes  to  Mojave  River  and 
(k'strt,  and  through  Cajon  Pass  to  Los  Angeles;  by 
Oeni'ral  Kearny's  line  of  march  through  Arizona, 
along  the  Gila;  by  that  of  Colonel  Cooke  down  the  Rio 
(Ininde  and  westward  across  the  Sonora  table-land  to 
Yuma.  Others  passed  through  Texas,  Coahuila,  and 
Chihuiihua  into  Arizona,  while  not  a  few  went  by  .sea 
to  Tunipico  and  Vera  Cruz,  and  thence  across  the  con- 
tinent to  Mazatlan  or  other  Mexican  seaport  to  seek  a 
stwiiner  or  sailing  vessel,  or  even  through  Nicaragua, 
which  soon  sprang  into  prominence  as  a  rival  point  of 
transit  to  the  Isthmus.*'     Snow  at  least  proving  no 


lisliod  at  Sacramento,  in  a  volume  of  112  pp.,  under  the  title  of  Penknyfe 
!\ki-ti-hi!<;  or  Vhipn  of  the  Old  Block;  a  ne.riea  o/orii/innl  illu»lnUrd  Irthr*.  writ- 
t<n  bij  una  of  C(0i/ornin'8  pioneer  miner*,  and  drdirated  to  that  clmtn  of  her  rit- 
ivim  hij  the  author,  8ac.,  18.')3.  A  second  edition,  sixteenth  tliousand,  was 
liiihllMlu'il  in  I8.'>4,  price  one  dollar.  Like  tiie  cuts  designed  by  t'liarles  Xaiil, 
wiiich  oriiiinicnt  tliis  )>ooi(,  the  humor  of  the  author  is  of  a  rough  and  ready 
nature,  but  it  is  genial  and  witiial  graphic.  Tlic  Sketrhea  are  tlie  overflowing 
of  a  merry  heart,  which  no  hard  times  could  depress,  and  tiirougii  nil  their 
linlcsiiuc  it  iit  evident  that  tiie  writer  had  a  discerning  and  appreciative  eye 
fiir  tlie  many  strange  piiases  which  his  new  life  presented.  More  famous 
liiiiiiiii'ista  iiave  arisen  in  California  since  the  time  of  Old  Block,  his  chosen 
wti.i  til'  Illume;  but  as  the  first  of  tlie  tribe,  so  he  was  tiie  most  faitliful  in 
(Ivpiotiiig  life  in  tiie  Hush  times.  His  California  Sketch- Book  is  similar  in  iia- 
tiiie  to  the  pi'nknije  Sketches,  liesides  his  purely  humorous  pieces,  Delano 
\vriit(!u  nu!niM.'r  of  tales  which  appeare<l  in  tiie  If«»perinn.  and  1 1  utehinyH' 
la'iga/.inus,  as  well  as  some  plays,  wliich  it  is  said  were  put  upon  the  stag*;. 
Si-e  tliu  W/fiKt  Valleif  Foothill  Tidimjn,  Nov.  21,  1874.  In  lS(i8  he  publislieil 
at  S.  V.  The  Central  Pticijic,  or  '49  ami  '«,9,  />»/  Old  Jilork,  a  pamplilet  of  24 
pp.,  oiiinparing  the  modes  of  traversing  the  continent  at  tlie  two  dates  men- 
tiuiietl. 

^"Thu  new  Mexican  routes  have  received  full  attention  in  the  preceding 
viilunu'H  of  tills  series,  JUmI.  Cal,,  in  connection  with  Hisitano-Mexicun  inter- 
c  )iii'!tu  iH-twcen  New  Mexico  and  Cal.,  with  trappt>r  roamiiigs  and  the  maroli 
oveiiaiid  of  U.  S.  troops  in  1846-7.  Taylor,  Eldorado,  l.'il,  siieaks  of  Vuina 
a' taclv!4  on  Arizona  ivissengers.  See  also  records  and  references  in  theyl//t 
' '''/.,  .Iiiiic  2.'),  18J30,  and  other  journals  and  dates,  as  in  a  preceding  note;  also 
//'iV'n'  Life,  MS.,  60  et  seq. ;  Id.,  in  AHmc,  Hint.  l'<ip.,  <U)c.  27,  p.  t3.">-(!,  4.'), 
ct8e(|.;  llii/eH'  Emiif.  Noteit,  MS.,  415,  with  list  of  his  party;  Id.,  iJiary,  SfS., 
Tili;  Sniile'HStnt.,  MS.,  1  etseq.:  Sntpnar(Vt  Slnt.,MH.,'2-:i;  Perrtf'H  Travels, 
14-ii'.),  uiid  Woodii'  Sixteen  Montho,  H  ct  so*}.,  recording  troubles  and  exactions 
of  Mu.\icuu  trips  via  Masatlan  oud  Sau  Bias.    So  ia  Overland,  xv.  241-8,  on 


IM 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND 


I' 


material  obstruction  along  the  more  southerly  routos, 
a  fair  proportion  of  emigrants  from  the  United  Stntcs 
had  availed  themselves  of  the  outlet  for  an  carlitT 
start,"  and  some  £,000  entered  California  from  this 
quarter,  including  many  Hispano- Americans,  th o  lat- 
ter pouring  in,  more»)ver,  throughout  the  >  inter 
months  by  way  of  Sonora  and  Chihuahua. 

The  number  of  gold-seekers  who  reached  California 
from  all  sources  during  the  year  1849  can  be  ♦esti- 
mated only  approximately.  The  m«)st  generally  ac- 
ce[)te(l  statement,  b}'^  a  ccmimittee  of  the  California 
constitutional  convention,  places  the  population  at 
the  close  of  1841)  at  106,000,  which,  as  compared  with 
the  census  figure,  six  months  later,  of  about  112,000, 
exclusive  of  Indians,''^  appears  excessive.  But  the 
census  was  taken  under  circumstances  nt)t  favoralije 
to  accuracy,  and  the  preceding  estimate  may  be  re- 
garded as  e(|ually  near  the  truth,  although  some  ol' 
the  details  are  (juestionable.'*' 

tlie  Sail  BIn8  route.  The  steamer  f'<di/oriiia  took  on  board  at  Acapulcn,  in 
July  IS49,  a  (liU'ty  of  tlcntitute  Anivriuaiis,  afMiMted  liy  tlie  iMisscngcrH.  Snnln 
Crin  TimiH,  VcU.  'M,  1870.  KomK^  nu-t  live  uiiuriueil  Frenchmen  hauliiijjia 
huiiil  wayoii  tlirough  Chihuahua.  Chnrlon,  Tour  ilii  Monde,  iv.  IBO;  Sniillnrii 
(Jiinrf.  AVc,  xv.  '2'J4ot8eq.  In  Shemiiml'ti  Gitiilr,  .'iX-iS,  ia  mentioned  a  fuiituntio 
balloon  raxxUi  by  the  'i^attmt  atiHul  Hteani  float'  of  K.  I'orter,  tu  carry  iNisti-n- 
ffvrs  at  9100,  including  InNird  and  a  precautionary  return  ticket;  the  trip  to 
be  made  in  four  or  five  days! 

'"  Tiie  f(Ntr  of  .Mexican  hostility,  the  com|)arutivt'ly  inferior  knowlcil;;o  nt 
thi)«  route,  and  its  apparent  rouiidubiuit  turn  made  it  less  popular,  ut  least 
north  of  till!  8outliern  states. 

''-'  The  total  is  {YIMY!  for  all  except  three  counties — Santa  Clara,  S.  F. ,  ainl 
Contra  Costii,  the  returns  for  which  were  lost.  U.  S.  Srtfnfh  I'fiiiniM,  !«ii)  it 
8e(].  Comparison  with  the  state  ceusus  of  1H52  ])ermits  an  estimate  for  tlii-ne 
tliree  of  not  over  1»,.'K)0,  H'hen-of  l(),.'H)0  were  for  S.  F.  town  and  county.  Tlie 
Aiinafit  of  S,  /'.,  244,  assumes  20,04)0  or  even  2."),000;  others  vary  IdtvM'cn 
7,(XX)  and  20,000  for  S.  K.  city  at  tlie  close  of  I84U,  and  as  a  large  iiiMiilH.rut 
miners  and  others  were  then  wintering  there,  the  |>opulatioii  niuHt  liavc 
fallen  greatly  by  the  time  of  taking  the  census.  In  July  and  Au^'.  1H49 
the  city  ha(l  only  5,000  or  U,0(N).  The  influx  by  seu  during  the  tirxt  m 
months  of  IS.'rf)  is  rcporte<l  by  the  S.  F.  custom-house  at  24,288,  wluTenf 
10,472  were  Americans.  U,  S.  (inr.  Dor.,  Slst  c(m^.  1st  sess.,  H.  Kx.  l>oc. 
I(i,  iv.  44  5.  Uy  dctlucting  this  ii^'urc  ami  Iwlancing  de|iartures  with  th« 
influx  from  .Mexico  the  t>taTat  the  end  of  1840  would  Tie  nearly  flO,(MIO. 

''^  For  iiistiince,  the  population  at  the  end  of  1848  is  placed  by  the  com- 
mittee at  2<i,(M)0,  of  wiioin  13,000  were  Califomians,  8,0(H>  AinericaiiH,  and 
fi,0<M)  foreij,'iicrs.  I  estimate  from  the  archives  the  native  (.'ulifornian  t'le- 
ineut  at  little  over  7,500  at  the  iiamo  period;  8,000  Amcricaua  is  ou  uduiii- 


POPULATION. 


150 


erly  routos, 
ntetl  States 
r  an  earlier 
a  from  this 
ins,  til )  liit- 
the    >  inter 


I  prefer,  therefore,  to  place  the  number  of  white  in- 
liabitants  at  the  clone  of  1841)  at  not  over  100,000, 
acct  ptinij  the  eatiniatetl  influx  by  aea  of  31),000,  of 
wliicli  about  23,000  were  Americans,  and  4*2,000  over- 
Iniid,  of  which  1),000  were  from  Mexico,  8,000  coming 
throuj^h  New  Mexico,  and  25,000  by  way  of  the  South 
Tass  an<l  HuniboMt  River.  Of  this  immber  a  few 
tlntUisund,  especially  Mexicans,  returned  the  sanje  year, 
luaviiii,'  a  poi)ulation  that  approached  5)5,000."* 

sib'.o  fignro,  including  tho  Oregon  influx,  but  .5,000  foreignerM  18  somewhat 
)'\  oHsivc,  un  may  Ih;  judged  from  my  notca  in  proecdiiig  uliaix  i^  un  Mexicun 
n'1.1  other  innnigrutiun.  Indiana  are  evidently  excluded  in  all  eHtiniuteii. 
Till-  uMitr  tiguruH  for  the  influx  during  1840  appear  ncur  enough.  Thcv  may 
Ih!  oiisiiltod  itM  original  or  quoteil  cstmiateg,  among  other  works,  in  JUin/er  a 
M.j:.  A-.I'-'-,  ii.  im-,  S/illmaii'o  Holden  Fleecf,  3-.»;  IliUiWH  Hint.  S.  /'.,  13»-40. 
''■Ahout  Imlf-way  Initwecn  ihu  federal  eHtiinateBan<l  those  of  the  convention. 
Till'  tt'iuli'iicy  of  the  latter  wns  naturally  to  give  the  highest  reosonulilu  figures, 
aiiil  tlio  wonder  is  that  it  did  not  swell  them  with  Indian  totals.  Such  ex- 
I'itiii^  cpiiUMles  as  tlie  gohl  rush  are  moreover  apt  to  produce  exaggeration 
I'voryw  licru.  Thus  a  widely  accepted  calculation,  as  reproduce*!  in  ( 'nl.  J'lmt 
(iii'l  I'ri'Hiit,  140-7,  roaches  '2(K),000,  based  on  Larkin's  rep«jrt  of  4«1,(X)0  nr- 
rivcil  l>y  .Inly  i.S4i),  and  on  calculations  from  Laramie  of  .5(i,0U0  {lassing  there. 
'A  still  lar^'or  nund>er'  came  by  sea,  say  100,000,  'all  Americans,'  so  that 
iii-arly  '.'(K),(M)0  urrive<l,  and  in  IS'iO  there  would  l>e  more  than  500,000  new 
aniviils  from  the  U.  S.  1  Even  the  /fe/iorf,  lo,  of  the  govt  agent,  T.  H.  King, 
assiiiiiti  loosciy  the  arrival  in  1840  of  80,000  Americans  ami 'JO.OOO  foreigners. 
C.  S  (I'ir.  /)oi:,  .'Jlstcong.  Istsess.,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  aO,  7.  And  llittell,  J/Ul. 
S,  /•'.,  I.'l'.)-H),  l.M-(i,  so  excessively  cautious  in  some  respects,  n"t  allowing 
uwT  8,(MH)  inhabitants  to  S.  F.  in  Nov.  1840,  assigns  :tO,000  in  .li.iie  18.')0  to 
tlinu  -o'lntics  lacking  in  the  census,  of  which  al)out  'J.'»,000  must  be  meant  for 
S.  F.,  nnil  so  reaches  a  totitl  of  rj'i,000,  while  accepting  the  KKKOOO  estimate 
for  ISI!).  The  investigations  of  J.  17ooIidue  of  the  Merchants'  Exchange  in- 
(lic;it<'(t  arrivals  at  S.  l*.  from  March  .'il  to  I)ec.  .tl,  1S4!),  of  :{0,07.'>,  excluding 
ilescrtcrs;  l'J,*j:{7  coming  from  U.  S.  ports  via  Cape  Horn,  (i.OOO  via  I'ananui, 
'J.tHIO  via  .San  Itlas  antl  Mo/Jttlan,  the  rest  from  other  quarters.  Figures  in 
AVc.i'  A'l;/.,  I XXXV.  1 1. "J,  l'J7,  -88,  give  .S,,'')47  jiassengers  for  Chagres  by  April 
I84!(;  overland  inllux,  adds  Sar.  litrord.  Mar.  '28,  1874,  '  proliably  exceeded 
that  by  sea  twofold.'  In  a  letter  to  the  Si  LoiiIh  Iti-ft.  of  .hine  10,  I84!l,  from 
Fort  Kuariiy,  it  was  said  that  .^OiK^  M'agons  had  |iass('d;  alM>ut  l,(NK)  more 
ittft  IxliiiKl,  and  nuuiy  turning  back  daily.  There  are  5,(NK)  or  (>,0*H)  wagons 
.111  till!  way.  Altii,  Cfd.,  Aug.  '2,  1840.  See  also  I'lanr  TinuM,  May  'it!,  Oct.  \'A, 
ls(!l,  itc.  Kirk|)atrick,  Journal,  MS.,  14-10,  stiites,  on  the  other  hand,  that 
Miily  |,."i(H»  teams  were  siin|N)sed  to  bo  on  the  road  lietween  I'latte  ferry  and 
('al.  liming  the  latter  half  of  .hine.  The  Santa  Fe  and  South  Pass  arrivals 
ciuliraci!  some  His|Nino- Americans  and  Orogonians.  For  further  Hpei^ulations 
nil  iuiiiilnr.s  I  refer  to  WiUinnM'  Ihc.  Knrly  hai/M,  MS.,  10;  Ihtrxlmi-'n  Slut., 
.MS.,  |;t;  .|Wh7«  Trip,  fi,  '20,  56;  S.  F.  jy,fn-U,r'ji,  l8.V.>-:t,  10^  I  r  l.-i;  l'ioni->r 
.livA.,  ISJ  ;{;  l^nrkin^K  Ihir.,  MS.,  vi.  '203;  Tuylor't  K'lloniiln,  ii.  cap.  iv.; 
Siiii'iiiiii,  <//a,(i/ 0«««/, '21H);  Janmnt,  Viday  Av.,  MS.,  '20JJ-10;  AiiindHS.  A'. 
l;«.  •.M4,  ;r.(l,  4S4;  /'oh/iKHinii,  vi.  7»,  8)1  7;  Str.  Dinrlon/,  1871,  'Mi;  Mhn' 
/?"/,  Kxv.  ll.S,  r27, '288,  .•V20,  348,  38;?;  /t„m,-  J/.**.,  xxii.  4»;  .S".  F.  I'lv. 
.V.».»,  Dec.  'i-2,  '27,  1840;  Apr.  .'lO;  May  '2,  8,  iM.  '24,  I8.-K);  Alia  Cul.,  .Inly  '2, 
I)tc.  |->,  1H4!»:  May  '24.  18.'>0;  S.  F.  flpr,dd,  Xov.  !.->,  IS-TO;  .Ian  '21.  IS.>»: 
Buittjn  TraixUr,  March  ISJO;  St  Louin  Anzvif/tr,  Apr.   1850;  S,  F.  Bidltliii, 


100 


THE  JOURNEY  OVERLAND. 


The  advance  parties  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  uiigru- 
tion  began  to  arrive  in  the  Sacramento  Valley  towiml 
the  end  of  July,  after  which  a  steady  stream  cume 
pouring  in.  They  were  bewildered  and  unsettled  tor 
a  while  under  the  novelty  of  their  surroundings,  for 
the  r«)ugh  flimsy  camps  and  upturned,  debris-strewn 
river  banks,  as  if  convulsed  by  nature,  accorded  littlo 
with  the  pictured  paradise;  but  kind  greeting  and  aid 
came  from  all  sides  to  light  up  their  haggard  faces, 
and  before  the  prospect  of  unfolding  riches  all  past 
toil  and  danger  faded  like  a  gloomy  dream.  Even 
the  cattle,  broken  in  spirit,  felt  the  reviving  influence 
of  the  goal  attained."^  To  many  the  visions  of  wealth 
which  began  anew  to  haunt  their  fancy  proved  only  a 
reflection  of  the  lately  mocking  mirages  of  the  desert, 
till  sober  thought  and  strength  came  to  reveal  other 
fields  of  labor,  whence  they  might  wrest  more  surely 
though  slowly  the  fortune  withheld  by  fickle  chance. 
And  here  the  overland  immigrants  as  a  mass  had  the 
advantage,  coming  as  they  did  from  the  small  to\vn,><, 
the  villages,  and  the  farms  of  the  interior,  or  from  the 
young  settlements  on  the  western  frontier.  Accus- 
tomed to  a  ruj/ged  and  simple  life,  they  craved  less  for 
excitement;  and  honest,  industrious,  thrifty,  and  self- 
reliant,  they  could  readily  fall  back  upon  familiar  toil 
and  find  a  potent  ally  in  the  soil.  A  large  propor- 
tion, indeed,  had  come  to  cast  their  lot  in  a  western 
home.  The  emigrants  by  sea,  on  the  other  hand, 
speaking  broadly  and  with  all  due  regard  to  exceptions, 
were  pioneers  not  so  natural  and  befitting  to  an  en- 


Apr.  6,  1868.     Arrivals  in  1850  w<U  be  considered  later  in  connection  with 
population. 

** Among  the  first  comers  was  '  Jas  S.  Thomas  from  Platte  City.'  Burnett's 
Rec,  MS.,  li.  127.  'The  first  party  of  packers  reached  Sac.  about  July  IStli; 
foui"  wagons  were  there  in  Floasant  Valley,  100  miles  above.'  Alia  Ctil.,  Aug. 
2,  1849.  The  luingrv  and  sl-^k  received  every  care,  despite  the  absoiliing 
occupation  of  all  and  tlie  higli  cost  of  foo<l.  Sutter  aided  hundi-eds.  Usell 
to  open-air  cani))ing,  many  could  not  endure  sleeping  in  a  house  for  n  lung 
time.  McCall,  Orent  Vol.  Trail,  1-85,  ieft  St  Joseph  May  5th;  reached  Ft 
Keumy  May  29th;  Ft  Laramie  Juno  18th;  Green  River  July  10th;  Hum- 
Itoldt  River  Aug.  10th;  Truckee  River  Aug.  29th;  and  coming  dowu  by 
Johnson's  Ranch,  arrived  at  Sutter's  Sept.  7tn. 


AUTHORITIES. 


161 


tain  migra- 
ley  towurtl 
ream  euiiie 
iisottlod  t(»r 
indingH,  tor 
ibri»-»tre\vn 
iorded  littlo 
iing  and  aid 
iTgard  t'accH, 
lies  all  ]mst 
-am.     Even 
ng  influence 
nh  of  wealth 
roved  only  a 
,f  the  desert, 
reveal  other 
more  surely 
ickle  chaTice. 
iiass  had  the 
small  town;*, 
,  or  from  the 
ier.     Accus- 
raved  less  for 
fty,  and  self- 
familiar  toil 
large  propor- 
in  a  western 
other  hand, 
exceptions, 

,g   to  an  en- 
connection  with 

Le  City.'  BurneH's 
1  about  July  IStli; 
1'  AUa  Vnl.,  Au«. 
Ite  the  ab8orl>uig 
Ihundi-eds.     Use»l 
1  house  for  a  I'mg 
]  6th;  reaclieil  Ft 
July  10th;  Hum- 
oming  Juw"  '^y 


tir<lv  new  country.  Thoy  emhraccd  more  of  the 
ahnornial  and  ephemeral,  and  a  great  deal  of  the 
(liiniiial  and  vicious,  in  early  California  life.  They 
niii,^ht  build  cities  and  organize  society,  but  there 
wt-re  those  among  them  who  made  the  cities  hot- 
htds  of  vice  and  corrupti«m,  and  converted  the 
jsMcial  fabric  into  a  body  nondescript,  at  the  sight 
(»f  whiih  the  rest  of  the  world  stood  wrapped  in 
a[>|>reliension 


M 


•"A.lilitioiial  authorities:  V.  S.  Govt  Dorn,  .30  Cong.  1  Sew.,  H.  Ex.  Doc. 
1  1).  :»L':  /</.,  'M  t'ouj,'.  '2  .SesH.,  U.  .S.  Acta  and  KumH.  1-155;  /</.,  31  C<'ii){. 
1  Stsv.  M.  Ex.  I)<K-.  .5.  i.t.  i.,  'A'4,  412<.>-:«;  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  passim;  H.  Ex. 
D.K.  .V-'.  xiii.  IW-l.V*;  H.  Ex.  Doc.  fi»,  7,  2li;  Id.,  31  Cong.  2  .Sess.,  11.  Ex. 
\*,k:  I.  p.  77,  *-'0»;  S.-u.  Dih;.  19,  iii.  I'J- 15;  ///.,  32  Cong.  1  .Seas..  Sun.  D.h.-. 
fKt,  |..i-..Hmi;  .Sen.  Doc.  P24,  pp.  l-'J'il!;  .Muss,  and  Docs,  1847-8,  ii.  9.'i5-(J; 
Will"'  J-'JT-,  v.  ISI;  Veliitrn,  Aotir.  Son.,  285),  320-;tS;  Simoiiin,  iliowl 
Om-I,  '.".lO  I't  s»f«|. :  Shi-nniinH  Mem.,  i.  passim;  l.iirkin'n  Dooi,  iii.  215;  vi.  74, 
111,  III),  )'J8,  i:<0,  132,  144,  173,  IJ8,  ISO,  185,  ll>8,  203,  219;  vii.  24,94; 
H'liirijir  I  \"uj.  CoiiiiiiiUre,  MS.,  1-07;  J/hj/m'  L{f'e,  MS.,  09-70;  A/.,  iJiin/, 
li:issiin;  A/.,  Smijit  Ariz.,  v.  29;  Id.,  Sci'iijm  L.  Awj.,  i.  205;  Id.,  Minril.  1 1  lit. 
I'ltffix,  «l.ic.  27;  /</.,  (.'«//.  Mininij  Cut.,  i.  1;  Iil.,  Coll.  Miiiiiii/,  v.  3-12.  85; 
II.,  Cil.  Sole*,  i.  litl;  iii.  153;  v.  10,  20,  85;  WillinmH  Stil.,  MS.,  1-3,  0-l'J; 
Yiil.,i  Jiiiirii'd,  Feb.  18,  1874;  JaiiHMfus  Vidii  t/  A  vent.,  20{>-10;  Kiimi-I,  O'rr- 
catiji<i:iiiii:  Bijlerx  huiryt/a  Mormon,  50-79,  91;  BiiffninH  Sir  Month*,  ((8  9, 
111-'-''-',  150;  BiiruiU'ji  BecolL,  MS.,  piissim;  C'lrmnH  Earhi  Iteroll.;  <i'<7/ci;mV''^ 
1'/';/.  ('(till.,  Ms.,  3-4;  Hitrhrork's  Stat.,  MS.,  1-7;  AuiihIh  H.  F.,  pa.-niiii; 
B(iiilli'<  U'eM.  H'ili/i,  ;W— 10;  BliuomeH  Viij.  Com.,  MS.,  1-2;  Connors  Eirly 
C'li,  -MS.,  1-5;  Cerniti's  ItumhliniiH,  00-7,  94  ot  »in\.;  MoUkii'n  TrmitM  Col, 
4;C.I-i:i;  /{oUnMtnn  CiU.  Golil  lifijion,  passim;  Stillmnns  Coldin  Fkere,  I9-.'J2, 
:V-'7  .">•-':  StHitrt*  Trip  to  Cai,  2-3;  Tjiion's  Oiol.  q/'  Cai,  84;  Bolton  v»  U.  S., 
ajp])  (vS- '.15;  KirL-jMitri'-k'n  Jourwl,  MS.,  3-10;  Jenk-inn'  U.  S.  Kr.  Ej-ju'd., 
4:!l  "J:  Til-  Frteiid,  J/onoluln,  vii.  21;  viii.  28;  Kiinrnville,  la.  Front  Oiitrd, 
.luly  L'.'>,  1S49;  J'riiduma  An/iin,  Apr.  4,  1873;  /'nn.  Stir,  Feb.  24,  1849; 
/.>■/(■  ;.'<"■-  St't,  MS.,  11,  20;  Fifrilld  ilc  OcrnL,  Nov.  10,  1800;  Hvt.i*,  I'm- 
li:ntiuui.i  1,'iil.  Min.:  S  >r.  iJirert..,  1871,  30;  AIiIm'ijs  Trip  arroM.1  I'ldiiiM,  5,  20, 
5.1;  .!/;/'/•'<  Yduiij  Adri'iit.,  l85-2'.(3;  Brooks'  Four  Mouth*,  passim;  Brni-kitt'* 
r.  S.  I'lir.,  rj,">-7;  S.  F.  Anjowtut,  passim;  lii'wrc'*  Tour  of  l)ulii,'l'>\'^\; 
hi.,  Kiilniid  S  iddif,  151-4;  S.  F.  Whiijnnd  Adrerl.,  Juno  11,  1853;  Tir^i.^unj 
«j  Tiiir..  9i'-4:  Trurkte  Trihune,  Jan.  8,  1870;  Ui-rue  d<*  di'iix  Monde*,  Fob.  1, 
lS4'.t;  Biiiiriif'*  Min.  I{v*.,  14-15;  Arch.  Mont.  Co.,  xiv.  18;  Arch.  Stn  Cruz 
[n.,  li(7;  Fiiy'*Jlid.  Flirt*,  MS.;  DwindU's  Add.,  104-12;  Dor.  Ilist.  C<d.,  i. 
5().'(;  l>i  I'jer*  JItind  AV)/:,  45-53;  JI('n*li<iio'*  Slut.,  MS.;  Jlelfier*  Lund  of  Cold, 
IDI;  B;tl,inrL'*  Sttil.,  MS.,'2-o;  Browns  E-irli/  D<i!/*o/<'id.,U>i.,  1-7;  Boyn- 
^.-.  <  St.it.,  .MS.,  1;  Ci-lman*  The  Round  Trip,  2S;  tlffini/'s  I'odrt  E.rrh.  tlu'ide, 
lii;  tt'Uroi/  .liliiM^Ue,  Apr.  24,  1875;  Folsom  Trliyniph,  Sui)t.  17,  1871;  Frrry, 
CiL,  lO.Vl),  ;{0i^-28;  Coltun  Sun,  March  8,  1873;  Bryant's  What  I  Siiir  in  Cnl, 
i.  U-J  :<;  Ashlry's  /),«•/.  Hi^t.  C,d.,  223,  271-390;  Antioch  Lcih/fr,  Dec.  24, 
ISTl);  .Inly  1,  1S70;  TvthilCs  Cid.,  231;  Thornton's  Oreijon  and  c'liL,  270;  Cold 
JIill  Ihiiiii  Xrics,  Apr.  10,  1872;  Coke's  link;  150,  100;  Findlas  Stnt.,  MS., 
I>:i»siiii;  ItoipeU's  Letters,  MS.,  1-34;  Duncan's  Southern  Oreijon,  MS.,  1-2; 
'<"'';//'.'/'*  Iii<h  Rare:  Ctiss  Valley  Itepult.,  Marc:l)  8,  1872;  CronL-n's  \at. 
Wi-.dth,  .-)0  7;  Bunch*  St  a.,  MS.,  1-2;  Del  Mar's  Hi*t.  Precious  Met.,  2.")8  et 
8ti|  ;  h'lnieron*  A >ilfjl>io-i. ,  MS.,  19;  Taylor's  Bvtw.  dates,  25-;iO,  01-7,  l.'ll; 
A/.,  LI  Dorado,  i.  20-9.  48;  ii.  30,  222-3;  Van  Allen,  in  Miicd.  Slat.,  31;  law- 
Hist.  Cjx.,  Vol.  VI.    11 


1G2 


THE  jol'rni:y  overland. 


<ln-l>nt,  in   ,1A/Vf7.  .S^(/.,  1,  32  .1;  Whi'itnn'*  St'if  ,  MS.,  2  S;  Chnrfnn,  T<wr  <ly 
Mimilr,  iv.   KiO;   lidiiiiH    Or.  mill  Cal.,  MS.,  lit,  •_>•>;    IC.//-,  r.'/    "iV  ,-,s  /.y.  •.".( 
;")!;    />H    IliiUii,   III   //(■(•.  (/i;*   (/('«j*    Moni/rM,   Fi:l».    I.'i,    184'.);    Hirmir .<    'J'mtiv 
M.jliU,    l»i.">  '.'iW;    ynllijo  /I'tmnlii;  March    14,    1S«W;  Oct.    fJ,    IHUl);    II .«,/«' 


Si.itirn   Mitiilh-1,  \ti\»»\\ 


Hiiliirs  Hoim 


tiii-i;  4.S,  .V»  ,S<.»,    Ur2  ti;    Uiicr'.    A, 


)i'i(ii/i\    I   .w;    Alniiirilii  Co.    IHaI.    .llliut,  14;    T'lZ/c,    />i( 


r.,/.  /', 


1 1  ml 


/'/•»•««/,  77,  I4*i  7;  Ciinlrimlti-  .I;v/m.«,  Juiin  12,  I'.l,  l.S7.'»;  liuliiiiMni'K  Si'it.,  NiS., 
!.{  4:    Willvji'i*  I'erx.  Mini.,  M.S.,"  25,  .'i.S  7.'>,  111 -IS;  /,'.,.«'  ,V/„/.,    MS..   1   1-j; 


A'.'/" 


/'. 


,\i/r.,  ii.   2711-,");  A/.,   Jwl'ii*  iiihI  Cri. 


'.»:  /• 


.lA 


:W(I;   nlijniyiit    Triiiisrrip',   .Iiiiii!    17,    lS7t>;    />«;</.   .SV.   /•.   (.1;/;/.),   viii. 


"/■.   IV. 


/>,. 


Shit.,  .MS.,  1-2;  Kniir,  in  .I/m-W.  S/at.,  7   11;  llunil-iblt   Ti 


.\Iiirh 


7,  l«7l;  Sr/il'iijintinit,,  Ciil.,  2M);  Hwi/w*  .V^^^,  MS.,  15,  2;i  4;  /,-/,.  r, 
y/.r,  M;ircli  8, 'l8;:<;  A'xjxi  /.'»;/.,  Aug.  1,  1.S74;  MrCl'IOin'''  <;«l<hii  Hint, .  JUI- 
4(»;  liirn/K  Up  iiwl  lii  wii,  '.(.'{  7;  Si'hiiiifilill'it  Slot.,  MS.,  (i;  Wnlliin's  l',i,-t, 
I'roiii  (litiil  liiuititiix,  8,  lit  :t2;  ('m*l>ij/i  KniiU  in  ('<il.,  MS.,  13  '_•(>;  S'lni  i  r,-K 
'Tlni<:i,  l-Vl).  lit,  2(i,  1S70;  S.  F.  Ti'mrs,  Jx\\y2it,  18(i7:  SIihuii'a  J„iin„il,  Nh., 
1  .'{,  II;  W'lirirn'n  /)i(M  ani/  t'oiiiii,  i2  14,  \',V,i,  153  (i;  iVi/il  <  luixl  .Si/ii  il.  .Apr. 
IT),  IS74;  AVc.  fo.  ///V.,  41,  45;  Mniill'iSlnt.,  M.S.,  1  .H;  {bimiih'i  In.  <;,;., 
Mar.li8,  1873;  Miircli  14,  1874;  .liiii.  1»,  May  29,  1875;  B'ir.^li,ir'n  St,a.,  .M.S., 


1  4,    14;  St  I.I 


itlllM  I   lllllil, 


May  2.'>,    18411;  (' 


.1     Fur    Firfi,    1 


17    IS; 


l)iiiiliilli\t  St  il.,  I  22;  Moriiiiii'n  Trip  nrri^KH  the  I'lnhi-t,  1  21;  dir 
122;  i'lil.  /'ioiiirrx,  Jh>r.H,  (lasHiiii;  Wiliiiiwjtun  Kiitnyrinr,  .V.n\.  21,  187."i:  S  uj 
ii'iiii/'.-<  I'rfA.  ii'iiii.,  M.S.,  2;  Smi  Jitse.  Ari/iiM,  Oct.  It),  187.">;  S/fnUiiii  Imliji. 
1,  1873;  Aiir.   4,  1874;  .)au.   :H>,  Oct.  lit,    1875;   I.mr'.i  S/iit.,    MS.,  j  ,-, 


M.iii.iiil  K   /'J.rjn 
/furl,    " 


/■.  Ill  a 


:ii-r, 


I    lit;  Sii,i:l.    /.ilaiiih   \i,rM,  ii.   134.   147.   l."S. 


(>/,.. 


rr.,  .MS.,  1   3;  Stn  ( 'rnz  Snid'ii' I,  .\\i\y,  15,  1875;    I'^nnli/h  ■'  >t.:i.. 
•.;  Si)iili'.i  Slut..  MS.,  1   2;    I'.i^V)  J),    /mlip.,  .Iiiiic   1   s,   |,s7'j; 


MS.    12 

Sli}iti.'<'  Slot.,    MS.;  AV'i//',,    IV;/.    Com,    MS.,   3,   22  4;  I'ul  iKHn'o   I'i./. 


.MS.,    175  83;  Miilllii 


'.1  Still.,   M.S.,    1;  Si 


Ciil.   Xotinnli.il,  271;   ('lit.  A I 


Trip,    1   3.    13;   A.,/v/v  /;. 


.Mii'-rl.   l)i»M,  44;    Ihiniiiis  l.lfr  iiii  tin   I'll 


Sh, 


ll,> 


Mi^ 


44,    185  ti 


,Siiiii)r<i 


li.«,k,   iv.    174. 


«/'.i  /'((-•/tv7,  »/«;</.  ^)  r.(/.,  27,  47  i>4;  Sir.  /■ 


.1. 


ill   I'iii'ii' 

•::'.,  2(1,  I' 


i:. 


I  »«•.•.  ;{(t,  I8;i<i,  etc.;  Si,l,iiii>  liiyiil,.,  S.-pt.  2!t,  |S7();  S.  t.  l:r\,  /'n-^l,  .liil_>  |4, 
1877;  .\ri:  It.  Haz.,  ,\y\ur  1>,  ISiili;  .Ian.  20.22.  iMiN;  h  iri'i\  Srr  iji  'li.-i: 
l.,llli'.sSl'it.,  MS.,  I   4;  Cirriili'''  h''iiiil,i:ii.,s,Mr,  HnliiUi,  Lui  >ii,  144;    r-//.," 


r/„ 


.Inly  2.'),  Oct.    Id.    1874;  Smi  Jnsi    Mirniri/, 


2S.    187(1;  ( 


ynl.  Wiiillli,  57;  I'I.,  SI  It.,  MS.,  1;  Snttnii'.s  Furbl  LrjHr..  MS.,  I;  .s.,h'/,. 
'."""•<■  A'"'.,  XV.  224;  .MiUimnir  Mj  ll<r<il'l,  Kil..  «>!  7.  1(»,  I84'.»;  Sl<„l.i,„  I). 
Ilniilil,  .\lav  18,  1871;  Miitulo  <ili/iiirl  I.'pism  I'ullri/  Dir.,  ?S.">ti,  43;  /,.  .1///. 
/(;,»',.,    Fell.    28,    .\liinii    14,    .\l,iy'  IS,    I87.S;  Cii,    Ailr.    Cipt.    \Vil<.    18.  i) 

»l    2; " 

I-.'    13; 


.^.('• 


Ti 


■I.   Oct.    l.">,    I8.'>0;    Full.    1,    1851;    ()r<    ii-nl   .\l,i,ll,l,i 


343;  XV.  2H   8;  S.  /'.  ('.(/.  .S/'fc,  Oct.  18-47  to   tniic   18»8.  ii;i,>iiii; 


S.  r.  AV;/  /^..•'^  Am^;.   8,  1883;   .l/-i,/,,-s   .l/,y.   .Is/.,  li.  3111;  Sl'iln'.'^   .1/ . 


I  Hi, III  I  nil 


IV' i  III 
.Inly  22 


./.; 


!>■ 


/-'.  A\ 


:itO;  So 

I 


Ml 


Oct.  .">,  N..\.   27,  l)cc.    !.-.,   I8.")lt;  .V.//« 


/((;/;/   I  inii/iiii 
/•'.■I   \iirr. 


.•\llL 


./.,  xi.   I: 


.S.I/, 


34; 
.1.  4,   I'J 


111. 


42."i  3(t;  <hil:l„,l  M 


r„.  <;,iz..  May   211,  1875:  (htklninl   Tr'Hixrrlpt,  Axiii.    7.    1872;   .Maicli    I,    \>?,i; 


.Iniic  Hi.  187ii;  .V.  /•'.  /'. 


.V. 


Nov.   I84;t  to  1).  c.  18.">lt,  i.a.^.s;iii;  .V.  /•'.  liidtf. 


tin,  .\\>i    It.  May  12,  ;il.  .luly  2lf,  iJcc.  2.  I.>>.'>8:  .laii.  31.  Fd..   12,  Apr.  •.".!,  H<l. 


May  25,  .1 1 


All!. 


M.  is..: 


3,  .Viif.'.  15,  Sept.  18,  :«t,  Oct.   21t,  18.V.t:   .Mai.ii   1,  •.'".•.  bM': 


etc. 


/• 


Ami. 


1!' 


■.s  llirull.,  .M.S.,  12;   /' 


Jli-I.  S/:'nii  .\iiriii.,  .321   4;  S.  F.  I'.i.ly  llu'il'l,  .luiu;  ls.~)>l  t..   I  .1..  Is5l,  \y. 


.-ini;  Siil'iiiii  I 


lli^l  ,  (i;    (i.  I.")4.  ».8  It,  451:  S'lii  J"i>    I' 


.1. 


'1\,  \\\ii.  4,    |)<c.  s,  21),    1877;  Oct    It,    |S,S();    /'/,.  /'/•..,   Ti 

limit's  .Mrrrli.   Mui.,   xvili.  4t; 


l.ij'r  iif  M'ii>/iiitl,  iia.s..<iin;  ('ill/ 


I  S.nr  It,   r 


.'.»   i: 


/■; 


MS.. 
7(i;  XX.  ,")5  1(4;  xxi.  .">8.'i  ti;  x.wii    354 
1847  8,  i,a!..H!ni;    .Mri  nllu 


iiiii  III, 


I  I  I  It; 

rir- 

<  I  ,il. 


■■r;/'.t  Tniii  t",  1  4  (lit;  First  Slntm.^liifi  /'/>«"  r<.  [ms- 
I'lili/iiisi  III,  V.  aiiil  vi.,  iiassiin;  vii.  18,  (i2.  13!;  Sliin-k'--'  .•<rr,i]i  llnnl..  <'•>  4; 
'     ' ^IS.,    1;    /,/.,    /,',-•„//.    n/  F"rhi   D'i'is,    MS..  2:   >/''-"i 

K  ".'I'., 


IIIII. 


'•; 


/lev. 


Luniitr,  Nov.  18,  18(15;  .Vlaicli   1(1,  1.SG7;  I'inrr   Tiinin,  Apr.  28,  May  1 


AUTHORITIES. 


les 


nrtot),  Tour  ih 

trir  ,"H  i.M/,  'J'.) 

■ii'i'oii' ,1    Tii'iliy 

IHti'J;    II  .«»/»■ 

M'i/;r'--  /•,■./<('./. 

<■.(/.  /'.iv  „;„/ 

t.;(V  Si'il..  Nl>, 
I/.,  MS..  1  I'.'; 
I'lDII.     M'lJ-.    IV 

/. ),  vili.  <■>,  111; 
'    'l'iiii"<,  .M  11  I'll 

L»:;  4;  /•■/..  '■„, 

/,/.„  Sl<ii,.  ll'.i- 

ir-'/A'/f'-  /'i''- 

•2it:  S'liili  rnc 
s  Jiiiiriiiil.  M"«., 
<i>y  iV(./i( '/,  .\iii' 
iiiniln  ' '".  '■  "... 
„r'M  Still.,  MS., 

'iimr'i  7'i '■■■(■, 

■J I,  1ST.'.:  .M;r 
SI'hUoii  iH'l.y.. 
</iif.,  Ms.,  I  ."•; 
I,  1»7,  I's.  I^ii; 
y.imhih  -  >i'-i.. 
luiic   I   N,    I  NT:': 

ll(//'x     I'll/.     '  '"       , 

1.  i:«;  a'.wv/'s  /;. 

('/'•  oil  till    I'l  I'  i; 
.ill    I'hiOi'    '  "■".. 

{■:-A,  •Jti.  I'M.,  i:., 

/',k<  .inly  14, 

'/'■<  S'-r  i]>  /(■•>/., 


\> 


144:    r. '//..,;' 
STli;  '  'riiiii^'  1 
M.S.,  1:  >■..«■/-. 

•  ;  St(,<i-I''ii  l>- 
1,  4:i;    /..  .1"/. 

117/;,  IS.  -M, 
/    .\lni,ll'l;l,  IX. 

|,S4S.  ini'siiii; 

llrr's    .\l>iii:"ll- 

l-JT  ;!4;  >'i" 

.  s.|.i.  4.  r.', 

A//,-/',.'/    .1/'". 

M.ir.li    I,   l\:t; 
.,;  N.  /••.  /.'"«'• 
•_'.  Ai'i'.  -'.'.  :*'. 
Ii  I.  'J'.'.  I"'''": 
1   •.':  r,:'.i<'i 

[,\>.    IVll.   I'Xv 

.  .1,111.  -JT.  K  li. 
-,  Mv,  141  Ii; 
11  :i."i4  .■>:  /'"■• 
MrCMii     •  '"'• 

J'lw'.r-.  jias- 
/•.ij>  /)'i«i/..  ^;i  ■!: 
MS..  •_':  >/''■" 
L'»,  May  1'.',  •:'•. 


/. 


A- 


!H. 


1-. 


s. 


.Tiirir  'J.  .\ui.  11,  .^Sopt.  !.'>,  Oct.  13.  Dec.  1,  IH4<»;  May  2.  1850:  .V.  F.  nhvc- 
l„n/.  is.'.i;  (r.iikuil.  10;  A/..  ISiVJ  3,  10  14;  Snr.  /I,r,  Dee.  7.  I«4)0;  Nov.  '21, 
|.s7l;  M.ir.li  -JN,  .Vug.  •27.  1874;  .Inly  7.  lS7r):  N..v.  20,  187H:  .V.  F.  Cul. 
Cniirii'i:  l>.'>0  I.  passim;  S.  F.  AUn  Cul.,  lN4i»  7.").  j),issiiii;  HiiitU\  CaL, 
\>\  .■>;  /./..  .I/'///";/.  I";  /'A.  -v.  F.,  1  •_'.".  .")0.  etc.;  /./..  Unml  liiU,  12  1«;  AY 
Sonmnixi'.  Kcl..  21.  Marcii  21,  :«).  Apr.  IS,  20.  .May  11.  lH4!t:  WiUvjiK  Col. 
!  ■„:  iii-i.  '•'(/.,  xii.  :«4;  xx.w.  47,  14>S.  1<»2;  .\x.\vi.  287;  Aiks'  linj.,  Ixxiv. 
•J.'.T,  ;i;fti  7;  l.x.w.  09- 70,  113,  127,  •.!88,  320,  348,  383. 


itt  ', 


Ill    Wl 


CHAPTER  X. 

SAN   FllAN(-'ISCO. 

1848-KS50. 
SfTF.  Avn  SrnnofNnrxos — Rivals— Kkkkcf  riK  tiik  Mint.'* — Simppivi.— Is 

Kl.l  X  OV  I'llPI  I.ATIOS  —  I'lIV.SH'AI.  A.M>  (  ilMMKliri  \1.  A^PK.ri  s—  it(  ms  ^^» 
FlIIMH  —  I'rill.K;  AM>  ri!l\AIK  111  II.ItlNdS  —  NaTKINAI,  L<h  Al.lTH.t  - 
llt>TKI..S     AM»     KksI  VIllAMH— I'llH  KS     ClKKKM  —  I'KOPKUTV      VaI.MS 

Arcrius    Salks — Whauvkh   ani>  SiUKurs — Kaki.v    l'li:i(iiit.<« — lli>ii>i;i' 

F|I:Ks-  F.NiilNKS  ANIt  ('(IMPANIK.S  — iMMIi.llAritiN  ASK  hpKn  l..\U!l^  — 
l^)l.^^U  S— TlIK    lIctlNUS— t'lTV  liitVKKNMKM'. 

^Tanv  «'iti(»s  owo  tlu'ir  orij^in  to  a<-(i(l(Mit;  som.  (■• 
«li'.si<'ii.  Ill  till'  latter  catcy'drv  iiiav  Ix"  )>laci»l  most  <.f 
tliose  tliiit  Hpraii*;  up  upon  tills  wt'stciii  liirtli's  niij. 
ami  iiotalilv  Sau  J' raiM'isco.  Wlini  tlu'  Kii';li>iiiiiiiii 
J»i<lianls(tn  niovnl  ».vi'i'  from  Sau/alito  to  \  t  rim 
JiiH'iia  ('t»vc  ill  till'  siimmir  of  l^'Ai^t,  anil  fliand  a 
j»I;ni'  ill  till'  cliiipanal  I'or  his  tia<rm;4-triit;  wlnn  th. 
Amt'tiriiii  Jai'ol)  J*.  J^trsi'  came  up  from  j^os  An- 
j^i'Ics,  ami  ill  roimiTtioii  with  his  frinuls  of  Monlt  r<  v, 
William  J  liiicklt-v  ami  Xiithaii  Sin'ar,  frcrtcil  a  miI>- 


staiitial  fraiiii'  lmil(liii<r  and  I'stahlishcd  a  comiiii n  i.il 


house  thiri'  ill  till"  sumnur  of  IS.'Ml — it 


won 


1.1 


a|i|"  iir 


that  thi'sf  rrpn-Hi-iitativrs  of  thr  two  fomiiost  iialh'ii.s 
of  the  world,  aftir  inaturr  dcliltcration,  had  srt  out  tu 
lay  till"  foundation  of  a  wist-ioast  imtiopolis.  Tin' 
opriiiirLC  "f  till'  Jludson's  Hay  Conipany  hramh  <  sImI.- 
lishiiirnt  in  iStl  added  im|)ortanei'  to  the  haiiil<  t. 
Althouj^h  founded  oil  the  soil  ami  under  the  «'o|.iis.it' 
Aiiiihuae,  it  never  was  a  Mexiean  Kettleinent,  for  ilif 


United  Stat 


es   element  i-Ver    predoluii 


iia 


ted, 


until  til' 


(  I«4  ) 


SITE  SKLr.«TKD. 


105 


s-iirit  nf  7('>  took  formal  possrHsioii  utidor  syinhol  of  tlu- 
.\m<ri«;in  lla;j;,  whI'UmI  liithcr  over  siilHlut'd  tlomiiiiis. 
Tli»'  iiHliU't'iiu'iits  for  sclrctinj;  tlu;  site  lay  in  its 
i.roximity  to  tho  outlet  of  tlir  Icadinpf  hivrl>or'  u|hhi 
tlir  coast,  a  l)arlM)r  to  which  so  many  huj'o  rivers  and 
lirh  valleys  were  trilmtJiry,  an<l  to  which  so  many 
lam!  routes  must  n»>ces8arily  I'oiiverj;*'.  A  position  so 
n.inniandin^'  led  to  tho  estahlishment  luTo  of  a  |»ro- 
.sidio  innuediutely  after  tho  ocouj)ation  of  tho  country, 
uii<l<  r  whose  '.vinu;s  spraji^,'  up  a  Hourishin^  mission 
.  st;il>li>lnn<'nt.  The  harhor  connneiidt><]  itself  eaily  to 
|.,»>.sinLj  vessels,  and  althou;^h  finding'  Sauzalito  on  the 
iMTlliern  shore  the  hest  station  for  water  aiul  wood, 
tlic'V  weri!  ohlij^ed  to  come  under  co;^ni/.anc(f  of  the 
inilitaiy  authoritii'S  at  the  fort,  an<l  to  seek  the  more 
suli>taiitial  supplies  at  tho  mission,  hrth  estahlish- 
iin  lit'  ju'esentint^,  nion'over,  to  tradin;^  vessels,  in 
till  ii-  not  ineonsichrahle  population,  and  astheahuttinL,^ 
|Miiuts  for  the  settlements  southvanl.an  idl-importJint 
itttraetion.  These  primary  advantaLr«'s  <;iitwei«;hed 
;'i  itly  such  drawhacks  as  poor  lan<lin^-plac«'s,  lack 
<.i  ivater  sources  an<l  farming'  land  in  tho  vicinitv,  and 
tlir  i,'rowin<^  inci in vo'nienco  of  communication  with  the 
main  settlements  now  risinjr  in  tho  interior.  Tho  «»p- 
l">rtune  strate;^y  of  Alcalde  Jiartlett  in  setting,'  asidt' 
till  name  of  Verha  l^uena,  whi<*h  threatened  to  ovei- 
.sliudow  its  prospects,  and  restorinj^  that  of  Saint  Frjin 


is,  iiroved  of  value    in  che«'kin«r  th 


,     1  . 
hraneisea,  later  called    Jienic 


e   aspu'ations   ot 


la. 


And 


our   8oraphi( 


t'iitliiTof  Assisi  rememhere»l  the  honor,  hy  dire«'tinj^'  to 
its  shnrc  the  vast  tle«'t  of  vessels  which  in  IS41)  he«j;an 
In  riii|)ty  lure  their  myriads  of  pass(ii;^r,.|-s  und  ea  rigors 
ef'niereliiindise.  This  turned  the  seide,and  with  su<h 
start,  and  tho  pf)ssession  of  capital  and  fame,  tho  ttiwn 
(li>tan<'ed  every  rival,  lionicia  with  all  her  superior 
n.itural  advanta<j;es  fallinj,'  far  hehind. 

'Opiiiiiiiiii  ii|H)n  itn  iiH'ritii  linvn  Imth  (•xprfMNi'il  l>y  ninnv  l>rnnimrnt  >\ 
plcfi f..     Oi'ii.  Siiiith  Mtroiiuly  il 


<l  tU< 


Ik 


.      i»l>*r»gf 
vr'  ul  (Hiiiit  i.if  vii'W,  while  Wcuoiiiing  euthu»taat: 


tc  friiiii  a  luihuirv  iiiid  roni' 


Ul'  '4. 


ovur  tlie  Mtlviuttiigt'ii  of 


130 


SAK  FRANCTSCO. 


K ' 


\!  lU 


^r 


Xcvertlicloss,  doubtora  became  numerous  with  every 
porioclie  ileprcssion  in  business;'^  and  when  the  j^oM 
excitement  carried  off  most  of  the  population,^  thr 
stancliest  quailed,  and  the  rival  city  at  the  straits,  m 
much  nearer  to  the  mines,  seemed  to  exult  in  jno- 
spective  triumph.  But  the  golden  storm  proved 
menacing  only  in  aspect.  During  the  autumn  the 
inhabitants  came  flocking  back  again,  in  numbers 
daily  increased  l)y  new  arrivals,  and  rich  in  funds 
wherewith  to  give  vitality  to  the  town.  Building; 
operations  were  actively  resumed,  nothwithstandiiii,' 
the  cost  of  labor,*  and  real  estate,  which  lately  could 
not  have  found  buyers  at  any  price,  now  rose  witli  a 
bound  to  many  times  its  former  valuc.^  The  openiuijf 
of  the  first  wharf  f()r  sea-going  vessels,  the  Broadway," 
may  be  regarded  as  the  beginning  of  a  revival,  niai  kt  d 
also  by  the  resurrection  of  the  defunct  press,'  and  the 
establishment  of  a  school,  and  of  regular  prote.stant 
worship,'^  propitiatory  measures  well  needed  in  face  of 

'•■Asojirly  in  1848,  when  several  firms  discontinued  tlieir  advertiscnuiits 
ill  tlie  L'uli/oriiiiiu.  Otliera  thought  it  expedient,  as  we  have  seen,  to  sot.'k  a 
proi)  for  tlie  prevailing  land  ami  other  speculations,  by  bringing  the  nsoiim;) 
of  the  country  and  tlie  importance  of  the  town  before  tlie  people  of  tlie  east- 
ern states.  This  was  done  by  the  pen  of  Fourgeaud  in  the  (Jul.  Stur,  Mar. 
18,  1848,  and  following  nund)ers. 

'Tiie  absorbing  municipal  election  of  Oct.  3d  showed  oidy  ir)8  vdtcs. 
AntinU  S.  /'.,  'itMi.  See  chapter  i.  in  this  vol.  on  condition  in  Jan.,  and  uliap- 
ter  iv.  on  exodus. 

♦Teufiilil  higher  than  in  the  spring.  EfTccts  stood  in  proportion.  Ktru's 
Sl'J  a  dozen;  Hawaiian  onions  and  potatoes  $1.50  a  It).;  shovels  $10  each,  I'tc. 
'J'he  arrival  of  supplies  lowered  prices  till  Hour  sold  at  from  §12  to  $13  a  liar- 
rel  in  Dec.  Stir  tiiiU  Cal.,  Dec.  1848;  Jiiiffuinn  Six  Moiit/is,  23. 

*For  s[)ring  prices,  see  preceding  volume,  v.  6r>'2-4.  A  strong  iiitlucinf 
was  felt  by  the  arrival  in  Sept.  of  tlu!  brig  Beljhxt  from  New  York,  \\\u\>v 
cargo  gerviul  to  lower  the  price  of  merchandise,  but  whose  inauguration  nf 
tlie  Hroiulway  wharf  as  a  direct  discharging  point  inspired  \\ii\}c  among  tlie 
townsfolk,  lieal  estate  rose  50  per  cent  near  the  harbor;  a  lot  vainly  ntliriil 
for  $5,(K)()  one  day,  'sold  readily  the  next  for  lfl0,(XK).'  S.  F.  Dhrrtnn/,  I.WJ, 
U.  By  Nov.  the  prices  had  advanced  tenfohl  ujjon those  ruling  in  the  spiiiii;, 
and  rents  rose  from  $10  and  $20  to  $20  and  $100  per  moiitli.  To  retuiiiinj^ 
lot-holders  this  ])roved  another  mine,  but  others  comphiined  of  tlie  ri'^c  as  a 
drawback  to  settlement.  O'illvupii',  in  Lnrkin's  Doc.,  MS.,  vi.  52,  GO;  /,'<'/■//'* 
Slat.,  MS.,  10. 

"  For  earlier  jirogress  of  wharves,  see  preoeding  vol.,  v.  65.5,  rt79. 

'  The  Vnl{lhnii<in  had  maintained  a  spasmodic  existence  for  a  timi'  till 
Itought  by  the  I'al.  Slur,  which  on  Nov.  18tli  reappeared  uiuler  the  coinl'imil 
title,  Sfiirniiil  Vnlij'nnwin,  after  live  months' suspension.  In  Jan.  1841'  tt  ap- 
pears as  the  AlUi  f'nli/onwi,  weekly. 

'  Rev.  T.  D.  Hunt,  invited  from  Honolulu,   was  choaeu  chaplain  tu  the 


t!- 


INFLUX  OF  VESSELS. 


1C7 


h  ev(MT          M 

he  ^^'M         ^ 

m,^  the 

raits,  so 

in  pro-            s 

proved 

iimi  the 

luinhers 

n  fuiuU 

[iuildiiijj; 

staiidiiii; 

dy  could          !  1 

c  with  a          ,;  1 
optininjj:            •; 

oadway,*          -I 

,  uiavkcd             * 

■                                                   1    ■';' 

'  and  the            | 

rotf.staut            : 

m  iaoo  of 

vertiseinriits             '  ^ 

eii,  to  Kci'k  a 

the  ri'»i>iir<r!» 

;  (if  tla'  ^■a^t- 

l.  Stiir,  M;ir.             i 

y    1,")8   votes.           ■ 

1,,  and  cliup-          H 

rtion.     Ki;-s         B 

HO  «:ii-li,  I'tc.          ■ 

to  $15  a  l>:ii'-         ■ 

ng  iiitlii<'i!''>'         H 

York,  \\hiiM.'        H 

uguratii'ii  of         H 

e  among  tho        K 

aiiily  <itl(ri.il         ■ ' 

rrliirji,  \>'^-,         B 

11  t\ll!  Sl'l  111^,              K 

r«)  rftiinniis^         H 

the  rise  ;is           H 

!,  GG;  /.'"Wr"        K- 

'9-                      1 

•  a  time  till        K 

he  coinl'HK'il        ^B 

I.  184*.)  it  i>l>'        ■ 

>laiii  to  tl\^       ^K 

till-  increased  ivlapso  into  political  obliquity  and  ilis- 
sipati'iii.  to  l>e  cxpoctod  from  a  population  exuberant 
wiili  -udd'ii  attluencc  after  lonsjf  privation.' 

Y.  t  this  jKiiod  was  but  a  dull  hibernation  of  expoct- 
aiit  i«  cnjxiation  for  renewed  toil,'"  as  eoni[»are(l  witli 
the  I'nllowiii^'  seasons.  Tl»e  awakeninu;'  came  at  tlu' 
rinse  ot"  Ft  hruary  with  the  arrival  of  the  first  steain- 
sliiii,  the  ('ith'for)iia,  bearing  the  new  military  chief. 
(Jtiieral  1\  isit'er  F.  Smith,  and  tlie  first  instalment  of 
nnld-stekiTs  from  the  United  States.  Then  vessel 
ti  lilt 'Wed  vessel,  at  first  sin<.^ly,  but  erelonjif  the  hori- 
znii  hevond  the  (jrolden  (iate  was  white  with  approaeh- 
iii'i  >ads:  and  soon  the  anchorajjfe  before  Yerba  Jiuena 
Cuve,  hitlitito  a  glassy  expanse  ruffled  only  by  the 
tide  and  hreeze,  and  by  some  raie  visitor,  was  thickly 
^tlldded  with  dark  hulks,  presenting  a  forest  of  nuists, 
and  healing  the  symbol  and  stamp  of  different  countries, 
tlie  Anieiiian  ]iredominating.  By  the  middle  of  Xo- 
veiiilier  upward  of  six  hundred  vessels  had  entered 
tlie  harbor,  and  in  the  following  year  came  still  nioie." 
The  larger  proportion  were  left  to  swing  at  anchor  in 
the  hay,  almost  without  guard — at  one  time  inori- 
than  .")()0  could  be  counted — for  the  crews,  possessed 
no  le.ss  than  the  pa.s.sengers  by  the  gold  fever,  rushi'd 
awav  at  once,  carrving  off  the  shin  boats,  and  cariiiL; 
little  for  thf  [)ay  due  them,  and  still  less  for  the  «.li!<nnna 
of  the  consignees  or  captain.  Tin.;  helpless  coinman<ler 
fietjuently  joined  in  the  riight.'"  So  high  was  the  cost 
of  lahoi'.  and  so  glutted  the  market  at  times  with  eer- 
taiii  ^iiods.  that  in  .some   instances   it  did  not   jiay  to 

ciii/.cii>,  w  itli  .'i:-.."i(K)  ,'1  year.  Services  at  school-house  on  Portsniimth  .sijiiare. 
Aiiwrl.i  S.  !■'..  'JoT. 

'^Tliun-  wiTi'  now  general  as  well  a«  local  dertions,  {larticulars  of  «lii.li 
.ire  jiivt  11  I'l.-i'w  he  re. 

'As  >|iiiiij;  .iii|iiiiai-lie(l,  attention  contrcil  <iii  juijiaratioii.s,  with  impatient 
w.iitin>j  I'lr  (iiiiHiitunitii's  to  start  tor  tlif  mines.  Hence  the  stati'meiit  m.i.\ 
nut  I"-  wimig  tliat  'most  of  the  iieojih'  of  tlie  eity  at  that  time  had  a  ejulav- 

tTnii.s  aiipcarance a  tlrowsy  li.stle.ssness  seenieil  to  characterize  the  iiiaases 

of  tlic  I'liiiiiniiiiity.'  First  S/etuiix/ii})  /•/«wv  ;•.<.  IUi(i. 

"  .\s  will  he  shown  in  the  chapter  on  eomiin  rce. 

"Taylor  instances  a  case  where  the  sailors  i  uolly  roweil  otf  under  the  lire 
ftf  tlif  i;civcrnmiiit  vessels.  Kl  />or<iilo,  i,  ."4.  .Merchants  hail  to  take  c.ire  of 
iuau\  aJKiiiiluUcl  vessel.^.    Fiiy'i  I'ucld,  MS.,  l-".». 


mm 


168 


SAN  lUAXCISCO. 


unload  tho  carjjo.  Many  vrssols  were  l(>ft  to  mt,  or 
to  l»e  lu'iiclicd  I'or  convtrsion  into  stores  and  lodv^iii.r- 
Ihiusc'ss.''*  Till!  disappointments  and  liurdsliips  of  ilic 
niiiu's  Itrou^Iit  many  penitents  l>aek  in  tlie  autumn.  >n 
us  to  permit  tlie  enijagement  of  erews. 

Of  40,000  and  more  pers<»ns  arrivin<^  in  the  Itav, 
tlic  jijreater  j)roportion  had  to  stop  at  San  Fran«is(n  to 
urranj^e  for  i)roeee<nn>j[  i»ihin<l,  wliile  a  certain  huiiiIm  r 
of  traders,  artisans,  and  others  concluded  to  remain  in 
tlie  city,  whose  po))ulation  thus  r<»se  from  L'.OOO  in  Ktli- 
ruary  to  r;,0()0  in  Auj^ust,  after  which  the  tiijure  h(  ifau 
to  swell  under  the  return  enrrent  of  winterinj;  or  sati- 
ated  miners,  until  it  reached  about  20.000.'* 


liT?   = 


To  the  inflowing  fjold-seekers  tlu?  aspect  of  tho 
famed  Kl  Dorado  citv  could  not  have  heen  viiv  in- 
sjiiring,  with  its  straj^jj^lin^f  medley  of  low  din«^'y  adolxs 
of  d  hy-gone  day,  and  frail  wooden  shanties  horn  in  an 

'-' Uy  cutling  IioK'h  f<ir  ilonrn  an>l  v. iiitloWH  and  adding'  a  rrMif.  .Miirill, 
litii/  ,  Ms.,  •_•  4,  itiritaiitoM  tliii  Well  known  yian/if  iiinl  '/•/(.  Iltinifnii.  Lir- 
kin,  ill  />ii<'.  Ilinl.  ('ill.,  vii.  '2SH,  IiicuU'h  the  fnriiior  at  N.  w.  onriitT  S.iii.<i'iiii' 
nii<l  (lay,  ami  the  lattor  ((iwneil  l»v  K.  Micklu  &  Co.)  at  n.  w.  coiiur  Hit- 
ti'ry  ami  (lay.  lie  furtlier  plucc'.'!  the  .■l;N<//»ittorexiiii>,  at  n.  w.  coriur  Sa.ni. 
iiicnto  aiitl  Ikittc-ry,  and  thu  Oeonjfon  Ix^twi;!;!!  JuokHoii  ami  WaMJiiiigtcni.  v  r.t 
of  Ikittcry  «t.  Many  Huiik  at  their  nuMirin^it.  As  lat«'  aH  .Ian.  iS.'iT  (41 
liiilkn  Htill  oh.striK'teil  thu  liai'lior,  vhile  Htill  otlurH  had  Ik-vii  ovortakcn  l>.v  tin.' 
liayward  iiiarcli  of  the  oity  front,  and  formed  lia.teiiient!)  or  cellar?*  to  t«iir 
iiie.its  Imilt  on  tlit'ir  (Kx'kM.  Kven  now,  reniuiiiH  of  veitMelH  are  found  im  Vr 
tlu'  tilled  foumlatioiiM  of  lioiiHeM.  Kner>{etie  proeeediiij'H  of  tlie  harlmriiMiti  r 
iinally  cleared  the  I'li.tnnel.  Thin  work  began  aln-atly  in  IS'iO.  i'liax  liip.' 
niadt.'  a  rv'j;idar  hiiNineis  of  t^ikin^  the  veHtulx  to  pieeex;  ami  Moon  tlie  uli-.erV' 
a!it  ('hine.s<-  Haw  the  protitH  to  he  made,  and  apidieil  their  patii'iit  riirr):y 
to  the  Work.  Anioiij;  the  He|»irielired  vi'MHeU  1  may  nielition  the  ('•''/,/.(», 
w  liieh  carried  I^il'ayette  to  America  in  1S124;  the  I'Unrr,  whieh  Hailnl  tlir  .\i  tir 
ill  seanli  of  Franklin;  \.\\vi  ItiijiiliiH,  At>'f!<li',  '/'Iiiiiiiim,  \ijitiiii';  fi'<ilri>iiilii,  M  "i/, 
<  iirnliiif  Aii'imtii,  i'iiiiilJie,  UvmiUi  deUoito,  Cittulner,  l'oj>iii]>ii,  T'llrn,  iliij Stitt, 
and  otliei'H. 

"It  is  jilaeedat  3,()(I0  ill  Mareh,  ft,(MH)iii  July,  and  from  l'-*.«K)to  J.'i.iKHlin 
Oct.,  the  latter  hy  Taylor,  AV./k/vk/o,  'J0,">,  and  a  writer  in  //.>//.<'  Minx.,  wm. 
•JtlM.  Some  r\  I'll  asHiinie  .'fct.lKIO  at  the  end  of  JS4S>.  Ill  til"  Hjiriii;;  llic  uir- 
rent  Met  in  for  the  iiiineM,  leaving  a  miiall  ]io|iiiI.ation  for  the  Hiimiiier  Tl  '- 
lir.-t  directory,  of  .Sept.  \HM,  contained  '.'..VKJ  naiiiuH,  ami  the  votcn  cift  iii 
Oct.  rea.hc.l  .•«,440.  Soi:  T'-onnrrijit,  Oct.  14,  IS,">i».  Hittell,  S.  /'.,  147  \  i' 
Hiiiiie.s  not  over  >*,(KN(  in  Nov.  |H4U,  or  ;ne  Htruii^th  of  tin!  vote  then  e.i-l  "I 
'_',0."»((,  while  allowing  ahont  'J."i,(HH)  in  another  idace  lor  iKfc.  Thi-  Aninl'S.  /'., 
'-'■  ',  •."_'»>,  •J44,  in»iHtH  iip*iii  at  li-ant  •J«),(  (M», jirolmlily  nearer  'ACKIO.  Tlur.  m 
other  eHtiiiiates  in  Miii/in''i  H.  ('ill.  l.'t".  The  tigiii[!.><  differ  ill  Cirwliii'  /•.''»"'', 
MS  .  I'J;  Willlilnis'  .Still.,  MS.,:»;  (.'mn's  l.{h ,  MS.,  19;  lIliriuIlM  /.'-.  M>. 
il.  ;Ui;  JiiirlU'tl'n  Slii!.,  MS.,  .'J. 


THE  EMKRYO  METnOPOIJS. 


109 


1  rt»t,  iir 

»8  of   tllf 
itUllUl.  sii 

tl»o  l)ay, 

I  uumiIm  r 
roiiiiiiu  ill 
lO  in  KL'i>- 
jrv  ixj^aii 
i»'  or  >sali- 

ct  of  the 

II  vi-ry  in- 

\)oru  in  an 


roof.  Mii-nll, 
liiiiiMiii.  l.ir- 
iriuT  S.iiis"iui' 
i-iiiiH'r  lilt- 
i'«ii'ii<r  >;i'  ri- 

liiii.  isr-T  "11 

LTtakfii  l'>  tlic 

fmiii'l  1111  ''f 

harlii'i'  '11'"'''' 
rl'..is  II  IP' 

,„„  tllf  (ili->TV 

latifiil  ciKi';;)' 

il.Ml  tlu'  Arctic 
,f)/../-'.  •"  '■*'■''. 


11" 


San  FRANCI^4CO  in  184U. 


|i:    i 


1:0 


SAX   KIIAXCISCO. 


Hi     \ 


w 


nftcrnoon,  \\\i]\  a  suriiikl'mj^if  of  more  rospcotaMc  fiaiin' 
liousis,  and  a  mass  of  canvas  and  iuIjIkt  liabitatinn,. 
Till!  latter  cn'|)t  (ditward  from  tlio  ceiitro  to  form  u 
Happiii*^  cainp-liko  wuburl)  around  the  myriad  of  sjind 
liills  wiilicrcd  by  raiidess  suniinor,  tlu/ir  dn-arinos 
scantily  rclifncd  hy  patclu^s  of  cliaparral  and  s.i^i - 
Itrusli,  diniinutivi'  oak  and  stuntnl  lauicl,  upon  winch 
tlu;  ]iovcriniL(  niist-Uanks  cast  tJicir  shadow.'" 

It  was  mainly  a  city  of  tents,  risinj^  in  crescent  in 
dine  upon  the  shores  of  the  cove.  Stretchin<;  fKiia 
Claik  Point  on  tin;  nortli-oast,  it  skirted  in  a  nariow 
hand  the  <loniinant  Teh'jj^raph  liill,  and  exp!inded  aioii.; 
the  ( 'lay-stre»'t  slopes  into  a  more  compact  settlenu  iit 
of  ahout  a  thinl  of  a  mile,  which  tapiTed  away  alnno 
the  ( 'alifornia-stre(>t  ridj^e.  Topojj^raphic  p<'culiaiitii  s 
com|>elled  the  daily  increasinj^  canvas  stiucturt  s  tn 
spread   laterally,  and    a   streak    extended    nortliwaid 


linn'''  Stockton  strict:  hut  the  larsjfer 


numher  pa>s((i 


to  till'  south-west  shores  of  the  cove,  beyond  tiie  Mai'- 
ket-street  ridiL^e,  a  rcifirtn  which,  sheltered  from  llic 
hlusterinij^  west  winds  and  jtrovided  witli  <^ood  spiin:^ 


water,  was  named 


JI 


"ppy 


A'alh 


'y 


ji 


eyond    an  at- 


''  ll.iriUy  liny  visitor  fails  to  dilati;  iipdii  tlic  dreary  liiiri'iioss  of  tin'  liill*, 
11  'f(ir|is(!  liku  wiiMti','  (IS  I'foiU'cr,  /.luli/'n  Sicoml  Jour.,  tJSS,  lias  it.  //'/;"/■'< 
l.itllil  <;/"  Uiilil,  K\. 

"'.Ml  tliis  slioro  Iwyoiirl  California  Htruct,  for  Hovoral  Mofks  inlaml,  \v;ii 
called  llaii|>y  N'alli-y;  vut  tlio  ti.riii  aiiplicd  [irojicrly  to  the  valKy  iiIhpiiI  rii>l, 
Second,  Nlissiun,  and  Natonia  xts.  The  Heetioii  along  Howard  st  was  kii>>»ii 
as  rieasiint  Valhy.  Ihnu'^  Slit.,  MS.,  J;  Cunrij'H  liir'nli  nl.^,  M.S.,  4;  II  (/,•//, 
and  iiioneer  letters  in  .V.  /•'.  lluUrllii,  May  17,  I.S.V.t;  .Ian.  "A  Se].t.  10,  IMIT 
'J"hu  ninlainied  .soil  was  also  an  attraetion.  This  hill  whieh  at  the  [insi  nt 
I'.il.iefi  Hotel  rose  nearly  threeseoru  feet  in  height  in  a  ineasnro  tnriied  tln' 
w  inil.  Vet  jiroiiortionately  more  jieoplo  died  in  this  valley,  says  (iaiiii.i>, 
/;'■(/■///  /> '//.I,  Ms,  JO,  than  in  the  higher  parts  of  .S.  V.  Ourrey  estiiuati'-i 
the  inindu'r  of  tents  here  dnring  the  winter  1S(!)  .'it)  at  l.INN),  and  a<l<l~  tint 
the  dwellings  along  Stockton  st,  north  from  Clay,  were  of  a  smicrinr  urilir, 
f'/ii  siiji.,  H.  l>etails  on  the  extent  of  the  eity  nre  given  also  in  ll'/A/'/'i"' 
/'mil.,  .MS.,  <J;  Ml  rrill,  Sliit.,  MS.,  '2,  ■wherein  is  observed  that  it  took  h.cli  .111 
hmir  to  roai'li  Foiii'lh  st  from  the  iila/a,  owing  to  the  trail  winding  loiunl 
s.md  hdls.  Siidim's  Kurly  Kijht.,  MS.,  1;  Jinr.ifoir'.^  S/nt.,  MS.,  2;  Ivi'H-li* 
.Slit.,  MS.,  'J;  ]),mlilil,'.i  Slut.,  MS.,  '2;  Uyhniii'n  AVf.s,  'J'Jl;  Tiirrill'^  CM. 
XdIcs,  '."J  7;  WiiKiii-t'  St.it.,  MS.,  514;  Fni/'^t  Fnrt.i,  MS.,  8;  Fnii/l<i'n  Sliit.,  .M^.,:i, 
(•;  /l'll'^!ll■•<l>ll'.■^  ('ill.  11111/  IIm  lliilil  /iV;/.,  10;  Walton  t  Fu'l-i,  8;  /iir/iiin/.inii'.s  .!/'•>'■>., 
448,  with  view  of  S.  F.  in  1847;  Lloi/it'.'i  Uijlilx  ami  S/imfin,  18  '20;  S'i.n,„:< 
fill-  )'/.»)•*,  .'JlKt  VI:  nrii.-/i<iir'.i  I-Jiriil.<,  Mfi., '2;  /Mmr'hnn'.i  A/'niinj,  MS.,  1(1  II: 
I'rUliii'-i  Ih'ii^hi.,  MS.,  .S(i  7:  Siiimi  .Month-'t,  4(1,  l()7;  (Wi'.  t^olil'  /:i;/ioi,s,  HCi, 
'214;    lliih-Ui,ij->'  Mil).,  i.   S:i;    Dilki'^  ilrmkr  BnUun,  '2(.W,  l-^'S-a'i;    Vkin<:iiis' 


TELWiUAl'H   mix. 


171 


IKS  of    tll>'  lliU 

liis  it.   //'';■" 


t.iiunh'd   striiicf   continued    towanl   tlio    <jovormiu'iit 
ti(»ii  at  iiiiK'oii  Point,  tlie  south-east  limit  of 


(i\V 


tlir  CuVi'.'' 

Thus  tho  city  was  truly  a  fit  cntrrpot  for  tli«'  j,niM 
ic'jinii.      Vet,  with  the  distiiu'tivo  features  of  diHereiit 

ti()ii;iliti«a,  it  had   in  the  a«j;ufre»jfate  a   stamp  t»f  its 

n,  ami  this  California  type  is  still  reco^nizahh' 
(lt'.>-|>itr  the  ecjualiziiiij^  etteet  of  intereourse,  esjH-eially 
with  the  easti'rn  states. 

The  lirst  strikintj  landmark  to  the  inin)ii,'rant  was 

Tdt  ^raph  hill,  with  its  windmill-like  sijrnul  house  and 

p«ih'.  \vhns«'  arms,  hy  their  varyinj^  positi(»n,  indi<'ate«l 

thr  class  <»f   vessel    ai)pr(»aehinj:f   the  (jolden  (Jate.''* 

I      Ami  many  a  Mutter  of  hope  and  cxpeetation  «lid  they 

vuke  when  announein«^  the  mail  steamer,  laden  witli 


t'ttei's  ami  messeuLjers,  or  some  Ion«;-expec 


•ted  el 


ipprr- 


p  with  nuri'handise,  or  perchance  hrinj^injuj  a  near 
I  (har  i(  lativel     Alonj^'  its  southern  slopts  d 


es 


sill 
aiii 

iiii;>  liioan  rapidly  to  climh,  with  s(juatters'  I'vri 
|ii  ichcd  upon  the  ruj^j^ed  spurs,  aiul  tents  nestliniij  in 
the  lavines.  Clark  J'oint,  at  its  foot,  was  for  a  time 
a  iimmisin'Lr  spot,  faven'd  hy  the  natural  landinjj^  ad- 
vaiitanc-;,  and  the  Hroadway  Jiier,  the  liist  ship  whai'f ; 
ami  its  si'ction  of  Sansome  street  was  marked  hv  a 
luiiijlici'  of  eoiiujrated  ir«)n  stores;  hut  with  the  rapid 
t  Ntnision  of  the  wharf  system,  Munti^ttnieiy  stitet 
iv.ithiiiied  its  position  as  the  base  line  for  business. 
.M"si  (if  the  heavy  import  firms  were  situated  alon«^ 
it-  t  astern  side,  including  a  nund)er  of  auction-houses, 
iniis|ti(U(tus  for  their  opew  and  thronged  di»ois,  and  the 


A'.'*;/'"/':/  /',  41(),  417.  4U;   Xonr.  AminlM  Vnt/.,  1S40,  2*J4;    \'iv>i-ln.H    Ornth,,, 
4  .'i:  /'(-•.  .\,„-s,  N„v.  I'T,  IS4'.t;   Dec  '2.1,  I.S.vV,  y.,r,i„<l<>l,/,  (I'.t  .  t  mMj.;   .!/,•. 


( ■"(/'/ 


i  t'liL,  :U  tJ.      F-iiliiT  ilctjuls  at  tilt!  el 


iisi'  ot   imHTcliri),'  viiluMH'. 
•loss  fmiii  Clark   I'liiiit.     Tln'se  two  iiuintx  |ir(s<iitiil  tlif  mily 


I" 
ipi'i.iacli  lit  low  wator.     A  privatf  claim   to  Ui 


!• 


lint   rcmTvatinii 


«  IS  >iilisc(|iiciitly  raiscil  oi>  tin;  gnniiiil  that  tliu  .H|i<it  had  Ixfii  jirci  iiipti'.!  I>y 
'    t  giivorniiii'iit  ri>'htM  wcru  iiriinary  in  ta.sv.s  involving  inilitai-y 


Willi 


>'trl|. 


.V.  /•'.  7 


A 


:th 


ti 


''Tlii.H  iiiiprovi'il  .si^nal-Htatioii,  in  a  two-story  hoiixc  '2't  ft  1>y  IH,  wao 
riTtcdhi  S.pt.  IHM).  KrmiiiisfciicfH  in  .V.  F.  C>ill,  Ihr.  H,  lS7t»;  T-'iilin-'x /-Jl- 
Inniilo,  \,  117.     After  the  tL'luv!ra|ih  t'oiinuctcil  the   outer  ocean  Ht^ition  with 


!'•  I'ltv.  t.ie  III 


Wowiuiowii  in  bw.  IS70, 


mainly 


a  reHort  tur  visitoi'ii. 


Till 


Dig 


nul-liuusu  wan 


Y« 


!M 


I'    I 


II. 


li  :  i 


11 


ii  M'i 


1 


i  • 


I 


} 


171 


BAN   FUAXCISCO. 


limn  ofsclliTs  jiikI  IntMcrH.  On  tin*  nm<l  flats  in  tlnir 
icjir,  fX|inM«Ml  l>y  the  ifct'dinjif  tidf,  lay  l»ar;j5('H  unlninl 
iiij4'  nirn-lian«lisi>.  Towanl  IImmmhI  of  I.S40,  piling  and 
iillin<^  puslinl  warclioUHcH  over  tartlicr  out  into  tin 
rovi;,  l>ut  MiUit^^oinrry  Htrrct  rctainiMl  nioHt  of  (h. 
lius'nu'SH  oHiccs,  Koint)  oc<'U|>yin<^  the  croHHinjj  tlmr. 
oujijlilart's.  Clay  Htn-ft  nl»ovn  .\ront«fonu'ry  iHTiinn 
a  <lry-«io(Kls  r»'ntr«'.  ('oinni«>rrial  Htrt't-t  wuh  opt  iml, 
ami  its  water  cxtrnsion,  L<»n<j;  Wharf,  unfohhMJ  intn  n 
pcdltrs  avenue  and  tfeWH  (luarter,  where  Cheap  Jolm^ 
with  sonorous  voices  and  nnuul  wit  attra<'t»;d  erowtis 
ot'  idlers.  The  levee  eastward  was  transformed  inii. 
Leidesilorfl'  stn't't,  and  contained  the  Pacific  Mull 
Steamship  oflice.  California  strtu't,  which  tnaik.il 
tlie  practical  limit  of  settlement  in  I84H,  he^ran  to 
attract  some  lar^e  importin*;;  firms;  and  thither  was 
tninsfcrred  in  the  mid<lle  of  ISJO  the  custom- hoiix. 
round  which  chist«'red  the  expn-ss  offices  and  tw  > 
plact's  of  iimusement.  Nevertheless,  the  city  hy  thii 
time  did  not  extend  heyond  Hiish  street,  save  in  tin 
line  alonjj;  the  shore  to  Happy  ValKy,  where  maim 
factiirin;^  enterprises  found  a  con«r,.nial  soil,  fririjful 
on  the  west  l»y  family  resiliences. 

Kearny  street  was  from  the  first  aasijjned  to  rftnil 
shops,  extending;  from  Pine  to  Hroadway  streets,  ainl 
centrin^jf  round  I'ortsmouth  square,  a  hare  .spot,  relir\t  d 
alone  l»y  the  solitary  liherty-ptde,  and  the  animal>  in 
and  around  it.'"  The  horderini;  sides  of  the  pla/i 
Were,  however,  mainly  occupied  l»y  }jfand»lini?-h(iu>r-, 
Hooded  with  hrilliant  li^ht  and  music,  and  with  liarin.' 
streamers  which  attracteil  idlers  and  men  seeking  n 
laxation.  Additional  details,  with  a  list  of  husiiir»i 
firms  and  notable  houses  and  features,  [  append  in  a 
note.""     At  the  corner  of  l*aeific  street  »Uhk\  a  fnui 

'•It  long  ruinaiiivil  a  cow-pen,  uiirln««(l  liy  rough  lioanU.  Ihljui'i  /.n/ 
qf  <.'()/(/,  74. 

'"'A  ruciiril  of  th<s  l)iiMinoRii  anti  |>rof(-HNional  conimuiiity  of  S.  F.  in  IM'.i- 
M  cannot  lit!  niailu  ivxhaiiMtivu  t)r  riuxlly  auciiratu  for  Huvural  olivioiiM  rraxxus. 
Tlirro  w:ui  a  i-nnittant  iiilliix  ami  rt'tlux  of  lutoiilti  from  and  to  tlic  iiiti'rii>r, 
{>.4|i('cially  in  tin-  npring  ami  autumn.  Tlic  irmgiilarity  in  Itiiililini.'  'iii'i 
uunilicriiig   iuft   niucli   cunfuiiion;   and  tliu  Hovvral   aweciiing   conllagi.iti»iii 


AllOUNI*  i'LAIlK    I'OIXT. 


173 


in  tlifir 

i  Ullloitil 

iliii^  ami 
int«»  till 
t  <»f  til.' 
WiZ   til  til- 

(><l  iiitii  a 
•ttj)  t)ttliii> 
!(l  cniNViU 
•iiu'tl  iiit'i 
■ifir  Mi.a 
I    maik'il 

\\i\\vv  \\:i' 
,om-li«»u>' , 
,  and    tw ' 

ity  l>y  tii.ii 

juvc  in  tin 

itTu  niiiiiu 

il,  WwA' '' 

il  to  rfta'.l 
jHM'ts.  ami 
|)t,  niliV'd 

anin»al>  in 
tho  I'll''-' 

Uir-linlix". 

[itli  tlariii'-' 
Ifi'kinjj;  r*- 
If  ltusiiu>'* 
[)|»on«l  ill  '^ 
i(»il  »  «•'"' 

Is.  F.  in  l!<W- 

IvioUH  rriUU'M- 

I,  tiK'  niKT""' 

llmil.iiuii  '""' 


fiinvv  liuiMinyf  udonu'd  with  Imlconics,  wlirnjln  tlio 
(  iiv  Hall  )ia«l  loiind  u  lmltin;4-|>Iacc  alter  much   mi- 

\^U\,  h  r.iiin<'<l  till)  riiia,  «liiuk|)|MMiruiifu,  ami  r('iiiiiv;il  of  iiiitny  tiriiiM  ninl  KtmiM, 
ail  l>''t  til  till!  I'liiifuninii.  liintiiltility  cliiiriu-tiri/i'il  tliii  varly  iirriml  Inii-  at 
Mill  '!'•  ill  till!  (viT-Hliiftiii^  iiiiiiiiig  caiii|m.  1  woiilil  li:ivii  iinlt'i'ml  to  liuiit 
till    iii'i  Hint  ri'i-iinl  of  tlio  city  t^t  184U  i\n  tlic  ull-iiiiiMirtiiiit  ihtiimI,  Imt  tl 


iiiitiiiiiii  mill  Hiniiif^  Miivi' 


iiU  fnn-o  iiH!  iivrr  into  tliu  iniililli!  of  l.'i.'rf),     'I'liii 


v:iL'ii>  iirxM  ol  Moiiio  of  iny  niitliiiritii'M  lumlrt  iin' iwcaHiomdly  to  oviTNtcj)  cvtii 
thiH  liiif,  'Hii'MU  iiutlioi'iti«'H  an-,  fort>iiiost,  tlm  iiiiinrroiiH  iiiiuiUHcri|it  tlii'tu- 
tiiiii'i  ami  iIiHMiiiicntH  olitaiiii'il  t'roiii  ^amii-crM,  ho  rr('i|iii'iilly  i|iioti'il  in  tliiit  umI 
(itliii'i  li't|it('r.-*;  tiiu  ayuiit.iiiiii-iito  iiiiiiiitiM;  uilviTtiHi'iiit-ntN  ami  iiotici'H  in  t!iu 

All  I   I  ■ii{/'"riiiil,    i'lii-ijii-  A'lr^, 


t  ../•  (  ■ 


('./•/•</ 


;.» ( • 


.V.  /•', 


//   .1//.  A'' 


iiiii'i 


ml    l.itir    iicw-<|i:nn'rM;   anil    KIiiJ-iiII'm  htrrfm-'j 


ol 


S.  I'.  I>>r  l^.'K),  till!  tii>t  Work  of  tlm  k  Jul  licni  i^tHiit  il.     It  in  a  Itiino  of  IMI 
.'.  >,  wi.li  HoiiD!  *.',.*():)  nani)'.-*,  ri'niarkiiMn  for  it.'i  oniiHMion.t,  <  rrort,  anil  lack 


II  al|>lial»'tiiMl  oriirr,  \i't  of   L;ri!:it  v.ilui: 


'J'lll!    ,U. 


'/  ,IA 


rinnt'tt-M  i 


S'1,1  r,.ini;A,i>  int/.f  Sjirlii'ii/  /.S'-t),hy 'i\  A.  lliirry  ami   11.  A.  I'iillni,  S.  1 


/ 


b;;i,  I'jfii 


•.".m 


l.ii'ii  I..I.I  taki^n  it.i  I'liirf  ciu'  front  tlic  aliovi;  ilirrrtorj 


^4  iiiti'U  M'lilcly  from  tlm  iicrioil  imticati'il  on  tliu  titli-pa"!!,  yi  t  olifn« 
iiiaiiy  iiitinv.iiii){  ilila.     I  aJMo  refer  to  my  riTonl  for  tlm  fity  in  I  ijs,  i;i  tli 


l\^^  Vol.,  V.  (IT'i  ft  Hi(j.  'i'lio  favoriUi  lamlin^-|i|aci'  fi  r  |ia>siii Tr.i  of 
NlitwiH  till!  Ml  ki  at  (.'lark  I'oint,  no  callnl  aflir  \\i:i  S,  Cliik,  wlio  ntill 
ii«iis  lliu  M.inhiiiisd  hiTi!  trri-ti'il  liy  iiim  in  1;>17-'^,  at  tiii!  N.r..  i-orncr  of 
Kitti-ry  anil  Itroiulway.  At  tlio  fool  ol'  I'.roailw.iy  rxtiiiilnl  al.-o  tliu  lir^t 
wli.iri  for  vi'HHi  1m,  a  HJiort  Htructuru,  whii  !i  liy  Oct.  |.S.">0  liail  lifcn  htrrtduil 
n  ili-'t  iii'c  of  'J.'K)  feet,  liy  40  in  wiiltli.  Tlie  name  roniimreial  a|i|>li>  <l  to  it 
Inr  .t  w  liile  HiMiii  yielileil  t«  ItriMtilway.  Here  were  till!  oIlieeH  of  till!  Iiarlior- 
iiM'tir,  river  anil  li.ir  ]>ilotM,  ami  Sacraiiieiito  rteaincr,  an'l  for  a  time  tliu 
lirij{  Tii"ii/  lay  at  tlm  jiior  a.<  a  htora/e  bliiji,  lontrolli'il  liy  W'liitmun  A  .S,.l. 
iiiiiii,  iiirirliaiils.  Oil  tfiu  same  wiiarf  Were  tlie  ollici.'H  of  Flint  I'lai  I*.  a':il 
Kill,  I'l  iiliiiiiy,  &  (  o.,  OMj^ooil  fi  l'!a  leston,  i'ommi.4!;iou  niercliaiit  ;  (lio.  II, 
I'e.  I,,  |iio.liire  miTiliaiit;  I'.  Na.iMault  &  To.  (W,  F.  Itoelofnon),  «  ol  Mai  'i, 
llrii,  I'lioi-,  Jos.  1'.  Blair,  a 'cnt  of  tlio  A.iiiinwall  Htwini.sliiii  line,  ,1, 
kiiM,  uiocer,  ami  tlie  noteil  Sirinlmr^'iTH  liutclier-Nliop, 
N'.ir  \>\,  to  tliu  north,  wire  three  p. hi  ]>rojcctioiiH.  FirMt,  (.'iinnin^liain 
wli.irt,  III  iweeii  \alli  joamK.reenHt-i,  int)et.  li<.">0,  HT'i  llloii),',  X\  ftwi  '.«,  wiJi 
a  mkIiI  ,iiii;li)exteii  ion  iif  .'C'.O  tt  li, •.';;»,  at  a  depth  of  I.'.')  Itco.t  47.''.<'-".  Hi 
livl,        ■  ■  ......  I   .   .        . 


Kiilki 


r  atiiiiittlii!  «iiira,'e  .ihiii /,'«  'liil  i,  in  earn  of  the  |i  lot  u  leiit  Ni  1  .mi.  Fur 
liul.liiiK  jiiaiit  ol  wh.ul  to.liM.  t.'lliiiiin:;!iaiii,  nee  .V.  /'.  Miinili*,  I  .lit,  I, '7  '^. 
At  till' tiint  of  Oreeu  Ht  ami  tow. nil  I  iiimi  >.t  were  the  exlen.sioii.s  of  U.  K. 
Hii.  Ui  I.  \v  >t  (  11,,  jjeiier.il  ii;erchant.H,  anil  tho  l.iw  or  ( ireeii-Ht-wh.irf  hiiil  i- 
ilii{  III  the  autumn  of    I  >.'.*).     Snuthw.iril  Htn  li  hcl  tlie  Mharf   i  •.'.niMoii  of 


l':irlllc  ht,  a  Hollil  Htrtlitllie  lilt  ft  vule,  of  mIilIi  In  Oct.  l.'».M»  r>...'i  tl  Wi 
ii.|>i|i|.  I..I,  out  of  till)  ]ii'i.poNeil  SiN>  It,  to  cost  till),!., H>.  Oil  Its  liiirlh  xiiic, 
li^ellil  jlilli  ry  «t,  lay  ihi;  hlor:i;.'e  hhip  .1//  :,isiim.  Near  it  W.l»t  the  luiliher- 
►111. I'  i.|  'lim  Itiiiiiham,  ami  the  ol, ice  of  liy.  W'l  llniliee,  imrcli.iit.  Nei.r 
till'  iL.tol   llroailway  hi,  aiiiiroiiri.itely  ho  naiiieil  fimn  it  i  extra  wiillli,  weri! 


tl 


lii'i  .S  ol    Will  K  ."•liillglitelililU;  h,  auct 


III. 11  IT  a:iil   coin.   Ilier. 


Until 


Mill.r  i\l.  i;.);  Kills  (.1.  .S.,  Liter  hIhiHI'  S.  V.)  it  t  loin  (T.l;  ami  L.  T.  Wil- 

•■"II.  ^I'll'l'i'i^i  Hiitton  (.1.  F.)  & 'rimiiieniiaii,  com,  i.icr. ;  1>.  hihei.,  k,  drug- 

1^         K'-';  I'.  «  liamll.  r,  miirkcl.     On  ILiit.  ly  ht,  iianu  d  alter  tlie  Frnt  .Nionij^'oiu. 

ii>  liiltiiyof   iMI'i  whiih  mI I  at  the  m  .ti  r  ed;;ii  iioilhof   Vallijoht,  m-o 

til.   In  niniit  hi.i.  1  ot  .liihn  .^^iitch,  m  ar   Nail,  jo,  and  the  U.iy  Imti  I  of    I'd, 


<oii\ll.      On  ei.jier  hiile  of  tl 
tlir  i.Hi.Ts  of   |..d.  11.  fasth: 


•t,  1.1  t 


Wcell 


VaUi 


d   Itri 


'). 


Iliei'. 


-  ,   ,  (ianlimr,   Howard,  ,t  to.,  ll.i/.i  ii  it  (  o,, 

Ji"   I.    Ili.will,  J.  H.  Moiyan  A.«o.  (A.  K.   Kiiii.lil,  .lolm  J„iit.ll).  L.  U 

ni'll". 

llT., 

of  III' 


II.  .Mi.rtiili  &  (.'ii.,  loiiier  of  Vail,  jii,  the  la-t  tlin  c  j.:iimi  r..;  N.il.  .Ni.l- 
iii'kid  hoth  as  j;iiici  r  an  I   Imnlier  itialer;   \\  iii  .Siillern,  haildh'r;  hniitli 


l«ay  Were  Ihooks  it  Fnel,  tin  iilat 


\Mirkirs. 


t>ii  Itiiiadway,  lielwucn  llutlery  and  Samtonii!  mI«,  wuru  lliu  oliicuH  ot  (".  A. 


*f* 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


1.25 


.5 


If  11^  ii 

12.0 


1.4    ill  1.6 


<^ 


/2 


% 


o 


/: 


//a 


/ 


Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


33  WEST  M.<MM  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.y    HS80 

(7)6)  87a-4Si)i 


1 


0 


'i 


174 


SAX   FRANCISCO. 


i'l'U 


i  f     II, 


1     ll 


grating,  in  conjunction  with  the  jail  ana  court-rooms. 
The  opposite  block,  stretching   toAvard  Montgomery 

Bertraiul,  sliipping;  at  the  Battery  comer,  Wm  Clark,  irier. ;  John  Elliott, 
com.  iiicr. ;  Goo.  Farris  &  Co.  (S,  C.  Northrop  and  Eilwiu  Thompson),  gvn. 
store.  Half  a  dozen  additional  I'oint  ho.stclries  were  here  represented  li y  the 
Illinois  house  of  S.  Anderson,  at  the  Battery  corner,  Broadway  house  of  Wm 
M.  Bruner,  tlie  rival  Broadway  hotel  of  L.  Dedcrer,  Lovejoy's  liotel  of  J.  Jl, 
Brown,  Lafayette  hotel  of  L.  Guiraud,  and  Albion  house  of  Croxton  &  Ward, 
the  latter  four  between  Sansome  and  Montgomery  sts,  in  which  section  wore 
abo  the  oflices  of  White,  Graves,  &  Buckley,  anil  Aug.  A.  Watson  &  Co  ;  II. 
!Marks  &  Brc,  gen.  store;  Wm  K.  Towne,  and  Dederer  &  Valentine,  gro- 
cers. West  of  Battery  ran  Sansome  at,  from  Telegraph  hill  cliffs  at  Broadway 
to  the  cove  at  Jackson  st,  well  lined  with  business  places,  and  conspicuous 
for  the  nmnber  of  corrugated  iron  buildings.  At  the  west  corner  of  Broad- 
way rose  tlie  3^-story  wooden  edifice  of  J.  W.  Bingham,  O.  Reynolds,  and  F.  A. 
&  AV.  A.  Bartlatt,  com.  mer.  In  the  same  block  was  tlie  of'lce  of  De  Witt  (Alf. 
&  Harrison,  (H.  A. ),  one  of  the  oldest  firms,  later  Kittle  &  Co. ;  al  ;o  Casu, 
Heiser,  &  Co.,  and  Malioney,  Ripley,  &  McCullough,  on  the  n.  w.  I'acitic-sit 
corner,  who  dealt  partly  in  amnninition.  At  the  Pacilic-st  corner  wore  al.io 
Wni  H.  Mosher  &  Co.  (W.  A.  Bryant,  W.  F.  Story,  W.  Adain),  and  E.  S. 
Stone  &  Co.,  com.  mers,  and  Hawley's  store.  In  the  same  section  were  the 
cilices  of  Aluir  (A.)  &  Greene  (E.),  brokers;  Jos.  W.  Hartman  and  Jas  Hoqan, 
mers,  are  assigned  to  Telegraph  hill.  The  well-known  C.  J.  Collins  had  a 
hat-shop  on  this  street,  and  Jose  Sufi'ren  kept  a  grocery  at  the  Broadway 
corner. 

The  section  of  Sansome  st,  between  Pacific  and  Jackson  sts,  was  even  more 
closely  occupied.  At  Gold  st,  a  lane  running  westward  along  the  cove,  L.  B. 
Hanks  had  established  liimself  as  a  lumber  dealer.  Buildings  had  risen  on 
piles  beyond  the  lane,  liowever,  on  the  corners  of  Jackson  st,  occupied  by 
Co^;hill  (II.  J.)  &  Arrington  (W.),  com.  mer.;  Bullet  &  Patrick  (on  the  opposite 
side),  Buzby  &  Bros,  F.  M.  Warren  &  Co.  (C.  E.  Chapiu,  S.  W\  Shelter),  ship 
and  com.  mer.;  Hotalling  &  Barnsteail,  Huerlin  &  Belcher,  gen.  dealers,  and 
Ed.  H.  Parker.  Nor';hward  in  the  section  were  Ellis  (M.),  Crosby  (C.  W.),  & 
Co.  (W.  A.  Beechcr),  Cross  (AL),  Hobson  (Jos.),  &  Co.  (W.  Hooper),  Umhr- 
wood  (Thos),  JNIcKnight  (W.  S.),  &  Co.  (C.  W.  Creoly),  Dana  Bros  (W.  A.  & 
H.  T.),  W.  H.  Davenx)ort,  Grayson  &  Guild,  and  J.  B.  Lippincott  &  Co.,  all 
com.  mers;  E.  S.  J  ovel,  mer.;  Chard,  Johnson  (D.  M.),  &  Co.,  gen.  importers, 
at  Gold  st;  Simmons,  Lilly,  &  Co.,  clothing.  J.  W.  &  S.  H.  Dwinclle,  coun- 
sellors, wore  in  Cross  &  Hobson's  building.  On  Paciti  '  ijoining,  was  the 
office  of  Wm  Burlin,  mer.,  the  grocery  stores  of  T  LiCggot  and  ]\lrtu. 

Suuloni,  the  confectionery  store  of  J.  H.  &  T.  M.  >  ,  anil  three  hot;ld, 
Union,  Marine,  and  du  Commerce,  kept  by  Geo.  Brown,  C.  C.  Stile.i,  and  C. 
Renault,  the  last  two  between  Sansome  st  and  Ohio  st,  the  latter  a  lane  run- 
ning parallel  to  the  former,  from  Pacific  to  Broadway. 

The  business  part  of  Montgomery  st,  named  after  the  U.  S.  naval  oliioer 
commanding  at  S.  F.  in  1S4G,  extended  southward  from  the  cliffs  at  Broad- 
way, and  beyond  it,  on  the  slopes  of  Telegraph  hill.  There  were  sevond 
dwellingdiouses,  among  them  Capt.  P.  B.  Hewlitt's,  who  received  boarders; 
yet  the  liill  was  mostly  abandoned  to  disreputable  Sydney  men,  and  westward 
to  the  now  assimilating  Spanish  Americans.  In  the  section  between  Broad- 
way and  Pacific  sts,  I  find  only  the  merchant  F.  Berton;  Chipman,  Brown,  & 
Co.  were  grocers;  Jas  Harrison  kept  a  gen.  store  at  the  comer,  and  Dr  S.  li. 
Gerry,  the  health  officer  of  Dec.  18-39  had  an  office  here.  lu  the  next  sec- 
tion, between  Pacific  and  Jackson,  Montgomery  st  assumed  the  general  liuai- 
itess  stamp  for  which  it  was  preeminent.  Merchants,  coumiissiou  houses,  iiid 
auctioneers  were  tlie  chief  occupants,  the  last  being  most  conspicuous.  At 
the  Paeifio  corner  were  the  merchants  Harrison  (Capt.  C.  H.),  Ballov,  & 
Hooper,  and  A.  Olphan;  and  at  the  Jackson  end,  J.  C.  &  W^.  H.  V.  Croiiisu, 


JACKSOX-STREET  LAGOON. 


175 


street  and  at  the  foot  of  Telegraph  hill,  was  filled  with 
shabby  dens  and  public  houses  of  the  lowest  order, 


HUTS  and  aucs  (with  them  as  clerk,  Titus  Cronise,  the  later  author),  Hcrvey 
Sjiarkn,  hanker  and  real  estate  dealer,  and  Dewey  (.Squire  P.  )&  .Smith  (F. 
,\I.l,  ii-.I  estate.  Intermediate  were  J  Behrens,  Geo.  Brown,  'Javis  &  Co.  (J. 
\V.  &.  N.  R.  Davis),  J  H  Levein,  McKenzie,  Thompson,  &  Co.,  H.  H.  Nel- 
.s(i:i,  Thos  Whaloy,  (J.  S.  Wardle  &  Co.,  all  com.  mer.j;  Simon  Raphael,  mer. ; 
J.  A.  Nf>rton,  ship  and  com,  mer.,  an  English  Jew  whose  suhsefpiunt  business 
ruvi  rsesafl'octcd  his  mind  and  converted  lum  into  one  of  the  most  noted  char- 
acters of  S.  F.  under  the  title  of  Emperor  Norton  of  Mexico.  Until  his 
duatli,  in  1880,  he  could  be  seen  daily  in  the  business  centres,  dressed  in  a 
shabby  military  uniform,  and  attending  to  financial  and  political  measures  for 
hl.i  tiMpM-e.  Here  were  also  the  clothing  stores  of  llaphaul  (J.  O.),  Falk,  & 
Co.,  J.  Simons,  Louis  Simons,  and  Dan.  Toy. 

'I'ho  Jacksoii-st  corner  bordered  on  the  neck  of  the  lagoon,  which  pcne- 
tnited  ill  a  X)c'ar  form  on  either  side  of  this  street  more  than  half-way  up  to 
Kearny  st.  It  was  one  of  the  first  spots  to  whicli  the  lillago  system  was 
appK-d,  and  the  bridge  by  which  Montgomery  st  crossed  its  neck  since  1844 
li.;cl  liy  1849  been  displaced  by  a  solid  levee.  Jackson  st  began  its  march  into 
tlie  eiive,  and  in  Oct.  2,  1850,  tlie  private  company  controlling  the  work  were 
fiirit  advancing  the  piling  beyond  Battery  to  Front  st,  being  552  feet  out, 
vlieru  the  depth  was  13  ft.  Tlie  estimated  cost  was  §40,000.  Its  section 
littweeii  Montgomery  and  Sansome  was  heavily  occupied  by  firms:  N.  Larco 
it  Co.  (Lal)ro;ia,  Roiling,  Beudixoon),  Louis  Cohen,  Quevedo,  Lafour,  &  Co., 
lleihlin;.',  Euleysen,  &  Co.,  0.  P.  Sutton,  mors;  Bech,  Elam,  &  Co.  (W.  U. 
Iviscin,  tJ.  (ialloway),  J.  C.  Cattou,  Uuttmann  (F.),  Filler,  &  Co.,  Win  Ladd, 
.1.  ]■'.  Stuart  &  Co.  (J.  Raynes),  com.  mers;  Christal,  Corman,  &  Co.,  Lore'  & 
Wa.iliburu,  wholesale  and  gen.  mers;  Beiilcman(J.  C.)&Co.  (S.  Fleischhaker), 
Olleiulorll',  Wolf,  &  Co.  (C.  Friedenberg),  B.  Pinner  &  Bro.,  Potsdamer  & 
Koseubaum  (J.  &.  A.),  Sam.  Thompson,  R.  Wyman  &  Co.  (T.  S.  Wymau), 
clothing;  Adam  (Irant,  S.  L.  Jacobs,  Titman  Bros,  C  Jansen  &  Co.,  dry 
goods — the  List  naniud  victims  of  the  outrage  wliich  led  to  the  vigilance  iip- 
i:  in:.'  of  l!',.";l — Hall  &  Martin,  aucs;  Roth  &  Potter,  stoves  and  tinwork; 
^Vh  te  k  MeNulty,  grocers;  Paul  Adams,  fruit;  Dickson  &  Hay,  land-oflice; 
C.  (.'.  Kiehmoml  &  Co.,  druggists,  in  a  store  brought  out  by  the  Eudorus,  Sept. 
1^)4'.).  Here  were  abo  two  hotels,  the  Commercial  and  the  Dalton  house, 
kept  by  J.  Ford  &  Co.  and  Smith  &  Hasty,  and  the  fonda  Mejicai'.a  of  E. 
Tasciial  dispensed  the  fiery  dishes  dear  to  Slexican  palates.  Sansoino  st  ex- 
t  :nhcl  from  here  on  piles  soutliward,  and  in  the  section  between  Jackson  and 
A\'a.-hinirton  sts,  on  the  east  side,  was  the  office  of  W.  T.  C(deman  &  Co.,  com. 
lU'  IS,  wiiose  chief  M'as  prominently  connected  with  the  vigilance  committee 
ol  li.'il,  and  the  famed  president  of  the  1856  body.  Near  by  wore  .las  H. 
K.iy,  Turner,  Fish,  &  Co.,  Goodall  (T.  H.),  Muzzy,  &  Co.,  Paul  White  &  Co. 
(.1.  Watson),  also  com.  mors;  John  Cowell,  mer.  at  tlie  Jackson  corner;  Bel- 
1  lap,  White,  &  Co.,  provisions.  Rogers,  Richeson,  &  Co.  (M.  Jordan)  had  a 
ci    1-yard,  and  at  Jones'  alley  lay  a  lumber-yard  belonging  to  Palmer,  Cook, 


Ola 
11.' 

w. 

Cul 
(•I. 

Wat 


Joutii'-ing  along  Jackson  st,  from  Sansome  to  Battery  st,  we  find  the 
•  ot  Myrick,  Crosctt,  &  Co.,  gen.  jobbers;  Howe  &  Hunter,  Jaeoby, 
man,  &  Co.,  Savoni,  Archer,  &  Co.,  N.  H.  Sanborn,  Murry  &  Sanger,  Vose, 
ii'l,  it  Co.,  com.  mers.  Win  Crosctt,  com.  mer.;  C.  E.  Hunter  &  Co.,  F. 
•nan  Sanford,  gen.  mers;  F.  M.  W^arreii  &  Co.,  White  (W.  H.)  &  Williams 
T.),  ship,  and  com.  mers;  the  latter  nearer  S.insome  st.  Along  the 
r-lront  W.  Meyer  kept  a  coO'ee-Jiouso.     The  latter  part  of  this  section 


V  as  a  wiiarf,  and  the  narrow  approach  to  the  ollico  of  Dupuy,  Foulkes,  &  Co., 
Co  .1.  mer.,  at  the  Battery  corner,  revealed  the  splaslnng  wati^r  on  cither 
SI  ic.  Beyond  them  were  the  officen  of  E.  L.  Plumb,  mer. ;  frassett  &  Sanborn 
(T.  S.),  j;.  S.  Woodford  &  Co.  (J.  B.  Bridgeniaa),  ship,  and  cum.  mers;  O. 


176 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


W 


;l'.l- 


r-  !   i 


frequented  by  sinister-looking  men  and  brazen-faced 
females,  who  day  or  night  were  always  ready  either 

Charlick,  agent  for  Law's  line  of  steamers;  Gregory's  (J.  W.)  express; 
Scliultz  &  Palmer,  grocers.  South  of  Jackaon  anu  west  of  Battery  st  lay 
the  storage  vessel  Oeoryenn,  though  some  identify  her  with  the  prison  brig 
Eupheniia.  Ou  Montgomery  at,  between  Jackson  and  Washington  ats,  wlto 
at  least  four  of  the  characteristic  auction -houaes,  Moore  (G.  H. ),  Folger  ( F.  B. ), 
&  Hill  (H.),  Jiis  B.  Huie,  Scooffy  &  Kelsey,  and  W.  H.  Jones.  At  tliu 
Jackson-st  corner  were  Haight  (E.)  &  Ames  (0.  T.),  com.  mers,  and  Pratt 
(J.)  &  Cole  (Cornel)  (later  U.  S.  senator),  attorneys;  while  at  the  Washiiij;- 
ton-st  end  rose  the  Merchants'  Exchange  Reading  Room  of  L.  W.  Sloat — 
son  of  the  commodore — S.  Gower  is  alao  named  as  proprietor — and  at  the  n. 
w.  comer  the  offices  of  C.  L.  Ross.  com.  mcr.,  who  during  the  early  part  of 
1849  acted  as  postmaster  (in  1848  he  had  a  lumber-yard).  H.  B.  Sherman,  and 
P.  A.  Morse,  couuscllor.  Among  the  occupants  of  the  Exchange  bulMiiig 
were  Dickson  (D.),  De  Wolf  &  Co.,  and  J.  S.  Hager,  counsellor,  later  U.  8. 
senator;  and  in  the  Exchange  court  were  E.  D.  Heatley  &  Co.,  com.  mcrs; 
with  S.  Price,  consul  for  Chile,  as  partner.  In  this  section  are  mentiouud 
among  the  merchants,  Rob.  Hamilton,  Worster  &  Cusliing  (G.  A.),  W.  Hart, 
Stowell,  Williams  (H.),  &  Co.,  H.  Schroedor,  Van  der  Mcden,  &  Co.,  Bennett 
&  Hallock  (J.  Y.),  L.  L.  Blood  &  Co.  (J.  H.  Adams,  G.  B.  Hunt),  Worthiiiy- 
ton,  Beale,  &  Bunting,  Jos.  Bidluman,  Ed.  Gilson,  Guyol,  Galbraith,  &Co., 
Mazera  N.  Medina,  com.  mers.  Wykofif  &  Co.  (G.),  were  wholesale  dealers; 
Jas  Dows  &  Co.,  wholesale  liquor  men  (T.  G.  Phelps,  their  clerk,  was  later 
congressman  and  collector  of  S.  F. ) ;  S.  &  B.  Harries,  S.  Fleischhacker,  Pugli, 
Jacob,  &  Co.,  clothing;  Mcintosh  (R.)  &  Co.,  provisions;  John  Raiuey,  gun. 
dealer;  Sabatie  (A.)  &  Roussel,  grocers;  Conroy  &  O'Conner,  hardware;  Brad- 
ley, photographer;  H.  F.  Williams,  carpenter  !vnd  builder,  onE.  side.  C.  Wuli- 
ster  kept  the  Star  house.  At  the  foot  of  Washington  st,  which  touched  the 
cove  a  tew  feet  below  Montgomery  st,  were  Franklin,  Selim,  &  Co.,  gen.  mers; 
HosmtT  &  Bros,  A.  P.  Kiunan,  and  Maynard  &  Co.,  grocers;  Leonard  &Tay, 
produce  mers,  Chapin  &  Sawyer,  com.  mers,  Camilo  Martin,  and  J.  F.  Lolise, 
mers.  The  private  wharf  prolongation  of  this  street  extended  275  feet  by 
Oct.  1850. 

Between  Washington  and  Clay,  Montgomery  st  was  marked  by  additions 
iu  the  banking  line,  notably  Burgoyne  &  Co.  (J.  V.  Plume),  at  the  s.w.  cor- 
ner of  W^ashington  st,  Ludlow  (S.),  Beebe,  &  Co.,  and  H.  M.  Naglee  &  Co., 
corner  of  Merchant  st,  and  by  a  literary  atmosphere  imparted  by  the  Sun 
Frtfiiritico  Hendd,  of  Nugent  &  Co.,  the  Jounid  of  Commerce,  of  W.  Bartlett 
(mayor  S.  F.  and  gov.  Cal. ),  associated  with  Robb,  and  The  Watchman,  a  re- 
ligious monthly  by  A.  Williams,  at  the  same  otHce.  Marvin  &  Hitchcock's 
book-store  was  in  the  Herald  building,  the  Delmonico's  hotel,  by  Deliiioiik'i) 
&  Treadwell,  at  the  Irving  house,  on  the  e.  side,  while  the  drug-store  nf 
Harris  &  Parton  was  at  the  Wiish.-st  corner.  At  these  corners  were  the 
offices  of  Finley,  Johnson  (C.  H.),  &  Co.,  (J.  W\  Austin),  Grogan  &  Lout 
( W.  M. ),  both  com.  mers,  and  Horace  Hawea,  counsellor  (and  tirst  sheriff  <if 
the  county);  at  the  corner  of  Merchant  st,  Barron  &  Co.,  com.  mer.,  held  out, 
and  on  its  s.w.  corner  a  three-atory  brick  buihling  was  begun  in  Oct.  l>S4y, 
on  the  site  of  Capt.  Hinckley's  adobe  house.  The  Clay-at  corners  were  occu- 
pied by  Cordes,  Steffena,  &  Co.,  Josiah  Belden,  com.  mers;  Bacon  &  Mahouy, 
and  R.  J.  Stevens  &  Co.  (G.  T.  H.  Cole),  both  ship  and  com.  mers.  In  tlio 
same  section  were  Earl,  Mackintosh,  &  Co.,  Hay  den  &  Mudge,  Cost  &  Ver- 
planck,  the  latter  two  in  the  Herald  building,  Vogan,  Lyon,  &  Co.,  Manrow  & 
Co.  (W.  N.  Meeks),  all  com.  mers;  Oct.  Hoogs,  J.  C.  Treadwell,  mers;  Ken- 
dig,  Wainright,  &  Co.,  auc.  and  com.  mer.  in  a  long  one-story  wooden  house; 
J.  A.  Kyte,  ship  and  com.  mer.;  Corvin  &  Markley,  clothing  antl  slims; 
Marriott,  real  estate;  F.  G.  &  J.  C.  W^ard,  gen.  dealers.  In  the  same  or  ail- 
joining  section,  if  we  may  trust  the  coufus^  numbering  of  those  days,  luuy 


THE  HEART  OF  THE  CITY. 


177 


for  low  revelry  or  black  crime.  The  signs  above  the 
drinkiiig-houses  bore  names  which,  like  Tarn  O'Shan- 

1(e  placed  Beech  &.  Forrey,  Vandervoort  &  Co.,  Rob.  Fash,  L.  Haskell,  H. 
Huyhes,  jr,  E.  T.  Martin,  Porter  &  Co.,  Sage  &  Smith  (Stewart),  all  com. 
riiTs;  Annan,  Lord,  &  Co.,  gen.  jobbing;  Reed  &  Carter,  ship  mors;  Joa. 
(  liiipniaii  anil  Joel  Holkins  &  Co.,  mors;  Fitch  (H.  S.)  &  Co.  (I.  McK. 
Lt'iuoii),  auc.  and  com.  mers;  Frisbie  k  Co.,  nier.  broker;  A.  B.  Southworth, 
metal  dealer;  Ed.  S.  Spear,  broker;  D.  S.  Morrill,  Boston  notions;  Johnson 
&  -McCarty,  provisions;  Crittenden  (A.  P.)  &  Randolph,  and  S.  Heydenfelt, 
attorneys;  and  tlie  Piicific  bath-house. 

Turning  dow-n  Clay  st  toward  the  water,  we  find  in  1849  the  beginning  of 
a  wharf,  just  Ijclow  Montgomery  st,  which  by  Oct.  18i50  extended  900  ft  by 
4 1  ft  in  width,  and  would  bBfore  the  end  of  that  year  be  carried  900  ft  farther, 
at  a  total  cost  of  ;f^51),000.  In  its  rear,  at  the  N.  w.  Sanscme-st  corner  harl 
buen  left  stranded  the  old  whaler  Niniitic,  converted  into  a  warehouse  with 
offices,  by  GodefiFroy,  Sillem,  &  Co.  At  the  corresponding  Br.ttery  corner  lay 
the  storage  ship  Gfii.  Unrrumn.  Along  this  wharf  street  were  established  Ira 
A.  Eaton,  B.  H.  Rmdolph,  Hochkofler  &  Tenequel,  J.  G.  Pierce,  F.  Va.ssault, 
mers;  J.  J.  Chauviteau  &  Co.,  gen.  bankers  and  com.  mers;  J.  B.  Corrigan, 
Cieeii  (II.)&  Morgan  (X.  D.),  Ogilen  &  Haynes,  Z.  Holt,  E.  Mickle  &  Co.  (W. 
II.  Tillinghast,  later  banker),  H.  C.  Beals,  J.  H.  Chichester,  Wm  H.  Coit,  Geo. 
Sexsmith,  Simmons,  Hutchinson,  &  Co.  (Simmons  died  Sept.  ISiiO,  see  biog. 
preceding  vol.  v.  I,  com.  mers;  Wood  worth  (S.  &  F.)  &  Morris,  ship  and  com. 
mers  (Selim  E.  Woodworth,  the  second  vigilance  president  of  1851,  leader  of 
the  im'iiigrant  relief  party  of  1848,  and  later  U.  S.  commodore);  Mooreheatl, 
Wliiteliead,  &  Wa<ldington,  Valparaiso  flour  mers;  here  was  also  the  office 
of  tlie  Sacramento  steamers;  T.  Breeze  (later  Breeze  &  Loughran).  Many  of 
the  stores  were  of  zinc.  Buckley  &  Morse,  shipsmiths,  Schloss  Bros,  wholesale 
dealers;  Jas  Patrick,  Jas  B.  Weir,  provisions;  Dunbar  (F.)  &  Gibbs,  grocers, 
oil  Sansome  st.  The  southern  half  of  the  Wash. -Clay  block  on  the  corner 
was  owned  bj'  R.  M.  Slierman,  for  a  time,  in  1848-9,  of  the  firm  Sherman  Sl 
Kiickle,  an<l  he  still  owns  the  property. 

Returning  to  Montgomery  st  toward  Sacramento  st,  we  find  at  the 
s.  w.  Clay-st  comer  the  first  brick  house  of  the  city,  erected  by  Melius  k 
II()Waril  in  1848.  Tliis  appears  to  be  the  so-called  fire-proof  Wells  budding, 
oceupieil  partly  by  Wells  (T.  G.)  &  Co.,  bankers.  At  the  Clay-st  corners 
Were  also  Fay,  Pierce,  &,  Willis,  0.  C.  Oslwmc,  sr  and  jr,  com.  mers;  M.  F. 
Klaueke,  gen.  mer. ;  Delos  Lake,  counsellor,  aiul  Cooke  &  Lecount,  stationers. 
At  tlie  corner  of  Commercial  st,  James  King  of  William,  the  assassinated 
iilitiir  of  l!S5G,  had  a  banking-house;  here  were  also  N.  Bargber  &  Co.,  mers; 
Jas  Murry,  sliip  mer.;  and  on  tlie  s.  E.  corner  stood  the  noted  Tontine  gam- 
liling-liouse,  managed  by  W.  Shear,  and  also  by  Austin  &  Button  (Austin  was 
l:iter  tax  collector  of  the  city).  A  two-story -aud-a-half  house  on  the  opposite 
tiinier,  with  projecting  eaves,  once  bebmging  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Co.,  had 
also  a  gaiiibling-s<iloon  much  frequented  by  Mexicans.  In  this  circle  figured 
tiie  Eureka  hotel  of  J.  H.  Davis  &  Co.  At  the  Sacramento  st  end  were  J. 
R.  KoUinsoii,  ship  &  com.  mer.;  H.  E.  Davison,  gen.  merchandise,  and 
TiiatJe  (W.),  Murphy  (D.),  &  McCahill  (G. ),  dry  goods,  etc.  Intermediate 
were  the  offices  of  Moore  (R.)  &  Andrews  (Stel).),  the  long-established 
Howard  k  Green  (T.  H.,  the  former  being  before  of  the  firmj^cllus  &  How- 
ard), Capt.  Aaron  Sargent,  Gildeineister  &  De  Fremery  (J.),  all  com.  mers; 
(iraysou  &  Guild  also  had  their  office  here;  A  Hausman,  Goldstein,  &  Co.  cloth- 
ing; J.  W.  Osbom,  chinaware;  Rob.  Sherwood,  watchmaker,  later  capitalist. 
I'raiie  &  Rice,  proprietors  Cal.  Courier. 

Commercial  street  received  a  great  impulse  from  the  projection  in  May  1849 

of  the  Central  or  Long  wharf,  by  a  company  which  embraced  such  prominent 

citizens  as  Howard,  W.  H.  Davis,  S.  Brannan,  Ward,  Price,  Folsom,  Shilla- 

ber.  Cross,  Hol>son  &  Co.,  De  Witt  &  Harrison,  Finley,  Johnson,  &  Co.,  etc., 

JIisT.  Cal.,  Vo'»      .    12 


178 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


im 


I.  ■      'ii 


M 


ter,  Magpie,  and  Boar's  Head,  smacked  of  English 
sea-port  resorts,  and  within  them   Australian  slang 

who  subscribed  $120,000  at  once.  By  Dec,  800  ft  were  finished  at  a  Cfwt  of 
|il  10,000.  In  June  1850  the  great  fire  destroyed  a  portion,  but  work  was  ro- 
suiiied  and  by  Oct.  it  was  2,000  ft  out,  so  that  the  mail  steamers  could  ap- 
proach; repairs  and  extension  cost  $71,000.  This  drew  trade  rapidly  from 
other  quarters  and  led  to  wharf  extension  in  different  directions,  Capt.  Gil- 
lespie was  wharfinger.  Leidesdorff,  so  named  after  the  U.  S.  vice-consul, 
whose  warehouse  stood  at  its  junction  with  California  st,  was  originally  a 
beach  levee.  The  office  of  the  Pacific  Mail  Steamship  Co.,  at  tlio  8.  E.  corner 
of  Com.  and  Leidesdorff  sts,  was  at  first  a  two-story  house,  20  ft  square. 
After  the  fire  of  June  1850  it  was  moved  to  the  Sacramento  cornor  of 
Leidesdortr.  Here  was  also  the  Kremlin  restaurant  and  saloon  of  Nash,  I'at- 
ten,  &  Thayer,  with  lodgings  above.  On  the  N.  E.  corner  stood  Hall  &  Ryck- 
man's  (the  latter  3d  president  of  the  vigilance  connnittee  of  1851 )  New  World 
building.  At  the  head  of  the  wharf  was  a  brick  building  Waring  the  con.spit- 
uous  sign  of  Dan.  Gibb,  com.  mer. ;  his  neighbors  were  R.  B.  Wilkins,  Jas  H. 
Goodman,  Theo.  Norris,  Huffman  &  Brien,  com.  nicrs;  Endicott,  Greene,  & 
Oakes,  mers;  Smith  &  Block,  grocers  and  com.  men;  Wm  Tliompson,  jr, 
com.  and  ship  broker,  occupied  the  Commercial  building.  Ellis  &  Goin,  of 
Clark  Point,  had  an  oliice  here  for  a  time.  Along  the  wharf  were  G.  B. 
Bradford,  Huffman  &  Brien,  Ottinger  &,  Brown,  Gosse  &  Espie,  Hamilton  & 
Luyster,  Hewes  &  Cutter,  com.  mers;  Quimby,  Harmon,  &  Co.,  shoes;  Bouva- 
lot,  Roux,  &  Co.,  variety  store;  Ferguson,  ReynoMs,  &  Co.,  Smith  &  Gavin, 
grocers;  Hoff  &  Ambrose,  at  the  Battery  corner;  the  Prices  Currtnt  office. 

Before  the  Commercial-st  wharf  and  its  rivals  attracted  traffic,  Sacramento 
st  stood  prominent  as  a  reception  place  for  merchandise.  It  had  now  to  join 
in  the  race  toward  deep  water;  to  which  end  Henry  Howison  prolongeil  tlie 
southern  side  of  the  street  till  it  reached,  in  Oct.  1850,  a  length  of  1,100  ft, 
with  a  width  of  40  and  a  depth  of  14  ft  at  high  water.  Stevenson  &  Parker 
extended  the  street  proper  to  Davis  st,  a  distance  of  800  feet,  by  Oct.  1850, 
and  erected  near  the  entl  a  counno<lious  building.  At  the  end  of  Howison 's  pier 
Were  the  storage  brigs  Piedmont  bmA  OasiUla,  belonging  to  Mohler,  Caduc,  &  Co. 
Caduc,  later  ice-dealer,  assisted  in  building  the  pier.  The  T/iomas  Bennett, 
brought  out  by  a  Baltimore  firm,  and  controlled  by  Trowbridge,  Morrison,  & 
Co.,  lay  at  the  Sansome-st  comer  for  storage.  None  of  these  appear  to  have 
remained,  according  to  the  map  of  1851,  but  the  Apollo,  at  the  n.  w.  Battery- 
st  corner,  controlled  by  Beach  &  Lockhart,  did  become  a  fixture.  On  the  s.  \v. 
corner  of  Leidesdorff  st  stood  prominent  the  office  of  Dall  (Jos.  &  John) 
&  Austin,  till  the  fire  of  June  1850  drove  them  to  the  Siinsonie-st  comer.  Ou 
the  other  side,  above  Leidesdorff  st,  rose  the  three-story  wooden  building  of 
J.  L.  Riddle  &  Co.,  auctioneers,  wherein  acqiiaintances  could  always  receive 
shelter.  Near  them  were  Lovering  &  Gay,  S.  F.  Wisner,  Boardman,  Baeoii, 
&  Co.,  Butler  &  Bartlett,  Hawlcy  (F.  P.  &  D.  N.),  Sterling  &  Co.  (G.  W. 
Wheeler),  com.  mers;  Totten  &  Eddy,  gen.  jobbers;  R.  F.  Perkins,  nier. ; 
R.  D.  Hart  &  Co.,  dry  goods;  Tower,  Woo<l,  &Co.,  gen.  store;  D.  C.  Mc- 
Glynn,  paints;  Kennebec  house,  kept  by  T.  M.  Rollins.  Along  the  wharf 
itself  were  Locke  &  Morrison,  com.  mers,  and  Beck  &  Palmer,  ship  and  com. 
mers,  at  the  liead;  followed  by  Robinson,  Bissell,  &  Co.  (M.  Gilmore),  Blux- 
ome  &  Co.  (J  1).  C,  Isaiic,  jr,  and  Joseph,  Isaac  being  the  famous  vigilance 
secretary  in  1851  and  185G),  Caughey  &  Brondey,  Everett  &  Co.  (Theo.  Shil- 
laber),  (iardner  Fumiss,  Jas  C.  Hasson,  Hunter  &  Bro.,  Dimgan,  Moore,  & 
Prenilergast,  Orrego  Bros,  Rob.  Wells  &  Co.,  Hussey,  Bond,  &  Hale,  cein. 
mers;  Jo.s  S.  Spinney,  shipping;  Plummer  &  Brewster,  wholesale  mers;  B. 
Triest,  store;  W.  C.  Hoff,  grocer,  at  end  of  pier.  On  Battery  stwere  CoUiiis 
(D),  Cushman,  &  Co.,  mers. 

The  section  of  Montgomery  st  between  Sacramento  and  California  ha<l,  in 
1849,  been  transformed  from  an  outskirt  to  a  thickly  settled  business  quarter. 


CALIFORNIA  STREET. 


179 


floated  freely  upon  the  infected  atmosphere.  It  was 
in  tact  the  headquarters  of  the  British  convict  class, 

and  its  prospects  were  aignifiCcantly  foreshadowed  in  the  location  of  the  cus- 
tom-house in  the  four-story  Lrick  building  erected  in  1849  by  W.  H.  Davis, 
at  the  N.  w,  corner  of  California  st.  Access  was  by  outside  double  stairways, 
leading  from  balcony  to  balcony  on  the  front  side.  It  appears  to  have  been 
occupied  by  Collector  Jas  Collier  in  June  1850.  In  May  1851  it  was  burned. 
View  in  S.  F.  Annals,  282.  At  the  California-st  comer  were  also  A.  Swain, 
com.  mer.,  and  Runkcl,  Kaufman,  &  Co.,  dry  goods.  Northward  in  the  sec- 
tion were  situated  tiie  offices  of  J.  B.  Cannon  &  Co.  (S.  J.  Gowan),  W.  H. 
Kcttelle,  aucs  and  com.  mers;  Hinrickson,  Reinecke,  &  Co.  (C.  F.  Cipnani, 
S.  V.  Meyers),  Edwin  Herrick,  S.  Moss,  jr,  Hy.  Reed  &  Co.,  Winston  &  Sim- 
mons (S.  C),  S.  A.  &  J.  (i.  Thayer,  Wm  H.  Davis,  com.  mers,  the  last  long 
established;  M.  L.  Cavert,  J.  A.  Clark,  P.  F.  Hazard,  John  H.  Titcomb,  Titts 
&  Tildcn,  P.  D.  Woodruff,  mers;  S.  Brannan,  real  estate  broker;  Jolin  S. 
Eagan,  paints,  twotloors  above  the  custom-house;  S.  Neagebauer,  stationei-y; 
Jolm  Curry,  counsellor  (later  cliief  justice).  A  notable  feature  of  the  section 
was  the  presence  of  several  express  agents,  Adams  &  Co.,  soon  to  become  a 
banknig-house,  Haven  (J.  P.)  &  Co.,  Hawley  &  Co.,  Todd  &  Co.  Here  was 
al.io  the  office  of  the  C'<il.  Courivr,  and  Rowo's  Olympic  Circus  formed  a  utrimg 
attraction  to  this  quarter.  It  had  been  opened  Oct.  29,  1849,  with  Ethiopian 
.si'i-enadcrs,  as  the  first  public  dramatic  spectacle  of  the  city. 

Between  California  and  Clay  sts  I  find  a  immber  of  tirms,  whose  offices 
are  numbered  from  243 to  209,  as  Aspinwall  (J.  &  Ph.)  &Bro.,  A.  B.  Cheshire, 
Jas  Chirk,  Van  Drumme  &  Clement,  Mace&  Cole,  B.  H.  Howell,  J.  S.  Mason, 
E.  K.  Myers,  TumbuU  &  Walton,  Cook,  Wilmerding,  &  Tracy,  Winter  «lfc 
I^itimer,  com.  mers;  Wm  Meyer  &  Co.  (Kunhardt,  H.  R.,),  injporters,  Capt. 
Tims  Smith,  Fred.  Thibault,  F.  C.  Benniitt,  <!us.  Bjck,  O.  P.  Sutton,  mers; 
John  Aldersley  &  Co.,  ship  brokers;  Hedlcy  &  Cozzens,  wholesale  grocers; 
Middluton  (S  P.)  &  Hood  (J.  M.),  Payne  (T.)  &  Sherwood  (W.  J.),  aucs;  Hy. 
Meigys,  of  North  Beach  and  Peruvian  fame,  lumber  dealer;  Austin  (H.)  & 
Prag,  tinware;  F  D.  Blythe,  hardware. 

California  st  was  in  1850  acquiring  recognition  as  of  business  importance, 
and  Starkey,  Janion,  &  Co.,  who  had  \)ng  been  established  near  the  s.  w. 
corner  of  Sansome,  in  an  enclosed  two-story  house,  gave  strength  to  it  by 
tlica  erecting  a  fine  brick  warehouse.  So  did  Cooke  (J.  J.  &  (i.  L.),  Baker 
(R.  S.),  &  Co.,  and  others  speedily  followed  the  example,  assisting,  moreover, 
to  advance  the  water  frontage,  which  by  Oct.  1850  extended  400  ft  into  the 
cove,  with  a  breadtli  of  32  ft.  There  was  a  sirall  laniling-pier  at  Leidesdorff's 
warehouse,  at  the  Leidesdorfi'-st  comer.  Here  was  tlie  store  of  S.  H.  Wil- 
liams &  Co.  (Wm  Baker,  jr,  and  J.  B.  Post)  in  a  one-story  frame  house,  l)or- 
(leriiig  on  the  later  Bank  of  California  site.  On  the  opposite  south  side,  Dr 
Jdliu  Townsend,  the  large  lot-owner  and  former  alcalde,  had  his  oHiee  and 
resjileiicu  West  of  him  were  the  stores  of  (ilen  &  Co.  (T.  Glen,  Ed.  Stetson), 
Do  Boom,  Vigneaux,  &  Griser,  Backus  &  Harrison,  com.  mers,  and  fartlier  along 
in  tlie  section,  Jas  Ball,  Mack  &  Co.,  A.  McQuadale,  Probst  (F.),  Smith  (St. 
A.),  i&  Co  ,  J.  B.  Wynn,  Zehricke  &  Co.,  Alsop  &  Co.,  Helmann  Bros  &  Co., 
Ha.stler,  Bailie,  &  Co.,  also  com.  mers;  T.  W.  ]>iifau,  importer;  Gladwin  (W. 
H.)  &  Wliitniore  (H  M.,  a  large  lot-f)Wuer  in  S.  F.),  jobl)ing.  At  the  corner 
of  iSaiisomo  st  were  Ebbets  &  Co.  (D.W.  C.  Brown),  Mumford,  Mason  (B.  A.), 
&  Co  ,  Wm  J.  Whitney,  com.  mers;  and  on  the  site  of  the  present  Merehanta' 
Excliauge  stood  Mrs  Petit's  boarding-house  (subsequently  on  California  st, 
N  side,  below  Stockton).  An  agency  for  outer  bar  pilots  was  at  Burnside  & 
Nel.son's. 

At  the  s  w,  corner  of  California  and  Montgomery  sts  stood  Leiilesdorff's 
cottage,  occupicfl  by  W.M  D.  Howanl,  and  also  at  the  corner  were  tlie  nffiees 
of  .[as  Anderson  &  Co  ,  brokers,  J.  H.  Eccleston,  mer.;  V.  Simons,  cloth'Ug; 
and  T.  J.  Paulterer,  auc.     At  the  Pinc-st  corner  Lazard  Frerea  had  a  liry- 


■n 


180 


SAN   FRANCISCO. 


whose  settlement,  known  as  Sydney  Town,  extended 
lience  north-eastward  round  the  hill.     It  was  the  ral- 


iP    ■!■ 


V :-     ' 


goods  Btorc,  and  intermediate  on  Montgomery  at  wore  Crocker,  Baker,  k  Co., 
wiiter-works;  Fry  (C.)  &  Cessiit  (F. ),  Evans  &  Robinson,  Kuhtinann  &  Co., 
com.  iiiei't).  Tlio  first  house  on  Summer  st  was  a  l.^-story  cottJigu,  20  1>y  40 
ft,  erected  by  Williams  for  Edm.  Scott.  Near  by  were  tlie  coal-yard  of  A  T. 
Lailil,  and  two  hotels,  the  Montgomery  and  Cape  Co<l  liouses,  the  lutttT 
iinilur  the  management  of  Cro<!ker,  Evans,  &  Taylor. 

lu  the  next  section  of  Montgomery  st,  between  Fine  and  Bush  sts,  stooil 
Liitgen's  hotel,  facing  the  later  Russ  House.  A  strong  two-story  fraiiic 
liuilding  witli  peaked  roof  and  projecting  second  story,  it  presented  a  quaint 
old-fasliioneil  landmark  for  about  a  (piarter  of  a  century,  and  formed  one  of 
the  best-known  (Jerman  resorts.  On  the  h.  f.  corner  of  Pine  st  figured  a 
corrugated  iron  house  imjiorted  by  Berenhart,  Jacoby,  &  Co.,  and  on  tlie 
8.  ff.  corner  a  one-and-a-iialf-story  cottage,  occupied  by  tlie  (Jerman  grocery  of 
(teo.  iSoho.  Adjoining  it  rose  a  three-story  pitehed-roof  wooden  hotel,  tin' 
American,  kept  by  a  ( rerman,  and  opposite,  on  the  site  of  the  later  Piatt  .s 
hall,  I)r  Euscoe  had  a  wooden  house.  At  tlie  N.  w.  comer  of  Bush  st  O. 
Kloppenburg  (later  city  treasurer),  kept  a  grocery.  This  west  side  of  the 
bloclc  wiis  owned  by  J.  C.  C.  &  A.  (i.  Russ,  t'.;e  jewellers,  who  had  a  house 
on  Bush  st,  and  who  later  erecteil  tlie  well-known  Russ  liouse.  The  clotli- 
ing-store  of  Peyser  Bros  was  here,  also  the  syrup  factory  of  Beaudry  &  Co. . 
and  the  confectionery  store  of  H.  W.  Lovegrove.  At  the  Bush-st  corner  wa.s 
the  olHce  of  Haas  &  Struver,  com.  mers,  and  beyond,  toward  Sutter  st,  tliat 
of  Pierre  Felt,  wine  mer.  This  region  was  as  yet  an  outskirt;  sidewalks  ex- 
tended but  slowly  I)eyond  California  st  after  the  summer  of  1850,  and  the 
pedestrian  found  it  hard  work  to  go  through  the  sand  drifts  to  the  many 
tents  scattered  e  round. 

Sansome  st,  as  bordering  the  bay,  had  rather  the  advantage  of  Montgom- 
ery st,  for  here  business  houses  stretchetl  along  in  considerable  numl)ers  from 
California  to  Bush  st.  Neighbors  of  Starkey,  Jauion,  &  Co.,  on  the  Calit'orni<i 
corner,  were  Wilson  (J.  D.)  &  Jarvis,  wholesale  grocers;  and  at  the  junction 
of  Pine  st  were  the  offices  of  Macondray  (F.  W.)  &  Co.  (R.  S.  Watson),  in  a 
two-story  house;  M.  Rudsdale,  E.  S.  Stone  &  Co.  (F.  T.  Durand),  com.  mcr.s. 
One  of  the  corners  was  held  by  the  Merrimac  house  of  Williams  &  John.scm, 
northward  rose  the  New  England  house  of  W.  B.  Wilton,  and  toward  Bush  tlu' 
New  Bedford  house  of  John  Britnoll.  Near  it  was  the  office  of  'I'own  &  \';iu 
Winkle,  and  the  lemonade  factory  of  Al.  Wilkie.  On  the  east  side,  between 
California  and  Pine  sts,  the  India  stores  of  Gillespie  {C.  V.)  &  Co.  extended 
t)ver  the  cove.  In  the  same  section,  mostly  on  the  west  side,  were  located 
Dewey  (S.  S.)  &  Heiser,  C.  M.  Seaver,  E.  Woodruff  &  Co.,  mers;  G.  A\'. 
Biirnham,  lumber  dealer;  Davis  (W.  H.)  &,  Caldwell's  (J.,  jr)  lemonade 
factory;  E.  S.  Holden  &  Co.  (J.  H.  Redington).  druggists;  S.  W.  J^mes  & 
Co. ,  coal  and  wood  yard. 

On  Pine  st  were  several  offices,  of  T.  F.  Gould,  Chas  Warner,  mers,  above 
Sansome;  Schule,  Christiansen,  &  Hellon,  importers;  W.  H.  Culver,  ship 
mer. ;  Robinson,  Ai'nold,  &,  Sewall,  J.  C.  Wootls  &  Co.,  com.  mers.  This  strert 
adjoined  the  wharf  begun  by  the  city  corporation  at  the  end  of  Market  st,  in 
the  autumn  of  1850,  and  limited  for  the  time  to  600  ft.  This  opened  anotlier 
prospect  for  development  in  this  quarter. 

Beyond  Pine  st  huge  sand  ridges  formed  so  far  a  barrier  to  traffic;  yet  in 
between  them,  and  upon  the  slopes,  were  sprinkled  cottages,  shanties,  an<l 
tents,  with  occasionally  a  deck  house  or  galley  taken  from  some  vessel,  occu- 
pied by  a  motley  class.  A  path  skirted  the  ridge  along  the  cove,  at  the 
junction  of  Bush  and  Battery  sts,  and  entered  by  First  st  into  Happy  Valley. 
which  centred  between  First  and  Second,  Mission  and  Natoma  sts,  and  inti> 
Pleasant  Valley,  which  occupied  the  Howard-st  end.  Tliis  region,  slielterM-d 
by  the  ridges  to  the  rear,  which,  on  the  site  of  the  present  Palace  hotel,  nwe 


WEST  AND  80UTII  SIDES. 


ISI 


lyinEf-point  for  pillaging  raids,  and  to  it  was  lured 
many  an  unwary  stranger,  to  be  dazed  with  a  sand-bag 

nearly  three  score  feet  iii  height,  had  attraot«(l  a  large  number  of  iiihabitaiita, 
esiiecially  dwellers  in  frail  tents,  but  with  a  fair  proportion  of  neat  cottages, 
aM  well  iid  sIio[is  and  lotlging-liousea,  anioiig  these  the  Isthmus.  Tl>e  ailvau- 
t.igcs  of  this  quarter  for  factories  were  growing  in  appreciation,  eH|u:cially 
for  enterjjrises  connected  with  the  reitair  of  vessels,  and  80<m  J.  &  1'.  Douo- 
liue  were  to  found  here  their  iron-works.  On  Fremont  at,  between  Howard 
and  Folsoni  sts,  was  the  oiHce  of  H.  Taylor  &  Co.,  com.  and  storage;  and  on 
the  Ciirner  of  Mission  and  First  sts,  that  of  Phil.  Mcflovern.  On  Second, 
luar  Mission  st,  rose  the  Empire  brewery  of  W  Ball,  the  first  of  its  kind. 
Tliu  richer  residents  of  this  region  had  withdrawn  just  beyond  this  line,  and 
OH  .Mission,  between  Secontl  and  Third  sts,  dwelUnga  had  been  erected  by 
Howard,  Melius  (whose  name  wivs  first  applied  to  Natoma  st),  and  lirannan, 
whoso  names  were  preserved  in  adjoining  streets.  These,  as  well  as  a  few 
more  near  by,  owned  by  Folsom,  were  cottages  imported  by  the  Onunrtt. 
Among  the  occupants  were  the  wives  of  Van  Winkle,  Cary,  and  Wakunian, 
attiu:hed  to  the  otRce  of  C'apt.  Folsom,  the  quartermaster.  On  Market  st 
Fattier  Maginnis'  cliurch  was  soon  to  mark  an  epoch,  and  south-eastward  an 
attenuated  string  of  habitations  reached  as  far  as  Rincon  Point,  where  1)r 
J.  II.  (iilion  had,  in  Nov  1849,  erected  a  rubber  tent,  on  the  later  U.  S. 
marine  hospital  site. 

Tlius  far  I  have  enumerated  the  notable  occupants  of  the  heavy  business 
section  along  .Montgomery  st  and  water-front  east  of  it,  and  will  now  follow 
the  parallel  streets  nmning  north  to  south,  Kearny,  Dupont,  Stockton,  and 
I'liwoU,  after  which  come  the  latitudinal  cross-streets  Irom  the  Presidio  and 
Nortit  Beach  region  toward  the  Mission. 

At  the  foot  of  Telegraph  hill  on  Kearny  st,  from  Broadway  to  Jackson 
st,  lie>;iui  tiie  west  and  northward  spreiuling  Mexican  quarter,  and  the  only 
building  here  of  general  interest  was  the  Adams  house,  kept  by  John  Adams. 
At  the  .s.E.  Pacihc-st  corner  stood  the  four-story  balcony  buililing  lately  pur- 
tliasi'd  for  a  city  hall,  with  jail,  court-rooms,  etc.  In  one  of  the  latter  Rev. 
A.  Williams  held  services  for  the  First  Presbyterian  church.  On  the  opposite 
coriKT  were  the  Tattersall  livery-stjible,  and  the  firms  of  Climax,  Roy,  A; 
ISrenncn,  and  Dunne,  McDonald,  &  Co.,  com.  niers  and  real  estate.  Along 
toward  Jackson  st  were  the  otHces  of  Markwald,  Caspary,  &  Co.,  mers;  of 
l)rtw(.r.  (J.)  &  Co.  (J.  O.  Eldridge),  auc.  and  com.  mers;  S  McD  Tliompson, 
gi'U.  store;  Mebius,  Duisenberry,  &  Co.,  fancy  goods;  the  Piicific  News  daily 
was  issueil  here  by  Winchester  &  Allen.  Mrs  E.  (iordon  kept  the  Mansion 
Louse.  In  the  section  between  Jackson  and  Washington  sts  business  ap- 
proached nu)re  and  more  the  retail  element  for  which  Kearny  has  ever  been 
noted.  At  the  Jackson-st  corners  two  druggists  faced  each  other,  S.  Adams 
and  E.  P.  Sanford;  Reynobls  &  Co.  were  grocers,  and  O.  &  W.  Snook,  tin 
ami  stove  dealers.  There  were,  however,  a  jobbing-lumse.  Cooper  &  Co  ,  and 
tliroe  auctioneers,  Shankland  &  (Jibson,  Allen  Pearce,  and  Sampson  &  Co 
11.  II.  Haight,  counsellor  and  later  governor,  had  his  otfice  at  the  Jackson-st 
corner;  the  Mariposa  house  was  kept  by  B.  Vallefon;  and  the  well-known 
English  ale-house,  the  Boomerang,  by  Langley  &  Griffiths,  was  widely  pat- 
roni/.c'd  by  literary  men  and  actors. 

Tiu.'se  last  two  features  formed  the  main  element  of  the  next  section,  the 
pliua,  of  Portsmouth  square,  strongly  reenforced  l)y  gambling-halls.  The  most 
noUtd  of  these  estiiblishments,  the  El  Dorado,  controlled  in  1850  by  Cham- 
l>iTs  k  t'o.,  stood  at  the  .s.  E.  corner  of  Wasliingtcm  st  Successive  tires 
cliaugud  it  from  a  canvas  structure  to  a  frame  buibliug,  and  finally  P.  Sherre- 
licck,  who  owned  the  hit,  erected  upon  it  the  Our  House  refectory.  Adjoin- 
ing it  on  the  south  was  the  famous  Parker  house,  hostelry  and  gambling-ploce, 
managed  in  1850  by  Thos  Maguire  &  Co.,  who  hero  soon  promoted  the  erec- 
tion of  the  Jenny  Lind  theatre  upon  the  site,  which  again  yielded  to  the  city 


1«2 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


):.l;  ! 


1>1()W,  ami  robbed,  j)erliaps  to  be  hurled  from  soino 
Tarpeian  projection  into  the  bay.     West  of  this  quur 

hall,  as  (leacribed  elsewhere.  Its  former  ncighlmr,  Penignn's  Exchancc,  fdr 
liquors  and  cards,  had  been  absorbed  by  other  (suterprisos,  and  BonthM-iinl 
itlong  tlic  row  in  18i30  ii^ured  tlie  Empire  houHc  of  Dodge  &  liuoklin,  and  tliu 
Crescent  City  house  of  Winley  &  Lear,  the  tinn  of  Thurston  &  Herd,  and  thu 
dry-gooda  establishment  of  B.  F.  Pavega  &  Co.  Opposite,  on  the  s.  \v.  cor- 
ner of  Clav,  stood  that  Yerba  Bucna  landmark,  the  story -and-a-half  tiled  ailolie 
City  hotuf,  devoted,  with  out-buihlinug,  to  travellers,  ganddurs,  andotlices,  tli'j 
latter  including  for  a  time  those  of  the  alcaldes.  Higher  on  Clay  st  rose  the 
well-known  Ward  or  Bryant  house,  and  intermediate  the  offices  of  F.  Argent i 
&  Co.  (T.  Allen),  bankers;  Peter  Dean,  Berford  &  Co.'s  express,  and  Baldwin  &, 
Co.,  jewellers.    Anotlier  jewelry  firm,  Loring  &  Ho^g,  occupietl  Ward's  court. 

Along  the  west  side  of  the  plaza  stood  the  public  school-house,  which  had 
been  converted  into  concert  hall  and  police-station,  and  tliu  adobe  custom- 
house bordering  on  Washington  st,  which  had  been  useil  for  mniiicipal  ofKces 
for  a  time.  Down  along  W'ashington  st  the  .^/<a  Cnl^/aniiii  publishing  office  of 
£.  (filbert  &  Co.  faced  the  plaza,  and  eastward  to  the  corner  were  the  bank- 
ing-house of  Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co.  and  the  offices  of  Glaysen  &  Co.  (W.  Tinte- 
man),  an<l  Stevenson  (J.  D.)  &  Parker  (W.  C),  land  agents.  Tiieirs  was  an 
adobe  building  in  1850,  replacing  the  Colonnade  hotel  of  1848,  and  soon  to 
yield  to  other  occupants,  notably  the  Bella  Union.  Wright  &  Co.'s  Miners' 
liank,  which  stootl  at  this  corner  a  while,  may  be  said  to  have  revived  in  the 
Veranda  on  the  N.  E.  corner.  On  the  plaza  was  also  Laffan's  building,  chiefly 
with  lawyers'  offices,  as  Wilson,  Beuhain,  &  Rice,  Nath.  HoUancl,  Ogdcii 
Hoffman,  jr,  Norton,  Satterlee,  &  Norton.  Along  Kearny  st,  toward  Sac- 
ramento st,  were  the  offices  of  Thurston  &  Heed,  P.  D.  Van  Blarcom,  com. 
mers;  Ansalin,  Merandol,  &  Co.,  importers,  on  the  Sacramento  corner;  ('. 
Lu.\,  stock  dealer;  Newfield,  Walter,  &  Co.,  Treatlwell  &  Co.,  S.  Howard, 
clothing,  etc. ;  the  Commercial-st  corners  were  occupied  by  Van  Houten  & 
Co.'s  meat  market;  here  the  Tammany  Hall  of  the  Hounds,  and  Rowe's  cir- 
cus had  stood  a  while,  facing  the  adobe  dwelling  of  Vioget,  the  surveyor,  in 
which,  or  adjoining.  Madam  Rosalie  kept  a  restaurant.  Opposite  were  the 
noted  New  York  bakery  of  Swan  &  Thompson,  and  San  Joae  hotel  of  T.  N. 
Starr  \or  J.  G.  Shepard  &  Co.). 

In  the  next  section  toward  California  at  were  established  Adelsdorfcr  & 
Schwarz,  McDonald  (W.  F.  &  S.  G.)  &  Co.  (J.  K.  Bailey,  A.  T.  Cool,  J.  .M. 
Teller),  Kroning,  Plump,  &  Runge,  com.  mors,  the  latter  at  the  California 
corner;  A.  H.  Sibley  &  Co. ;  at  the  Sacramento  corner  were  also  B.  Courtois' 
dry-goods  store;  Mrs  C.  Bouch,  crockery;  Merchants'  hotel.  Between  Cali- 
fornia and  Pine  sta  appears  to  have  been  another  New  York  bakery,  by  R. 
W.  Acker,  and  near  the  present  California  market  was  the  Keamy-st  market 
by  Blattner  &  Smith.  Here  were  also  three  groceries  of  Atter  &  Carter,  Lain- 
mer  &  W^atermau,  and  Potter  and  Lawton;  Geo.  A.  Worn,  Ed.  Porter,  Eiig. 
Bottcher,  and  C.  F.  Dunoker  are  marked  as  com.  mers,  the  latter  two  at 
the  California  comer,  and  Porter  south  of  Pine  at.  Beyond  Pine  were  Chip- 
man,  Brown,  &  Co.,  grocers,  Hy.  Rapp,  storage,  Brown's  (Phil. )  hotel,  and  the 
Masonic  hall,  followed  by  scattered  dwellings  along  the  new  plank  road  ti) 
the  mission.  Dupont  at  partook  of  the  Kearny-st  elements  of  business, 
though  little  contaminateil  by  gambling.  The  northern  part  was  assigned  to 
residences,  among  them  the  dwellings  of  W.  S.  Clark,  tlie  broker,  and  Rev. 
A.  Williams,  between  Vallejo  and  Pacific  sts.  At  the  latter  comer  Morgan 
&  Batters  kept  a  grocery,  and  beyond  rose  the  Globe  hotel  of  Mrs  B.  V. 
Koch,  the  dry -goods  shop  of  Cohen,  Kaufmann,  &  Co.,  and  the  office  of  C. 
Koch,  mer.  At  the  Jackson-st  corners  of  Dupont  st  stood  the  Albion  house 
of  B.  Keesing,  and  Harm's  (H.)  hotel;  and  here,  at  the  N.  E.  corner,  a  three- 
story  building  was  contracted  for  in  Sept.  1849  by  the  California  guard,  the 
first  military  company  of  the  city,  for  ^1,000.     At  the  Washington-st  cor- 


TOW  All!)  THK  PRESIDIO. 


183 


tor,  up  Vallojo  and  Broadway  streets,  with  the  Catho- 
lic church  and  bull-ring,  and  northward  along  the  hill, 

iicr  was  another  hotel,  the  Exct^lleut  house  of  Jag  Dyson,  also  the  dry-gnnils 
slini)  of  Hess  &  Bros,  the  ollU'u  of  Mauine  &  Dee,  an<l  tlie  residunue  of 
<;.  lieck.  Intermediate  were  Mich.  C'asaforth,  iner.,  and  Johnson  &  Co., 
(lrui,'t,'ists. 

in  the  section  south  of  Wasliington  st  stood  on  the  east  side  the  houses  of 
(iillespie  and  Noo;  at  the  north-west  corner  of  Clay  the  uasa  grando  of 
Kichar<lson,  on  the  site  of  his  teut,  the  first  habitation  in  Yerha  Buena,  and 
wliich  stood  till  1852.  On  the  opposite  west  corner,  tiie  site  of  tlie  first  house 
in  Ycrlia  Buena,  Leeso's,  rose  the  St  Francis  hotel,  a  three-story  I'llilico  formed 
of  seVLTiil  superimposed  imported  cottages  managed  by  W,  H.  Parker. 

On  tlic  opposite  corner  Moffat  &.  Co.,  assayers  and  l>anki!rs,  and  Sill  ft 
ConiK'r's  stationery  and  hook  shoj),  the  first  regular  stationery  store  in  thn 
city,  it  is  claimed.  Northward,  Mullot  &  Co.,  com.  mers.  and  Jos.  Smitli's 
jiiovision  shop. 

On  the  Saeramento-st  corner  Nath.  Gray  had  an  undertakers  shop; 
anil  at  the  California  end  Jas  I)oW8,  of  vigilance  fame,  had  a  liquor  store. 
B  'youd  him  C.  L.  Taylor  exhil>ited  the  sign  of  a  lumber  and  com.  mer. 
Sidckton  st  was  essentially  for  residences,  with  many  neat  houses  from 
(  lay  st  northward.  At  ttreen  st  stoml  a  two-story  dwelling  from  Boston, 
occupied  by  F.  Ward,  and  removed  only  in  18G5;  opposite  was  the  lumber- 
y;inl  of  A.  W.  Renshaw,  and  a  little  .lorthward  Hy.  Pierce's  Eiigle  bakery; 
at  the  Vallejo  corner  P.  F.  Sanderwasser  kei)t  a  grocery;  soutliward  rose  the 
American  hotel,  whicli  w;ia  for  a  time  the  city  hall,  the  residences  of  (iilder- 
incister  and  De  Freinery,  and  south  of  Broadwtiy,  Merrill's  house.  At  the 
N.  K.  Pacitic  corner  was  the  Shades  tavern  of  1S48,  and  southward  the  gro- 
cery of  Kddy  (J.  C.)  &  Co.  At  tlie  Washiiigton-st  comers  were  tlie  houses  of 
W.  I).  M.  Howartl,  and  Palmer,  of  Beck  &  Palmer;  and  at  the  Sacramento 
end,  those  of  Jiis  Bowles,  Jonat  Cade,  and  Crumme,  mers.  Powell  st,  of  the 
s.uiie  stamp  as  the  preceding,  was  graced  by  the  presence  of  three  churches: 
Tiinity,  liev.  F.  S.  Mines;  Methodist  Episcopal,  Rev.  W.  Taylor;  and  Oract 
<  liapel,  Kev.  S.  L.  Ver  Mehr.  The  latter  two  resided  on  Jackson  st  near 
I'liwell.  Rev.  O.  C.  Wheeler  lived  at  the  corner  of  Union.  Three  other 
ti'iiiplci  existed  on  adjoining  cross-streets.  At  the  N.  w.  Washmgton  corner 
a  two-story  brick  building  was  about  to  be  erected,  which  with  subsequent 
cliaiiges  in  grad(!3  received  two  additional  stories.  At  the  N.  E.  corner  of 
Broa.lway  O.  Mowry  had  an  adobe  cottage;  at  the  corners  of  (ireen  at  lived 
C.  lloback  and  Chas  Joseph. 

At  the  corner  of  Filbert  st  was  the  adobe  dwelling  of  Ira  Briones,  by  which 
V.\o  inaiii  path  to  the  presidio  turned  westward  to  cross  the  Russian  hill, 
jKust  market  gardens  and  dairies,  with  scattered  cottages,  sheds,  and  butch- 
ers' shambles.  On  the  ridge  stood  the  house  of  L.  Haskell,  overlooking  the 
hollow  intervening  toward  Black  Point,  Imyoad  vhich  lay  Washerwoman's 
lagoon,  a  name  confirmed  to  it  by  the  laundry  here  established  by  A.  T. 
Easton,  patronized  by  the  Pacific  mail  line.  The  presidio  was  then  not  the 
trim  expanse  of  buildings  now  to  be  seen,  but  stood  represented  by  some 
dingy-looking  ulobes,  supplemented  by  barn-like  barracks,  and  a  few  neater 
cottages  for  the  officers,  while  beyon<l,  at  the  present  Fort  I'oint,  crumbling 
walls  fronted  the  scanty  earth-works  with  their  rusty,  blustering  guns. 

North  Be-ich  was  becoming  known  as  a  lumber  depository,  (leo.  H. 
I'jisign  figured  as  dealer  in  this  commodity,  and  near  him,  on  Miison  by 
Francisco  st,  Harry  Meiggs,  of  dawning  aldermanic  fame,  had  availed  him- 
.scll'  of  the  brook  fed  by  two  springs  to  erect  a  saw-mill.  Close  by  stood 
Caiit.  Welsh's  hide-house,  by  the  road  leading  to  the  incipient  wharf  wliich 
foreshailowed  a  speedy  and  more  imposing  structure. 

On  Union  st,  near  Mason,  Wm  Sharrou,  broker  and  commission  merchant, 
IkuI  his  residence.     Ou  Green  st  the  number  of  resident  business  men  in- 


IM 


SAN   FHANClSCa 


the  Hispano- Americans  were  jjrouping  round  what  vviis 
then  termed  Little  Cliile;  while  less  concoiitrutcd,  the 


if     : ; 


creaaed.  A.  Hiignea  an<l  Rol>.  McClenacliaii  lived  near  Stockton  ami  Tay- 
lor, resiic'ctively,  and  I>cvi  Stowcll,  of  Williams  &  Co.,  iiuar  tlio  former. 
Between  Stoekton  and  Powell  Cai)t.  Til>1>ey,  tm  he  declureii  in  liis  Slat.,  MS  , 
19,  ha<l  eroetetl  a  section-mudu  house  from  Hawaii  for  liis  wife.  A  nimiliir 
house  from  Boston,  near  Stockton  Ht,  wan  in  1850  occupied  by  F.  Ward.  It 
■toed  till  ISd").  On  Vallejo  were  to  Imj  found  (1.  Hilton,  Koli.  Oraliam,  Kdm, 
Ho<Uon,  and  Tlioit  Smith,  uierchantH,  between  Stockton  and  I'owell.  In  the 
block  below  rose  the  Roman  Catholic  church,  and  by  its  side  extentlcd  tiie 
bull-tighting  arena,  so  dear  to  the  Mexicans  as  a  compensatory  aftermath  to 
the  solemn  restraint  of  the  worship.  All  around  and  along  tiie  slopes  of  Telo- 
■raph  hill  extended  the  dwelliugs  of  this  nationality,  an<l  among  them,  on 
Broadway  Initween  Stockton  and  Dupont,  the  more  imposing  quarter  of  Jos. 
8anchez,  broker.  The  block  Itclow,  between  Dupont  and  ^lontgomery,  lias 
been  alluded  to  as  containing  an  undesirable  collection  of  low  drinking-dens, 
fringed  by  the  abodes  of  Sydney  convicts  and  other  scum. 

On  Pacitic  st  1>cgan  the  business  district  projter  once  more,  sprinkled  witli 
several  inns,  such  as  Crescent  house  of  S.  Harding,  Mclntire  house,  lUanter's 
hotel  of  J.  Stijjall,  and  Waverly  house  of  B.  F.  Biicknell,  the  latter  a  four- 
story  frame  budding,  on  the  less  reputiible  north  side,  charging  §5  a  day.  In 
this  block,  between  Montgomery  and  Kearny,  were  the  olKces  of  Boschultz 
ft  Miller,  and  Brown  ft  Phillips,  nicrciiants;  Salmon  ft  Ellis,  .ship  and  com. 
mer. ;  Wilson  &  Co.,  grocers,  Jackson  &  Shirley,  crockery  and  grocery. 
Above,  between  Kearny  and  Dupont,  resided  J.  B.  Weller,  subsequently  gov- 
ernor, of  the  firm  of  Weller,  J(m(!S,  ft  Kinder;  near  by  W.  H.  West  kept  a 
grocery,  and  A.  A.  Austin  a  bak(!ry.  Higher  up  toward  Stockton  were  Fox, 
O'Connor,  and  Cummiug,  and  F.  Kauflfnian  &  Co.,  dry-goods  dealers.  Ail- 
joining  stood  a  groggery  which  had  since  184()  dispensed  refreshments  to  way- 
farers to  the  presidio.  Above,  between  Mason  and  Powell,  rose  Bunker  Hill 
house,  graceif  for  a  time  by  t!'.e  later  bankers  Flood  and  O'Brien.  On  Jac!;- 
8on  st,  between  Mason  and  Powell,  were  several  prominent  residents,  includ- 
ing C.  H.  Cook,  com.  mer.,  amj  at  the  Stockton  corner  lived  W.  H.  Davi.i. 
At  the  corner  of  Virgiiua  st,  a  lano  stretching  below  Powell  st,  between  Broail- 
way  and  Washington,  stootl  the  First  Congregational  church,  llev.  T.  D.  Hunt. 
Here  was  also  the  office  of  Blauchanl  &  Carpenter.  Below  Stockton  were  Mayer, 
Bro.,  &  Co.,  grocers;  C.  Predict  ft  Co.,  druggists;  H.  M.  Snyder,  stoves.  Below 
Dupont,  Capt.  W.  Chanl,  Carter,  Fuller,  &  Co.,  Hy.  Mackie,  Ben.  lieynold.s, 
.Jas  Stevenson,  com.  mers;  Chas  Durliee,  mer.;  Jolinson  &  Caulield,  elothinj.'; 
J.  Leclere,  gen.  store;  J.  Benelon,  French  store.  The  Ohio  house  is  placed  licre, 
and  the  Philadelphia  Iiouse  where  began  the  lire  of  Sej  1 850,  and  below  Keaniy 
tlio  California  house  of  J.  Cotter  &  Co.  Here  Hourii,  ed  the  Evenimj  I'ion/iinc, 
(iihonft  Co.,  and  two  French  establishments,  Dupastiuier  &  Co.,  andF.  Scliultz' 
French-goods  shop;  S.  Martin,  importer;  W.  &  C.  Pickett,  Schesser  &  Vaii- 
bergen,  mers;  J.  &  M.  Phelan,  wholesale  licpior  dealers;  .loel  Noah,  clothing. 

On  Washington  st,  at  the  corner  of  Mason,  stood  H.  Husband's  batli- 
housc;  below  was  the  grocery  of  W.  E.  Rowland;  and  between  Stockton  and 
Dupont  sts  C.  S.  Bates  kept  a  druggist  shop.  Above  this,  the  First  liapti.st 
church.  Rev.  O.  C.  Wheeler.  At  the  corner  of  Washington  lane,  which  lau 
below  Dupont  to  Jackson  st,  Bauer's  drug-store  was  first  opened.  Below 
Kearny  st  ran  another  cross-lane  to  Jackson,  Maiden  lane,  on  which  C.  Nut- 
ting had  established  a  smithy  and  iron-works,  while  adjoining  him,  on  the 
corner,  were  the  Washington  baths  of  Mygatt  &  Bryant.  Opposite  this  lane, 
to  Merchant  st,  ran  Dunbar  alley,  so  named  after  Dunbar's  California  bank, 
at  its  mouth.  At  the  parallel  passage,  De  Boom  avenue,  A.  Midler  iiiid 
opened  a  hotel,  and  near  by  a  brick  building  was  going  up  for  theatrical  pur- 
poses. On  the  north  side  C.  L.  Ross  had  in  1848-9  kept  his  New  York  stoi-t:. 
In  the  same  section,  between  Kearny  and  Montgomery  sts,  were  the  offices 


TOWAllI)  THE   MISSION. 


1.S5 


rnttnate  Froncli  soujufht  their  |)roxiiiiity  along  JucUkoh 
street,  with  two  hotels  ottering  signiticant  wtlconie  at 

of  Hodoiiluiiin  &  SharfiF,  Dundar  ft  Uil>l>a,  Roynolds  ft  Lotter,  Miirric««i'  ft 
IJurthey,  Muiliiiu,  Harto};,  &  (.'(>.,  J.  S.  Mooro  ft  Co.  (F.  Micliuel),  Morris,  Levi, 
it  Co.,  F.  (iililm,  GiiUaml,  Hart,  ft  Co.,  Arnold  ft  Winter,  com.  iiurs;  1*. 
SfhlosM  &  Co.,  niern;  L.  ft  J.  lUuni,  h.  A.  Hart  &  Co.,  Steinlu'ruer  ft  Kanf- 
niaii,  .\.  Kiser,  KoMcnzweij;  ft  Lasik,  M.  Levi  ft  Co.,  I'otedanicr  ft  lioHeiihanin, 
tlotliinn;  ^\''  l^'  Foriiian  ft  Co.,  grouora;  Ha.stin>ra  ft  Co.  (S.  ft  T.  W.),  variety 
storo;  Siiiili'y  (.las),  Korn,  &  Co.,  hardware;  Rot).  Turnlmll,  l)roker. 

At  tlio  lifud  of  Clay  at  stood  the  City  hoHpital  of  |)r  1'.  Sinitli,  destroyed 
Oct.  HI,  ISiV).  Near  by,  above  Stockton  at,  was  the  pajier  wareliou.so  ot  (J. 
A.  Krooks  and  the  house  of  Jas  Crook,  nier.  Btdow  Stockton  st  run  the 
jiaralli'l  I'ike  st,  at  the  corner  of  which  stood  the  post-oiiice,  at  a  rental  of 
i>7,'-.'llO  a  year.  Since  its  first  hication  on  the  N.  w.  corner  of  Wasliington 
ami  .MontjiOMiery  stu  it  had  been  moved  to  the  N.  K.  corner  of  Washington 
and  Stockton,  tlien  to  tliu  above  location,  and  in  \Hi\\  to  a  /inc-covtrcd  build- 
iiii,'  iiu  tlie  N.  K.  corner  of  I>npont  and  Clay  sts.  So  much  frr  tlie  instability 
which  stJiniped  tiio  city  and  c<iunty  genei'ally  in  these  early  day^i.  At  tlic 
other  corner  rose  the  Bush  liouse  of  Hy.  Bush,  a  few  steps  altove  tlie  fa.shiou- 
ahlt.'  St  Francis  hotel,  and  opposite  WoodruU's  jewelry  shop.  OnJ'iku  st, 
th  ■  latter  well-known  II.  B.  Woodward  kept  a  cotl'ee  shop.  Near  l>y,  on 
(  lay  st,  resided  Allen  Pierce  and  A.  A.  Selover.  Between  Diipout  «t  a:i<( 
tlic  jilaza  was  the  book-store  of  Wilson  ft  Spaulding,  and  the  hanhvare  u  ip 
(if  Au;i.  MorrLson.  Clay  st  below  Kearny  was  mainly  a  dry -goods  ri  >  t(t 
judge  from  the  number  of  the  dealers,  as  Liicondic  &  Co.,  impoiters;  W.  E. 
Kcycs,  Hy.  Kraft  &  Co.,  Moore,  Tickcuor,  ft  Co.,  Josiah  Morris,  on  Clay  st 
row,  J.  B.  Simpson,  U'l'v  v  &  Co.,  Oscar  Uuy,  dealers;  besides  ( Jco.  Bergo, 
Lewis  Lewis,  Isaac  Myers,  wlio  advertised  both  dry  goods  and  clothing,  there 
Wore  also  the  special  clothing-stores  of  Heller,  Lehman,  ft  Co.  ('V.  Cohen),  .los. 
(idldsteiii,  Laii_  ,i  Id,  &  Co.  (S.  ft  J.  Haningsbcrger),  Kelsey,  Smith,  ft  Uisley. 
Tile  street  boasted  moreover  of  two  baiiKers,  Page  [V.  W.),  Bacon,  &  Co. 
(I>.  (  iiauibers,  Hy.  Haight)  and  B.  Davidson,  agent  for  Rothschihl;  C.  Pl.itt, 
nicr. ;  Colin  KauU'man  &  Co.  (A.  Ticroflf),  W.  M.  Jacobs,  Sinton  &  Biigley, 
H.iwk.s,  Parker,  ft  Co.,  Lamed  ft  Sweet,  Pioclio  ft  Bayertpie,  com.  niers,  ami 
several  connected  with  dry  gooils;  P.  Rutledge  ft  Co.,  tinsmiths;  Bennett  ft 
Kiihy,  liar<lware;  Tillman  &  Duuu,  niaiiuf.  jewellers;  Hayes  &  Bailey  (or 
Lyiiilidl),  jewellers;  M.  Lewid,  importer  of  watches;  Stedman  ft  W  bite, 
watcliiiiakers;  Sanchez  Bros  (B.  ft  S.),  real  estate  brokers;  Marriott  (F. )  ft. 
Aiiilersoii,  monetary  agents,  in  Cross  ft  Hobson's  building,  on  tlie  N.  side, 
iialf-way  to  Montgomery  st;  opposite  had  long  stood  Vioget's  or  Portsmouth 
liouse.  Dr  A.  J.  Bowie,  and  l)r  Wm  Rabe,  druggist;  Chipinan  ft  Woodman's 
Clay-st  reading-rooms;  C.  EUeard's  oyster-rooms,  N.  side;  Adelphi  theatre,  s. 
siile. 

Oil  the  short  parallel  Commercial  st,  not  yet  fully  opened,  figured  the 
I'oiiiniercial-street  house,  P.  S.  IJordou;  the  Athi'neum  Exhibition  of  i)r 
Colyer;  J.  W.  Tucker,  jeweller;  G.  W.  Dart,  drinking-saloon,  and  about  to 
o[ieii  liaths  cm  Montgomery  st. 

Sacramento  st  was  already  becoming  known  as  Little  China,  from  the  es- 
tdilishiueut  of  some  Mongol  merchants  upon  its  north  line,  on  either  side  of 
Dupoiit  st,  but  this  had  not  as  yet  involved  a  loss  of  caste,  for  several  promi- 
nent people  occujiicd  the  section  between  Dupoiit  and  Kearny  st.  Folsoiii 
lived  in  a  house  built  by  Leidesdorff  on  the  N.  siile;  Halleck,  Peachy,  ft  Bil- 
lings, counsellors,  Plingsthorn,  Heynian,  &  Co.,  com.  mers,  (Jibson  ft  Tibbits, 
had  tlieir  otlioes  here;  Convert  &  iJigrol  kept  a  fancy -goods  shop;  Selby  (T.) 
*  Post  (PhiL),  metal  dealers.  In  the  section  below  Kearny  st:  Fitzgerald, 
Iknsch,  Brewster,  ft  Co.,  Simonsfiebi,  Bach,  ft  Co.,  W.  M.  Coughlin,  Cramer, 
Rauliach,  ft  Co.,  pen.  importers;  Spech  ft  Baugher,  O.  H.  Beach.  J.  B.  ft  A. 
.'.  George,  1).  S.  Hewlett  &  Co.  (B.  Richardson),  lower,  Wood,  <    Co.,  D.  J. 


186 


SAN  FRA^'CISCO. 


V  ' 


■iiil 


Clark  Point.  Little  China  was  alread}^  forming  on 
Sacramento  street,  and  the  widely  scattered  Germans 
had  a  favorite  resort  at  the  end  of  Montgomery  street. 

Mavreiiner  (of  Wallia  &C'o.,  Stockton),  Lambert  &  Co.  (F.  F.  Low,  later  gov.), 
com.  nicrs;  F.  Rojenbaum,  dry  goods  &  jobbing;  Cooper  &  Co.  (J.  &  I.), 
Simon  Heiter,  S.  Rosenthal,  H.  Ungor,  Adelsdorfer  &  Neustadter,  dry  goods; 
J.  M.  Caughlin,  Simmons,  Lilly,  &  Co.,  Swift  &  Bro.  (S.  &  J.),  gen.  dealer  ; 
Jos.  E.  de  la  Montafia,  stoves,  etc. ;  Kelly  &  Henderson,  J.  Sharp,  Tyler  & 
Story,  grocers;  D.  J.  Oliver  &  Co.,  D.  C.  Mcfllynn,  paints;  Geo.  Vowels, 
furniture;  Byron  house,  by  Bailey  &  Smith,  and  the  Raphael  and  Marye  res- 
taurants. The  third  wooden  house  on  the  street  was  imported  by  Bluxonic, 
the  famous  vigilance  secretary,  and  in  this,  probably  a  double  cottage,  J.  ]{. 
( rarni.ss  had  his  office.  On  California  st,  below  Stockton,  were  the  fashion- 
able boarding-houses  of  Mrs  Petit  and  Loland,  both  on  the  N.  side,  the  Mur- 
ray house  of  J;is  Hair,  and  among  residences,  those  of  Whitniore,  bought  of 
Rodnuin  Price  and  (Jen.  Cazneau,  a  three-story  frame  building,  of  sections 
rescued  from  a  wreck.  It  sto'"d  on  the  s.  w.  corner  of  Dupont  st.  On  t!ie 
north  side,  near  Kearny  st,  in  a  two-story  house,  lived  the  rich  and  erratic 
Dr  Jones,  dressing  like  a  grandee,  and  hoarding  gold,  it  was  said.  lu  tliu 
scfition  below  Kearny  st  was  the  U.  S.  quartermaster's  office,  C.ipt.  Folsoiii; 
Salas,  Bascunen,  Fehrman,  &  Co.,  Ed.  Visclier,  Hort  Bros,  White  Bros,  O.  IJ. 
.leanings,  mers  and  importers;  Louis  Bruch,  Esche,  Wapler,  &  Co.,  Ruth, 
Tissot  (S.  C),  &  Co.,  com.  mers,  the  latter  two  at  the  corner  of  Spring  st;  J. 
S.  Hershaw,  gcu.  grocer;  P.  Naylor,  iron,  tin,  etc.,  in  the  brick  building 
erected  on  the  later  Cal.  market  site,  for  Fitzgerald,  Bausch,  &  Brewster; 
Nelson  &  Baker,  blacksmiths,  on  Webb  st.  In  this  lane  Capt.  Hewlitt,  of 
tlij  New  York  volunteers,  built  a  boarding-house,  on  the  w.  side,  and  hero 
was  the  residence  of  the  Fuller  family,  which  owned  half  the  block.  Ja.s 
Ward  had  a  cottage  nearer  Montgomery  st,  which  became  a  boarding-house, 
perhaps  tlie  Duxbury  house  of  All).  Marshall.  The  Klepliant  house  of  A.  H. 
Oakes,  and  the  Dramatic  museum  of  Robinson  &  Everard,  were  not  far  from 
the  Circus  site. 

Soutliward  we  come  once  more  to  the  odd  scattered  habitations,  shanties, 
and  tents,  which  intervened  between  the  bare  sand  hills  and  chaparral-friugcil 
hollow.  On  Pine  st,  above  Montgomery  st,  I  find  the  office  of  E.  Brown, 
mer.,  and  Richelieu's  hotel  with  its  French  restaurant.  Along  Kearny  :  t 
to  Tliirtl,  and  up  Mission  st  led  the  path  to  Mission  Dolores,  much  frequeutod, 
especially  on  Sundays,  and  by  equestrians,  for  the  sand  mado  walking  tuo 
tiresome.  This  route  was  now  about  to  be  improved  by  the  constructidii 
of  a  plank  road,  un<ler  grant  of  Nov.  1850,  for  seven  years,  to  C.  L.  Wilsnii 
and  his  partners,  with  a  stock  of  $150,000.  It  was  finished  by  the  foUowinu' 
spring  for  .^KC.OOO,  ami  paid  eight  per  cent  monthly  interest  to  tiie  share- 
holders. Tlie  toll  charged  Wiis  25  cents  for  a  mounted  man,  75  c.  for  veliii  h  s, 
^1  for  wagons  with  four  animals;  driven  stock,  5  or  10  ets.  The  tollgatu 
Was  moved  successively  from  Post  st,  Third  st.  Mission  and.  Fourth,  ami  lie- 
yond.  In  some  places,  as  at  Seventh  st,  the  swamps  were  such  as  to  make 
piling  useless  an<l  re(iuire  corduroy  formation,  yet  this  settled  in  time  iive 
leet.  The  city  was  too  heavily  in  debt  to  undertake  the  construction;  and 
while  the  mayor  vetoed  the  grant  to  a  private  firm,  the  legislature  confirnml 
it.  By  selling  half  tlie  interest  Wilson  got  funds  to  complete  the  ruail. 
Subsequently  the  company  opened  Folsom  st  to  ward  ofif  competition,  anil 
still  divided  three  per  cent  a  month.  For  details  concerning  the  plank  mail, 
see  Par.  Xewn,  Picayune,  Nov.  4,  20,  1850,  et  seq.;  Hittdts  S.  F.,  lol-3; 
Annalx  S.  P.,  2t)7-8;  Ban-y  and  PatM'nn  Men  and  Mem.,  108-9. 

Mission  st  presented  the  best  exit  south-westward,  for  Market  st  re- 
mained obstructed  long  after  1850  by  several  ridges,  one  hill  at  the  coriior  nf 
Dupont  st  alone  measuring  89  ft  in  height.  The  hill  at  Seconil  st,  tinrctly 
contested  by  squatters  in  the  early  fifties  against  Woodworth,  the  vigilance 


MARKET  STREET. 


187 


Dupout  street  bore  a  more  sedate  appearance,  with 
its  mixture  of  shops  and  residences,  its  armory  at 
Jackson  street  for  the  first  city  guard,  and  its  land- 
marks in  Richardson's  casa  grande  on  the  site  of  his 
tout,  the  first  habitation  in  Yerba  Buena,  and  in 
Loose's  house,  the  first  proper  building  of  the  pueblo, 
l)()th  at  tlie  Clay-street  corners  below  the  post-office. 
Stockton  stroet,  stretching  from  Sacramento  to  Green 
streets,  presented  the  neatest  cluster  of  dwelhngs, 
and  Powell  street  was  the  abode  of  churches;  for  of 
the  six  temples  in  operation  in  the  middle  of  1850, 
throe  graced  its  sides,  and  two  stood  upon  cross-streets 
within  half  a  block.  Mason  street,  above  it,  was 
really  the  western  limit  of  the  city,  as  Green  street 
was  the  northern.  Beyond  Mason  street  ran  the  trail 
to  the  presidio,  past  scattered  cottages,  cabms,  and 
sheds,  midst  dairies  and  gardens,  with  a  branch  path 

liiLsident,  had  by  that  time  vanished  into  the  bay.  Nevertheless,  there  were 
;i  few  early  occupants  on  the  iq^per  Market  st.  At  the  Stockton  and  Ellis 
jiuiutioiiJ.  Sullivan  had  a  cottage,  Merrill  one  on  the  later  Jesuit  college  site, 
auil  fiii  Mason  st  near  Eddy,  Hy.  Gerko  of  viticultural  fame  rejoiced  in  an  at- 
tractive two-story  peaked-roof  i evidence;  near  by  lived  a  French  gardener. 
Tlii.s  was  the  centre  of  Saint  Anii  Valley,  through  which  ltd  a  less-used  trail 
to  tlie  mission,  by  way  of  Bush  and  Stockton  sts,  passing  Judge  Burritt's 
house  and  Th'Ciates'  at  the  .s.w.  corner  of  Geary  an  1  Stockton  sts,  facing  the 
hiyh  saud  liill  which  covered  the  present  Union  square.  At  the  S.  W.  end  of 
tliis  sijuare  rose  a  three-story  laundry.  The  site  of  the  present  city  hall,  at 
tlie  junction  of  McAllister  st,  the  authorities  in  Feb.  1850  set  asiile  for  the 
Yerba  Biieua  cemetery,  Ver  Mehr'n  Ch&'kered  Life,  344,  which  had  first  existed 
at  the  bay  termiims  of  Vallejo  st,  and  subsequently  for  a  brief  time  on  the 
iiortli-west  slope  toward  North  Beach,  near  Wa3hington  square.  Benton,  in 
Jf'ii/i's'  fill.  Xoli»,  V.  CO.  Tlie  new  site  was  the  dreariest  of  tliem  all,  relieved 
liy  a  .solitary  mauziiiiita  with  blood-red  stalk  midst  the  stunted  shrubbery. 

From  the  cemetery  a  path  led  past  C.  V.  Gillespie's  house  to  Mission  st, 
at  Sixtli  st,  wliere  began  a  bridge  i(ir  crossing  the  mar^li  extendin;|  to  Eiglith 
st.  To  tlie  left,  at  the  H.  w.  corner  of  Harrison  and  Sixth,  or  Simmons  st, 
Itiisn,  the  jeweller,  had  a  country  residence  which  was  soon  opeiie<l  as  a  pleas- 
ure L;arden,  especially  for  Germans.  Jolin  Center,  the  later  capitidist,  was  a 
g:ii'ileiiur  in  the  vicinity.  At  the  month  of  Mission  creek  lived  Rosset. 
15i'youd  the  briilge  Stepnen  C.  Massett,  '  Jeonics  Pipes,' had  for  a  time  a 
Cottage.  Tlieii  came  the  Grizzly  road-side  inn,  near  Potter  st,  witli  it.i  cliained 
bear.  Further  back  stood  the  Half-way  house  of  Tom  Hayes,  with  inviting 
.sliriibbery.  Near  the  present  Woodward's  (turdens  a  brook  was  crossed, 
after  which  the  road  was  clear  to  the  mission,  where  a  number  of  dwellings 
clustered  round  the  low  adobe  chureli,  venerable  in  its  dilapidation  Valencia, 
Nile,  (iuerrero,  Haro,  Burnal,  whose  •jiiiics  are  preserved  in  streets  and  liills 
around,  and  ( '.  Brown,  Denniston,  Nuttman,  and  Jack  Power.-^,  were  among  tlie 
residents.  Tlie  centre  of  attraction  n'us  tlie  Mansion  house  M-here  Bob  Kid 
b'y  and  ('.  V.  Stuart  dispensed  milk  puiiclies  to  crowds  of  cavaliers,  to  whom 
the  freijuent  Mexican  attire  gave  a  picturesque  uoloriug. 


188 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


:■'■;  f: 


I, « 


m 


to  the  Marine  Hospital  on  Filbert  street,  and  another 
to  the  North  Beach  anchorage,  where  speculators 
were  planning  a  wharf  for  attracting  settlement  in 
this  direction. 

The  aceommodatic»ns  offered  to  arrivals  in  1849  wore 
most  precarious  in  character.  Any  shed  was  con- 
sidered fit  for  a  lodging-house,  by  placing  a  line  of 
bunks  along  tiie  sides,  and  leaving  the  occupant  fre- 
quently to  provide  his  own  bed-clothes.^^  Such  crude 
arrangements  prevailed  to  some  extent  also  at  the 
hotels,  of  which  there  were  several.  The  first  enti- 
tled to  the  name  was  the  City  Hotel,  a  story -and-alialf 
adobe  building,  erected  in  1846  on  the  plaza,^^  followed 
in  1848  by  the  noted  Parker  House,^  the  pha^nix  of 
many  fires,  and  in  1849  by  a  large  number  of  others,"* 

*'  Such  a  shed,  with  '  crates '  along  the  walls,  adjoined  the  City  hotel. 
Crmlnf's  Events,  MS.,  13.  liartlett,  Stat.,  MS.,  9,  mentions  three  tiers  of 
bunks  in  fine  room.  Many  were  glad  to  remain  on  board  the  vessel  wliicli 
brought  them. 

'■"^  On  .s.  w.  corner  of  Clay  and  Kearny  sts.  The  half-story  consisted  of 
gable  garri.'ts  beneath  the  tile  roof.  It  had  a  railed  porc^li,  and  square,  deep- 
silled  windows.  Parker  had  reopened  it  in  July  1848.  Lnrlins  Doc,  vi.  144. 
Bayard  Taylor  obtained  a  garret  there  in  1849.  Eihrado,  55.  See  alt^o 
MerriWx  Stat.,  MS.,  3.  The  lease  of  §10,000  a  year  granted  in  1848  left  a 
large  protit  by  subdivisions  and  subrenting.  AUa  Cal.,  Sept.  21,  ISol,  and 
other  current  journals. 

'•'^Ou  the  east  side  of  the  plaza,  near  Washington  st,  where  the  old  city 
hall  now  stands.  It  was  a  two-story-and-a-half  frame  building  with  a  front- 
ago  of  CO  feet,  begun  in  the  autumn  of  1848,  and  still  in  the  buibler's  hands  i;i 
April  1849,  when  lumber  cost  S«00  per  1,000  feet.  Little's  Stat.,  MS.,  ,'!; 
Griinskaw's  A''ar.,  MS.,  14.  It  rented  for  $9,000,  and  subsequently  for  §1 "),(((;() 
per  month,  half  of  the  sum  paid  by  gamblers  who  occupied  the  second  tloor. 
Subleases  brought  §50,000  profit.  Four  days  after  its  sale,  on  Dec.  20,  LSI!', 
it  was  burned.  By  May  4,  1850,  it  had  been  rebuilt  at  a  cost  of  $40,000,  onl  ; 
to  be  destroyed  the  day  of  its  completion.  The  lower  floor  was  again  in 
operation  by  May  27th.  The  rebuilding,  including  the  Jeimy  Lind  thcati'e, 
cost  $100,000.  It  was  once  more  reduced  to  ashes  on  the  fire  anniversary  in 
the  following  year.  Witliin  a  week  lumber  was  on  tlio  ground  for  rcliuiM- 
ing.  Altii  C'liL,  May  13,  1851;  Ilennluuo's  Stat.,  MS.,  1-2;  Buffuian  Six  Moiif/i-^, 
121-2;  WiKiiW  Sijteen  Mo.,  40.  The  cost  of  the  first  building  was  placed  at 
$30,000.  AUa  Cal.,  May  27,  1850. 

'**  Broadway  and  Fremont  hotels  near  Clark  Point  landing;  St  Franeis, 
H.w.  corner  Clay  and  Dupont,  a  four-story  buibling  formed  from  sovrral 
cottages;  no  gandding;  managed  in  18.50  by  Parker;  ravaged  by  a  solit;iry 
lire  on  Oct.  22,  1850;  Oliio  house  on  Jackson  between  Kearny  and  Dupont; 
German  house  on  Dupont  near  Washington;  Midler's,  in  Townsend  avenue, 
on  Washington;  American  hotel,  with  daily  business  of  $.*?00;  U.  S.  hotel  of 
Mrs  King,  claiming  to  accommodate  200  lodgers;  Howard  hotel;  Merehantsi' 
hotel  of  Dearlmrn  and  Sherman;  Colonnade  house  of  Wm  Conway  mi 
Kearny;  Ward  house  on  the  Clay-st  side  of  the  plaza;  Brown's  hotel; 
Portsmouth   house   of  E.  P.    Jones;  G.  Denecke's   house  oa  the   corner  of 


HISTORIC  HOTELS. 


189 


li 


many  of  which  were  lodging-houses,  with  restaurants 
attached.  The  latter  presented  a  variety  even  greater 
than  the  other  in  methods  and  nationalities  of  owners, 
cooks,  and  waiters,  or  rather  stewards,  for  where  the 
servant  was  as  good  as  the  master  the  former  term 
was  deemed  disrespectful.  From  the  cheap  and  neat 
Chinese  houses,  marked  by  triangular  yellow  flags, 
wlierein  a  substantial  meal  could  be  had  for  a  dollar, 
tho  choice  extended  to  the  epicurean  Delmonico, 
where  five  times  the  amount  would  obtain  only  a 
iiicaijre  dinner.  Intermediate  ranjjed  several  German, 
French,  and  Italian  establishments,  with  their  diflcr- 
( nt  specialties  by  the  side  of  plain  Yankee  kitchens, 
English  lunch-houses,  and  the  representative  fonda 
of  tlie  Hispano  element,  many  in  tents  and  some  in 
(imiiibuses,  which  proving  unavailable  for  traffic  were 
converted  to  other  uses.^^     Little  mattered  the   na- 


il city 

front- 

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tloor. 
ISl'.l, 

,  •'"I/ 
liiu  ill 
Icatre, 

Li'y  ill 
|l)uil.l- 
\niilli-', 

;eel  at 

lancis, 
svcral 
IliUry 
Ipont; 

ll'llUf, 

ltd  of 
laiita' 
ly   (111 

llcltol) 


I'acitiu  and  Sansome;  Sutter  hotel  and  restaurant  by  Ambrose  and  Ken- 
(l:ill;  Barnuni  house  of  Mitchell,  Carmon,  and  Spooner,  opened  on  Sept.  If), 
1S,")0,  (III  Commercial  between  Montgomery  and  Kearny;  Ontario  house; 
Stooktdii  hotel  of  Starr  and  Brown,  on  Long  Wharf;  Healey  house,  opened 
in  l>ec.  1849,  claimed  to  be  then  the  most  substantial  house  in  tlie  city; 
(iraliain  house,  imported  bodily  from  Baltimore;  Congress  hall  used  for  ac- 
coiiinioilatiou.  The  first  really  substantial  hotel  was  tlie  Union,  of  brick, 
fdiir  ami  a  half  stories,  opened  in  the  autumn  of  18i50  by  Selover  &  Co.,  a  firm 
composod  of  Alderman  Selover,  Middleton,  and  E.  V.  Joice.  It  was  built 
l)y  J.  W.  Priestly,  after  tho  plan  of  H.  N.  White,  the  brick-work  embracing 
r)()l),(KM)  bricks,  contracted  for  completion  within  2G  days.  The  chandeliers, 
j;ilt  frames,  etc.,  iitted  by  J.  B.  M.  Crooks  and  J.  S.  Caldwell.  It  extended 
lii'twi'cii  Clay  and  Washington  for  IGO  feet,  with  a  frontage  of  29  feet  on  the 
east  side  of  Kearny.  It  contained  100  rooms.  The  cost,  including  furni- 
ture, M-as  j^StWiOOO.  Burned  in  May  1851,  and  subsequently  it  became  a  less 
fa.sliinnalile  resort.  Tlie  construction  of  tjie  more  successful  Oriental  was 
lieyiiii  in  Nov.  1850,  at  the  corner  of  Bush  and  Battery.  Jones',  at  the  cor- 
ner nf  Saiisoine  and  California,  first  opened  as  a  hotel  by  Capt.  Folsom,  but 
uiisiK'oessfully,  was  soon  converted  ir.to  tlie  Tehama  liouse,  much  frequented 
by  military  men.  For  these  and  other  hotels,  I  refer  to  Alhi  Val.,  May  27, 
l.S,-)0;  Oct.  23,  1853;  Mar.  8,  18G7;  Pac.  News,  Nov.  «,  8,  Dec.  6,  22,  25,  27, 
Uvt;);  Jan.  1,  3,  5,  Apr.  2(5,  27,  Oct.  22,  Nov.  9,  1850;  Cai  Courier,  Sept.  12, 
11,  bSoO;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Aug.  17,  30,  Sept.  12,  16,  1850;  S.  F.  Annalx,  G47 
etsoij.;  Bauer  s  Stitt.,  MS.,  2;  KimhaU's  Dir.,  1850. 

^' The  Bay  hotel  (Pet.  (luevil)  and  the  Illinois  house  (S.  Anderson),  on 
Batttry  st;  the  Bruner  house,  Lovejoy'a  hotel  (J.  H.  Brown),  Lafayette  hotel 
(L.  (iuiraud)  and  the  Albion  house  (Croxton  &  Ward),  on  Broadway  st;  on 
I'aciliu  st  were  the  Marine  hotel  (C.  C.  Stiles),  Hotel  du  Commerce  (C.  Ren- 
aulti,  Crescent  house  (Sam.  Harding),  Planters'  hotel  (J.  Stigall),  Melntire 
liiMiso  and  tlio  Waverly  house  (B.  F.  Bucknell);  on  Jackson  st  were  the  Com- 
iiienial  hotel  (J.  Ford  &  Co.),  Dalton  hou.se  (Smith  &  Hasty),  E.  Pascual's 
I'diida  Mejicana,  the  Philadelphia  house  and  J.  Cotter  k  Co. 'a  California 
house.     On  Commercial  st  T.  M.  lioUiua  kept  the  Kennebec  house,  and  P.  S. 


190 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


ture  of  the  accommodation  to  miners  fresh  from  rouoli 
camps,  or  to  immigrants  long  imprisoned  within  fou' 
hulks,  most  of  them  half-starved  on  poorer  provis- 
ions. To  them  almost  any  restaurant  or  shelter 
seemed  for  a  while  at  least  a  haven  of  comfort.  Nor 
were  all  well  provided  with  funds,  and  like  the  prudent 
ones  who  had  come  with  the  determination  to  toil  and 
save,  they  preferred  to  leave  such  luxuries  as  eggs 
at  seventy-five  cents  to  a  dollar  each,  quail  and  duck 
at  from  two  to  five  dollars,  salads  one  and  a  half  to 
two  dollars,  and  be  content  with  the  small  slice  of 
plain  boiled  beef,  indifferent  bread,  and  worse  coffee 
served   at   the    dollar  places,'^  and  with  one  of  the 

Oortloii  the  house  bearing  the  name  of  the  street.  On  Montgomery  st  stmnl 
the  Star  house  (C.  Wehster),  Irving  house,  Euruka  liotel  (J.  H.  Davis  &  Co.  i, 
Montgomery  house,  Cape  Cod  house  (Crocker,  Evans,  &  Taylor).  Sansoine 
st  coiitaiueil  the  Merriinac  house  (Williams  &  Johnson),  New  England  hou.sc 
(W.  B.  Wilton),  and  the  New  Bedford  house  (Juo.  Britnell),  tiiree  names 
likely  to  attract  the  attention  of  newly  arrived  wanderers  from  the  fur  Ka.st. 
On  Kearny  st  were  the  Adams  (Jno.  Adams),  mansion  (Mrs  E.  (Jordiiii), 
Marii)osa  (B.  Vallafon),  Crescent  City  (Winley  &  Lear),  and  San  Jose  iiouses, 
and  tliu  (rrahain  hotel,  which  latter  became  the  city  hall  in  1851.  On  l)u|i()iit 
st  I  find  the  (Uobe  hotel  (Mrs  B.  V.  Koch),  and  the  Albion  (B.  Kee.sinj.') 
Harm's  (H.)  and  Excellent  houses.  On  Clay  st  H.  Bush  kept  the  liouse 
which  took  his  name.  On  Sacramento  st  Wiis  Bailey  &  Smith's  Byron  house, 
and  ("aliforiiia  st  contained  the  Murray  (Jas  Hair),  l>uxbury  (A.  Marshall!, 
and  Eleiibant  (A.  (>.  Oakes)  houses.  Richelieu  hotel  was  on  Pine  st,  ami 
over  in  the  Happy  and  Pleasant  Valley  region  the  Isthmus  hotel  protl'ereil 
hospitality.  At  <"*  near  the  mission  were  wayside  resorts,  such  as  the  Urizzly, 
near  Potter  st,  an.i  the  Mansion  house  of  Bob.  RitUey  and  C.  V.  Stuart.  ()ii 
Sacramento  st  were  Rapliael's  restaurant  and  that  of  Marye.  Ou  Kearny 
st  bet.  Clay  and  Sacramento  were  Mme  Rosalie's  restaurant,  and  Swan  ami 
Thompson's  New  York  bakery.  Wm  Meyer  kept  a  cotfee-house  on  Jacksciii 
st  at  the  water-front,  and  Nash,  Patten,  and  Thayer's  Kremlin  restaurant  iiud 
saloon  stootl  on  Commercial  st.  Besides  four  Chinese  restaurants,  on  Paoilio, 
Jackson,  and  Washington  st  near  the  water-front,  charging  $1  for  a  diiimr, 
Cdssinx  Slut.,  MS.,  14,  there  were  American  restaurants  at  the  same  price,  us 
Smyth  Clark's.  liinieU'it  Stut.,  MS.,  8.  One  on  Broadway  was  in  full  lilast 
while  its  ruins  were  still  smoking  after  the  first  great  tire.  Guniinti'  L^nii/ 
D<ii/s,  MS.,  19.  There  were  the  U.  S.  and  California  houses  on  the  plaza, 
besiiles  a  French  restaurant,  whose  counterpart  existed  also  on  Dupont  st,  Udt 
far  from  a  large  (rcrman  estal)lishment  on  Pacitic  st.  Then  there  were  the 
classical  (rothic  hall  and  AUiainbra,  Tortini's  of  Italian  savor,  the  Eiiipire, 
Elleard's  on  Clay  st,  by  Tom  Harper,  Clayton's  near  by,  and  a  nunilier  I'f 
others,  some  advertised  in  Alt<i  Val.,  May  27,  1850,  etc.,  and  Pac.  News.  Winnl- 
ward  of  the  later  noted  What  Cheer  house  kept  a  coffee  shop  near  the  post - 
ollice  on  Pike  toward  Sacramento  st.  S.  F.  Bull.,  Jan.  23,  181)7.  Many  of  the 
hotels  mentioned  above  combined  restaurants  and  lunching-places  in  vmi- 
nection  with  drinking-saloons  and  other  establishments. 

''"'This  was  the  meal  at  City  hotel,  says  Crosby,  EvenU,  MS.,  14.  Some- 
times sea-bi.scuits  and  dumplings  would  be  added.  Some  of  the  boanlii's 
kept  a  private  bottle  of  pickles,  or  bought  a  potato  for  25  cents.  The  hill  nf 
fore  at  Ward's  or  Delmouico's  read:   Oxtail  or  St  Julien  soup,  75c.  to  $1; 


WILD  SPECULATION. 


191 


dozen  or  fifty  bunks  in  a  lodging-room  at  from  six  to 
twenty  dollars  a  week ;  for  a  room  even  at  the  ordinary 
hotel  cost  from  $25  to  $100  a  week,  while  at  Ward's 
it  rose  to  $250.^'  Offices  and  stores  were  leased  for 
sums  ranging  as  high  as  six  thousand  dollars  a  month, 
and  a  building  like  the  Parker  House,  on  the  plaza, 
hrought  in  subrenting  large  profits  upon  the  $15,000 
monthly  lease. 

It  was  the  period  of  fancy  prices,  and  houses  and 
lots  shared  in  the  rule.  When  the  gold-seekers  wlio 
luslied  away  from  San  Francisco  in  1848  returned  in 
i\\v  autumn  and  found  that  their  abandoned  lots  had, 
under  the  reviving  faith  in  the  city,  earned  for  many 
of  them  more  than  they  obtained  from  the  Sierra  with 
its  boasted  treasures,  then  speculation  took  a  fresli 
start.  When,  with  the  ensuing  year,  immigrants 
|»oured  in;  when  ships  crowded  the  harljor;  when 
tents  and  sheds  nmltiplied  by  the  thousand,  and  liouscs 


salmon  or  tish  in  small  variety,  $1.50;  entrees,  of  stews,  sausage,  meats,  etc., 
.I?!  to  SI. 50;  roa-st  meats  ranged  from  beef,  the  cheapest,  at  .*1,  to  veiii- 
sion  at  .*1.50;  vegetables,  limited  in  range  <iml  supply,  wore  50c.;  pies,  piul- 
iliiig,-!.  and  fruit,  75c.;  omelettes,  $^2.  The  wine  list  was  le.ss  exorbitant, 
ir.viiig  to  large  importations,  for  although  ale,  porter,  and  ci.ler  were 
quoted  at  $2,  claret,  sherry,  and  Mailoira  stood  at  82,  §8,  and  5'4  re.spect- 
ivfly,  while  champagne  and  old  port  could  be  had  in  pint  bottles  at  ^"2.50 
aiiil  .'*1.75;  wliiskey  and  bran<ly  were  very  low,  likewise  raisins,  cigars, 
otL'.  For  prices,  see  Sc/ieiirk's  Vii/.,  MS.,  20;  Pac.  A^i'wk,  Dec.  4,  184!);  Jan. 
12,  ISoO;  Tai/lor'a  Elihnuh,  i.  110;  S.  J.  Pioneer,  Aug.  IG,  1S79;  T'lyhra 
Spr.  PirsM,  .5(X)-3.  Toward  winter  the  price  for  board  rose  from  .^20  to  ^io 
a  wook.  A  moderate  charge  for  board  and  lodging  was  .§150  a  montli.  Foo«l 
was  aliundant  and  cheap  enough  at  the  sources  of  supply;  the  cost  lay  princi- 
pally in  getting  it  to  market.  Tlie  great  ranchos  sujiplied  unlimited  rjuanti- 
tits  (if  gofxl  Ixjef;  bays,  rivers,  and  woods  were  alive  with  game;  the  finest 
of  tish,  wild  fowl,  bear-meat,  elk,  antelope,  and  venison  couM  bo  had  for  the 
taking;  but  vegetables,  fruit,  and  flour  were  then  not  so  plentiful,  and  had  to 
be  lirouglit  from  a  greater  distance. 

•'  Schenck,  I'i'j.,  MS.,  20,  paid  $21  a  week  for  a  bunk  on  the  enclosed  porch 
of  an  adol)e  house  on  Dupont  st.  For  room  rents,  see  G<tniiii  Stit.,  il.S.,  II; 
"bii'i/'.i  r/;/.,  MS.,  3;  S/ierman's  Mem.,  i.  G7;  Lurlin'n  JJoi\,  vi.  41,  etc.  The 
grouml-rfnt  f)r  a  •  •>«  .••anged  from  §100  to  §500  a  month.  Biiffuin'M  Six 
Mimlh.i,  121.  A  i.  i....  )2  ft  square  could  be  had  for  a  law-otfice  at  .*250  a 
nioutli.  For  an  otlice  on  Washington  above  Montgomery  st  §1,000  was  asked. 
Broii-ii'.i  Slut.,  MS.,  11.  F(*r  desk-room  of  five  feet  at  the  end  of  a  counter, 
$KH)ainonth.  Sutton' t  StuL,  MS.,  3.  For  their  Miners'  Bank  on  the  N.  W. 
oonior  Kearny  and  Washington  sts,  Wright  &  Co.  paid  .$0,000  monthly.  A 
stor  20  feet  in  front  rented  for  .««,,'>00  a  month.  Yet  the  U.  S.  Iiotel  rental 
was  said  t..  l)e  only  §3,000.  In  the  tent  structure  adjoining,  the  EMorado,  .sin- 
L'k'  rr)oins  for  gambling  brought  §180  a  day;  mere  tables  in  hotels  for  gam- 
elmg  §;tO  a  day. 


192 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


'F     I 


>'M 


'M 


shot  up  like  mushrooms — speculation  became  wild. 
Lots,  which  a  year  before  could  not  be  sold  at  anv 
price,  because  the  town  had  been  left  without  either 
sellers  or  buyers,  now  found  ready  purchasers  at  from 
ten  to  a  thousand  times  their  cost.^ 

More  than  one  instance  is  recorded  of  propertj''  sell- 
ing- at  $40,000  or  more,  which  two  years  before  cost 
fifteen  or  sixteen  dollars,  and  of  the  sudden  enrichment 
of  individual  owners  a!id  speculators.  Well  known  is 
the  story  of  Hicks,  the  old  sailor.  The  gold  excite- 
ment recalled  to  his  memory  the  unwilling  purchase  in 
Yerba  Buena  of  a  lot,  which  on  coming  back  in  184!> 
lie  found  worth  a  fortune.  His  son  sold  half  of  it 
some  years  later  fi)r  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  million."" 
Vice-consul  Leidesdorif  died  in  1848,  leaving  property 
then  regarded  as  inadequate  to  pay  his  liabilities 
of  over  $40,000.  A  year  later  its  value  had  so  ad- 
vanced so  as  to  give  to  the  heirs  an  amount  larger 
than  the  debt,  while  agents  managed  to  make  fortunes 
by  administering  on  the  estate.*' 

'^*For  prices  in  1 840-8,  see  my  preceding  volume,  v.,  and  note  4  of  tliis 
chapter.  With  preparation  for  <leparture  to  the  mines,  in  the  spring  of  184!), 
a  lull  set  in,  Ldrtlufi  Dor.,  vii.  Q'2;  Ifankys  Olmerv.,  MS.,  5;  but  immediately 
after  began  tlie  great  influx  of  ships,  and  prices  advanced  ouee  more,  till 
toward  the  end  of  the  year,  when  golddadni  diggers  came  back,  they  rcacluil 
unprecedented  figures.  A  lot  on  the  plaza,  which  in  1847  had  cost  |1()..")0, 
sold  in  beginning  of  1849  for  §0,000,  and  at  the  end  of  tlie  year  for  $4,"),0(K). 
Jlciixhaics  Eiriits,  MS.,  7.  Buffum,  S'u-  Mo.,  121-2,  instances  this  or  a  similar 
sale  as  ranging  from  §15  to  §40,000.  Johnson,  Col.  and  Or.,  101,  gives  tlio 
oft-told  story  of  a  lot  selling  for  §18,000,  which  two  years  before  was  bar- 
tered for  a  barrel  of  whiskey.  A  central  lot  which  R.  Semple  is  said  to  luno 
given  away  to  show  his  contidence  in  Benicia-'s  prospects,  now  commanded  a 
little  fortune,  Williams,  live,  MS.,  0-7,  quotes  central  lots  long  before  the 
close  of  1849  at  from  §10,000  to  §15,000,  those  on  the  jdaza  at  §15,000  and 
§20,000;  yet  the  most  sui)stantial  business  was  done  east  of  Kearny  st,  ob- 
serves Currey,  Stat,  MS.,  8.  A  50- vara  lot  on  the  corner  of  Montgomery 
and  Market  sts  sold  for  §500.  Findla's  Sttit.,  MS.,  8.  The  government  paid 
$1,000  a  foot  for  120  feet  on  the  plaza.  S.  F.  Herald,  June  25,  1850.  At  tiiu 
end  of  this  year  the  demand  fell  oflF.  Larkins  Doc.,  vii.  231,  yet  the  rise  con- 
tinued till  the  climax  for  the  time  was  reached  in  1853,  says  Williams,  the 
builder.  (Ihi  mup.  At  the  close  of  this  year  the  authorities  sold  water  lot.s  <if 
only  25  feet  by  59,  part  under  water,  at  from  §8,000  to  §10,000,  four  small 
blocks  alone  producmg  §1,200,000,  and  tending  to  restore  the  impaired  credit 
of  the  city.  Annuls  S.  F.,  182.  In  dd.  Diijijers  Hnnd-lmok,  30,  are  some 
curious  figures  for  lots  from  the  presidio  to  San  Pablo.  For  reliable  points, 
6<ia  AltaVal.,  Dec.  15,  1849,  etc.;  and  Pac.  Neios;  also  Rednitz,  Rem,  UMi; 
LamheHk,  Voy.,  203-9. 

» Details  in  S.  F  Rent  Estate  Clrmlar,  Sac.  Bee,  June  12,  1874;  Ifn!/i:t' 
Scraps,  Ciil.  Notes,  v.  10,  etc. 

**  The  state  laid  claim  to  it,  but  yielded  after  long  litigation.     Leidesdorff 


WIIXIAM     A.  LEIDESDORFF. 

^'-perty^owi.r^if-'^^t  *eets  selling  f,.  $,,^;^ 
f 'f  «-•  '*vor.-     Periodic  aucS,  IT   ""'S" '"''<'''  "-i"' 

W".i«  on  speculation  ^    f)  "Z  ^      *"  "''™'-«  '"•'Se 
••'sk,  for  .several  clouds  over?'    *=«  "T,  ""'  ""'"'"St 
'".•;;,'  involved  in  the  tide  k,^°  «'e  titles,  water  lots 
t™-,l V  settled  by  act  of  1  tLtl'J"'^'''""-  ^"°»  "'■"i'^fac. 

»M.I  harassing  litiiratio",  J^  *'  '"''"'''  ''■■<'  '»  long 
"«'"ts,  disputed  surveys-  a^d'  ^'''''^''ietory  judg^ 
„    ,    .  ■^  '       ^  ''""Sessional  debates- 

m-..  1  t,o,„  it.  vVo  I ', v'  ,?,  ^'^  a'''"">i.ster  au  estate  for%i  *""''»"'-a»t,  the 
-f  < ■'l.fnruia,  i„  which  ,ne  "7  ""*'''''"  ^'^-'""I'le'  of  th-f  t  '%P!'°'^J  *«  '^'^  <'«• 
«;in,e  „f  frier,, I«ir^';"f^"fV'""''"''''««J'ax>particiZ  '"  *''^'  »"«t„ry 


;;m;.i.t.         "  "  ^"■"''™  »"«  scrub  oak  firewoo 

"v*^  ailvertisements  in  ^//„  ,-,/     r. 
•'}'"«,  Jan.  5,  J850  etc      f  '  ^^''-  ^^' 

'"'■■*  .Viel.lcl  $:>.>-,  oJi»  ■'^'^'■fe''^  weekly  sal 


St,  while  in  J850  InT  ^  T^  ^■''ylo'-  •■^t.s,  a,ul  1,),?*'^^''^^'''  ^""^ara  lots  ..re- 
latter  region  F„;"*'«?/  ^0  feet  frontage  are  lJ^-^'"'-\«'^««  «outh  of  .MaR 
Oct., ,...  1850.    "^"^  ^'^^"•g  «f  lots,  see  «X.*4V'S  TTs^  IT^  ""*'- 


194 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


in  addition  to  which  rose  several  spectres  in  the  form 
of  private  land  grants.^* 

By  the  middle  of  1849  the  greater  part  of  the  lots 
laid  out  by  O'FarrelP^  had  been  disposed  of,  and  \V. 
^I.  Eddy  was  accordingly  instructed  to  extend  tlio 
survey  to  Larkin  and  Eighth  streets,^  within  wliieh 
limits  sales  were  continued.  Encouraged  by  the  de- 
mand, John  Townsend  and  C.  de  Boom  hastened  to 
lay  out  a  suburban  town  on  the  Potrero  Nuevo  penin- 
sula, two  miles  south,  beyond  Mission  Bay,  wliich 
with  its  sloping  ground,  good  water,  and  secure  anclinr- 
age  held  forth  many  attractions  to  purchasers;  but 
the  distance  and  difficulty  of  access  long  proved  a  bar 
to  settlement." 


The  eagerness  to  invest  in  lots  was  for  some  time 
not  founded  on  any  wide-spread  confidence  in  the  coun- 
try and  the  future  of  tl'e  city.  Few  then  thought  of 
making  California  their  home,  or,  indeed,  of  remaining 
longer  than  to  gather  gold  enough  for  a  stake  in 
life.  Viewed  by  the  average  eye,  the  abnormities  of 
1849  displaj-ed  no  meaning.  Absorbed  in  the  one 
great  pursuit,  which  confined  them  to  comparatively 
arid  gold  belts  and  to  marshy  or  sand-blown  town 
sites,  they  missed  the  real  beauties  of  the  country, 
failed  to  observe  its  best  resources,  and  became  im- 
pressed rather  by  the  worst  features  connected  with 
their  roamings  and  hardships.  The  climate  was  bear- 
able, summer's  consuming  heat  being  chased  away 
by  winter's  devouring  waters.  The  soil  would  not 
furnish  food  for  the  people,  it  was  said.     The  mines 

'*  By  Larkin,  Santillan,  Sherrebeck,  Limantonr,  and  others,  whicli,  liow- 
ever,  did  not  appear  at  this  early  date,  when  the  tide-water  question  excitetl 
the  only  real  fear.  Land  titles  are  fully  considered  in  a  special  chapter.  By 
ortler  of  the  governor,  Feb.  19,  1850,  the  sale  of  municipal  lands  was  fordi  1- 
dentin  the  legislature  should  decide.  S.  F.,  Minutes  Leijml.  Assembly,  14,  229. 

"■"See  preceding  vol.  v. 

3«See  A.  WhvtkyK  Repent  of  1850,  and  his  Land  Titles  in  S.  F.  of  18.J2, 
for  observations  on  survey  and  lists  of  sales  and  grants  made  up  to  ISoO;  also 
Pac.  Nemn,  Nov.  27,  1849;  Alta,  etc. 

^'  It  was  surveyed  by  A.  R.  Flint.  Hunter  Bros  were  the  agents  in  S.  F. 
Or.  Sketches,  MS.,  2;  Buffum's  Six  Months,  156. 


FLIMSY  CONSTRUCTION. 

^''^^.  tJ'«   hides,  horns,  and  taH        ''  ^"^^^-     Purely 
rap-dJy  disappearing  herds  "''  '''''''^  ^oni  id 

iliere  was,  consequontiv  h'HJn  •    i 
pare  anything  but^e^^^S  i"^"''*"^"*  *^  P^e- 
t  .e  inflowing  j^opulation  and   f      '^^^""^"lodation    for 
hvre  was  ai)  oLitenient  and  I      '"'''' "§^  *^^^^«-     Then 
-t,  and  the  cost  of  n^ate"  f  1  tl^L^^^^^  P-v" 

>^vory  day  saw  a  marked  chanJl"     f  "^^?«  excessive. 
'•»"d  as  winter  approached  3  "'>^^?^«^'-^Pansion.. 

I'-t  underwent  iLpidtranXri^lo'''  ^"Z  '^^^  ^^"^^'^^ 
to  roj)]ace  canvas  frames  with?        ?'  ""^^^  ^^'^  effort 

^^•^f  «•     It  is  assumed  thlfat""?^'^*  ^""^^  ^«odc  n 
and  houses  were  erected  t^ll"  *  ^r  "^  ^^-'^^^ 
f  a  cost  that  would  hive  Z     '^^7  ^'^'^^  «^  l^-^O/^" 
^or  a  fivefold  larger  00^]^^  tf  «r:?"^-«dati<;n 
Stretching  its  youthful  ]h fe  *t"  ^*'^»*'e  coast. 
Francisco  grew  apace,  coverbo-    L  ^^f"'*^^  «^^'  San 
vas  soon  to  be  tied  diwn  by  1  .T     r"^^  '^'''^  ^^^^'e]i 

«I"l>esinto  home  sites  for  pJ^nK-i^^^"'  ^^^^'hig  tlie 

^-ehed  the  crests  llllu^^^^^^^ 
'f  .^«t  for  returning  43  "1^'  V  lasting  out 

^eln.1  the  rapidly  ad:Ct7p  &^^  '''  '"'"^  ^'^ 
Tile  topography  of  the  city    |i  K  IV^  "T"    • 

f'' li".con  Point  ^'i^"^*''»>«'- was  Ji"cd  with  b„at  ^^  *^«''-'-«'-^ching  4' 

J--  is  given  i^theltS  K^^  «^  *'- "  ty  1^  iS  If'  ?"-«•     ^ 
« "1  .^Vashingto*^,  aLlXu"  ?f  '^' "V^« "^  A^ontgomeVv  sfe"'  ^''^  ^'I'^'"^''' 


191} 


SAN  FRANCISCO 


mm 


hills  so  close  upon  tho  establisluid  cuntro  of  populii- 
tiou,  interposed  a  barrier  against  business  structuit  s, 
while  tho  shallow  waters  of  the  bay  invited  to  the 
pn>jeetion  f)f  wharves,  which  ajjjain  led  to  the  erection 
ot'buildinrjs  aloiifrside  and  between  them.  In  levelling- 
for  interior  streets  the  bay  offered  the  best  duni[)iiio- 
place,  and  the  test  once  satisfactorily  made,  saixl 
ridures  scores  of  feet  in  hein'ht  came  tuniblinj;  down 
into  the  cove  under  the  combined  onslaujjjht  of  steam- 
excavators,  railroads,  and  pile-drivers.  In  1841)  Mont- 
gomery street  skirted  the  water;  a  little  more  tluiu  a 
year  later  it  ran  through  the  heart  of  the  town.^'' 

The  only  real  encroachment  upon  the  water  domain 
in  1848  was  in  the  construction  of  two  short  wharves, 
at  Clay  and  Broadway  streets.*'  In  May  I84!t 
Alcalde  Leavenworth  projected  Central  or  Loiij^' 
Wharf,  along  Commercial  street,  which  before  tlu> 
end  of  the  year  extended  800  feet,  and  became  notrd 
as  the  noisy  resort  of  pedlers  and  Cheap  John  sliojis. 
Steamers  and  sea-going  vessels  began  to  unload  at  it, 
and  buildings  sprang  up  rapidly  alon^;  the  new  avenue. 
Its  successful  progress  started  a  number  of  rival  enter- 
prises upon  every  street  along  the  front,  from  ^larkt  t 
and    California    streets   to    Broadway   and    beyond/' 

*•  'Within  another  year  one  half  of  tho  city  wiU  stand  on  soil  wreatcil  fi-diii 
the  sea,' exclaim  the  .S\  /'.  Courier  a,nd  Soc.  Tninscript,  Oct.  14,  isr)0.  Tims 
Were  overcome  difUcultiea  not  unlike  those  encountered  in  placing  St  I'ltris- 
burg  iiiion  her  delta,  Amsterdam  uiion  her  marshes,  ami  Venice  uiiini  lur 
island  cluster.  During  the  winter  1S5;)-1  over  1,000  people  dwelt  upon  tlio 
water  in  buildings  resting  on  piles,  and  in  hulks  of  vessels. 

'"This  Wet-nursing  began  in  1847  by  city  appropriation,  assisted  by  W.  S. 
Clark.  See  my  preceduig  vol.,  v.  Cr^-G,  679.  Many  pioneers  think  tli;it 
because  a  favorite  landing-place  was  upon  some  rocks,  at  I'acitic  and  Sansmii.; 
sts,  there  were  no  wharves.  The  lagoon  at  Jackson  st,  wliich  had  been  jviitly 
filled,  offered  an  inlet  for  boats.  Tliere  were  also  other  landings.  Cnishif.i 
Stat.,  MS.,  12;  Schenck'n  Vlj-,  MS.,  14;  Mbtcel.  A'<<rfa.,MS.,  L'l;  and  note  5  of 
this  chapter. 

*' Central  wharf,  owned  by  a  joint-stock  company,  of  which  the  most 
prominent  members  were  Melius  &  Howard,  Cross,  Hobson,  &  Co.,  .las  t'. 
Ward,  J.  L.  Folsom,  De  Witt&  Harrison,  SamBrannan,  Theo.  Sliillal)cr,  itc, 
began  at  Lcidesdorff  st,  and  was  originally  800  ft  long.  Being  seriously  <liiiii- 
aged  by  the  fire  of  June  18r)0,  it  was  repaired,  and  by  Oct.  extendoil  to  a 
length  of  2,000  ft,  affor(iing  depth  of  water  sufficient  to  allow  the  racifio  Mail 
steamers  to  lie  alongside.  The  cost  was  over  $180,000.  Details  in  Srhnick'* 
Vii,.,  MS.,  14;  Fay  a  Facts,  MS.,  2;  S.  F.  Bull,  Jan.  2.3,  1807.  C.  V.  ( lilies- 
pie  was  jirest.  AUa,  Dec.  12,  1849.  Before  the  beginning  of  the  winter  of 
1850-1,  ilarket-st  wh.  corporation  property,  already  looming  as  a  wholesale 


i     1 


^'"'^"^•^•'S  AND  STKEKTS. 

Tluy  added  nearly  two  milp^  .     .,  '^ 

yity,atan  outlay  oV  nioro /in         •n'''  '"^^^'^^^^y  of  the 

"";-tly  private  finas.     A  fevv  ll  I  /i'^  projv.'tors, 

Vf^^y:  wlu..I,  soon  al,so;U'^,^';^^^'  ^^^^  "•""i"i- 

^^overaJ  sections  of  the  citv  vw  r     l  ¥    *^'^^  '"^'^   the 
"^'.i^l'fted,  partly  because  2f  .  If^  ^•''"iparatively 

to  -f  0  in!provi.,e:;rdu  ;r:'{,;^r"f '^  -^  --k^ 

streets,  fcr  instance,  reniainod  ,?  ^'"''^^^'^^^  ''^-'^'f  stay. 
;^^'<  ks  and  even  ungraded  Th^^'"''?'  ^^'^^'^^t  side- 
^'^»'l  l^ofore  the  gold  ^^tonlt  T^'^''  >^'"vennnent 
"1-.  portions  of  a  fcw  ^e S  t""  '  '>^^'  ^-J^' 
^  OMto-onicry  street  was    fHI   •  ^^^'^'"""^Jifiires,   yet 

',^''or  on  oi.e  side  tTarof  the ^.f"'^  T;'^^'-'  -^ 
;'0'  «unn„er  this  mattered  lit  If'''  ,  ^^"'^'"^^  the 
^vouU  n.  any  case  conie  whirl  n' •' ,'^"'*  and  sand 
«um>undingj„-lls,but    n  w"^^^^       clouds  fnun  the 

l]ie.season  1849-50  nroverin.        t  ^"^'^^^'^  ^-ham^ecl 

provecl  un  usua  1  v  waterv  «    ij  '^- 1  , 


1 


r'?' ^'"'- ^--.  A„«  7    «.^  --iyvvatery.^    Build- 

'"  j"  't.  «n.l^,  ,1  ,X     w    ';  '^'-■'•'.""'"t,.  stt  wL  T  jiT" 'r'  ^'"^^i-''^  pier, 
'■'t    idiit  Kt  ;„  iQ^f/     ,    ^''-  wasL'75  ft  I„„„.   T    ,  '      y"  '"^niusiiuv  X,,,... 

,",„'"•  ^^■"'•k  .lone  in  1847-fi   „  ^''"'■•'''•'  *'''-'Pfc- 

'^■l'-  rain«  began  on SS^/r"''"^  ''^'■'  -  Co4-o 

^•^"-"dternu„ateainMarc.,,\n,.,,„,.„^ 


108 


SAX   FRANCISCO. 


ings  wero  flooded,  and  trafti(5  converted  the  streets  iiitu 
swainps,  their  virgin  surface  trodden  into  ruts  and 
rivers  of  nmd.  In  phiees  tliey  wero  impassable,  and 
so  deep  that  man  and  beast  sunk  ahnost  out  of  sight. 
Many  animals  were  left  to  tlieir  fate  to  sutfocjite  in 
tiie  mire,  and  even  human  bodies  were  found  ingulftd 
in  ^lontgomery  street." 

Driven  by  necessity,  owners  and  shop-keepers  .sought 
to  remedy  the  evil — for  the  municipal  fund  was  scanty 
— by  forming  sidewalks  and  crossings  with  wliatcvt  r 
material  that  could  be  obtained,  but  in  a  manner  wliich 
frequently  served  to  wall  the  liquid  mud  into  lakes. 
The  common  brush  filling  proved  unstable  traps  in 
which  to  entangle  the  feet  of  horses.  The  cost  of  ma- 
terial and  labor  did  not  encourage  niore  perfect  meas- 
ures. It  so  happene«l  tliat  with  tiie  inflow  of  sliipments 
manv  cargoes  contained  <;oods  in  excess  of  the  demand, 
such  as  tobacco,  iron,  sheet-lead,  cement,  beans,  .salt 
beef,  and  the  cost  of  storage  being  greater  than  tluir 
actual  or  prospective  value,  the}'  could  be  turned  ti» 
no  better  use  than  for  fiUagc.  Thus  entire  lines  vl 
sidewalks  were  constructed  of  expensive  merchandise 
in  bales  and  boxes,  which  frequently  decayed,  to  t\\v 
injury  of  health.*^     The  absence  of  lamps  rendered 

71  tlays,  or  half  the  time.  S.  F.  Direct,  1852,  12.  Lower  lying  buiMiugs 
M'ere  tlootleil.  SuUhu'k  Stut.,  MS.,  7. 

"Schmieden,  Stat.,  MS.,  5-t),  mentions  one  man  who  was  suffocatt^il  in 
the  muil.  Another  witness  refers  to  three  such  cases,  duo  probably  ti>  iiituxi- 
eation.  See  aLo  Ililt^lig  S.  /'.,  l.">4;  i\  /'.  Bull.,  Jan.  "A  1807.  '1  h:ivo 
seen  ntules  stumble  in  the  street  and  drown  in  the  liquid  mud,'  writes  (ieii. 
Sherman,  Mem.,  i.  07.  At  the  corner  of  Clay  and  Kearny  sts  stood  ]po.>(te.l 
the  warning:  'This  street  is  impa-ssable,  not  even  jaekassable! '  i'}ili'i, !.'.■! 
Nnte.%  208.  At  some  crossings  '  soundings '  varied  from  two  to  five  fttt. 
ShnwH  Oolden  Drenmit,  47. 

*•'  A  sidewalk  was  made  from  Montgomery  st  to  the  mail  steamer  oilicc  '  nf 
boxes  of  1st  class  Virijiiiia  tobacco,  containing  100  lbs.  ^ach,  that  would  lio 
worth  75  cts  a  pound.  C'olv's  ''iij.,  MS.,  3.  Tons  of  wire  sieves,  iron,  rolls  nf 
sheet  lea<l,  cement,  and  barrel  of  beef  were  sunk  in  the  nnid.  Tobacco  was 
found  to  be  the  cheapest  matei  d  for  small  building  foundations.  AVi/W'.f  I';/., 
MS.,  16;  Fuij8  Fnct>>,  MS.,  <  Foundations  subsequently  were  8o:netinies 
worth  more  tlian  the  house.  S  e  Cliile  beans  sunk  for  a  crossing  ou  Broadway 
would  have  maile  a  fortune  ft  he  owner  a  few  weeks  later.  OanuM  Karbi 
Days,  MS.,  14;  Lninlxrtk,  Voij  MS.,  202-3.  There  were  a  few  pliiiikid 
sidewalks.  SiUtons  St-if..  MS.",  Cul.  Past  and  Present,  149-50;  BartkU's 
Stat,  MS.,  7;  Schenck's  Vhj.,  Mi   ,  1(5. 


GIIAD1N(}  AND  SEWERS. 


in 


progress  dangerous  at  night,"  and  the  narrowness  of 
llio  path  led  to  many  a  precipitation  h»to  the  mud, 
wlitnce  the  irate  victims  would  arise  ready  to  fight  tJie 
lirst  thing  ho  met.  Long  boots  and  water-proof  suit^' 
were  i\\L'U  common. 

The  experiences  of  the  winter  led  in  1850  to  more 
s;il»stiintial  improvements.  The  nmnieipid  govermnent 
a«I<ipted  Ji  system  of  grades,  under  which  energetic 
witrlv  was  (lone;  so  nmeh  so  that  before  the  following 
winter,  which  was  excessively  dry,  the  central  parts  ot 
the  town  might  be  regarded  as  j)ractically  graded  and 
planked,  a  portion  being  ])rovided  with  sewers.*'  With 
tlm  rapid  construction  of  saw-mills  on  the  coast,  sup- 
jileiiiented  by  the  large  importation  of  lumber  fr«)m 
( )i('gon,  tliis  article  became  so  abundant  and  cheap  as 
to  restrict  to  small  proportions  the  use  of  stone  ma- 
teiial  for  streets. 

In  the  adoption  of  grades  the  local  government  had 
been  hasty;  for  three  years  later  a  new  system  had  to 
b(j  a(lo[tted,  jMirtly  to  conform  to  the  gradual  exten- 
sion of  the   city  into   the   bay.     This  involved    the 

*''J'(ii:  Xcwii,  of  May  9,  ISoO,  coinplaina  that  Kearny  at  is  left  to  darkness. 
Lit.'lit-i  Were  not  iiitHxlucutl  till  the  spring  of  lii.")!.  .V.  /•'.  Dindory,  1852,  18. 

'"  MiintLjoiiiery,  Kearny,  and  Jhipont  sts,  from  Broadway  to  Sacramento, 
an.l  tviii  to  California  st,  were  so  far  to  reoeivo  sewers.  Tho  grading  and 
j.l  iiikiiii,'  extendf^l  in  IS.VJ  from  the  junclion  of  Battery  and  Market  sts  tliag- 
o  lally  to  Siieraniento  ami  Ihifiimt  sts,  and  from  Dupont  aail  Broailway  to  tiie 
li.iy,  covering  nearly  all  the  inturniediate  district,  except  tho  land  portion  of 
]i.ii  iilwiij- and  I'aeilie.  See  Barker's  plan  in  S.  F.  Direrlnry  of  18.")li.  The 
S.  /'.  AiiiiiLi,  'J'.di,  leaves  a  wrong  imj)ressioii  of  progreas  hy  tho  beginning  of 
Niiv.  1S.")U,  hy  stating  that  these  iniproveiiicnts  wire  now  heiiig  execnted 
wiiliiii  llie  section  enil)raced  between  tiie  diagonal  line  running  from  Mai'ket 
a.icl  Hitfery  to  Stockton  and  Clay  sts  oil  the  south,  and  the  lino  stretching 
frmii  huimnt  and  liroadway  straiglit  to  the  bay,  besides  odd  sections  on  the 
iiiiiili-wf.-it  to  Taylor  st,  a.id  northwaril  about  Ohio,  Water,  and  Francisco  sts. 
>vr.S.  F.  Jlindil,  June  2S,  July  31,  Oct.  2t),  isr.0;  AUa  Cal.,  Dec.  21,  1850, 
iiiid  other  numbiTs.  La  Motte,  Stitt.,  MS.,  1-2,  did  some  grading.  Ij'irkin's 
J)'<:,  vi.  21'.»;  Cal.  Courier,  Sept.  3,  U,  21,  27,  Dec.  2,  5,  18r)0;  i>.  F  Paui/Hm', 
Aiiu'.  Ill,  Sept.  t),  9,  Oct.  10,  23,  18.J0.  There  was  a  bridge  over  tho  l-.igoou 
at  .laekson  and  Kearny  sts,  observe?.  P(ir.  Xews,  Dec.  20,  1849,  June  5,  18-0, 
wliiise  editor  boasts  that  no  city  in  the  union  '  presents  a  greater  extent  of 
pluiked  streets.  Over  40,000  feec,  or  above  7J  miles  of  streets  have  been 
gni'ied;  19,800  feet  have  been  planked;'  and  more  planking  contracted  for 
Tlie  city  paid  one  third  of  the  expense,  levyiu'j  for  tlie  remainder  on  tlie 
jjiiilierty  facing  tlie  streets  concerned.  The  Hrst  sidewiilk,  of  stringers  and 
Imiel. staves,  was  lai<l  on  the  south  side  of  Clay  st  between  Montgomery  and 
K  iruy,  .says  Williams,  SUU.,  MS.,  4-3.  King  of  VViliiaui  laid  the  first 
brak  sidewalk.  CaL  Courier,  July  23,  1850. 


200 


RAN  FRANCISCO. 


i;  >■ 


I      I 


If 


lifting  of  entire  blocks  of  heavy  brick  houses  in  tlio 
business  centre,  and  ul&cv/here  to  eUiborate  cuttin«jf  and 
fiUini^  with  substructure  and  inconvenient  ap|)roac'hcs, 
Tlie  expense  of  the  work  was  absohitely  appalling;  the 
more  so  as  much  of  it  had  been  needless,  and  the  re- 
sult on  the  whole  miserably  inadequate  and  disfigur- 
ing.*^ 

In  San  Francisco  was  much  bad  planning.*"  Viogct's 
pencillings  were  witiiout  much  regard  for  configura- 
tion, or  for  the  pathways  outlined  hy  nature  and  early 
trafficking  toward  the  presidio  and  mission.  O'Far- 
rell's  later  extension  was  no  better.*^'  Both  rejoctrd 
the  old-fashioned  adaptation  to  locality,  with  terruced 
slopes  suited  to  the  site.  Terraces  and  winding  as- 
cents would  have  rendered  available  and  fashioiiui)le 
many  of  the  slopes  which  for  lack  of  such  .ipproaclies 
were  abandoned  to  rookeries  or  left  tenantless.  IMoro- 
over,  whih"  selecting  and  holding  obstinately  to  the 
bare  rigidity  of  right  angles  they  distorted  the  plan 
from  the  beginning.  The  two  proposed  main  str<x'ts, 
instead  of  beinij  made  i>reater  avenues  for  traffic  and 
dominant  factors  in  the  extension  of  the  city  by  stretch- 
ing them  between  Telegraph  and  Russian  hills  to  the 

■'*'  The  new  grailo,  prepared  lij'  M.  Hoaillcy  and  W.  1'.  Huiiii)lnTys,  was 
ad()i)ted  on  Aug.  li(i,  1850,  and  altlunigh  afterward  modified,  involved  luMvy 
cost  l)y  raising  former  levels  aa  mueh  as  live  feet,  especially  on  business  strcits 
wiiere  l)riek  buildings  hatl  been  erected.  Here  in  lower  lying  parts  eliaiiges 
were  imperative.  Nearly  I, (MX)  brick  buildings  have  been  raised,  some  of  huge 
extent.  On  hill  sites  greater  latitude  was  allowed.  Tiie  reiiuireriieiit  of  tlio 
plan  for  vertical  cuts  of  '200  feet  into  Telegrapli  hill  at  tiio  intersection  of 
Montgomery  and  Kearny  with  (Ircenwieh  and  Filbert,  and  of  eorr<!siioiiiliiig 
depths  elsewhere,  could  not  bo  entertained,  for  the  cost  would  liave  been  ui 
Bonii!  cases  50  times  nioro  than  the  vahu)  of  tlie  lots.  Elsewhere  cuttings  of 
over  50  feet  were  frequently  adopted,  altliough  not  always,  enforced.  'I'liu 
demand  for  ballast  and  tilling  material  tended  to  obviate  the  main  diliiculty — 
the  expense — iia  in  the  ease  of  Telegraph  hill.  With  aid  of  the  steam-exca- 
vator, or  paddy,  as  this  supplanter  of  Irish  labor  has  l)een  dubl>ed,  wiiicli 
could  swing  round  witli  a  hogshead  of  sand  at  every  scoop,  a  truck  ear  c(Hilcl 
l)e  iillotl  in  a,  few  minutes  from  most  of  tlie  hills.  It  Jias  been  estimated  thiit 
an  average  of  nine  feet  of  cutting  and  tilling  has  been  done  upon  ;i,00()  -icics 
of  tlie  San  Francisco  site,  implying  the  transfer  of  nearly  '2lJ,000,(KM)  ciiliio 
yanls  of  sand. 

"'The  plea  that  a  large  city  was  not  thought  of  in  18.'19  is  valid  only  tn  a 
certain  extent. 

'"'The  confonnation  to  the  change  made  was  largely  undertaken  duiiiij^ 
the  winter  1849-50.  WilUainii'  Slut.,  MS.,  ',i.  For  surveys  and  defects,  sec  my 
preceding  vol.  v. 


STRAINED  EFFORTS. 


201 


ihon  promising  expanse  of  North  Beach,  and  so  forni- 
iiiL>'  a  rectwiglo  to  the  southern  main,  Alarket  street, 
tlicy  were  oircumserihed,  and  alk)\vod  to  terminate 
jiiiulcssly  in  tlie  impassable  Telegraph  hill.  This  pri- 
iiiirv  error,  whose  remedy  was  too  late  attemi)ted  in  the 
costly  opening  of  Mont<*omery  avenue,  had  a  marked 
ciKct  on  the  eity  in  distributing  its  business  and  so- 
'•iiil  centres,  in  encroaching  upon  the  rights  and  eom- 
ioits  of  property  owners,  and  in  the  lavisli  .squandering 
(if  Uiillions.  Then,  again,  the  streets  were  niad(i  too 
narrow,  resulting  in  the  decadence  of  many  otherwise 
n(l\antageous  quarters,  while  some  were  alti'red 
only  at  an  innnensc  outlay  for  wideninjjf.  Add  to  this 
such  abnormities  as  alternating  huge  ditches  and  em- 
bankments with  lines  of  houses  left  perched  at  vary- 
ing altitudes  upon  the  brow  of  cliffs,  sustained  by 
unsightly  props,  and  accessible  only  by  dizzy  stair- 
A\  ays.  True,  the  extension  into  the  bay  in  a  measure 
rccjuired  the  levelling  of  hills,  and  so  reduced  the  ab- 
surdity; on  the  other  hand,  this  advance  into  the 
waters  rendered  worse  a  defective  drainaijfc  svstem. 
so  much  so  that,  notwithstanding  the  change  of  levels, 
the  health  and  convenience  of  the  city  would  be  seri- 
ously endangered  but  for  the  ruling  wx»st  winds.  This 
remedy,  however,  is  nearly  as  bad  as  the  disease,  in 
the  way  of  comfort  at  least. 


51 


Tlie  errors  and  mishaps  connected  with  San  Fran- 
cisct)  are  greatly  due  to  haste  and  overdoing.  Oiie 
liair  of  the  activity  would  have  accomplished  twice  the 
result.  Fortunes  were  spent  in  building  hastily  and 
inclHciently;  fseas  were  scoured  for  bargains  when 
there  were   better   ones   at   home;   the   Sierra   was 

■''  Scvoral  writers  have  commented  oa  different  features  of  tlie  plan,  which 
riiiyi  T  Ki'dwd,  Six  MontJix,  '2.'{,  teriiin  'a  nioniiiiu'iit  of  the  folly.  .  to  iniprovo 
iMliiral  at'L'iiery.'  Hiilmer,  Haniltlc,  14r)-7,  aid  Upton,  in  Ortrlmiil  Mn.,  ii. 
1^)1,  join  with  others  in  eouiLiiinip;.^  the  disregard  for  natural  features.  In 
till'  AinmlsS.  /''.,  1(>0-1,  was  placed  a  protest  against  the  iiionotoiiy  of  the 
Hi|iiai'i',  and  the  lack  of  piihlie  parks  ami  gardens.  The  inequality  of  stretits 
Ma-'  till'  iiKire  striking  when  it  is  seen  that  llie  central  streets,  f^rom  cast  to  west, 
Wi  II'  ,iiily  (JO  feet  wide,  while  those  soutli  of  Market,  a  comparative  suhurh, 
V-i  I'll  nvir  60  feet,  with  variations  in  other  (juarters. 


202 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


beaten  for  gold  which  flowed  of  its  own  accord  to  the 
door  of  the  steady  trader ;  a  pittance  set  aside  for  hind 
would  have  made  rich  the  defeated  wrestler  with  for- 
tune. Anything,  however,  but  to  quietly  wait ;  wealth 
must  be  obtained,  and  now,  and  that  by  rushing 
hither  and  thither  in  search  of  it,  by  scheming,  strug- 
gling, and  if  needs  be  dying  for  it. 

One  bitter  fruit  of  the  improvident  haste  of  the 
city-builders  was  early  forthcoming  in  a  series  of  dis- 
astrous conflagrations,  which  stamped  San  Francisco 
as  one  of  the  most  combustible  of  cities,  the  houses 
being  as  inflammable  as  the  temper  of  the  inhabi- 
tants.''^ 


!:i    ■': 


5\r 


m 


^^The  first  of  the  series  took  place  early  on  Christmas  eve,  1849,  after  one 
of  tliosi!  nights  of  revelry  characterizing  the  Hush  days.  It  started  in  Dtnii- 
Svn's  Exchange,  in  the  midst  of  tlie  gambling  district,  on  the  east  side  of  tlie 
plaza,  next  to  tlie  Ptarker  house,  the  tlames  heing  observed  about  G  a.  m.,  Dec. 
24tii.  Premonitory  warnings  had  been  given  iu  the  burning  of  tlie  Sliaili-s 
hotel  in  Jan.  184!),  and  the  ship  PhiUulilphhi  in  June,  as  she  was  about  to 
sail.  S.  F.  Directory,  1852,  10.  Although  the  weather  was  calm,  the  llaiiuji 
spread  to  the  rear  and  sides  among  the  tin<ler  walls  that  tilled  the  block,  till 
the  greater  part  of  it  presented  a  mass  of  llame.  So  scorching  was  the  heat 
that  houses  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  street,  and  even  beyond,  threatened  to 
ignite.  Fortunately  tlie  idea  occurred  to  cover  them  with  blankets,  wliicli 
were  kept  freely  saturated.  One  merchant  paid  one  dollar  a  bucket  for  water 
to  this  end;  others  bespattered  their  walls  with  mud.  Conspicuous  anioiii; 
the  tire  fighters  was  David  Brodorick,  a  New  York  fireman  now  risinji  to 
political  prominence.  Buckets  and  blankets  might  have  availed  little,  how- 
ever, but  for  the  prompt  order  to  pull  down  and  blowup  a  line  of  houses,  ami 
BO  cut  otT  fooil  for  the  fiames.  The  greater  part  of  the  block  between  Wash- 
ington and  Clay  streets  and  Kearny  and  Montgomery  streets  was  destroyoil, 
involving  the  loss  of  a  million  and  a  quarter  of  dollars.  Stanley' k  ^jiecr/i.  IS.')4. 
Nearly  o;)  houses  fell,  all  save  a  fringe  on  Clay  and  Montgomery  sts,  tlitii 
perhaps  the  most  important  block  in  town.  Bayard  Taylor,  who  witnesM-l 
the  tire,  gives  a  detailed  account  in  Eldoraiio,  ii.  71-4.  Uiiliam,  Kote-i,  '-'(iii, 
and  Neall,  V'nj.,  MS.,  14-15,  add  some  incidents;  and  Pnc.  Neirs,  Dec.  25  'Jll, 
184'.t,  Jan.  1,  1850,  supplies  among  the  journals  some  graphic  versions.  Tlio 
Eldorado,  Parker  house,  Denison's  Exchange,  U.  S.  cotl'ee  liou.se,  were  among 
the  noted  resorts  swept  away.  I'olyiieniun,  vi.  142;  llitiit's  M(tij.,  xxxi.  111. 
AVhile  the  fire  was  still  smouldering,  its  victims  could  be  seen  busily  planning 
for  new  1  uildings.  Within  a  few  days  many  of  the  destroyed  resorts  ha  i 
been  replaced  with  structures  better  than  their  predecessors.  Toward  tlie 
end  of  Jan.  1850,  not  a  vestige  reniaine<l  of  the  fire.  Cornwall  contracted  to 
raise  the  Exchange  within  15  day.s,  or  forfeit  $500  for  every  day  in  excess  ct 
the  term.     He  succeeded.    Willi(iiii.i'  Itec,  !MS.,  13. 

The  second  great  fire  broke  out  on  May  4,  1850,  close  to  the  former 
starting  point,  and  swept  away  within  seven  hours  the  three  blocks  betwrcii 
Montgomery  and  Dupout  sts,  bounded  by  Jackson  and  Clay  sts  and  the  north 
and  east  sides  of  Portsmouth  square,  consuming  300  houses  and  other  prcip- 
erty,  to  the  value  of  over  f(mr  millions.  Stanlev,  Six  .rh,  1854,  says  S<4,2.")(l.tHH); 

■  rs  have  §3,000,000  to  .<H,000,000;  Piic.  A'e'ws,  May  4,  15,  185(),  $5,(KK).0ii(l. 


otl 
On 


lifj  was  lost.  Larkiiia  Doc.,  vii.  20(1.     Dubois'  bank  and  Burgoyne  <.t  Cm.  s 


GREAT  CONFLAGRATIONS. 


aos 


Such   a  succession   of  disasters   might  well    have 
crushed  any  community,  and  croakers  were  not  want- 

lidiiso  alone  escaped  in  the  Clay-st  block;  and  northward  only  a  row  fringing 
Jiickaon  above  Montgomery  st.  5.  F.  Directory,  185*2,  15.  The  tlaines  were 
stayed,  especially  on  Dupont  at,  by  the  voluntary  tearing  down  of  many  build- 
ings. S.  F.  Aiimdt,  274,  with  diagram.  Details  in  Pac.  Xiict,  May  4-i),  1850; 
Al/'i  Cnl,  May  27,  June  6,  1850.  The  conduct  of  certain  criminals  confirmed 
tlif  belief  in  incendiarism,  and  a  reward  of  §5,000  led  to  several  arrests,  but 
nothing  could  bo  proved.  The  fire  started  at  4  A.  M.,  on  May  4th,  in  the  U. 
S.  Exchange,  a  rickety  gambling-place.  In  S.  F.  Hvnild,  June  15,  1850,  it  is 
stilted  that  200  houses  were  burned,  with  a  loss  of  three  millinns.  As  on 
tliu  previous  o  'oasion,  thousands  of  curious  spectators  gatliered  to  the  sountl 
of  tlie  tire  bells  to  add  their  clamor  to  the  uproar.  Appeals  to  the  crowd  for 
aid  met  M'itli  no  liearty  response,  unless  attended  by  money,  as  Taylor,  Elili- 
vd'/it,  75,  observed  in  Dec.  1849.  A  number  were  engaged  at  §3  an  hour;  §(iO 
was  paid  for  a  cartload  of  water.  S/unv'ii  Golden  Dreitnig,  179.  A  crowd  of 
men  M'lio  claimed  to  have  assisted  at  the  tire  raised  almost  a  riot  on  being  re- 
fused compensation  by  the  city  council.  This  august  body  was  profoundly 
niDved,  and  ordinances  were  passed  obliging  all,  under  penalty,  to  render  ail 
oil  s>ich  occiisions  when  called  upon.  Precauti(uiary  measures  were  also 
ml(il)ted,  and  impulse  was  given  to  the  development  of  tlie  fire  department 
started  after  tlie  first  calamity — such  as  digging  wells,  forming  reservoirs, 
oiiK'ring  every  householder  to  keep  six  buckets  of  water  prepared  for  emer- 
j;iiieies,  and  tlie  like.  ANiiub  S.  F.,  270.  It  ia  claimed  that  in  ten  days  more 
tliaii  lialf  the  burned  district  was  rebuilt. 

While  the  rebuilding  of  tlie  burned  district  was  still  in  progress,  on  June 
]4th.  tlie  alarm  sounded  once  more  near  the  old  point  of  ignition,  from  the 
iSaeraiiiento  house  on  the  east  siilo  of  Kearny  st,  between  Claj'  and  Sacra- 
iiH'iito.  Cause,  a  defective  stove-pipe,  S.  F.  Director;),  1852,  Hi;  in  the 
kitchen,  adds  another,  which  the  Aniiah  c'.  /'.,  277,  ascribes  to  a  baker's 
ehiiimey  in  the  rear  of  the  Merchants'  hotel.  The  fire  started  just  before 
8  A.  M.  Within  a  few  hours  the  district  between  Clay  and  California  sts, 
from  Kearny  st  to  the  water-front,  lay  almost  entirely  in  aslies,  causing  a 
lo.-.s  of  over  three  million  dollars.  Stanley,  as  above,  has  ^'1,500,01)0;  the 
AiiiiaU  nearly  85,000,000;  the  Directory  §3,000,000,  embracing  3tH)  houses. 
Jus  King  of  William  s  bank  was  torn  down;  many  ships  were  in  danger.  ( '(d. 
('(iiu-'iir,  July  10,  1850,  etc.  This  lire  led  to  the  erection  of  more  substantial 
biiiltliiigs  of  brick,  and  some  stone. 

The  fourth  great  contlagration,  on  September  17,  1850,  started  on  Jack- 
son street,  and  ravaged  tiie  greater  part  of  tlie  blocks  between  Ihipoiit  and 
Montgomery  sts  embraced  by  Washington  and  Pacitie  sts.  Tlie  section  w:is 
aliiiut  equal  to  the  preceding,  liut  covered  mostly  by  one-story  wooden 
houses,  so  that  the  loss  did  not  exceed  lialf  a  million  dollars — the  Anii'ilx»\\yB 
lift  Ween  one  quarter  and  one  half  million;  yet  Stanley  has  one  million;  150 
houses,  and  nearly  half  a  million,  according  to  S.  F.  Directory,  1852,  17 
Dit.iils  in  5.  /'.  Picayune,  S.  F.  llendd,  and  Cid.  Courier,  of  Sept  18,  1850, 
ete.  In  estimating  values  it  must  be  considered  that  after  1849  material, 
lahor,  and  method  became  cheaper  and  more  ellective  year  by  year,  so  that 
the  cost  of  replacing  ditl'ered  greatly  from  the  original  outlay.  A  scanty 
v.atcr  supply  and  the  lack  of  a  ilireeting  head  hampered  the  praiseworthy 
I'tiorts  of  the  fire  companies.  The  fire  began  at  4  A.  M.  in  the  Philadelphia 
house,  on  the  north  side  of  Jackson  st,  between  Ihipont  and  Kearny,  near 
^\  ashington  market.  On  October  31st  a  blaze  on  Clay-st  hill  consumed  the 
City  hospital,  owned  by  Dr  Peter  Smith,  and  aii  adjoining  building,  where 
the  tire  began;  loss,  a  quarter  of  a  million;  supposed  incendiarism.  It  was 
marked  by  severe  injury  to  several  of  the  hospital  iuniates,  before  they  could 
ho  rescued.  Cid.  Cmirier,  Oct.  31,  1850.  Less  extensive  but  twice  as  costly 
was  the  blaze  of  Dec.  14th,  on  Sacramento  street,  which  consumed  several 


904 


SAN  FIIANCISCO. 
Burnt  District  of  May  1851. 


The  jagged  line  below  MontRoinery  nt  indicates  the  extent  of  filled  Kromid 
beyond  the  iiiiturul  shore  line.  Tlie  larjrer  portions  even  of  tlie  central  blocks  wito 
covered  by  wooden  biiildiiiirs.  The  following  list,  referred  to  the  pliin  l)y  iiiiiii- 
bers,  embraces  nearly  all  llie  notable  exceptions,  occnpied  by  a  inn'e  proportion  nf 
tlie  leading  Imsiness  firms.  The  fire  conMinied  also  most  of  tl;e  streets  beyond  the 
water  line,  wliich,  being  really  wharves  on  piling,  burned  readily 


1.    City  Hotel,  brick  building 
'i.    Fitzgerald,  Bausch,  Brewster,  brick 
b. 

3.  Capt.  Folsom,  Iron  building,  adjoin- 

ing brick  b.  burned. 

4.  Custom-house,  brick  b. 

.").  Kising  t  Casili,  brick  and  iron, 
(i.  Cramer,  Kambuch,  &  Co.,  brick. 
7      K.  Wells  it  Co.   banker,  brick 

8.  'Ireiidwell  &  Co  ,  brick. 

9.  J.  llahn  &Co.   brick. 

10.  Standard  oflice,  brick 

11.  Jolinson  &  Calfield,  wooden  b.,  ad- 

joining brick  b  burned 

12.  Mofi'att  s  Laboratory  brick, 
in.    Quarterma.>-ter's  othce,  brick. 

14.  Gildermeister   Do  Fremery,  &   Co. 

brick 

15.  U    S.   Asi;ayer'8  office.  Dodge's  Ex- 

press, F  Argcnti  banker,  brick 

16.  B  Davidson,  banker  brick. 
17     Veils  &.  Co  ,  bankers,  brick, 

18.  California  Exchange,  brick. 

19.  Union  Hotel  brick 

20.  El  Dorado  gambling-place,  brick. 

21  Tallant  &  Wilde   bankers,  I'age,  Ba- 

con, &  Co    bankers,  brick. 

22  Gregory's  Express,  brick. 

23  Delmonico's,  brick,  and  three  adjoin- 

ing brick  b  burned 
24.    Bnrgoyne  it  Co.  bankers,  brick. 
25     The  Verandah  re.sort,  brick. 
26.    Ev   Picayune,  Journal,  brick. 
27  28     Brick  buildings. 
29.    Markwald,  Caspari,  4  Co.,  wooden  b. 

Besides  the  above,  a  bcure  and  more  o 


30.  Berenhardt,  Jacoby,  &  Co.,  Ilellman 

&  Bros,  wooden  b. 

31.  Pioche  Bayenjue,  brick   and    iron, 

several  iron  b.  in  rear. 

32.  Bonded  warehouse.  Iron. 

.S.S  Starkey.  Janion,  &  Co.,  h'k  and  imn. 

34.  I.  Naylor,  Co<ike  Bros,  brick. 

35.  Ilelman  &.  Bro.,  brick. 

36  Starr  &  Jlinturn,  and  others,  2  iron 

and  2  brick  b. 

37  Hastier,  Baines,  &  Co.,  brick. 
38.  Jones'  Hotel,  wooden. 

■19  P  M.  Steam  Navig.  Co.,  brick. 

40.  W  Gibb  brick. 

41.  GodefTroy,  Sillem,  &  Co.,  brick. 
42  Bonded  warehouse,  iron. 

43.  Herald  office,  brick. 

44  Courier  oflice,  brick. 

45  Niantic,'  store  ship. 

46  Baldwin's  Bank,  iron. 

47  J  B.  Bidleman,  brick. 
48.  Cronlse  &  Bertelot,  Iron. 

ii  Larco  A  Co.,  brick,  iron  adjoining. 

.50  Huerlin  &  Helcher,  brick. 

51.  Balance  oflice,  brick. 

52.  Dewitt  it  Harrison,  brick. 

53  Macondray  &  Co.,  brick.  Iron,  and 

wood. 

54  Appraiser's  office,  iron. 

55  Dunker  and  others,  iron. 
66  'Apollo,'  store  sliip. 

57  'Gen.  Harrison,  store  ship. 

58.  Georgean,' store  ship 

59  Cross  it  Cr).   iron. 

tiO  Bonded  stores,  iron. 
f  brick  and  iron  buildings  were  destroyed. 


ACTIVE  nEBUILDlNO. 


u\^  to  predict  the  doom  of  tlie  city.  Street  preachers 
pnnliiinied  the  visitation  to  be  a  divine  vengeance  upon 

in  III  biiil'lings  with  valuable  merchandiso.  It  was  below  Montgomery  st; 
jii-.s  aliiiut  uiic  million  This  aliook  the  faith  in  corrugated  iron  walU.  De- 
tiils  in  /'<tr.  X>vm,  aiitl  5.  F.  Ptcdi/mir,  of  Dec  15-16.  1850 

Tliiii  followeil  an  interval  cf  tortunate  exemption,  antl  then  with  acctimn- 
latf.l  fury  on  the  anniversary  of  the  preceding  largest  conflagration,  the  cul- 
iMWiating  di.-ijuster  burst  upon  the  city  .Stiirted  undoubtedly  by  incendiaries, 
tlie  lire  broke  out  late  on  Alay  3,  1851,  on  tlie  south  side  of  the  pbiza,  in  tlu» 
Hphi'l-tery  ami  paint  establishment  of  Baker  au<l  Messerve,  just  alM>ve  Bry- 
ant's liotel,  at  11  P  M.,  say  most  accounts;  but  Sohenek,  Vij.,  MS.,  45,  has 
lt:'_1t;  yet  it  is  called  the  fire  of  May  4th,  partly  because  most  of  the  destruc- 
tinu  was  then  consummated.  One  of  the  gang  hciaded  by  Jack  Kdwards,'  was 
tiic  cause  of  it,  says  Sehenok.  Aided  by  a  strong  north-west  breeze,  it  leai>ed 
aci'i>.s.s  Keaniy  st  upon  the  oft-ravaged  blocks,  the  flames  chasing  one  another, 
tii-.-t  soutli-eastward,  then,  with  the  sliifting  wind,  turning  north  and  east. 
Tile  spaces  Under  the  planking  of  the  streets  and  sidewalks  acted  as  funnels, 
vliicli,  sucking  in  the  Haines,  carried  them  to  sections  seemingly  secure,  there 
til  titartle  tlie  unsuspecting  occupants  with  a  sudden  outbreak  all  aU-g  the 
K'.irfai-e.  Rising  aloft,  the  whirling  volumes  seized  upon  either  side,  shrivi-l- 
liii_'  tlie  frame  houses,  and  crumbling  with  their  intense  heat  the  stout  wallj 
of  supposed  fire-proiif  structures,  crushing  all  within  and  without.  Tlie  iron 
siiutters,  ere  falling  to  melt  in  the  furnace,  expanded  within  the  heat,  cutting 
otf  escape,  and  roasting  alive  some  of  the  inmates.  Six  men  who  had  ocju- 
pit'd  the  building  of  Taaffe  and  McCahill,  at  the  corner  of  Sacramento  and 
Slntitgoinery,  were  lost;  12  others,  fire  fighters  in  Naglee's  building,  nar- 
niwly  eseaiMjd;  3  were  crushed  by  one  falling  wall;  and  how  many  more  werj 
kill'd  and  injured  no  one  can  say.  The  fire  companies  worked  well,  but 
tluir  tiny  streams  of  water  were  transfornted  into  powerless  vapor.  More 
uli.Ltual  than  water  was  the  pulling  down  and  blowing  up  of  buildings;  luit 
tills  proved  effectual  only  in  certain  directions.  Voluntary  destruction  went 
hand  in  hand  with  the  inner  devastation;  the  boom  of  explosion  niiii<.ding 
witli  the  cracking  of  timber,  the  crash  of  tumbling  walls,  and  the  dull  dj- 
ton  ition  from  falling  roofs.  A  momentary  darkening,  then  a  gush  of  scintil- 
lating sparks,  followed  by  fiery  columns,  which  still  rose,  while  the  canopy 
(It  smoke  sent  their  retlection  for  a  hundred  miles  arounil,  even  to  Monterey. 
It  IS  related  that  the  brilliant  illumination  in  the  moonless  night  attracted 
tl.M-ks  of  brant  from  the  marshes,  which,  soaring  to  and  fro  alwve  the  flames, 
{.IistL-ned  like  specks  of  burnished  gold.  Helper's  Land  of  GoUl,  144.  Finally, 
after  ten  hours  the  flames  abated,  weakened  by  lack  of  ready  materials, 
and  cheeked  on  one  side  by  the  waters  of  the  bay,  where  the  wharves,  broken 
into  big  gaps,  interposed  a  shielding  chasm  for  the  shipping.  Of  the  great 
city  IK  idling  remained  save  sparsely  settled  outskirts.  AH  the  business  ilis- 
trict  between  Pine  and  Pacific  sts,  from  Kearny  to  Battery,  on  the  water, 
iireseiiti  d  a  mass  of  ruins  wherein  only  a  few  isolated  houses  still  reared  their 
blister'  d  walls,  liesides  small  sections  at  each  of  its  four  comers.  Westward 
and  north-Cc-uitward  additional  inrcvids  had  tieen  made,  extending  the  devas- 
tation altogether  over  22  blocks,  not  counting  sections  formed  by  alleys,  ami 
of  these  the  greater  number  were  utterly  ravaged,  as  shown  in  the  anuexetl 
plan.  The  numlier  of  destroyed  houses  has  been  variously  estimated  at  frotn 
over  1,0<)0  to  nearly  2,000,  involving  a  loss  of  near.y  twelve  million  dollars, 
a  sum  Lirger  than  that  for  all  the  preceding  great  fires  combine<L  Only  17 
of  the  attacked  buildings  were  saveil,  while  more  than  twice  that  number  of 
so-called  fire-proof  edifices  succumbed.  Schenck,  Vig.,  MS.,  44-8,  who  hail 
Bonie  painful  experiences  during  the  fire,  places  their  numlier  at  68,  including 
tlie  only  two  insured  buildings,  one,  No.  41  on  plan,  a  single  story,  with  22- 
in 'h  brick  walls,  earth-covered,  anil  having  heavy  iron  shutters.  The  long 
application  ior  iiuurance  ou  this  building  was  granted  at  Uarlem,  unknown  to 


doft 


SAN  FRANCISCO 


I 


the  godless  revellers  and  gamblers  of  this  second 
Sodom;  and  rival  towns  declared  a  situation  so  ex- 
posed to  constant  wmds  could  never  be  secure  or 
desirable  But  it  is  not  easy  to  uproot  a  metropolis 
once  started;  and  Californians  t  ere  not  the  men  to 
despair  Many  of  them  had  been  several  times  stricken, 
losing  their  every  dollar ;  but  each  time  they  rallied 
and  renewed  the  fight.  Reading  a  lesson  in  tlic 
blow,  they  resolved  to  take  greater  precautions,  and 
wliile  frail  shelter ^^  had  temporarily  to  be  erected, 
owing  to  the  pressure  of  business  and  the  demand  for 
labor  and  material,  it  was  soon  replaced  by  substantial 
walls  which  should  offer  a  check  to  future  fires.  If 
so  many  buildings  supposed  to  be  fire-proof  had  fallen, 
it  was  greatly  owing  to  their  being  surrounded  by 
combustible  houses.     This  was  remedied  by  the  grad- 


t!i3  owners,  about  the  time  of  its  destruction.  The  policy  for  the  other  house, 
No.  14  of  phm,  came  at  the  same  time.  Insurance  companies  had  not  yet 
opened  here.  The  Jenny  Lind  theatre  fell.  The  principal  houses  ad  repo''  oil 
in  lUa  Cut.,  the  onlyunburned  newspaper,  were  J.  B.  Bidleman,  §200,000;  tl. 
Mickle  &  Co.,  $200,000;  Dall,  Austin,  &  Co.,  $150,000;  Simonslield,  Bach.  i<. 
Co.,  $loO,lX)0;  Starkey  Brothers,  $150,000;  De  Boom,  Vigneaux,  &  Co.,  $147,- 
090;  Oppenneimer,  Hirsch,  &  Co.,  $130,000;  Kelsey,  Smith,  &  Risley,  $rj."i,- 
OJD;  Moore,  Tichenor,  &  Co.,  $120,000;  Treadwell  &  Co.,  $85,000;  Tlioinu.s 
Maguire,  $80,000;  Adclsdorfer  &  Neustodter,  $80,000;  Fredenburg  &  Mo^os, 
$75,Jl)J;  John  Cowell,  $70,000;  J.  L.  Folsom,  $05,000;  W.  D.  M.  Howard, 
$oJ,J00;  Baron  Terlow,  $00,000;  Beck  &  Palmer,  $55,000;  J.  &  C.  Or;;m, 
$55,003;  Cross,  Hobson,  &  Co.,  $55,000;  Haight  &  Wadsworth,  $55,000;  W. 
O.  Bokee,  $50,000;  Lazard  Freres,  $50,000;  Annan,  Lord,  &  Co.,  $50.(»0.); 
Hjizog  &  Rhine,  $50,000;  Nichols,  Pierce,  &  Co.,  $50,000;  S.  Martin  &  (  o., 
$50,000.  In  Amalx  S.  F.,  331,  it  is  estimated  that  from  1,  >00  to  2.OJ0 
houies  were  ruined,  extending  over  18  entire  squares,  with  portions  of  five 
or  six  more,  or  three  fourths  of  a  mile  from  north  to  south,  and  one  third  of 
a  mile  east  to  west;  damage  moderately  estimated  at  $10,000,000  to  $12,0>)0,- 
000.  S.  F.  Director}/,  1852,  18-19,  assumes  the  loss  at  from  $7,000,000  to  )i]'2,- 
000,000;  Stanley,  Speech,  1854,  gives  the  latter  figure.  Dewitt  and  Harri- 
son saved  their  building,  g  of  plan,  by  pouring  out  83,000  gallons  of  viue-ar. 
Srhenck's  Viy.,  MS.,  48.  Rescued  effects  were  largely  sent  on  board  siiijis 
for  storage;  shelter  in  the  outskirts  was  costly.  Gamiss,  Early  Days,  MS., 
19,  paid  $150  for  the  use  of  a  tent  for  10  days,  and  more  was  offered.  Kuh- 
ber  gangs  carried  off  large  quantities  of  goods,  a  portion  to  Coat  liilaud, 
whence  they  were  recovered,  but  effects  to  the  value  of  $150,000  or  $200,l)i)0 
are  supposed  to  have  been  carried  away  on  a  bark  which  had  lain  off  the 
island.  A  govt  vessel  made  a  fruitless  pursuit.  In  Larlin's  Doc,  vii.  287  f>, 
are  other  details.  The  store-ships  Niantic,  Gen  Harrison,  and  Apollo  wcio 
wholly  or  partly  destroyed.  The  offices  of  the  Public,  Balance,  Picayune, 
Standard,  and  Courier  were  burned. 

""Larkin,  Doc.,  vii.  287,  writes  on  May  15th  that  250  small  houses  were 
then  rising,  75  already  with  tenants.  Sansome  st  was  much  improved  by 
tilling. 


FIRE  DEPARTMENT. 


807 


ual  oxclusion  of  unsafe  structures  from  within  desig- 
nated lire-limits,  by  the  improvement  of  the  fire 
(kjiurtnient,  and  other  precautions,  all  of  wliich  com- 
bined to  preserve  the  city  from  similar  wide-spread 
disasters.  One  more  did  come,  to  form  the  sixth 
and  last  in  the  great  fire  series;  but  tliis  occur- 
ring in  the  following  month,  June  1851,  was  due 
partly  to  the  flimsiness  of  the  temporary  buildings, 
and  ]>artly  to  the  lack  of  time  to  establish  preventive 
measures  and  weed  out  incendiary  hordes.  The  rav- 
aged district  extended  between  Clay  and  Broadway 
streets,  nearly  to  Sansome  and  Powell  streets,  cover- 
ing ten  entire  blocks,  and  parts  of  six  more,  with  about 
450  houses,  including  the  city  hall,  and  involving  a 
loss  of  two  and  a  half  million  dollars."  Thus  purified 
by  misfortune,  and  by  the  weeding  out  of  rookeries 
and  much  filth,  the  city  rose  more  beautiful  than  ever 
fioni  its  ashes. ^^  Hereafter  it  was  admirably  guarded 
by  a  fire  department  which  from  a  feeble  beginning  in 
1850  became  one  of  the  most  efficient  organizations 
of  the  kind  in  the  world. ^^ 

•'*SUuilei/'s  Sjx^ech,  1854.  Anmls  S.  F.,  344,  says  $3,000,000;  S.  F.  Dircc- 
ton/,  18.V_>,  19,  over  $2,000,000.  The  fire  started  in  a  ilwelling  on  the  north 
side  111'  Piicitic  street,  below  Powell,  at  about  11  A.  M.,  on  June  22.1.  Tlio 
Jenny  Lind  theatre  fell  again,  together  with  the  city  liospital,  the  old  adobe 
Cii,y  liotel,  the  AlUi  office,  which  had  hitherto  escaped,  the  presbyterian 
clmrcli,  etc.  The  city  hall,  formerly  the  Graham  house,  was  a  four-story 
Wdo.len  building,  on  the  N.  w.  corner  of  Kearny  and  Pacific  sts;  the  chief 
reeoi'ds  were  saved.  Dunbar's  bank  escaped  though  surrounded  by  fire. 
Siii/irivtrn  Rem.,  MS.,  30.  Manager  T.  Maguire  was  burned  out  for  the  sixth 
ti:ne.  S..'veu  lives  were  lost,  three  by  fire,  the  rest  by  tlie  mob  and  police, 
as  robbers  and  incendiaries,  yet  one  was  an  honest  man  assisting  liis  friends 
to  siiAe  property.  The  fire  companies  were  thwarted  by  lack  of  water,  and 
by  the  opposition  of  owners  to  the  pulling  down  of  their  buildings.  AlUi  C'ul., 
Sopt.  21,  1851,  wails  over  the  destruction  of  old  landmarks.  The  progress 
of  fire-proof  buildings  is  shown  in  S.  F.  Directory  of  1852,  16,  whicli  stiites 
t'liit  nearly  all  the  west  side  of  Montgomery  street,  between  Sacramento  and 
Washington,  was  lined  by  them.  Their  value  was  satisfactorily  tested  in 
Niiv.  1S.")2,  when  they  restricted  a  dangerous  fire  on  Merchant  and  t'lay  streets 
to  ;50  wooden  buildings  worth  §100,000.  For  furtlier  details  concerning  the 
great  tires  of  S.  F.,  I  refer  ioS.  J.  Pioneer,  Feb.  1(5,  1878;  Fiu-wWh  MS.,  4;  .J  //- 
mU  S.  /'.,  passim;  5.  F.  Bull.,  Nov.  27,  185G;  Cnl.  Courier,  July  10,  Se[.t.  18, 
1«."););  WilUmns' Pion.  Past.,  41-8;  Tiffmys  Pochet  E.r.  Guide,  124-C;  5.  /'.  Call, 
May  14,  1871;  S.  F.  Alta,  July  1,  1850;  S.  F.  Par.  iVV»w,  May  4,  Dec.  IC, 
185();  Pnlyiieniaii,  vii.  6,  30. 

•'"  As  commemorated  by  the  phoenix  on  its  seal. 

•'"Before  the  fire  of  Dec.  24,  1849,  there  had  been  no  serious  occasion  to 
drive  tlio  absorbed  money -gatherers  of  the  city  to  organized  method  for  protec- 


ii:;j  .1^ 


1 " 

wv.. 

''..': 

i  - 

i       , 

ii 

208 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


The  minins^  excitement,  with  the  consequent  exodus 
of  people,  served  to  abate  but  partially  the  factious 

tiou  ;iyaiust  tire,  and  only  three  niercliiint-s  hatl  tlintiglit  of  introihicing  tire- 
eiiyinus,  which  were,  indeed,  of  little  Viduo  in  an  emergency.    (Starkey,  tliiuiiiii, 
&  (-'o.  owned  one  of  tlioni,  the  Oahii,  which  had  been  nearly  worn  out  liy  loiij^ 
s-.TVii-e  in  Honolulu;  another  waa  a  small  machine  belonging  to  Wm  Vwv, 
intended  for  a  mining  pump.     The  havoc  made  by  the  Hrst  great  fire  rouse  rl 
the  p 'oi'le  to  the  necessity  for  action,  and  assisted  by  e.\])erienced  tireiiH-i 
Iko  1).  V.  ISroderick,  F.  D.  Kohler,  (J.  H.  Hossefroa,  (J.  W.  (iroen,  W.   .M,- 
Kiblien,  Ben.   Ray,  C  W.  Cornell,  J.  A.  Mc(ilynn,  Col  Wason,   Dou-l.i., 
Short,  and  olluirs,  E.  Otia  organized  tlic  Independent  Axe  Company,  tl  e 
municipal  taiithorities  granting  .^800  f<ir  tiie  purchase  of  hooks,  axes,  and  otlicr 
implements.  S.  F.  Miimtvn  Lv-iid.,  1849,  101,  106,  112,  IKi,  Vll-M;  Alt>i  Cat., 
a:i<l  Pdc.  Xrwii,  Jan.  15,   17,  18."0,  etc.     A  hook  and  ladder  company  is  al.  i» 
mentioned,  also  Mazeppa  Fire  Co.,  as  well  as  payments  and  other  acta  by  tli.: 
lire  committee.     In  January  Kohler  was   appointetl  chief  engineer  by  tlui 
council,  at  a  salary  of  $J,0(X),  with  instructions  to  form  a  fire  department,  ti» 
which  end  he  obtained  tlie  three  engines  in  the  city,  and  selected  for  eaih  a 
company,  Empire,  Protection,  and  Eureka.     No  tire  occurrihg  for  some  time, 
the  movement  <leclined  somewhat  under  absorbing  business  pursuits,  somm  h 
so  tliat  the  next  disaster  found  scanty  preparations  to  meet  it,  hose  ]n  lug 
especially  deficient.     After  this  the  appeal  to  the  puldic  received  greater  at- 
tention,   and   in   June    1850  the  fire  department  waa    formally   organized, 
with  the  E:npire  Engine  Company  No.  1,  dating  formally  from  June  4th,  wiih 
1>.  C.  Brodc'rick  as  foreman,  (1.  W.  (Jreen,  assistant,  \V.  McKibl>en,  secretary, 
and  including  F.  1).  Kohler,  C.  W.  Cornell,  J.  A.  McOlynn,   D.  Scannell,  C. 
T.  Borneo,  J.  Donohue,  C.  P.  Diiane,  L.  P.  Bowman,  A.  Cir.  Russ.     It  selected 
'  Onward '  for  a  motto,  and  formed  in  1S57  a  target  eom{)any  of  125  nmskets. 
Company  2  M'as  the  Protection,  succeeded  by  the  Lady  Washington,  aiiil 
8uljse(iuently,  in  18.")'2,  liy  the  Manhattan.     According  to  the.-l/<(i  Oil.  it  wha 
firit  organized  informally  by  Ben.  Ray  in  1849.     Both  of  these  were  eomim.scd 
cliielly  of  New  York  men,  and  represented  the  New  York  element  in  puliti- 
cal  and  other  contests.     Company  3  was  the  Howard,  formed  Juno  14ili  Iiy 
Boston  men  under  guidance  of  F.  E.  R.  Wiiitney,  foreman,  first  chief  of  thi! 
later  paid  department.     It  was  named  in  honor  of  W.  H.  M.  Howard,  win* 
presented  to  it  a  Hunneman  engine,  just  brought  by  his  order,  and  whieli  fdi- 
a  longtime  remained  unsurpassed.     Among  the  members  were  J.  G.  Eaj;aii, 
T.  K.  BattcUe,  <r.  L.  Cook.     Tiiis  was  originally  the  Eureka,  with  Fret's 
toy  engine,  whieli  lost  the  claim  to  No.  1  by  a  few  hours  of  delay  in  organiz- 
ing.    Tiio  fire  of  June  2-d  gave  fresh  impulse  to  organization,  and  on  St  jit. 
Ttli  the  California,  company  4,  was  formed,  at  first  with  an  engine  loaned  Iiy 
Cook  Bros  &  Co.,  soon  replaced  by  a  mate  to  the  Howard.     The  mendu  i-.--, 
chicHy  residents  of  Happy  Valley,  embraced  M.  G.  Leonard,  G.  U.  Shaw , 
W.  N.  Thompson,  G.  T.  Oakos,  G.  Endicott,  C.  Hyatt,  R.  S.  Lamott,  and  (!.  .M. 
Garwood,  foreman.     Company  5  was  the  Knickerbocker,  formed  Oct.  ITtli, 
with  a  small  wheezy  engine  nicknamed  Two-and-adialf  and  Yankee  noodle. 
Foreman  J.  H.  Cutter,  with  J.  Wilson,  C.  E.  Buckingham,  R.  K.  Harris. 
Earlier  than  these  two  were  the  Monumental  6,  7,  8,  which  organized  in 
June  as  independent  companies,  joining  the  department  oidy  in  Sept.,  and  so 
receiving  a  later  number.     It  waa  composed  of  Baltimore  men,  with  a  mix- 
ture of  Philadelphians,  who  sported  three  small  engines,  Mechanical,  Union, 
and  Franklin.     Among  the  members  were  G.  H.  Hossefros,  long  foreman  and 
Bubse<£ucntly  chief,  W.  Divier,  J.  S.  Weathred,  J.  Capprise,  il.  B.  Hamilton, 
W.  H.  Silverthorn,  J.  H.  Ruddock,  R.  H.  Bennett,  W.  L.  Brondey,  an.l  \\ . 
Lippincott.     Soon  after  resigning  No.  8  the  companies  consolidated  into  No. 
G,  ia  1854,  with  an  improved  engme,  foUowed  in  18G1  by  the  first  steam  lin- 
engine  in  the  city.     No.  7  was  filled  by  the  Volunteer,  antl  No.  8  by  the  Pa- 
cific.    Earlier  than  these  two,  iu  1S22,  were  the  Vigilant  and  Crescent,  chietly 


POUTICAL  DISCORD. 


209 


spirit  roused  by  personal  feelings  and  business  ri- 
valry, and  strengthened  by  an  irritating  subordina- 
tion to  military  power.  But  it  fully  revived  with 
the  return  of  population  from  the  mines,  and  in 
December  1848  a  new  council  was  chosen."  The 
result  was  far  from  pleasing  to  the  old  body,  which, 
rallying  its  partisans,  declared  the  election  nullified  by 
illegal  votes,  and  held  another  in  January.^     To  this 


of  New  Orleans  men;  Columbian  and  Pennsylvanian,  of  Philadelplnans,  in- 
L'luiliiig  the  later  Mayor  Alvord.  In  1854-55  followed  the  Young  American 
and  Tiger,  Nos.  18,  14,  the  former  at  the  mission,  the  latter  on  Second  at. 

Ill  early  days,  when  hose  and  water  were  scanty,  the  chief  work  fell  on 
the  liiiok  and  ladder  companies,  of  which  the  department  in  June  1850  counted 
tliroL",  the  St  Francis,  composed  of  E.  V.  Joice,  S.  H.  Ward,  C.  P.  Duane, 
W.  A  Woodruff,  tt.  B.  (iibbs,  B.  G.  Davis,  J.  C  Palmer,  foreman,  and  otherj; 
the  Howard,  succeeded  by  Lafayette,  which  consisted  of  Frenchmen,  with  a 
Parisian  system  and  a  uniform  granted  by  Napoleon;  the  Sansome,  sustained 
chieHy  by  rich  business  nten.  A.  De  Witt,  F.  Mahoney,  C  L.  Case,  E.  A. 
Eliliots,  J.  L.  Van  Bokkelen,  G.  A.  Hudson,  W.  Adrain,  H.  A.  Harrison, 
W.  H.  Hoffman,  W.  (ireene,  F.  A  Bartlett,  II.  L.  Van  Brunt,  were  among  tlie 
iiieml»ers.  Green,  Ebliets,  and  Van  Bokkelen  were  the  first  foremen.  Some 
years  later  hose  companies  were  added,  making  up  the  20  companies  called 
for  by  the  legislative  regulation  of  1851.  The  department  charter  is  dated 
July  1,  1850.  Kolder,  elected  chief  in  Sept.  1850,  w.as  succeeded  in  the  fol- 
lowing year  by  Whitney,  of  the  Baltimore  faction.  He  resigning,  Hossi.'fros  of 
the  I'hiladelphians  held  the  position  till  1853,  when  Duane  entered.  In  May 
1852  a  board  of  firewardens  was  formed.  The  records  of  the  department 
were  lost  in  the  fire  of  Mfiy  1851.  A  benevolent  fund  was  then  lieguu,  which 
by  18.")5  amounted  to  $32,000  and  grew  to  §100,000.  For  details,  sec  .1  Ua  Cal., 
June  14,  July  1,  etc.,  1850;  Nov.  10,  18()(i;  and  scattered  numbers  of  interme- 
diate years;  also  Par.  Neton,  Oct.  18,  1850,  etc.;  Vdl.  Courier,  Sept.  25,  ISiM); 
and  S.  F.  Heruld,  June  17,  1850,  etc  ;  A"  /'.  littlletiii,  Dec.  3,  ISCli;  A',  f. 
C/iromde,  Nov.  II,  1877;  .S'  J.  Pioneer.  May  25,  1878;  S.  F.  Call,  Apr.  14, 
1878;  AnnakS.  F ,  G14-25;  and -S  /'  D i rector ie.f,  that  of  1852,  enumerates  14 
companies,  wlicreof  2  are  for  hook  and  ladder;  No  4  was  situated  as  far  east 
as  Bivttery,  No.  9  on  Stockton,  near  Broadway,  the  rest  more  central.  The 
formation  of  companies,  each  as  much  as  possible  composed  of  men  hailing 
from  the  same  eastern  town,  led  to  clannishness  and  rivalry,  which  in  a  meas- 
ure was  stimulating  and  useful,  but  also  detrimental  in  leading  to  extrava- 
gance, political  strife,  and  even  bloody  affrays.  They  shared  in  military 
exploits,  and  in  August  1850  one  company  started  for  Sacramento  to  sup- 
press the  land  squatters.  They  vied  with  one  another  in  elaborately  Httiiig 
and  decorating  tiieir  fire  stations.  Tlie  Sansome  company's  station  furniture 
afcno  cost  $5,000,  and  had  a  library.  While  they  merged  finally  at  the  close 
of  18(59  into  a  paid  department,  their  noble  devotion  in  emergencies  must  ever 
be  cominendeti,  leaving  as  they  did  business,  pleasure,  sleep,  and  comfort  to 
voluntarily  face  toil  and  danger  for  the  common  good. 

*'  By  a  vote  of  347  on  Dec.  27th.  Members,  John  Townsend,  president, 
S  C.  Harris,  W.  D.  M.  Howard,  G  C.  Hubbard,  R.  A.  Parker,  T.  J  Roach, 
I.  Sirrine,  numlicriug  now  seven,  as  resolved.  Star  ami  Cal.,  Dec.  Hi,  1848, 
ete.  For  earlier  members,  see  preceding  vol.  v.;  Cal{fomiaH,  Oct.  7,  14, 1848, 
etc.;  Fngnet,  Cal,  122. 

*'0n  the  15th,  Harris  and  Sirrine  were  reelected,  the  latter  becoming 
presiilent.  The  other  members  were  L  Everhart,  .'^.  A  Wright,  D.  Starks, 
1.  Montgomery,  and  C.  E.  Wetmore.  The  election  for  delegates  during  the 
Hist.  Cai.,  Vol.  VL    14 


210 


SAN  FRANCISCO 


new  corporation  it  transferred  its  authority,  regard- 
less of  protests,  and  of  the  December  council,  which 
sought  to  assert  itself.  The  opportunity  was  eagerly 
seized  by  disappointed  aspirants  to  air  their  elo- 
quence upon  public  rights  and  the  danger  of  anarchy, 
and  to  assist  m  conjuring  up  a  more  exalted  nmnicipal 
power  for  the  district  in  the  form  of  a  legislative  as- 
sembly of  fifteen  members,  together  with  three  jus- 
tices of  the  peace/*     Their  election,  on  February  2  Ist, 

preceding  week  tended  to  lower  public  interest  in  the  event,  and  a  mucli 
smallur  vote  was  polled  than  before.  The  Alta  Cal.,  Jan.  25,  1849,  accord- 
ingly considers  it  void. 

"•  Tliu  justices  were  Myron  Norton,  T.  R.  Per  Lee,  both  officers  of  Steven- 
son's rogt,  and  W.  M.  Stewart;  the  members,  T.  A.  Wiiaht,  A.  J.  Ellis,  H. 
A.  Harrison,  G.  C.  Hubbard,  ti.  Hyde,  I.  Montgomery,  VV.  M.  Smith,  A.  J. 
(irayson,  J.  Creighton,  R.  A.  Parker,  T.  J.  Roach,  W.  F.  Swa.<tey,  T.  H. 
(Jreen,  F.  J.  Lippett,  and  O.  F.  Lemon.  U.  S.  Oov.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1, 
H.  Ex.  Doc,  17,  730,  with  text  of  resolutions  at  the  decisive  meeting  on  Fe1>. 
12th,  reported  also  in  Altu  Cal,  Feb.  15,  1849.  The  plan  of  the  organization 
was  presented  by  G.  Hyde,  formerly  alcalde,  who  in  his  Slat.,  MS.,  10-12, 
points  out  that  only  a  few  of  the  members  obtained  less  thi  a  400  out  of  tho 
(502  votes  cast.  Placer  Times,  May  12,  1849,  etc.  According  to  McCiowan,  A. 
A.  Green  of  the  Stevenson  regt  gave  a  start  to  the  meetings  which  created 
the  legislative  assembly.  S.  F.  Pout,  Nov.  23,  1878.  Ryan,  Peru.  Adv.,  ii. 
250-2,  calls  this  faction  the  democratic,  Leavenworth  heading  tl»e  aristocratic 
land-grabbers.  The  assembly  met  on  Ma'-ch  5th  at  the  public  institute, 
Dmnelles  Col.  Hint.,  106,  doc.  iv.,  although  business  began  only  on  Mar. 
12th;  Lipitett  was  appointed  speaker;  J.  Code,  sergeant-at-arnis;  E.  GillKii-t, 
printer;  F.  Ward,  treasurer,  later  J.  S.  Owens;  J.  Hyde,  district  attorney; 
I.  H.  Ackerman,  clerk,  succeeded  by  A.  A.  (ilreen  and  A.  Roane.  For  rules, 
acts,  and  coniniittee  appointments,  see  .S'.  F.  Minutes  Leyinl.,  5-46.  Owing 
to  the  frequent  absence  of  members  and  lack  of  quorum,  their  number  wus 
increased  by  ten,  elected  on  May  11th,  whereof  VV,  A.  and  E.  G.  Butfuiii, 
A.  A.  Green,  Theo.  Smith,  C.  R.  V.  Lee,  S.  McGerry,  and  J.  M.  Huxley, 
took  tlicir  seat  on  the  I4th,  Burke  and  P.  H.  Burnett  subsequently.  Tlie 
proportion  of  Stevenson's  soldiers  in  the  body  was  large.  For  J)iograpliies, 
see  preceding  vols.  An  early  measure  was  to  forbid  the  sale  of  lots  or  other 
city  property,  which  served  to  rally  a  host  to  the  support  of  Alcalde  Leaven- 
worth, including  the  displaced  council  members.  Loud  charges  had  l)ee!i 
made  against  the  alcalde  for  lavish  grants  of  land,  and  in  such  a  manner  as 
to  permit  its  accumulation  by  monopolists  for  speculation,  also  for  raaleadniinis- 
tration.  Ifi/des  Statm.,  MS.,  13;  Alht  Cal.,  Mar.  29,  1849.  This  attituile 
led  the  assembly  on  March  22d  to  decree  the  abolition  of  the  alcaldcship  ami 
the  offic(!s  depending  upon  it,  Norton,  as  the  first  justice  of  the  peace,  being 
appointed  to  fill  the  vacancy  under  the  title  of  police  magistrate,  J.  C.  Puliis 
l)eing  shortly  after  elected  sheriff  to  assist  him.  The  appeal  of  the  assembly 
to  Gen.  Smith  for  support  proved  futile.  He  sustained  the  alcalde.  Greater 
impression  was  made  upon  (Jen.  Riley,  who  at  this  time  entered  as  military 
governor.  Less  prudent  and  firm,  he  lent  his  ear  first  to  one  side  and  sus- 
])ended  Leavenworth  on  May  6th,  then  tlie  old  council  of  1848  assisted  in 
obtaining  his  reinstatement  on  June  1st;  and  notwithstanding  repeateil 
resignations  ho  retained  the  alcaldeship.  Correspondence  in  U.  S.  Oov.  A"'-, 
as  above,  733-6.  758-60,  771;  Placer  Times,  June  2.  1844.  He  was  iuetli- 
cient,  says  Hawley,  Stat,  MS.,  9.  Even  Commodore  Jones  writes,  June  '2!>tli, 
that  he  was  very  obnoxious  to  the  i)eople.  Unbound  Doc,,  55,  66,  228,  319-0. 


TWO  GOVERNMENTS. 


til 


brought  to  the  front  a  very  respectable  body  of  men, 
full  of  reform  projects,  but  regarding  the  innovation 
as  unauthorized  by  still  prevailing  laws,  the  governor 
would  not  accord  them  any  active  interference  with  the 
alcalde,  who  stood  arrayed  hitnself  with  their  oppo- 
nents, the  land  monopolists.  And  so  the  city  continued 
to  he  afflicted  with  practically  two  governments,  which 
maintained  a  sharp  cross-fire  of  contradictory  enact- 
ments and  charges  until  June,  when  the  governor's 
proclamation  for  a  constitutional  convention,  and  for 
tlie  election  of  provisional  local  officers  throughout 
the  country,  caused  the  assembly  to  abandon  the  field 
to  the  alcalde.  They  retired  with  honor;  for  viewed 
by  the  light  of  subsequent  corruption,  even  tiieir  defi- 
cioncics  are  bright  with  the  lustre  of  earnest  efforts. 

One  result  of  the  political  discord  was  to  give 
opportunity  for  lawlessness.  Tlie  riffraff  of  the  dis- 
bandufl  regiment  of  New  York  Volunteers  had  lately 
formed  an  association  for  cooperation  in  benevolence 
and  crime,  under  the  not  inappropriate  title  of  the 
Hounds,  with  headquarters  in  a  tent  bearing  the  no 
less  dubious  appellation  of  Tammany  Hall,  after  the 


Backed  by  Burnett  the  assembly  protested  vigorously,  and  in  a  proclamation 
to  the  city  set  forth  the  illegality  of  military  interference.  liunu-U'n  Recoil., 
M.S.,  ii.  Cl-87;  Alhi  Col.,  June  14,  1849.  Acting  accordingly,  they  sent  the 
sheriff  to  forcibly  seize  the  records  in  the  alcalde's  possession.  Ryan,  Peru. 
All  v.,  ii.  252-4,  gives  a  graphic  account  of  the  pistol  tlourishing  on  the  occa- 
sion. Buffunis  Sir.  Montlis,  117-19.  Apnalled  at  such  insolence,  Riley  dc- 
nouiicc'il  tlie  legislature  as  a  usurjiing  l)ody,  and  called  wildly  upon  all  good 
citizens  to  aid  in  restoring  the  records.  U.  S.  Goo.  Dor.,  ubi  sup.,  773-4. 
Simultaneously,  June  3d,  appeared  the  proclamation  for  a  convention,  and 
for  h)LMl  elections  throughout  the  country,  an  order  so  far  delayed  in  the  vain 
hope  that  congress  would  proviile  a  civil  government.  This  election  pre- 
tending tlie  speedy  extinction  of  the  assembly,  the  members,  with  hopes  cen- 
tred in  the  next  balloting,  resolved  to  yield;  yet  not  until  after  a  deferential 
apfieal  to  the  public,  which  responded  on  July  Oth  by  a  vote  of  confidence  so 
meagre  as  to  oe  chilling.  The  smallness  of  the  vote,  107  for  their  continu- 
ance, 7  against,  wae  due  to  the  departure  of  supporters  for  the  mines,  says 
(Ireen,  Shit.,  MS.,  24;  AlUiCal.,  July  12,  17,  1849.  Willey,  Peru.  Mem.,  127- 
8,  assumes  that  Riley  terrified  them.  Their  minutes  cease  on  June  4th,  the 
(lite  of  Riley's  proclamation  against  them,  f  Ireen  naturally  extols  the  honesty 
of  his  associates;  he  claims  to  hav  refused  a  land  bribe  from  Leavenworth 
for  himself  and  his  monopoly  friends  on  introducing  the  bill  for  abolishing  the 
alcaldcship.  Findla,  Stnt.,  MS.,  9-10,  also  speaks  of  them  as  'respectable 
nien.'  Price 8 Sketch,  MS.,  111. 


912 


SAN   FRANCISCO 


noted  eastern  hot-bed  of  that  name.*'  It  is  but  natural 
tliat  this  graceless  set  of  idlers  should,  through  lack  of 
manly  incentive,  drift  into  tmlitical  agitation,  and  that 
the  original  military  aim  of  their  late  regiment  should 
degenerate  into  race  antipathy  and  rioting.  Drunk- 
enness and  brawl,  displayed  in  noisy  processions  witli 
drum  and  fife  and  streaming  banners,  led  to  swagger- 
ing insolence  and  intimidation,  which  found  a  seemingly 
safe  vent  at^ainst  the  Uispano- Americans.  Once  tiie 
n>bbcr  instmct  was  aroused  by  the  more  disreputal »!«.', 
it  was  not  long  before  a  glittering  vista  opened  a  wider 
sphere. 

The  unsavory  name  of  Hounds  was  changed  to 
Regulators;  and  under  pretence  of  watching  ov^r 
public  security  and  rights,  the  vagabonds  intruded 
themselves  in  every  direction,  especially  upon  tlie 
exposed  and  defenceless;  and  they  boldly  demanded 
contributions  of  the  merchants  in  support  of  their 
self-assumed  mission.  Strength  of  immbers  and  arms 
and  significant  threats  increased,  until  terrorism  stalked 
undisguised.  Finally,  on  July  15,  1849,  under  inspirit- 
ing stimulants,  they  ventured  to  make  an  attack  in 
force  upon  the  Chileno  quarter,  at  the  foot  of  TeK- 
graph  hill,  with  the  avowed  object  of  driving  out  the 
hated  foreigners,  and  despoiling  thera.  Not  knowiui; 
what  next  might  follow,  the  alarmed  citzens  united  for 
action.  Four  companies  formed,  with  a  huge  speeiul 
police  detachment,  and  tlie  town  was  scoured  in  pur- 
suit of  the  now  scattering  band.  A  score  were  arrested, 
and  by  the  prompt  application  of  fine  and  imprisonment 
the  rest  were  awed  into  submission.*^ 


The  election  of  August  1,  1849,  rostored  the  ayun- 
tamiento  and  prefect  system,  while  giving  the  city  the 
increased  number  of  twelve  cchu' oilmen,*^  under  the 

•"  Of  New  York.  The  tent  stood  on  Kearny  st,  where  Commercial  at  now 
abuts 

^'  The  history  of  the  hand  and  outbreak  ia  fully  related  in  my  Populnv 
Trihunala,  i.  76  et  seq. 

•»T.  H.  Green,  H.  A.  Harrison,  A.  J.  Ellis,  S.  C.  Harris,  T.  B.  Winston, 
J.  Towusend,  R.  M.  Price,  W.  H.  Davis,  B.  Simmons,  S.  Braunan,  W.  M. 


THE  HOUNDS. 


213 


prcsulenrv  of  John  W.  Geary,  the  lately  arrivinl  pcmt- 
iiiusUr  ol  the  city,*"  who  rosjwiKli'd  t<»  the  unaniinoiiK 
(•(mfidcnce  bestowed  upon  him  by  displayinjif  «5reut  zeal 
for  the  welfare  of  the  city.  Horace  Hawes,  the  pre- 
fect, was  an  able  lawyer,  but  with  a  stunewhat  hery 
trm|>c>rauient  that  soon  l)rouj^ht  about  a  contlict  with 
his  colleaj^ues.'*  Actinj^  upon  the  suggestions  of  their 
loader,*'  the  council  issued  a  revenue  ordinance,  de- 

Sli'wart,  (i.  B.  PoHt,  iu  the  order  of  popularity  as  indicated  Uy  voten  oblaiitod. 
h'niir  had  lic'loiiKud  to  the  axHuinhly,  and  two  to  tho  council  whicit  it  HUpcr- 
(M'lli'd.  Frauk  Turk,  necond  alcalde,  acted  for  a  long  time  aa  necretary  to  tho 
lU'W  council;  tlic  Huhprefucttt  for  the  diHtricta  wore  F.  ( lucrrcrro  and  J.  K.  L'lir- 
ti.s.  AloUdo  (rcary  ohtaincd  the  entire  vote  of  1,516,  while  Prefect  Hawcs 
|ii>llt'd  only  913.  The  three  higliest  votes  for  councilnieu  were  curried  by  late 
asMiriihly  inendxirH.     There  were  nearly  a  dozuu  tickets  iu  tlie  (icld. 

•'•^'(icary  wiis  horn  in  WcHtmoruland  Co.,  i'a.  After  his  father's  disith,  hf 
taiigiit  school,  Bupi>orting  his  mother,  and  paying  otT  his  father's  indehted- 
ni'ss.  He  next  went  to  Pittshurg  and  entered  into  mercantile  pursuits, 
wliich  proved  uncongenial.  Meanwhile  he  studied  assiduously,  displaying  a 
iimrki'il  taste  for  mathematics,  and  became  a  civil  engineer  and  railroiid  Hui)cr- 
iiitendcnt.  When  the  war  with  Mexico  broke  out,  he  joinetl  the  '2d  Pa.  Vols., 
ruse  to  tlie  rank  of  col,  waj  wounded  at  Chapultei>ec,  and  ripp!>inted  cont- 
iiiiiiidcr  of  the  citadel  after  the  city  fell.  He  was  appointed  postmaster  of 
S.  F.  «)u  Jan.  '22,  184i),  with  a  certain  control  over  iKiatal  matters  on  tiie 
I'acitic  coiist.  With  his  family  he  reached  S.  F.  on  tlie  Ortijon  on  Apr.  1st. 
His  administration  was  one  of  niarke<l  efficiency.  Learning  that  Prest. 
Taylor  had  appointed  a  successor,  Geary  turned  tlie  ofHee  over  to  Col  Bryan. 
At  this  time  he  sent  his  family  liack  to  Pa.,  and  became  a  nieud)er  of  the 
auction  and  commission  house  of  Geary,  Van  Voorhees,  and  Sutton. 

'''  Biography  iu  J/i)it.  C<d.,  iii.,  this  series. 

'^'(icary  m  his  inaugural  address  pointed  out  the  lack  of  public  buildings, 
<iud  funds  and  measures  for  security,  and  recommended  a  tax,  not  alone  on 
real  estate  and  auction  sales,  but  on  licenses  for  traders,  in  proportion  to 
the  gootls  vended,  for  conveyances  by  land  and  water,  and  for  gambling; 
tlie  latter  as  an  inevitable  evil  l)eing  thus  placed  under  salutary  control.  An 
inventory  should  lie  made  of  public  dtxsuments  and  mutilations  noted.  Records 
Mere  subsecpiently  sought  at  Monterey.  Hawes  dwelt  upon  the  necessity 
for  measures  conducive  to  prospective  greatness  of  the  city  without  making 
any  special  suggestions.  S.  F.  Minuh'H,  1849,  221-4;  Annah  S.  F.,  SIJO-l. 
lie  took  the  oath  on  Aug.  1 1th.  The  council  met,  from  Aug.  tith,  on  an  average 
twice  a  week.  Their  proceedings,  with  committee  distributions,  etc.,  are  re- 
corded in  S.  F.  Minutes,  1849,  47  et  seq.  The  attendance  fell  ofif  to  such  a 
(ligree  that  the  quorum  had  to  be  reduced  to  four  by  the  close  of  the  year. 
Kules  for  iheir  guidance  in  general  were  sent  in  by  the  governor.  U.  S.  Hov. 
J)or.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc,  17,  775-6.  Among  appointed  officials 
■were  J.  Code,  sergeant-at-arms,  W.  M.  ICddy,  surveyor,  P.  C.  Lander,  col- 
lector, A.  C.  Peachy,  attorney,  S.  C.  Simmons,  controller,  Ben.  Burgoync, 
treasurer,  succeeded  in  Dec.  by  G.  Meredith;  P.  C.  Lander,  tax  cfdTector, 
.1.  U.  Palmer,  physician,  subsefjuently  Stivers  and  Thorp,  S.  R.  (ierry  became 
health  officer  in  Dec.,  J.  E.  Townes,  sheriff,  in  Dec.  appoutted  coroner.  N.  R. 
I  >aviM,  street  commissioner,  subsequently  J .  J.  Arentrue,  in  Dec. ,  J.  G  allagher, 
iiiapector  of  liquors.  Turk,  second  alcalde  and  acting  secretary,  took  a  seat 
in  the  council  and  we.%  in  Dec.  replaced  as  secretary  by  H.  L.  Dodge.  F.  D. 
Kohler  has  been  mentioned  as  chief  fire-engineer.  Under  the  prefecture 
were  appointed  P.  A.  Briusmade,  subprefect,  iu  Dec,  vice  Curtis,  F.   P. 


'mi 


I: 


214 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


pending  chiefly  on  the  sale  of  real  estate  and  mer- 
chandise, and  on  licenses  for  trading,^  the  latter  of  a 
hasty  and  disproportionate  nature.  Not  deeming  this 
sufficient  to  cover  their  teeming  plans,  notably  for  city 
hall,  hospital,  and  public  wharves,  they  prepared  for 
a  large  sale  of  water  lots,  which  were  coming  into 
eager  demand.  The  first  available  money  was  applied 
to  the  purchase  of  a  prison  brig^  and  shackles  for 
chain-gangs;  the  police  force  was  placed  on  a  regular 
and  more  efficient  footing;®*  fire-engines  were  ordered ; 
and  strenuous  efforts  made  to  improve  the  streets,  so 
as  to  prevent  a  repetition  of  the  previous  winter's  mis- 
haps,*® yet  the  following  season  proved  comparatively 

Tracy,  justice  of  the  peace  at  the  mission,  W.  B.  Almond,  jndgo  of  first  in- 
stance with  civil  jurisdiction  only,  Hall  McAllister,  attorney,  pay  $2,0(K>, 
both  from  Oct.  Ist,  F.  Billings,  cominissioner  of  deeds,  A.  H.  Flint,  surveynr; 
also  a  host  of  notaries  public.  See  /d.,  75(>-840,  passim;  Unlxmnd  Doc.,  224, 
323-9,  etc.;  Broiima  SUU.,  MS.,  16;  MeiiilVs  Stat.,  MS.,  5-G;  Arch.  Mont., 
xiv.  18;  Cal.  MisceL,  ix.  pt.  i.  77;  Altn  Cal.,  P(ic.  News,  Dec.  13,  1849,  etc.; 
Gille.'^pie's  Vhj.,  MS.,  G;  Hyde' 8  Stat.,  MS.,  12;  MiaceL,  MS.,  3. 

*"  On  Aug.  27th.  The  prefect  presumed  to  veto  this  ordinance,  on  the  ground 
of  the  disproportionate  nature  of  the  imposts  which  pressed  excessively  upon 
labor  and  on  men  with  limited  means,  a  dealer  with  a  capital  of  ¥150,000, 
for  instance,  paying  $400  only,  while  a  small  trader  with  $1,000  was  required 
to  pay  $300.  He  also  considered  the  revenne  called  for  in  excess  of  require- 
ment, and  demanded  details  for  exi)enditure,  which  should  be  proportioned 
to  the  measures  most  needed,  especially  protection.  The  ordinance  was  also 
contrary  to  law  in  defining  new  misdemeanors  and  extending  the  jurisdiction 
of  the  alcalde.  S.  F.  MintUe.i,  1849,  224-7.  The  ardor  of  this  champion  of  the 
oppressed  was  somewliat  damped  by  the  reminder  that  the  veto  power  be- 
longed to  the  governor,  to  whom  he  might  report  any  objections  against  thu 
council.  The  governor  offered  $10,000  toward  the  formation  of  a  jail  and 
court-house. 

*''  Ewphemia,  anchored  near  the  corner  of  Jackson  and  Battery  sts.  A 
calalKKJse  existed,  but  so  poor  and  insufficient  as  to  induce  tlie  fornier  assem- 
bly to  rent  a  room  for  a  jail.  S.  F.  Mlnntcn,  1841),  10,  40,  142.  The  brig  was 
soon  overcrowde<l.  Aha  Cal,  Aug.  4,  1850;  Val.  Courier,  July  10,  1850.  A 
regular  allowance  was  made  for  the  chain-gang  overseer,  whose  task  promoted 
much  public  work.  A  regular  jail  was  erected  on  Broailway  in  1851.  Id., 
Sept.  .30,  1851. 

**  Under  the  direction  of  Malachi  Fallon,  as  captain,  chosen  Aug.  13tli, 
assisted  by  Major  Beck  ami  by  a  force  which  frfun  30  men  increased  to  50  by 
Feb.  1850,  and  by  the  following  year  to  75.  Tlie  pay  had  also  risen  from  j>(> 
to  ^  a  day,  with  $2  extra  for  flie  5  captains.  It  was  then  proposed  torciluce 
the  force  to  40  men  and  4  captains  at  ;|$150  and  $200  a  month.  lb.  (iold  and 
silver  batlges  were  ordered  for  the  first  chief  and  his  men;  a  station  was  tw- 
signed  to  each  of  the  4  wards.  See  S.  F.  Minutes,  1849,  52-3,  79,  90-1,  102, 
l(il,  167;  S.  F.  Herahl,  July  12,  1850;  Srheiirk'n  Vii/.,  MS.,  22.  Fallon  mm 
chosen  city  marshal  by  the  democrats  in  1850.  S.  F  Tunen,  Jan.  12,  18«>7. 
Fallon  had  served  in  the  New  York  force.  Fifty-eight  names  on  hia  force  iu 
S.  F.  Directory,  1850,  123-4. 

•"A  street  commissioner  received  ^500  a  month,  and  a  superintendent  of 
public  repairs  $000.     Teams  were  bought  by  the  city  for  clearing  streets. 


s; 


EARLY  ELECTIONS. 


215 


dry  Several  sums  were  assigned  for  starting  wharves 
on  Market,  California,  and  Pacific  streets,  which  in 
course  of  two  years  absorbed  over  $300,000.'°  The 
proposed  hospital  dwindled  to  a  contract  with  Peter 
Smith,  which  proved  a  costly  bargain  for  the  city,"^  and 
to  allowances  to  the  state  marine  hospital  and  subse- 
quently to  a  brig  for  housing  insane  people. 

So  far  the  plans  of  the  city-builders  had  not  brought 
forth  any  public  work  of  a  striking  character,  save  in 
street  improvements;  but  this  shortcoming  redounds 
to  their  credit,  for  at  the  close  of  the  year  they  left  a 
surplus  in  the  treasury."^  Far  different  was  the  record 
of  the  following  councils.  By  the  election  of  January 
8,  1850,  Alcalde  Greary  and  half  of  his  colleagues  were 
confirmed  in  position  by  more  than  double  the  preced- 
inj,^  vote.  The  rest  were  new  men,''  who  assisted,  not 
alone  in  laying  the  foundation  for  a  fast-growing  debt, 
but  in  reducing  the  resources  of  the  city  by  hurried 


Although  citizens  paid  two  tl.irda  of  the  coat  of  grading  and  planking  from 
tlieir  own  pocket:),  as  tlie  grand  jury  points  out,  S.  t\  Ileniltl,  Sept.  30, 
1851,  yet  large  sums  were  continually  appropriated  by  the  authorities  to  this 
eiiil,  .?!00,000,  on  Jan.  1850,  alone.  S.  /-'.  MintUes,  1849-50,  l'_»4;  Williawii' 
iStut.,  ALS.,  13.  The  comptroller  shows  an  expenditure  for  streets  and  land- 
ings, exclusive  of  wharves,  from  Aug.  1849  to  Feb.  1851,  of  $471,282.  AUd 
CiL,  Apr.  27,  1851. 

'•"/!>.  §400,000  was  appropriated  for  these  wharves,  Jan.  7,  18,  1850,  al- 
though evidently  not  all  paid  over.  /(/.,  112-14,  12S-4. 

''Tlie  plans  proposed  in  the  council  included  a  building  with  a  city  hall. 
Tlie  Waverly  house  was  subsequently  bought  for  §20,003,  but  destroyed  by 
tire.  In  Jan.  1850  the  hospital  bill  amounted  to  §0,000,  in  April  Smith  do- 
jiiaiiiled  §13,000.  This  hospital  was  burned  in  Sept.  1850,  Up  to  Maj'  1851, 
over  li^20;),0'JO  had  been  expended  for  hospital  purposes.  AlUiVnL,  Apr.  27, 
IS'il.  To  the  state  marine  hospital,  provided  for  in  1850  and  opened  in  Dec, 
IW.  XeiM,  Dec.  27,  1850,  Cal.  StiitiU,'n,  1850,  104,  343,  was  assigned  §30,003, 
Mliile  its  exiienses  were  §70,030,  for  97  city  and  17  state  patients.  In  1851  a 
coiitraet  was  concluded  for  the  care  of  tho  city  at  §2,500  a  month.  An  in- 
sutfieieiit  allowance  was  then  mJide  to  the  Ijrjg  at  Norch  Beach  for  the  recep- 
tion of  the  insane.  In  1850  pauper  Ijurials  .vure  arranged  for  at  §35  each. 
.V.  f.  Miiniies,  md-50,  08,  79-82,  98,  !!,VJ-3U,  138,  200;  .S.  F.  Herald,  Sept 
30,  1851.     Smith's  claims  will  bo  treatei!  of  later. 

"^Of  §40,030,  and  no  bad  blot  up(in  their  public  character. 

'^  ( ieary  received  the  largest  vote,  being  3,425.  Turk  figures  again  as  second 
alcalde,  (ireen,  Braunan,  Ellis,  Stewart,  L-avis,  were  the  reelected  coiincil- 
iiieii.  J.  S.  Graham,  F.  Tilford,  M.  (.'rooks,  A.  M.  Van  Nostran.l,  H.  C. 
Murray,  F.  C.  Gray,  and  J.  Hagan  comi)leted  tlie  number.  They  met  Jan. 
llth  and  formed  into  committees.  Dodge  Wiis  I'etained  as  clerk.  A.  A. 
Selover  was  chosen  city  auctioneer.  S.  F.  Minnlrn,  1850,  115  et  seq.;  Pac. 
Xrifs,  Feb.  1850,  etc.  Despite  the  rain  the  election  was  exciting,  though 
orderly.   Upfiair'        tea,  208-71. 


216 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


sales  of  lots,  wherein  they  were  charged  with  secret 
participation  to  their  own  advantage/*  The  tirade 
begun  against  them  by  Prefect  Hawes  was  cut  short 
by  the  election  on  May  1st  of  new  city  officials,  under 
the  charter  framed  in  February.  By  this  the  Span- 
ish form  of  government  was  replaces  by  the  Ameri- 
can one  of  a  common  council  with  two  boards  of 
aldermen,  each  of  eight  members,  under  a  mayor.  "^ 
The  county  was  also  organized   by  an  election  on 


'♦After  a  sale  of  water  lots  in  Jan.  1850  yieliUng  $035,000,  another  sale 
■was  announced  for  March.  Prefect  Hawes,  who  had  l>een  putting  some  very 
nettling  questions  to  the  ayuntamiento  concerning  disbursements  and  men 
voting  lor  them,  sounded  the  alarm  and  induced  the  governor  to  issue  a  pro- 
hibit. This  the  councilmen  resolved  to  disregard,  whereupon  Hawes  charged 
them  with  intended  spoliation,  and  pointed  out  that  some  were  suspiciouuly 
preparing  to  leave  the  country.  The  prohibit  was  affirmed  with  the  thr<::it  to 
file  a  bill  in  chancery  against  the  ayuntamiento,  which  now  yielded  in  so  fur 
as  to  postpone  the  sale  until  Ajiril.  'Tlie  enemy  have  fled,'  cries  Attor- 
ney-general Kewen;  '  they  have  exposed  the  character  of  the  beast  that  pa- 
raded so  ostentatiously  in  the  lion's  skin.'  Correspondence  in  S.  F.  Mimit<n, 
1850,  2.30-7.  But  they  were  merely  gaining  time  to  persuade  the  goverudr  to 
repeal  the  prohibit  by  exhibiting  their  accounts  and  estimates,  and  showing 
tlie  need  or  money  for  city  improvements.  This  achieved,  tlioy  retaliated 
ux>on  the  obnoxious  prefect,  by  charging  him  with  appropriation  of  funds, 
notably  $2,500  for  alleged  services  rendered  against  the  Hounds,  and  with  per- 
mitting Justice  Colton  to  sell  district  and  city  lands  chiefly  for  Hawes'  ovu 
advantage.  The  result  was  a  boomerang  in  the  shape  of  an  order  suspending 
the  prefect.  Emphatic  denials  being  of  no  avail,  his  wrath  now  concentrated 
against  the  governor  in  a  series  of  charges  before  the  legislature,  for  violating 
the  laws  and  suspiciously  conniving  with  the  corrupt  council.  In  this  he  was 
supported  by  the  subprefect,  Brinsmade,  appointed  to  replace  him.  Pae. 
News,  Jan.  1,  1850,  et  seq. 

""As  passed  by  the  legislature  on  Apr.  15,  1850,  the  charter  in  4  arts,  and 
45  1[,  assigns  as  boundaries  to  the  city  of  San  Francisco,  on  the  south,  a  li:ie 
parallel  to  Clay  st  two  miles  from  Portsmouth  square;  on  the  west,  a  line  par- 
allel to  Kearny  st  one  and  a  half  miles  from  the  square;  on  the  north  and  east, 
the  county  limits.  The  government  is  vested  in  a  mayor,  recorder,  and  a  com- 
mon council  of  a  board  composed  of  aldermen  and  a  board  of  assistant  aldermen, 
each  board  to  consist  of  one  member  from  each  of  the  eight  warils,  to  be  desig- 
nated by  the  council.  Tliere  shall  also  be  elected  a  treasurer,  comptroller,  street 
commissioner,  collector  of  taxes,  marshal,  city  attorney,  and  by  each  ward  two 
assessors.  Voters  and  candidates  must  sliow  a  residence  in  the  city  and  wards 
concerned  of  30  days  precedinjj  the  general  city  electior ,  which  is  to  be  held  on 
the  fourth  Monday  of  April  in  eacli  year.  For  duties,  bonds,  etc.,  see  C'll. 
Stattite^s,  1850,  223-9;  antt  compare  with  tlie  briefer  draft  by  the  framcrs,  in 
S.  F.  Minutes,  1850,  144-9.  In  Oct.  1848  the  city  council  had  assigned  for 
city  limits  a  line  along  Guadalupe  creek  to  the  ocean.  Cali/oifiian,  Out.  14, 
1848;  and  see  my  IfLit.  VnL,  v.,  this  series.  Regulations  for  the  council  in  S. 
F.  Matiwil,  p.  ix.-xvi.  This  charter  did  not  last  long.  The  boundary  of  the 
county,  as  defined  in  (Jul.  Laws,  1850,  829,  ran  along  San  Francisquito  creek 
westward  into  the  ocean,  three  miles  out,  and  in  the  bay  to  within  tlireu 
miles  of  high-water  mark  in  Contra  Costa  county,  including  the  entire  penin- 
sula, and  Alcatraz  an<l  Yerba  Buena  or  <roat  islands,  as  well  as  the  f ara- 
lloues.     See  also  Cal,  Jour.  Sen.,  185'),  1307;  /(/.,  House,  1344. 


NEW  CITY  GOVERNMENT 


217 


April  1st  of  sheriff,  county  clerk,  and  nine  other  offi- 
cials, at  San  Francisco,  so  that  the  city  became  the 
seat  of  two  governments.^'  The  contest  for  the  shriev- 
alty was  one  of  the  most  exciting  on  record,  with 
lavish  generosity  on  one  side,  and  enthusiastic  display  of 
bands  and  banners  on  the  other;  but  the  fame  of  John 
C.  Hays  as  a  Texan  ranger,  and  his  opportune  exhibi- 
tions of  dash  and  horsemanship,  captured  the  popu- 
lace."^ 

The  new  city  government  headed  once  more  by 
Geary  as  mayor ,^*  with  almost  entirely  new  associates, 
met  on  May  9tli,  inaugurating  at  the  same  time  the 
new  city  hall,  lately  the  Graham  house,  a  four-story 
W(K)den  edifice  lined  on  two  sides  by  continuous  bal- 
conies."'    The  leading  trait  of  these  men  was  quickly 


'"Tlie  chosen  ones  were  John  C.  Hays,  sheriff,  R.  N.  Morrison,  county 
li,  '<:,  J.  A.  McGlynn,  recorder,  W.  M.  Eddy,  surveyor,  J.  W.  Endicott, 
Ir  ..I.,  U.  M.  Cliauncey,  assessor,  E.  Gallagher,  coroner,  T.  J.  Smith,  co.  att'y, 
< '.  Boiiham,  dist  att'y,  J.  E.  Addison,  co.  clerk,  E.  H.  Tharp,  clerk  of  the 
sup.  ct. 

'^  He  was  selected  by  the  people  as  an  independent  can<lidate.  His  career 
is  givcii  in  lliiit.  North  Mex.  St:ite8and  Texts,  ii.,  this  series.  His  opponents 
WLTi!  J.  Townes,  a  whig  who  was  appointed  to  the  post  in  1849,  and  J.  J. 
ISi'vunt,  dun^ocratic  nominee,  and  a  man  of  wealth,  owner  of  Bryant's  hotel. 
The  latter  waa  thb  only  real  rival.  Pinneer  Arch.,  20-31. 

'*  His  associates  were  F.  Tilford,  recorder,  T.  H.  Holt,  att'y,  C.  G.  Scott, 
treas.,  B.  L.  Berry,  comptroller,  W.  M.  Irwin,  collector,  D.  McCarthy,  street 
co;ii.,  M.  Fallon,  marshal.  Tlie  aldermen  were  Wm  Green,  president,  C. 
Mintuni,  F.  W.  Macondray,  D.  Gillespie,  A.  A.  Selover,  W.  M.  Burgoyno, 
V.  W.  Stuart,  M.  L.  Mott;  assistant  aldermen,  A.  Bartol,  presidunt,  C  T. 
Butts,  W.  Sharron,  J.  Mayuard,  J.  P.  Van  Ness,  L.  T.  Wilson,  A.  Morris, 
W.  I'orbbtt.  Aldermen  Burgoyne  and  Macondray  not  taking  their  seat  were  ro- 
placud  liv  M.  G.  Leonard  and  J.  Middleton,  and  assistant  aldermen  Botts  and 
MavHiird,  by  G.  ""tV.  Green  and  J.  Grant.  For  assessors,  clerks,  court  official], 
police,  pilots,  !ii&fl  v.?ider  J.  Hagen,  harbor-master,  etc.,  see  S.  F.  DireHortj, 
1S:)0,  l'22-9;  X  F,  AuiiaLt,  272-3;  Alta  Cul.  and  Pac.  New.'i,  Apr.  2G-May  21, 
18.J0,  with  .i)ittire,(>  1,  On  ward  division,  Id.,  Dec.  14,  1850;  S.  F.  Herall, 
Juiib  0,  is;  0.  -  tL.,  S.  F.  Municipal  Jtepts,  1859,  177-9;  S.  F.  Picixyune,  Oct. 
5,  8,  l"o'  "2,  *  :').■>>!  ^al.  Courier,  Aug.  12,  1850.  T.  Green  claims  to  have  ab- 
sl.iiucd  5r,„,i  (>,  ii  .cjtinfj;  tiie  mayoralty  out  of  sympathy  for  Geary. 

''It  ato ,  1  on  I  c  noi  Ii-west  corner  of  Kearny  and  Pacific  sts,  fronting  100 
f^^et  nil  Kearny  oi,,  "'.  !i  a  depth  of  C4  feot.  The  commo<lious  yard  contaiiic  I 
two  wells  and  several  outhouses.  The  roof  was  metallic.  Tliis  was  offered 
bytiraham,  member  of  the  council  in  April  1851*,  to  his  associates  and  bought 
by  thoin  on  Apr.  1st,  for  if  150,000,  less  !iioO,000  in  exchange  for  the  lately  pur- 
chased town  hall  on  .Stockton  st.  Tired  of  drifting  between  the  narrow  con- 
fines of  tlie  public  institute  and  the  old  adobe  custom-house  on  tlie  west  side  of 
the  plaz.a,  the  preceding  council  had  bought  the  American  hotel  on  Stockton  st, 
near  Broadway,  evidently  to  promote  tlie  lot  speculations  of  certain  members. 
ThithiT  the  council  removecf  on  the  18th  of  March,  but  the  order  for  other 
otiicials  to  \/llow  the  example  was  vi^oroujly  objected  to,  on  the  ground  that 


.:»'(. 


218 


SAN  FKANCISCO. 


lih 


manifested  in  their  greed  for  spoils,  to  which  end  a 
heavier  schedule  of  taxes  was  p/ojected,  with  a  corre- 
spondingly increased  number  of  drainage  }  oles,  more 
or  less  cunningly  concealed.  Not  content  with  the 
reward  that  must  imperceptibly  flow  into  their  pockets 
from  this  effort,  they  hastened  to  anticipate  a  portion 
by  voting  a  salary  of  $6,000  to  each  alderman  of  tl)e 
two  boards,  after  assigning  a  propitiatory  $10,000  to 
the  mayor  and  some  of  his  chief  aids.  Geary  refused 
to  participate  in  the  scheme;  and  encouraged  by  his 
attitude,  the  public  loudly  protested  against  such 
brazen  spoliation  of  an  already  burdened  city.  The 
council  thereupon  dropped  its  demands**"  to  $4,000 
which  would  have  given  them,  had  not  the  measure 
been  vetoed,  abt .  '\^  a  hundred  dollars  for  each  of  the 
evenings  dovoteu  le  average  member  to  the  com- 

mon weal.  They  ^ht  solace,  however,  for  their 
lacerated  feelings,  by  voting  themselves  gold  medals 
of  sufficient  size  to  impress  an  ungrateful  public  with 
the  arduous  services  thereby  conmieniorated.'*^ 

With  such  and  other  glaring  diversions  of  pu'^Hc 
funds  it  can  readily  be  conceived  what  the  secret  pil- 

the  hall  wan  too  remote  from  business  centres.  Nor  did  the  oflFer  to  rent  offices 
therein  find  favor.  And  so  the  present  purchase  was  made;  a  bargain  it  was 
loudly  claimed,  for  the  two  upper  stories,  with  36  rooms,  besides  others  on  tlio 
seuond  floor,  could  be  rente«l  for  perhaps  ^2,400,  while  tlie  .saving  in  rents 
by  the  scattered  public  offices,  stations,  and  courts  would  amount  to  $70,(M)0. 
To  build  a  hall  according  to  the  adopted  plan  would  cost  $300,000,  and  require 
perhaps  a  year's  delay,  neither  of  which  the  city  could  afford.  Report  in 
S.  F.  Miimtet,  1850,  191-4.  Descriptions  in  S.  F.  BenM,  Feb.  19,  1851;  Pm: 
Ncwx,  May  17,  1850,  etc.  The  report  maybe  taken  with  due  allowance,  how- 
ever, for  changes  and  repairs  increased  the  cost  of  the  building.  Unliound  Dm-., 
58.  On  July  4,  1850,  tlie  plaza  was  adorned  with  a  faultless  new  liljerty  pole, 
120  feet  long,  presented  by  Portland  city.  S.  F.  Herald,  July  4,  1850.  The 
old  pole  was  burned  with  the  custom-house,  corner  of  Montgomery  and  Cali- 
fornia sts,  in  May  1851.  S.  F.  Annals,  282. 

*"  Several  public  meetings  were  held,  and  a  first  committee  of  25  being 
ignored,  another  of  500  was  chosen  to  impress  the  aldermen.  S.  F.  Jlenilil, 
June  12,  1856,  etc. ;  Pac.  News,  May  3,  1850,  etc.  Just  then  came  a  large  tire 
to  divert  attention,  and  subsequent  demonstrations  proved  less  imposing. 
Tlio  mayor  vetoed  the  $4,000,  on  the  ground  that  it  would  also  injure  the 
credit  of  the  city.  Alta  CaL,  May  27,  1^0,  etc.  The  charter  of  1851  allowed 
no  pay. 

"'  Even  here  a  prying  curiosity,  coupled  with  impertinent  sarcasm,  so  far 
disturbed  the  composure  of  the  aldermen  that  they  cast  the  medals  into  tlie 
melting'pot,  as  the  nearest  pit  of  oblivion,  although  too  late.  The  S.  F.  A  n- 
tuiU,  306,  understands  that  the  scheme  was  maimy  due  to  a  sub-committee. 
Cal.  Courier,  Dec.  14,  21,  1850. 


i   ' 


WILD  AND  WICKED  EXPENDITURES. 


219 


fering  and  rifling  must  have  been,  when  it  is  shown 
tliat  the  expenditure  for  the  nineteen  months  following 
August  1,  1849,  amounted  to  more  than  two  million 
♦1.  lUars,  of  which  more  than  one  fourth  was  during  the 
hist  three  months.**  This  absorbed  not  only  a  liberal 
tux  levy,  and  the  larger  and  choicer  proportion  of  public 
laiuls,*^  but  compelled  the  issue  of  scrip  at  an  interest 
of  thirty-six  per  cent.^  Issued  one  after  the  other, 
without  prospect  of  speedy  payment,  this  paper  depre- 
ciated sixty  per  cent  and  more,  till  contractors  and  pur- 
veyors were  obliged  in  self-protection  to  charge  twice 
and  tlirice  the  amounts  due  them.  Unscrupulous 
orticials  and  speculators,  moreover,  seized  the  oppor- 
tunity to  make  fortunes  by  purchasing  the  scrip  at 
li>\v  rates,  and  pacing  i*:  into  the  treasury  at  par  in 
lieu  of  the  coin  obtained  »  >r  taxes.  Thus  a  debt  of 
more  than  a  million  rolled  up  within  the  year  ending 
Fel»ruary  1851,  and  grew  so  rapidly,  while  city  prop- 
t'l-tv  and  credit  so  declined,  that  the  legislature  hiiJ  to 
come  to  the  rescue  with  restrictive  enactments.®^ 

•■-'  Among  the  items  figured  $41,905  for  printing;  surveying  absor1ie<l 
auothiT  1>ig  sum;  the  city  hall  purchase,  with  repairs,  etc.,  aosorbed  about 
?-J(H),(J(K). 

'"'riie  sale  of  Jan.  3,  1850,  of  water  lots  yielded  ^35,130,  and  in  April 
foUiiWfil  another  big  sale. 

'^  Three  per  cent  monthly,  which  was  by  no  means  exorbitant  at  the 
time. 

'^*  As  will  be  seen  later.  The  first  deficit  of  $24,000  appeared  in  the  Jan.- 
Ftl..  !!>.")«)  account.  On  Aug.  31st  the  debt  was  §282,306.  S.  F.  Pioojunf, 
8ei.t.  ij,  1850;  S.  F.  Directory,  1852,  14.  Oa  March  1,  1851,  it  had  risen  to 
Sl.tr.H».5o7.5(>.  S.  F.  AUa  Cal.,  Apr.  27,  1851.  Soon  after  the  debt  was 
hmdfl  for  §1,300,000.  The  expenditures  from  Aug.  1,  1849,  to  Jan.  28, 
ls.')l.  aiitounteil  to  $2,012,740.10;  on  the  streets,  wharves,  and  landing:),  there 
wuro  exi>ended  $82(i,395.5ti;  on  hospitals,  cemeteries,  aud  board  of  health, 
S'2:{1.:{.")8.845;  on  p<dice  and  prisons,  $208,956.87;  on  fire  dept,  $I08,.337.85;  on 
cnurt.s,  .i=236,892. 12;  and  the  balance  of  over  $400,000  on  salaries,  rents,  print- 
ing, I'tc.  Ihiring  the  quarter  ending  Feb.  28,  1851,  the  receipts  aud  ex]ien- 
Jiturfs  were:  Received  from  licenses,  $25,744.55;  from  hospital  fund,  ^H)l; 
froiii  courts,  $2,734.50;  wharf  dues,  333.95;  sale  of  beach  and  water  h>ts, 
J^').'J.'{(l.ti5;  aud  from  street  assessments,  $103,355.40.  Ou  tlie  other  hand, 
tile  tire  aud  water  department  caused  an  expenditure  of  $7,945. 10;  the  street*, 
iiiiluding  sun-eys,  $223,482.28;  the  prison,  courts,  and  police,  $20,44>l.  I'.*; 
himpitul,  including  cholera  expenses,  $41,036.11;  wharves,  $39,:t50.59;  aud 
the  salaries,  legal  expenses,  printing,  and  other  contingent  items,  nearly 
^MHK).  .S'.  /'.  AUa,  Apr.  27,  1851.  The  grand  jury  of  Sept.  1851  com- 
lueiited  in  scathing  terms  upsn  the  '  shameful  squandering '  by  partieti  whom 
they  Were  unable  to  designate.  By  that  time  nearly  all  tlio  city  property  had 
W'fii  disposed  of,  valued  at  three  or  four  million,  yet  this,  added  to  revenue 
aud  loans,  had  failed  to  leave  the  city  any  commeosurato  benefit     Sacra- 


220 


SAN  FRANCISCO. 


mento,  without  landed  resources,  had  received  proportionately  larger  bene- 
lits,  by  incurring  a  debt  of  less  than  half  a  milliou.  Benicia's  scrip  wuij 
nearly  at  par.  Tlic  uiain  exhibit  by  S.  F.  was  in  grading  and  planking,  two 
thirds  of  which  cost  had  been  contributed  by  the  property  owners.  Similar 
was  the  showing  for  the  county,  which  had  expended  $455,807  for  the  year 
ending  June  1851,  while  the  receipts  were  only  $69,305.  Most  of  the  sums 
allowed  were  pointed  out  as  suspicious.  See  report  in  S.  F.  UeraU,  Sopt. 
.30,  1851;  Aug.  5,  22,  30,  1850;  Aug.  29,  1851;  Cat.  Courier,  Id.,  and  (\t. 
2a,  Dec.  6,  1850;  Cal.  Polit.  Scmpn,  123;  Rkliardaytia  Mining  Eap.,  MS.,  liO; 
Altii  Cal,  Apr.  27,  1851,  etc.;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Aug.  3-5,  Sept.  5,  1850.  The 
assessed  value  of  property  for  1851  was  $17,000,000,  and  the  estimated  rev- 
enue $550,000,  $400,(X)0  being  from  licenses.  This  was  declared  amply  sutK- 
cient  for  expenses,  now  reduced  b^  $410,000,  of  which  $290,000  wa«  for  s<il;t- 
ries  of  municipal  officers  and  police.  Reprehensible  as  the  raismanageineiit 
was,  these  aldermen  were  not  worse  than  many  of  their  accusers,  nor  half  &n 
bad  as  some  later  councilmen,  who  ranked  us  permanent  citizens  and  esteeineil 
members  of  the  community;  for  the  former  were  comparative  straugerx, 
afflicted  by  the  prevailing  mania  for  speedy  enrichment,  and  with  no  inten- 
tion of  remaining  in  California.  Geary's  demeanor  is  not  wholly  spotless. 
His  unassuming  manners  and  ability,  and  his  veto  on  many  obnoxious  meiis- 
ures,  gave  an  eclat  to  his  official  career,  which  served  greatly  to  gloss  over 
several  questionable  features,  such  as  amassing  some  $200,000  in  less)  than 
three  years,  not  derived  from  trade;  illegally  buying  city  lots;  countenanc- 
ing the  purchase  of  the  useless  city  hall  on  Stockton  st;  and  other  doubtful 
transactions  connected  with  the  disposal  of  city  property  and  money.  He 
returned  to  Fa  in  Feb.  1852,  served  with  distinction  in  the  civil  war,  and 
became  gov.  of  his  native  state.     His  portrait  is  given  in  Ann.  S.  F.,  725. 


«  ■ 


I 


CHAPTER  XI. 

SOCIETY. 
1849-1850. 

I.N0ATIIERINO  OF  NATIONALrriEO-P. 

jsentsTererfrrett  of  California  pre- 

J^>n.an  confusion  of  tonJ^s  anT. h  '''^^^^^  *^^  ^%- 
and  nationalities.     It  waraCh.  -^  "'"f  ^"^  «^  ^^^es 
'»  history,  for  modernTeanf  o^?"^  ""'^^^"^  P^^^"-^ 
;'ade  It  possible.     TLTnfwl  ^o'nniunication  alone 
"und   San   Francisco   nifo2^«Tf."'^  «^  ^^49 
iie  rest  of  the  interior  Wns  anrJ      "''^^  "^*^'  ^^^e 
'^•^'"ty  of  men.    The  censurof  mn  T^''  '^"^  ^  ^o"^" 
Population,  by  that  time  fast  W.      ^^^^^  *^^  ^^'^^^e 
^■';^-  ;t  percent  of  the  total  ^L^^^^^^^        ^*  ^^''  ^^^^"^ 

^^  h'le  in  mining  countLs  the  n^      -  '  ^^  *^^  '^""*''>^' 
per  cent.'        ^  ^^^^  *^®  proportion  fell  below  two 

,     'Calaveras  showa  ««i..  «/» 


(221) 


222 


SOCIETY. 


!iMj,. 


'ti; 


It  was,  moreover,  a  community  of  young  mon. 
There  was  scarcely  a  gray  head  to  be  seeii.'^  From 
these  conditions  of  race,  sex,  and  age,  exposed  to 
strange  environment,  result  phases  of  life  and  char- 
acter which  stamp  the  golden  era  of  California  as 
peculiar. 

Of  nationalities  the  flow  from  Europe  alone  equalled 
in  variety  that  of  the  mediaeval  crusades,  with  notable 
prominence  to  the  leading  types,  the  self-complacent 
Briton,  the  methodic  and  reflective  German,  and  the 
versatile  Gaul.  The  other  continents  contributed  to 
•swell  the  list.  Africa  was  represented,  besides  the 
orthodox  negro,  by  swarthy  Moors  and  straight-fea- 
tured Abyssinians.  Asia  and  Australasia  providod 
their  quota  in  pig-tailed,  blue-garbed  Mongols,  with 
their  squat,  bow-legged  cousins  of  Nipon,  lithe  and 
diminutive  Malays,  dark-skinned  Hindoos  enwrapped 
in  oriental  dreaminess,  the  well-formed  Maoris  and 
Kanakas,  the  stately  turbaned  Ottomans,  and  the  ubi- 
quitous Hebrews,  ever  to  be  found  in  the  wake  of 
movements  offering  trade  profits.'*  The  American 
element  preponderated,  however,  the  men  of  the 
United  States,  side  by  side  with  the  urbane  and  pic 
turesque  Hispano-Americans,  and  the  half-naked 
aborigines.  The  Yankee  fancied  himself  over  all, 
with  his  political  and  commercial  supremacy,  being 
full  of  great  projects  and  happy  devices  for  surmount- 
ing obstacles,  even  to  the  achieving  of  the  seeuiinu^ly 
impossible;*  and  fitted  no  less  by  indomitable  energy, 

assumes  only  15  per  mille  for  San  Francisco,  which  naturally  had  a  larger 
proportion  of  women  than  the  mining  camps. 

^Calaveras  exhibits  in  its  total  ot  10,884  only  69  persons  over  CO  years; 
Yuba  only  21  in  ita  total  of  9,673.  Ih. 

"  Helper,  Laiul  qf  Golil,  53-4,  states  that  the  '  general  dislike  to  their  race 
induced  many  to  trade  under  assumed  names.'  See  also  McDameW  Kn-lij 
.Oay%  MS.,  4. 

*  Their  selfishness,  tempered  by  sagacious  self-control,  is  generally  of  tliat 
broad  class  which  best  promotes  the  general  weal.  They  readily  coiiibiiiu  fur 
great  undertakings,  with  due  subordination,  yet  without  fettering  individual- 
ity, aa  manifested  in  the  political  movements  for  which  they  have  bueii  tittcd 
from  childhood  by  participation  in  local  and  general  affairs.  Lambert  ie 
extols  the  audacious  enterprise  'qui  confond  un  Prancais, ' and  the  courageous 
energy  which  yields  to  no  reverses.  To//.,  209-10.  Auger,  To//.,  IO.1-6,  aUo 
admires  the  power  to  organize.     ISee  t\il{/'ornut  JiUer  I'ocuUi,  this  series. 


NATIONAL  DIVERSITIES. 


223 


shrewdness,  and  adaptability  than  by  political  and 
numerical  rights  to  assume  the  mastery,"  and  so  lift 
into  a  progressive  state  a  virgin  field  which  under 
]]nglish  domination  might  have  sunk  into  a  stagnant 
conservative  colony,  or  remained  under  Mexican  sway 
un  outpost  ever  smouldering  with  revolution. 

As  compared  with  this  foremost  of  Teutonic  peo- 
ples, the  French,  as  the  Latin  representatives,  appeared 
td  less  advantage  in  the  arts  needful  for  building  up  a 
commonwealth.  Depth  of  resource,  practical  sense, 
and  force  of  character  could  not  be  replaced  by  etfer- 
vfscing  brilliancy  and  unsustained  dash.  They  show 
licre  rather  in  subordinate  efforts  conducive  to  creature 
comforts,*  while  Spanish- Americans  were  conspicuous 
from  their  well-known  lack  of  sustained  enerjjfv.'' 

The  clannish  tendencies  of  the  Latin  peoples,  due 
partly  to  the  overbearing  conduct  of  the  Anglo-Sax- 
ons, proved  not  alone  an  obstacle  to  the  adoption  of 
su})erior  methods  and  habits,  but  fostered  prejudices 
on  both  sides.  This  feeling  developed  into  open  hos- 
tility* on  the  part  of  a  thoughtless  and  less  respect- 
able portion  of  the  northern  element,  whose  jealousy 
was  roused  by  the  success  achieved  by  the  quicker 
eye  and  experience  of  the  Snanish-American  miners. 
The  Chinese  did  not  become  numerous  enough  until 
1851  to  awaken  the  enmity  which  in  their  case  was 
based  on  still  wider  grounds.' 


years; 

bir  race 
ICu-bj 

lof  that 

line  for 

■viilual- 

li  tittid 

ribcrtie 

lagi'oiis 

|G,  also 


'  Among  the  leaa  desirable  elements  were  the  tinaainly,  illiterate  crowds 
from  tlie  border  states,  such  aa  Indiana  Hoosiers  and  Missouriaus,  or  '  Pike 
t'liuiity '  people,  and  the  pretentious,  fire-eating  chivalry   from  tlie  south 
While  less  obnoxious  at  first,  the  last  named  proved  more  persistently  objoc 
tioiiahle,  for  the  angularities  of  the  others  soon  wore  off  in  the  contact  witli 
their  varied  neighbors,  partly  with  the  educated  youths  from  New  England 
LowhSUU.,  MS.,  7;  FimlUia  Stat.,  MS.,  9;  Fnt/s  Fartx,  MS.,  19. 

"Ill  catering  for  others,  or  making  the  most  of  their  own  moilerato  nu!aus 
'Les  plus  pauvres,'  exclaims  S'lint  Aimiiit,  Cut.,  487,  on  comparing  their  Ijack 
ward  (iindition  with  that  of  tlie  adaptive  Americans. 

'  They  were  slow  to  take  lessons  from  their  inventive  neighbors.  A  warn 
ing  letter  against  the  Chilians  came  from  South  American.  Unlmind  Doc. 
327-8.  Revere,  Keel  and  Smidle,  1(50-1,  commends  their  quickness  f.ir  pros 
pectiiig,  and  their  patience  aa  diggers.  liosthimck's  CaL,  311;  lioinjand  Put 
<t«'4  Men  and  Mem,,  287  et  seq.;  Fii/wr/i  CiiU,  42-9;  AU(i  Cut.,  Juno  29,  1851 

•^  As  will  be  seen  later. 

'All  of  which  is  fully  considered  in  another  ^•olumc  of  this  work. 


SOCIETY. 


'II 


Certain  distinctiveness  of  dress  and  manner  assisted 
the  physical  type  in  marking  nationalties;  but  idiosyn- 
crasies were  less  conspicuous  here  than  in  conventional 
circles,  owing  to  the  prevalence  of  the  miner's  garb — 
checked  or  woollen  shirts,  with  a  predominance  of 
rod  and  blue,  open  at  the  bosom,  which  could  boast  of 
shaggy  robustness,  or  loosely  secured  by  a  kerchief;  pan- 
taloons half  tucked  into  high  and  wrinkled  boots,  and 
belted  at  the  waist,  where  bristled  an  arsenal  of  knife 
and  pistols.  Beard  and  hair,  emancipated  from  thral- 
dom, revelled  in  long  and  bushy  tufts,  which  rather  har- 
monized with  the  slouched  and  dingy  hat.  Later,  a 
species  of  foppery  broke  out  in  the  flourishing  towns;  on 
Sundays  particularly  gay  colors  predominated.  The 
gamblers,  taking  the  lead,  affected  the  Mexican  style 
of  dress:  white  shirt  with  diamond  studs,  or  breast- 
pin of  native  gold,  chain  of  native  golden  speci- 
mens, broad-brimmed  hat  with  sometimes  a  feather  or 
squirrel's  tail  under  the  band,  top-boots,  and  a  rich 
scarlet  sash  or  silk  handkerchief  thrown  over  the 
shoulder  or  wound  round  the  waist.  San  Francisco 
took  early  a  step  further.  Traders  and  clerks  drew 
forth  their  creased  suits  of  civilization,  till  the  shoot- 
ing-jacket of  the  Briton,  the  universal  black  of  the 
Yankee,  the  tapering  cut  of  the  Parisian,  the  stove- 
pipe hat  and  stand-up  collar  of  the  professional,  ap- 
peared upon  the  street  to  rival  or  eclipse  the  prosti- 
tute and  cognate  fraternity  which  at  first  monopolized 
elegance  in  drapery.^" 

Miners,  however,  made  a  resolute  stand  against  any 
approach  to  dandyism,  as  they  termed  the  concomi- 
tants of  shaven  face  and  white  shirt,  as  antagonistic 
to  their  own  foppery  of  rags  and  undress  which  at- 
tended deified  labor.  Clean,  white,  soft  hands  were 
an  abomination,  for  such  were  the  gambler's  and  tlie 
preacher's,  not  to  speak  of  worshipful  femininity.  But 
horny  were  the  honest  miner's  hands,  whose  one  only 

^^ Fay's  Facts,  MS.,  10.  Placer  Times,  Oct.  27,  1849,  and  contemporaries, 
warn  their  readers  against  such  imitation  of  foppery. 


WHIRL  OF  EXCITEMENT. 


225 


soft  touch  was  the  revolver's  trigger.  A  store-lceeper 
in  the  mines  was  a  necessary  evil,  a  cross  between  a 
cattle-thief  and  a  constable;  if  a  fair  trader,  free  to 
givL'  credit,  and  popular,  he  was  quite  respectable,  more 
so  than  the  saloon-keeper  or  the  loafer,  but  let  him 
not  aspire  to  the  dignity  of  digger." 

Xor  was  the  conceit  illusive;  for  the  finest  speci- 
nitiis  of  manhood  unfolded  in  these  rugged  forms,  some 
stanch  and  broad-shouldered,  some  gaunt  and  wiry; 
their  bronzed,  hairy  features  weather  bleached  and 
furrowed,  their  deep  rolling  voices  laden  with  oaths, 
tliough  each  ejaculation  was  tempered  by  the  frankness 
and  humor  of  the  twinkling  eye.  All  this  dissolution  of 
old  conventionaUties  and  adoption  of  new  forms,  which 
was  really  the  creation  of  an  original  type,  was  merely 
a  j>art  of  the  overflowing  sarcasm  and  fun  started  by 
tilt'  tlissolution  of  prejudice  and  the  liberation  of 
thought. 

A  marked  trait  of  the  Californians  was  exuberance 
in  work  and  play,  in  enterprise  or  pastime — an  exuber- 
ance full  of  vigor.  To  reach  this  country  was  in  itself 
a  task  which  implied  energy,  self-reliance,  self-denial, 
and  similar  qualities;  but  moderation  was  not  a  virtue 
consonant  with  the  new  environment.  The  climate 
was  stimulating.  Man  breathed  quicker  and  moved 
faster;  the  very  windmills  whirled  here  with  a  velocity 
that  would  make  a  Hollander's  head  swim.  And  so 
like  boys  escaped  from  school,  from  supervision,  the 
adventurer  yielded  to  the  impulse,  and  allowed  the 
spirit  within  him  to  run  riot.  The  excitement,  more- 
over, brought  out  the  latent  strength  hitherto  confined 
by  lack  of  opportunity  and  conventional  rules.  Chances 
presented  themselves  in  different  directions  to  vaulting 
ambition.     Thrown    upon  his   own   resources  midst 

''The  supposed  well-filled  pockets  of  the  miner  and  his  ever-present 
loaded  revolver  made  him  an  object  of  respect.  Their  moat  allowaDlu  ap< 
proach  to  gay  display  was  in  the  Mexican  muleteer  or  caballero  attire,  not 
omitting  the  gay  sash  and  jingling  spurs.  A'lp's  Sketches,  18-19;  S.  F.  Dir., 
1852,  12-13;  Overland,  Sept.  1871,  221  Boathwidc'a  Cal.,  56. 
Hist.  Cai..,  Vok  VL   15 


22G 


SOCIETY. 


I  jl'   ': 


ll>   •>: 


'1         ' 


strange  surroundings,  with  quickened  observation  atirl 
tli(»uglit,  the  enterprising  new-couier  cast  asid*;  tTjuli- 
tional  caution,  and  launclied  into  the  current  of  sjjtcu- 
lation;  for  everything  seemed  to  promise  siuiess 
wliatever  coui-se  might  be  pursued,  so  abnormal  were 
the  times  and  place  which  set  at  naught  all  calcula- 
tions fornmlated  by  wisdom  and  precedent  Amid 
thf>  general  free  and  magnificent  disorder,  recklessness 
had  its  votaries,  which  led  to  a  wide-spread  emplujsis 
in  language,'"^  and  to  a  full  indulgence  in  exciting 
jtastimcs.  All  this,  however,  was  but  the  bubble  and 
spray  of  the  river  hurrying  onward  to  a  grander  and 
calmer  future. 

This  frenzied  haste,  no  less  than  the  absence  of 
families,  denoted  that  the  mania  was  for  enrichment, 
with  hopes  rather  of  a  speedy  return  to  the  old  home 
than  of  building  a  new  one.  San  Francisco  and  other 
towns  remained  under  this  idea,  as  well  as  temporary 
cami)sand  dep6ts  for  the  gold-fields,  whither  went  not 
only  diggers,  but  in  their  wake  a  vast  following  ot' 
traders,  purveyors,  gamblers,  and  other  ravenous  nun- 
producers  to  absorb  substance. 

The  struggle  for  wealth,  however,  untarnished  by 
sordidness,  stood  redeemed  by  a  whole-souled  liberal- 
ity, even  though  the  origin  of  this  ideal  Californian 
trait,  like  many  another  virtue,  may  be  traced  to  less 
noble  sources;  here  partly  to  the  desire  to  cover  up 
the  main  stimulant — greed;  partly  to  the  prodigality 
lired  by  easy  acquisition;*^  partly  to  the  absence  of 
restraining  family  cares.  Even  traders  scorned  to 
ha<;jjle.  A  half-dollar  was  the  smallest  coin  tl.at 
could  be  tendered  for  any  service,  and  many  hesitated 
to  offer  a  quarter  for  the  smallest  article.  Every- 
thing proceeded  on  a  grand  scale;  even  boot-blacking 
assumed  big  proportions,  with  neatly  fitted  recesses, 

*-  For  siiecimens,  I  refer  to  Cremony's  Apache,  345. 

"It  was  iiiauifested  iu  social  intercourse,  also  in  charity,  which  in  tlifsu 
early  days  found  worthy  objects  among  the  suffering  immigrants,  as  related 
under  the  Overland  Journey.  Garniss,  Early  Days,  MS.,  19,  instances  the 
lilH;rality  to  stricken  individuals,  for.  which  the  wide-spread  opuleucc  gave 
less  occasion. 


o]>J)o 

T, 

tiie 

were 

idea 


A  LEVEL  SEA  OF  HUMANITY. 


227 


rn>liinned  chairH,  and  a  supply  of  entertaining  journals. 
AVugcs  rose  to  a  dollar  on  hour  for  labonTs,  and  to 
twiivc  and  twenty  dollars  a  day  for  artisans."  With 
thorn  was  raised  the  dignity  of  labor,  sanctified  by  the 
application  of  all  classes,  by  the  independence  of  min- 
iiiL,^  life,  and  by  the  worshipful  results — gold. 

A  natural  consequence  was  the  levelling  of  rank,  a 
democratic  equalization  hitherto  unapproached,  and 
sliatteringthc  conservative  notions  more  or  less  preva- 
lent. The  primary  range  of  classes  was  not  so  varied 
as  in  the  older  countries;  for  the  rich  and  powerful 
would  not  come  to  toil,  and  the  very  poor  could  not 
well  gain  the  distant  land;  but  where  riches  lay  so 
near  the  reach  of  all,  their  accumulation  conferred  less 
advantage.  Aptitude  was  the  esteemed  and  distin- 
guishing trait.  The  aspiring  man  could  break  away 
from  drudgery  at  home,  and  here  find  many  an  open 
field  with  independence  The  laborer  might  gain  the 
f(  (oting  of  employer ;  the  clerk  the  position  of  principal ; 
wliilc  former  doctors,  lawyers,  and  army  officer-,  could 
l)e  seen  toihng  for  wages,  even  as  waiters  and  shoe- 
l»laoks.  Thus  were  grades  reversed,  fitness  to  grasp 
ujiportunity  giving  the  ascendency." 

The  levelling  process  left  indelible  traces;  yet  from 
the  first  the  mental  reservation  and  consequent  effort 
wore  made  to  rise  above  any  enforced  subjection.  The 
idea  of  abasement  was  sometimes  softened  by  the 
disguise  of  name,  which  served  also  for  fugitives  from 
misfortune  or  disgrace,  while  it  flattered  imitators  of 
humble  origin.  This  habit  received  wide  acknowl- 
edgment and  application,   especially   in  the   mines, 

'•  As  'viU  be  considered  under  Industries. 

'^  Even  clergymen  left  an  unappreciated  calling  to  dig  for  gold.  Willey,  in 
Ihiiiic  Mumonary,  xxii.  92.  Little,  UtiU.,  M.S.,  11,  instances  in  his  service  a.s 
liortur.s,  muleteers,  etc.,  two  doctors,  two  planters  claiming  to  own  estates, 
and  .1  gentleman,  whatever  that  maybe.  See  also  Caasin,  Stat.,  MS.,  5-0, 
wild  ideutified  in  a  bootblack  a  well-known  French  journalist  of  prominent 
family.  Count  Raousset  de  Boulbon,  of  filibuster  fame,  who  prided  himself 
oil  royal  blood,  admits  working  as  a  wharf  laborer.  Master  and  slave  from 
the  southern  states  could  be  seen  working  and  living  together.  But  such 
inst^mces  are  well  known.  No  sensible  man  objected  to  manual  labor,  al- 
though he  hesitated  at  the  menial  grades. 


I 


:\ 


I 

iiiii 


ill 


ill 


4 


I  (Ji 


m  I 


S 


'ii' 


m 


SOCIETY 

where  nicknames  became  the  rule,  with  a  preference 
for  abbreviated  baptismal  names,  particularized  by  an 
epithet  descriptive  of  the  person,  character,  national- 
ity ;  as  Sandy  Pete,  Long-legged  Jack,  Dutcby.  The 
cause  here  may  be  sought  chiefly  in  the  blunt  unre- 
strained good-fellowship  of  the  camp,  which  banished 
all  formality  and  superfluous  courtesy." 

The  requirements  of  mining  life  favored  partnership; 
and  while  few  of  the  associations  formed  for  the  jour- 
ney out  kept  together,  new  unions  were  made  for 
mutual  aid  in  danger,  sickness,  and  labor.  Sacred  like 
the  marriage  bonds,  as  illustrated  by  the  softening  of 
partner  into  the  familiar  'pard,'  were  the  ties  which  oft 
united  men  vastly  difierent  in  physique  and  tempera- 
ment, the  weak  and  strong,  the  lively  and  sedate,  tlius 
yoking  themselves  together.  It  presented  the  affinity 
of  opposites,  with  ihe  heroic  possibilities  of  a  Damon 
or  Patroclus,^^  Those  already  connected  with  benevo- 
lent societies  sougiii  ouc  one  another  to  revive  them 
for  the  practice  of  charity,  led  by  the  Odd  Fellows, 
who  united  as  early  as  1847.^ 


18 


"With  manhood  thus  exalted  rose  the  sense  of  duty 
and  honor.  Where  legal  redress  was  limited,  owing 
to  the  absence  of  well-established  government,  reliance 
had  to  be  placed  mainly  on  individual  faith.  In  1S48 
and  1849  locks  and  watchmen  were  little  thought  of, 
I.;  the  towns  valuable  goods  lay  freely  exposed,  or 
sheltered  only  by  frail  canvas  structures;  and  in  tlie 
camps  tents  stood  unguarded  throughout  the  day,  with 
probably  a  tin  pan  full  of  gold-dust  in  open  view  upon 
the  shelf."    The  prevalent  security  was  due  less  to 

*'  Yet  it  reqftired  great  intimacy  to  question  even  a  comrade  concerning 
his  real  name  and  former  life. 

"  This  applies  of  course  rather  to  unions  of  two.  Rules  fur  larger  asso- 
ciations.are  reproduced  in  Shinn's  Mining  Camps,  113;  FarvxtFt  Viy.,  MS.,  5. 

'^  An  account  of  these  and  other  orders  will  be  ^vea  later. 

'*The  frail  nature  of  the  early  business  houses  in  S.  F.  and  elsewhere  has 
been  described.  >\rheaton  instances  a  crockery  shop  on  the  border  of  the 
Sydney  convict  settlement,  where  a  notice  invited  purchasers  to  select  their 
ffoods  and  leave  tiie  money  in  a  plate,  the  proprietor  oeing  engaged  elsewheru. 
atat.,  MS.,  3-4.     Coleman  relates  tuat  a  gold  watch  was  pick^  up  near  Lis 


COMING  CF  THE  CRIMINALS. 


820 


[•ence 
3y  an 
lonal- 
The 
un  re- 
lished 

rship ; 
}  jour- 
de  for 
ed  like 
ling  of 
lich  oft 
mpera- 
■j&,  thus 
affinity 
Damon 
benevo- 
e  them 
fellows, 


of  duty 
owing 


Iconcerniug 

•rcer  aaso- 
^.,  MS.,  5. 

Jewhere  has 
Ider  of  the 
|elect  their 

elsewhere. 

kiy  uear  hia 


the  absence  of  bad  men — for  reckless  adventurers  had 
long  been  pouring  in,  as  instanced  by  the  character 
and  conduct  of  many  of  the  disbanded  New  York 
volunteers — ^thaii  to  the  readiness  with  which  gold  and 
wages  could  be  gained,  and  to  the  armed  and  deter- 
mined attitude  of  the  people.  Soon  came  a  change, 
liowcver,  with  the  greater  influx  of  obnoxious  ele- 
nioiits;  and  the  leaden  reality  of  hard  work  dissipated 
tlie  former  visions  of  broad-cast  gold.  Fugitives  from 
trouble  and  dishonor  had  been  lured  to  California, 
graceless  scions  of  respectable  families,  and  never-do- 
wills,  men  of  wavering  virtue  and  frail  piety,  withering 
before  temptation  and  sham-haters,  turned  to  s\yell  the 
army  of  knaves.^"  Bolder  ruffians  took  the  initiative 
and  banded  to  raid  systematically,  especially  on  con- 
voys from  the  mines.  So  depraved  became  their 
recklessness  that  sweeping  conflagrations  were  planned 
for  the  plunder  to  be  obtained,"^  while  assassination 
followed  as  a  matter  of  course.  But  murder  was  lit- 
tle thought  of  as  compared  with  the  heinous  crime  of 
tlieft.  Disregard  for  life  was  fostered  by  an  excitable 
temperament,  the  frequency  of  drunken  brawls,  the 
universal  habit  of  carrying  weapons,  and  the  nomadic 
and  isolated    position    of   individuals,    remote    from 

ciiiiii)  and  left  suspended  on  a  tree  for  a  fortuigh*,  undisturlxMl  till  the  owner 
rrturiied  to  claim  it.  Viij.,  MS.,  2.  Most  pioneers  unite  in  extolling  the 
si'c'iirity  prevalent  in  those  days.  'Property  was  safer  in  California  than  in 
the  (ililer  states.'  Dehitms  L{fe,  359.  Gov.  Mason  wrote  nearly  to  tlie  sifnie 
itlect  ill  Oct.  1848.  U.  S.  Om.  Dor.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  p.  677; 
BnniitCs  lice,  MS.,  ii.  14*2-3;  Brooks^  Font  Mo.,  (57.  In  previous  chapters 
h;i.s  lifi'u  shown  tlie  extent  of  crime  in  1848,  as.  instanced  in  the  Val{forniau,^iA>. 
2,  1S4S;  (■(//.  S'nr,  Feh.  26;  SUir  and  Cut.,  Dec.  9,  1848,  etc.  See  further,  for 
bdtli  years,  Wiiians^  SttU.,  MS.,  14-16;  Oliwy's  Vi<j-,  MS.,  1;  KcaU'H  Sf«t., 
MS.,  .S  .-);  Sutton n  Stat.,  MS.,  10;  Sac.  Tmmcrijif,  Apr.  26,  1850,  etc.;  Fayn 
J'wi-<,  MS.,  2;  ilillespte'a  Viij.,  MS.,  5;  Friend,  vii.  74;  LUtk's  Stat.,  MS.,  16; 
/'/i»//'(..i  Stilt.,  MS.,  6;  McCoUum'a  Cat.,  62;  Stnpkn'  St(tt.,  MS.,  14;  Cat.  Paxt 
and  Pn:*.,  lC.2-3. 

'^'' S:iy ward,  Pion.  Rem.,  MS.,  32-.3,  states  that  after  the  Missourians  Insgan 
to  cdiiiu,  insecurity  increa«eil.  In  1850  things  liail  reached  such  a  piiss  tlint 
inail  agents  were  afraid  to  carry  gold,  lest  tliey  slumld  be  murdered.  H'(ww/i' 
Hidnn  Mo.,  141;  Ciushy'it  ShU.,  MS.,  41-2.  Helper,  Land  qf  (} old,  36  8, 
jiiiiit;*  llie  criminal  aspect  in  <lark  colors;  Voxk  -•(,(.  Trinity  Co.,  62-3.  Biir- 
stiiw,  Still.,  MS.,  10,  points  to  the  Irish  as  the  rowdy  clement.  C/iainlterlain's 
Sm.,  .MS.,  1;  S-n/wanl'n  Rem.,  MS.,  33. 

'Kruoks,  Four  Mo.,  142-3,  168-9,  187-8,  201,  refers  to  several  bands,  as 
do  Huniett  and  others.  For  criminal  reeorils,  I  refer  to  my  Pojniln  Trihunnb, 
Olid  tor  t'dguatc  data  to  a  later  chapter  on  tlie  administration  of  justice 


230 


SOCIETY. 


friends  who  might  inquire  into  their  disappearance. 
An  armed  man  was  supposed  to  take  care  of  himself.-' 
The  lack  of  judicial  authorities  tended  further  to  pro- 
mote the  personal  avenging  of  wrongs  by  duel,^ 
which  took  place  frequently  by  public  announceineiit. 
In  the  northern  and  cen+ral  mining  districts  the 
preponderance  of  sedate  yet  resolute  Americans  with 
a  ready  recourse  to  lynching  inspired  a  wholesome 
awe ;  but  along  the  San  Joaquin  tributaries,  abounding 
with  less  sober-minded  Sonorans  and  Hispano- Ameri- 
cans, this  restraint  diminished,^*  the  more  so  as  race 
animosity  was  becoming  rampant.  Swift  and  radical 
penalties  alone  were  necessary  in  the  interior,  on 
account  of  lack  of  prisons;  and  even  San  Francisco 
found  these  measures  indispensable  in  1851,  despite 
her  accessories  of  police  and  chain-gangs.^^  The  ever- 
moving  and  fluctuating  current  of  life  proved  a  shield 
to  evil-doers,  and  fostered  the  roaming  instinct  which 
had  driven  so  many  westward,  and  was  breeding  per- 
nicious habits  of  vagrancy  and  loafing. ^^  Every  camp 
had  its  bully,  who  openly  boasted  of  prowess  against 
Indians,  as  well  as  of  his  white  targets,  and  flaunted 
an  intimidating  braggardism.  Likewise  every  town 
possessed  its  sharpers,  on  the  watch  for  gold-laden 
and  confiding  miners. 


^■■'Helper,  Lnml  of  Gold,  29,  158,  estimates  in  1854  that  since  the  opening 
of  the  mines  Cal.  had  'invested  upwards  of  six  millions  of  dollars  in  Iuimk- 
knives  and  pistols.'  Tiie  same  fertile  inquirer  finds  for  this  period  ■i,'2M 
murders  ami  1,400  suicides,  b'isides  10,0()0  more  of  miserable  dt'aths.  Fur 
early  years  no  reliahlo  records  exist  in  this  direction,  but  titoso  for  the  moie 
settled  year  of  lt>55  show  538  deaths  by  violence,  whereof  two  tliirls  wiie 
white  pcr.sons,  the  rest  Indians  and  Chinese.     Further  data  in  a  later  iliapti  r. 

'•"Revolvers  were  the  most  ready  instruments.  A  conunon  practice  Mr 
principals  was  to  place  themselves  back  to  back,  march  five  paces,  turn  aii<l 
fire  till  the  pistol  chambers  woro  emptied  or  the  men  disabled.  ISh'iotinL;  cm 
sight  WM  in  vogue,  involving  no  little  danger  to  passcrs-l>y.  '  I  mistook  >  >>u 
for  another,'  was  more  than  once  the  excuse  to  some  innocent  victim.  "//,<//.< 
Vkj.,  MS..  3;  Ihttell'a  Jfin.,  377;  Attn  Cal.,  July  3,  1851,  and  other  nu.nlKis. 
See  also  L)u  Hailly,  in  Itnme  iiet4x  MowlvJi,  Feb.  1851),  012;  TrumauH  Fu  id  "J 
Honor,  and  my  liitir  Poculn  and  Pap.  TridumiU. 

"Pliu-er  Tiiiiex,  July 20,  184!». 

*^ Steps  were  taken  in  ]8iHi  to  prevent  the  entry  of  convicts,  Ciil.  St'il'it''^ 
1850,  202,  yet  many  succeeded  in  landing.  Allti  Cul.,  May  10,  July  16-lG, 
1851. 

"'Aa  complained  of  already  in  1850.  Pac.  News,  Jan.  5,  1850. 


DISCOMFORT  AND  DISEASE. 


231 


aranco. 

LUiseUV"' 
to  pro- 

cement, 
icts  the 
tns  witli 
Lolesoine 
(oumling 
)-Araeii- 
>  as  race 
J  radical 
erior,  on 
Francisco 
,  despite 
the  evei- 
1  a  shield 
[ict  which 
jding  per- 
^ery  camp 
ss  against 
I  flaunted 
•^ery  town 
yold-ladeu 


Much  of  the  growing  crime  took  root  during  the 
vet  winter  of  1849-50,  which  brought  starvation 
and  -ickness  to  the  inaccessible  camps.  Ill  health 
was  wide-spread,  and  more  lamentable  owing  to  the 
isolation  of.  sufferers,  devoid  of  friends  and  means,  and 
remote  from  doctors  and  medicine.  The  seed  of  dis- 
ease was  frequently  laid  during  the  voyage  out,  in  the 
unwholesome  food  and  atmosphere  of  crowded  vessels. 
Then  came  new  climates  and  surroundings,  unusual 
and  exliausting  labor,  standing  in  water  or  on  moist 
ground  under  a  broiling  sun,  the  insufficient  shelter  of 
tents  or  sheds,  beds  made  upon  the  damp  soil,  poor 
and  scanty  provisions,  excitement  and  dissipation. 
All  this  could  not  fail  to  affect  most  of  the  inexperi- 
enced new-comers,  especially  with  fever,  bowel  com- 
plaint, and  rheumatism;  while  scurvy,  cutaneous, 
M  philitic,  and  pulmonary  diseases,  claimed  their  vic- 
tims.'"' In  October  1850  came  the  cholera;  and  al- 
though disappearing  with  the  year,  it  is  supposed  to 
have  carried  off  fifteen  per  cent  of  the  population  at 
Sacramento,  and  about  half  that  proportion  westward,"^ 
besides  frightening  away  a  large  number.  The  strain 
of  excitement,  with  attendant  disappointments  and 
windfalls,  predisposed  to  insanity,  while  lowering  the 


Ice  the  opening 
liirs  ill  1"'"  '^■■ 
perioil  4,-0i) 

,c  for  tlie  ni'»i! 

o  tliir>ls  were 
_  later  elKil'l';''- 
m  practice  tor 

aces,  turn  ii'i'l 

I'l  inistoi'k  >"ii 
victim.  <>li"!i* 
ther  luunlii'i'*. 
manB  ^'" '''  "J 


18,   Cdl   St'lt'lt''^' 

10,  July  lii-l*'' 
loO. 


''  Tlie  report  from  the  state  marine  hospital  at  S.  F.  shows  the  jimportion 
of  2()'2  iliiirrhiea  cases,  204  dysentry,  113  acute  rht^umatisin,  9.'<  iiit<  nun  tent 
k'W'v.  47  chronic  rheuiiiatisni,  40  scurvy,  40  gonorrhea,  37  typhus,  'M  pytliisis, 
'JS  '  .oncliitis, '20  pneumonia,  among  1,200  patients.  Cal.  Jour.  ,S'ii.,  1851, 
ii-1  :t.  Diarrhiea  killed  10  out  of  a  party  of  IS)  on  Trinity  River.  J'ur.  S'lirM, 
^lay  !•,  IS.")0.  Dysentery  was  equally  common,  with  ulcerated  bowels.  Daws' 
Vi;!.,  MS.,  2;  Unliouml  Doc.,  MS.,  20;  Barstow's  Sl<it.,  MS.,  2-3,  12;  Ltrkina 
]>(»:.  vi.  172,  175.  Destitution  and  dciith  hy  starvation  ii  mentioned  iu  /Vic. 
.A'r(/<,  Dec.  13,  1849;  Oamisa'  Eiirltj  Dnifx,  MS.,  11.  A  remedy  for  scurvy 
w.i.s  to  bury  the  patient  in  earth,  all  out  the  head.  '  Whole  camps  were  some- 
tiiius  Imried  at  once,  c;.w«  j>t  a  few  who  remained  out  to  keep  on  the  grizzlys 
anil  coynti's. '  Sairlc.u-'a  Pioiierri,  MS.,  5;  Monies  St'it.,  MS. 

-".\t  S;iu  Jose  ttn  per  cent,  at  S.  V.  live.  Bunutt's  /'ic,  MS.,  ii.  241.  It 
caiisiil  ,1  rusii  of  passengers  hy  the  Panama  steamer.  Some  died  on  hoiird, 
but  within  a  week  the  pest  disjippeared.  i'rary'i*  I'i'/.,  MS,,  1.  It  ra),'id  in 
Oiiliir,  etc.  Pac.  AVmw,  Nov.  1,  1850;  (Ml.  Coumr,  Oct.  24,  Dec.  21,  Ks.V); 
iS.  /■.  ri,;u/H)ie,  Oct.  2.%  25,  Nov.  4,  6,  Dec.  5,  1850.  Jiitlge  Hoflfman  huc- 
Climbed.  A  cholera  hospitiil  was  opened  at  S.  F..  on  Broadway.  S.  F.  Direr- 
ton/,  1852,  17;  Vrr  Mfhr'n  Life,  307:  Snr.  Trmisntpt,  Oct.  14,  1850,  says  it 
bmkL  out  at  S.  F.;  PolifHr-spin,  vii.  98,  110,  114,  118, 138;  Shuck'a  Bepret.  Men, 
\i'M.     it  reappeared  iu  1852. 


! 


1 1 

11 


30 


SOCIETY. 

physical  and  mental  tone.®  The  lack  of  remedial 
facilities  in  the  mining  camps  directed  a  stream  of  in- 
valids to  the  towns,  especially  to  San  Francisco,  despite 
its  unfavorable  winds  and  moisture.  There  were  also 
constantly  left  stranded  new-comers,  reduced  by  Pan- 
amd.  fevers  and  the  hardships  attending  badly  fitttd 
vessels,  made  desperate  by  destitution  and  suffering, 
from  which  only  too  many  sought  escape  by  suicid 
Little  ceremony  attended  the  burial  of  these  unfortu- 
nates in  the  cities,  but  in  the  mines  a  procession  of 
miners  usually  attended  to  consign  a  comrade,  often 
shroudless  and  uncoffined,  to  a  shallow  grave. *^  The 
high  cost  of  treatment  by  doctors  and  at  private  hos- 
pitals, with  over-crowding  and  neglect  in  the  public 
wards,  tended  to  keep  the  death-rate  high  during  the 
first  two  years  of  the  mining  era.^** 

Obviously  in  a  community  of  men  the  few  women 
present  were  very  conspicuous.  There  were  whole 
groups  of  camps  which  could  be  searched  in  vain  for 
the  presence  of  a  single  woman,  and  where  one  was 
found  she  proved  too  often  only  the  fallen  image,  the 
center  of  gyrating   revelry  and   discord.^     In  San 

■•'•  In  1850  twelve  persons  were  cast  upon  the  care  of  S.  F.,  with  an  increase 
to  three  times  that  number  by  1852,  and  legislative  sttps  were  taken  tn  |>i'<>- 
vide  for  the  afflicted,  at  first  in  a  brig  anchored  at  North  Beach.  Cal.  Jmir. 
Ho.,  1850,  1341;  Cal.  PoUt.  Code,  297-306;  Fernandez,  Cal.,  189;  J/t«M  uml 
Minern,  795-6;  S.  F.  HeraUt,  Sept.  30,  1851. 

^By  the  close  of  1854  the  suicides  were  estimated  at  1,400.  Helper's  Laud 
qf  Gokl,  29.     Some  went  to  the  Hawaiian  Islands. 

*'  At  S.  F.  pauper  burials  were  contracted  for  in  1850  at  the  reduced  nite 
of  P5,  formerly  $60  to  $100.  S.  F.  Minutes,  1849-50,  68,  79-82,  etc. ;  OonuKy' 
Eaiiji  Days,  MS.,  10;  Wheatoiia  Slut.,  MS.,  2.  Mr  Gray  came  irom  Ntw 
York  in  1860,  as  a  professional  underUiker.  Ptic.  News,  May  1,  1850;  S.  F.  .\Un, 
June  11,  1853;  Feb.  26,  1863;  Polynesinn,  vi.  110;  Hiitrhimjs  Ma,j.,  iii.  i:««, 
252.  The  interments  at  S.  F.  prior  to  1850  are  estimated  at  970.  For  the 
year  ending  July  1851,  when  cholera  raged,  they  rose  to  1,475,  then  fell  to 
1,005,  rising  again  to  1,575,  with  a  proportionate  decline  after  July  ISoIJ. 
Annals  S.  F.,  693-6. 

*"  Hospitals  are  spoken  of  under  Sac.  and  S.  F.  anniils.  A  board  of  healtli 
was  organized  in  1850;  also  a  medical  society,  June  22d.  Pm:  News,  May  IS, 
Dec.  14,  1850;  Cal.  Courier,  Oct.  23-4,  1860.  The  fee-bill  of  the  latter  raiiued 
from  'an  ounce,'  $16,  the  lowest  price,  upward;  visits  were  rated  at  Si;i2;  id- 
vice  and  operations  were  specified  as  high  as  $1,000.  MisceL  Stat.,  MS.,  H-4; 
Amiatrong  s  Ex/per.,  MS  ,  9. 

'^The  place  of  women  at  dances  would  be  taken  by  men.  In  1850  more 
women  began  to  come  in,  although  composed  largely  of  loose  elements.     ^  urn- 


ABSENCE  OP  WOMEN. 


nedial 
of  iu- 
lespite 
re  also 
J  Pan- 
'  fittid 
Bering, 
licide.^ 
nfortu- 
sion  of 
3,  often 
^     The 
ite  hos- 
public 
ing  the 


women 
whole 

^rain  for 
ne  was 
e,  the 

|In  San 

fin  increase 

ten  to  i)i<t- 

i'al.  Jour. 

I  Minen  uitd 

[bper'8  Liiiiil 

Educed  rate 
0((  »•;«•<•'" 
lirom  Ntw 
Is.  t\Mi<u 
I/.,  iii.  i:<:<. 

•  For  the 
nen  fell  to 
July  I80S. 

of  liealUi 

May  IS, 

Iter  raiiiied 

[it  ^i1;  a.l- 

MS.,  3-4; 

1 1850  iMore 
lt8.    Nu'"- 


Francisco  and  other  large  towns,  families  besun  to 
settle,  yet  for  a  long  time  the  disreputable  ele- 
ment outshone  the  virtuous  by  loudness  in  dress 
and  manner,  especially  in  public  resorts.  In  the 
scarcity  men  assumed  the  heroic,  and  women  became 
worshipful  The  few  present  wore  an  Aphrodite 
girdle,  which  shed  a  glamour  over  imperfections,  till 
they  found  themselves  divinities,  centres  of  chivalric 
adorers.  In  the  mining  region  men  would  travel  from 
afar  for  a  glance  at  a  newly  arrived  female,  or  handle 
in  mock  or  real  ecstasy  some  fragment  of  female  ap- 
parel.^ Even  in  the  cities  passers-by  would  turn  to 
salute  a  female  stranger,^  while  the  appearance  of  a 
little  sfirl  would  be  heralded  like  that  of  an  anjjel, 
many  a  rugged  fellow  bending  with  tears  of  recollec- 

l)ers  'from  the  east,'  observes  Barstow,  Stat.,  MS.,  4.  The  preponderance  ia 
thi:i  el.ud  lay,  however,  with  Hispano-Americans,  not  excepting  Calif ornians. 
Bays  C'erruti,  RamhUngs,  MS.,  50.  Hundreds  were  brought  from  Mazatlan 
an'l  •'Niii  Bias  on  trust,  and  transferred  to  bidders  with  whom  the  girls  shared 
their  eariiings.  Femamtez,  CaL,  190-1.  The  Peruvians  were  sought  for  ilanc- 
iiig'S.-il<M)n3.  Australia  sent  many.  Polynesian,  vii.  84.  French  women  were 
hroujiht  out  to  preside  at  gambling-tables.  '  Nine  hundred  of  the  French  demi- 
monde are  expected,'  announces  the  Pac.  Neins,  Oct.  23,  1850,  to  reside  on 
StiK-kton  and  Fill>ert8t8.  Tlie  number  dwindled  to  50.  Sac.  TntH'*rriyt,'Sov. 
2!),  lisiO.  Indian  women  were  frrely  offered  at  the  camps,  and  the  numljer 
wait  increased  by  kidnapped  females  from  the  Marquesas  Islauiis.  See  outcry 
on  this  point  in  Alta  Oil.,  Dec.  21,  24,  IST^O.  One  noted  prostitute  claimed 
to  have  earned  $50,000.  Oaniisa'  Early  Days,  MS.,  7.  For  first  published 
case  of  adultery  in  1849  at  S.  F.,  see  Richardson's  Exper.,  MS.,  27;  also 
^ri^rel.  St'it,  MS.,  2;  Unyes'  Scraps,  CaL  Notes,  v.  60,  etc.  The  Home  J/m- 
fioiiiirif,  xxii  103-7,  xxvii.  159,  intimates  that  half  the  women  in  S.  F.  were 
of  the  loose  element.  Bolton  vs.  U.  S.,  99-101;  Velasco,  Son.,  325.  TL^  ViiL 
Coiii-ht;  Oct.  21-2,  Nov.  16,  1850,  inveighs  against  the  demi-monde,  while 
tile  Alt'i  Col.,  Dec.  19,  1850,  commends  the  improved  morals.  So  does  i$.  F. 
Pioiijiiiu ,  Sept.  27,  1850,  although  it  admits  that  even  the  higher  classes  were 
<li»s<ihite.  Armstrong,  Exner.,  MS.,  12,  speaks  of  the  personation  of  women 
and  the  sale  of  a  wile.  In  Oct.  1849  there  were  not  over  50  U.  S.  women  in 
^».  F.,  says  McCoUum,  Cai.,  61. 

■"  A  .story  is  told  of  the  excitement  over  the  discovery  of  a  bonnet,  attende«l 
by  a  •lance  around  it,  hoisted  upon  a  May-polo.  Some  add  a  stuffed  figure 
to  the  Iwinnet,  and  put  a  cradle  by  its  side.  Wimirn'  Stttt.,  MS.,  17;  Letts' 
('■il.  Illu*t.,  89-90.  \n  acquaintance  of  Burnett,  Rec,  MS.,  ii.  38-9,  related 
that  he  Ira  veiled  40  miles  to  behold  a  woman.  Steamboat  agents  would  cry 
out,  '  Lidies  on  l>oard  I '  to  draw  custom.  Gamblers  and  proprietors  f>f  public 
resorts  usetl  to  board  vessels  to  offer  flattering  engagements;  but  evon  then 
wi,;iien  were  soon  married.  Concerning  claims  to  being  female  pionet-rs  in 
ihffiT.nt  counties,  see  SanJosi  Pioneer,  July  7,  1877,  etc.;  S.  F.  Bulletin, 
Mty  .">,  Aug   II,  1876,  etc.;  Record-Union,  May  4,  1876,  etc. 

-'The  attention  often  made  modest  women  uncomfortiiblc,  while  others 
tncotiMged  it  by  extravagant  conduct.  Loose  characters  flaunted  costly  attire 
ii.  'li'^ant  cquii>agcs,  or  appeared  walking  or  riding  in  male  attire.  Fam- 
haina  Vai,  22-3;  Barry  ami  Patten,  Men  and  Mem.,  138-9. 


234 


SOCIETY. 


tion  to  give  her  a  kiss  and  press  a  golden  ounce  into 
her  hand.  The  effects  of  these  tender  sentiments  re- 
mained rooted  in  the  hearts  of  Cahfornians  long  after 
the  romance  age/"  the  only  mellow  trait  with  many  a 
one,  the  only  thing  sacred  being  some  base  imitatiuu 
of  the  divine  image. 

As  modest  virtue  regained  the  ascendency  with  tlie 
increase  of  families,  indecency  retreated,  to  be  sought 
in  the  shadow  by  the  men  of  all  classes  who,  during 
the  earlier  absence  of  social  restraint,  hesitated  not  to 
walk  the  street  beside  a  prostitute,  or  yield  to  the  al- 
luromeiit  of  debased  female  company  midst  surround- 
ings far  more  comfortable  and  elegant  than  their  own 
solitary  chambers.^^  With  the  subordination  to  sonie 
extent  of  the  grand  passion,  gambling  and  other  dissi- 
pations received  a  check,  and  higher  pastimes  and  the 
home  circle  rose  in  favor.  As  any  semblance  of  a 
woman  could  be  almost  sure  of  speedy  marriage,  in- 
tending settlers  hastened  to  bring  out  female  friends 
and  relatives;  benevolent  persons  sought  to  relieve  the 
surplus  market  at  home,*^  and  successful  men  recalled 
some  acquaintance  in  their  native  village  with  whom 

^^  It  was  for  a  long  time  difficult  to  find  a  jury  which  would  convict  a 
womiin. 

"^  Balls  were  frequently  attended  at  these  places  by  public  men  of  promi- 
nence, where  decorum  prevailed,  and  champagne  at  high  prices  was  made  to 
pay  the  cost  of  supper. 

'''Mrs  Farnham  issued  a  circular  in  N.  Y.,  Feb.  1849,  offering  to  take  out 
a  number  of  respectable  women,  not  over  25  years  of  ago,  each  to  coiitrilmie 
^50  for  expenses.  Mrs  F.  fell  sick,  and  the  enterprise  was  luft  in  abeyaiKe. 
Fariihtim'x  Cai,  25-7.  Subsequently  she  did  bring  out  a  number,  adds  t'hiik, 
Stilt.,  MS.,  1-2;  Berne  Deux  Mondes,  Feb.  15,  1859,  948-9.  A  similar  fiitilo 
Parisian  enterprise  had  in  view  a  share  of  the  marriage  portion.  Par.  Xi  »■«, 
Nov.  11,1850.  Advertisements  for  wives  were  not  uncommon.  IiiSnu-tilli's 
Pioneers,  MS.,  10,  is  related  the  repeatc<l  contests  for  and  frequent  niarriiigo 
of  a  Mexican  widow.  Plncer  Tinier,  Dec.  15,  1849,  boasts  of  a  wedding  at- 
tended by  20  ladies,  and  the  display  of  dress-coats  and  kid  gloves.  A  iikt- 
cenary  fellow  of  Shasta  advertised  admission  to  his  wedding  at  85  a  tii'lat, 
which  brought  a  snug  sum  with  wliich  to  start  the  household.  llutchiiHjii  Mfj., 
ii.  5()7;  C<tl.  Steamer,  2oth  Aniiiv.,  50-1;  Pac.  Newn,  Nov.  4,  11,  1850.  Ailvcr- 
tisement  for  200  Chilian  brides,  in  PolifHesum,  v.  202.  It  is  said  tliat  liurnott 
owed  his  election  for  governor  greatly  to  being  married  and  having  ''ao 
daughters;  his  opponent  was  a  bachelor.  IfalCi*  Hkt.,2di;  Wootln' Sixteen  Mn., 
75;  Pioneer  Mnij.,  ii.  80;  Hesjx'rinn,  ii.  10,  494;  Shiuti'x  Miniinj  Caiiiy->.  l.'tT; 
Fremont's  Am.  Tnwl,  l(X)-3,  112.  A  writer  in  Orerland,  xiv.  327,  tliiiios 
the  rarity  of  and  stir  cause<l  by  women,  but  on  insufficient  grounds.  Mt:rrill's 
Sl(U.,  MS.,  10;  Soule'a  Stat.,  MS.,  4. 


THE  OLD  HOME. 


235 


Id  convict  a 


to  open  correspondence  with  a  view  to  matrimony. 
As  a  class,  the  women  of  this  period  were  inferior  in 
education  and  manners  to  the  men ;  for  the  hardsliips 
of  the  voyage  and  border  Hfe  held  back  the  more  re- 
tiiR'd;  but  as  comforts  increased  the  better  class  of 
women  came  in,^and  the  standard  of  female  respecta- 
bility was  elevated. 

Distance  did  not  seem  to  weaken  the  bond  with  the 
old  home/"  to  judge  especially  by  the  general  excite- 
nu'ut  created  by  the  arrival  of  a  mail  steamer.  Wiiat 
a  .straining  of  eyes  toward  the  signal-station  on  Tele- 
oraph  hill,  as  the  time  of  her  coming  drew  nigh ! 
What  a  rush  toward  the  landing  1  What  a  struggle 
to  secure  the  month-old  newspaper,  which  sold  readily 
for  a  dollar  1  For  letters  patience  had  to  be  curbed, 
owing  to  the  scanty  provisions  at  the  po.st-office  for 
bolting  the  bulky  mail  Such  was  the  anxiety,  how- 
over,  that  numbers  took  their  position  in  the  long  lino 
iKtoro  the  delivery  window  during  the  preceding  day  or 
iiiu'lit,  fortified  with  stools  and  creature  comforts.  There 
^vel■e  boys  and  men  who  made  a  business  of  taking  a 
])lace  in  the  post-office  line  to  sell  it  to  later  comers, 
who  would  find  the  file  probably  extending  round 
more  than  one  block.  There  was  ample  time  for  re- 
Hection  while  thus  waiting  before  the  post-office  win- 
dow, not  to  mention  the  agony  of  suspense,  heightened 
bv  the  occasional  demonstration  of  joy  or  sorrow  on 
the  part  of  others  on  reading  their  letters.** 

The  departure  of  a  steamer  presented  scenes  hardly 
less  stirring,  the  mercantile  class  being  especially 
earnest  in  eflbrts  to  collect  outstanding  debts  ft)r  re- 
mittance.    At   the  wharf  stood   preeminent   sturdy 

■ '^  And  (limiiiiaheil  the  nuin1)er  of  California  widows  left  in  almost  every 
tiiwii  of  tlie  eastern  states;  many  of  them  pining  and  struggling  against  pov- 
(-■ity  I'or  years  in  tlie  vain  hope  of  meeting  again  their  husbands. 

"As  proved,  indeed,  by  later  incidents,  the  war  of  180 1-5,  the  railway 
connection,  etc. 

"Ihe  scene  at  the  post-office  is  a  favorite  topic  with  writers  on  this 
piriod.  Instiince  McColium's  Cat.,  62-3;  Cmmii'n  Stat ,  M.S.,  1(V-17;  AV%".s 
?>' ''OX,  ii.  252-5,  with  humorous  strokes;  Bort/M'ick'sCat.,li'A-5;  Oil .  Svrtipm, 
ll'0-7;  Altii  Cat.,  Aug.  28,  1854,  etc. 


in^ 


SOCIETY. 


miners  girdled  with  well-filled  belts,  their  complacent 
faces  turned  eastward.  Old  Califomians  they  boasted 
themselves,  though  counting,  perhaps,  less  than  a  halt- 
year  sojourn ;  many  strutting  in  their  coarse  and  soiled 
camp  attire,  glorying  in  their  rags  like  Antisthenes, 
through  the  holes  of  whose  clothes  Socrates  saw  such 
rank  pride  peering.  Conspicuous  by  contrast  were 
many  haggard  and  dejected  faces,  stamped  by  broken 
constitutions,  soured  by  disappointment.  Others  no 
less  unhappy,  without  even  the  means  to  follow  them, 
were  left  behind,  stranded;  with  hope  fled,  and  having 
relinquished  the  struggle  to  sink  perhaps  into  the  out 
cast's  grave. 

Housekeeping  in  these  days,  even  in  the  cities,  was 
attended  by  many  discomforts.  The  difficulty  of  ob- 
taining female  servants,  which  prevailed  even  in  later 
years,  gave  rise  to  the  phenomenon  of  male  house-ser- 
vants, first  in  Irish,  French,  or  Italian,  and  later  in  Chi- 
nese form.  Fleas,  rats,  and  other  vermin  abounded;*" 
laundry  expenses  often  exceeded  the  price  of  new 
underwear;*^  water  and  other  conveniences  were  lack- 
ing," and  dwelling  accommodations  most  deficient,  the 
flimsy  cloth  partitions  in  hotels  forbidding  privacy.*' 

For  the  unmarried  men  any  hovel  answered  the 
purpose,  fitted  as  they  were  for  privation  by  the  hard- 
ships of  a  sea  voyage  or  a  transcontinental  journey. 

'"The  city  swarmed  with  rata  of  enormous  size.  Poison  being  freely 
scattered  to  exterminate  them,  they  were  driven  by  pain  to  the  wells,  wliieh 
thus  became  unfit  for  use.  Torres,  Perip.,  109.  Barry  and  Patten,  Men  mnl 
Menu,  91-2,  allude  to  the  species  of  rats  brought  by  vessels  from  diti'ereiit 
countries,  notably  the  white,  pink-eyed  rice  rat  from  Batavia.  Wilinmjtoii 
Eiitei-pme,  Jan.  21,  1875. 

*^So  that  soiled  shirts  were  frequently  thrown  away.  Mrs  Tibbcy,  in 
Mincei  Stnt.,  MS.,  20.  The  largest  launitry  flourished  at  WasherwouKiiiH 
lagoon,  at  the  western  foot  of  Russian  hill.  Much  linen  was  sent  to  Ciitituii 
and  the  Hawaiian  Islands  to  be  washed. 

**  Ver  Mehr  credits  Gillespie  with  the  first  carriage  in  S.  P.  Mrs  Fremont 
claims  it  for  herself.  Am.  Travel,  118.  Posterity  may  let  them  both  have  it, 
and  lose  nothing.  Water  was  at  one  time  brought  from  Sauzalito  in  boats 
and  distributed  oy  carts;  some  wells  were  then  dug,  the  carts  continuing  tiio 
service. 

^  These  disturbing  causes  tended  to  the  breaking  up  of  homes,  as  instanecd 
by  desertion  ami  divorce  petitions  in  1849-50.  Pac.  Aetos,  Dec.  22, 1849;  Jiiii. 
15,  1850;  PUiccrvdk  Dtmoc.,  Apr.  24,  1875,  etc. 


DRINKING  AND  GAMBLING. 


987 


The  bunk-lined  room  of  the  ordinary  lodging-house,** 
the  wooden  shed,  or  canvas  tent,  could  hardly  have 
been  more  uncomfortable  than  the  foul-smelling  and 
musty  ship  hold.  Thus  the  high  price  prevalent  for 
board  and  lodging,  as  well  as  the  discomforts  attend- 
iiii,^  housekeeping  and  home  life,  tended  to  heighten 
the  allurements  of  vice-breeding  resorts. 

Californians  have  acquired  an  unenviable  reputation 
by  reason  of  their  bar-room  drinking  propensities.  At 
first  this  was  attributed  to  the  lack  of  homes  and 
higher  recreations;  but  the  increase  of  drinking- 
siiloons  and  wide-spread  indulgence  point  for  explana- 
tion to  other  causes,  such  as  temperament,  excitement, 
strain,  and  some  have  said  climate.*^  The  tendency 
is  cognate  with  the  exuberance  of  the  people,  with 
tlieir  lavishness  and  characteristic  tendency  toward 
excess,  which  has  also  fostered  the  habit  of  not  drink- 
ing alone.  Solitary  tippling  is  universally  stamped 
as  mean;  and  rather  than  incur  such  a  stigma  the 
bar-keeper  must  be  invited.  Yet  the  excess  is  mani- 
fested less  in  actual  inebriety  than  in  frequent  indul- 
gence at  all  hours  of  the  day  and  night,  which  .with 
the  vile  adulterations  often  used,  succeeds  effectu- 
ally in  killing,  or  undermining  the  constitution  and 
morals  of  thousands.  In  early  days  the  subtle  attrac- 
tion was  increased  by  contrast  between  a  dismal  lodg- 
ing and  the  bright  interior  of  the  saloon,  with  its 
glittering  chandeliers,  costly  mirrors  wreathed  with 
inspiring  banners,  striking  and  lascivious  paintings, 
inviting  array  of  decanters,  perhaps  music  and  sirens, 
Bonie  luring  with  song  and  dance,  some  by  a  more 
direct  appeal."  Until  far  into  1850,  when  San  Fran- 
cisco introduced  street  lamps,  the  reflection  from  these 
illuminated  hot-beds  of  vice  was  about  all  the  light 

^^  As  described  elsewhere  in  connection  with  dwellings  and  hotels. 

^'The  climatic  excuse  was  general  as  early  as  1849.  Moore's  Ph.  Exper,, 
MS.,  7. 

**  In  Sacramento  a  number  of  saloon-keepers  combined  to  save  the  exyeuM 
of  muuo,  but  failed.  Sac.  Transcript,  Oct.  14,  1850. 


238 


SOaETY 


the  city  had,  the  canvas  houses  glowing  with  special 
efleet  upon  the  muddy  streets,  or  throwing  their  wtird 
light  far  out  into  the  waters  of  tiie  bay.  In  tlie 
saloons  of  the  mining  towns  comfortable  chairs  and 
the  central  stove  presented  the  only  relief  to  a  diiiuy 
interior,  with  its  card-table,  cheap  pictures,  will- 
stocked  bar,  and  ever-thirsty  hangers-on.  The  pio- 
prietor,  however,  was  often  a  host  in  himself,  as  1(»(  al 
dignitary,  umpire,  and  news  repository;  the  hail  follow 
and  confidant  of  everybody,  who  cared  for  the  wounded 
and  fallen  after  the  knife  or  pistol  skirmish;  himself, 
perhaps,  safe  behind  his  sand-bag  fortification.  The 
casualties  were  particularly  heavy  after  an  occasional 
dearth  of  whiskey,  from  interrupted  traffic  during  the 
winter.**  Notwithstanding  the  forbidding  aspect  of 
the  field,  temperance  advocates  were  present  as  caily 
a-i  1849,  vainly  endeavoring  to  curb  the  passion  l>y 
words.  "• 

Public  gambling  flourished  as  a  legally  authorized 
vice  at  all  saloons,  yet  its  prevalence  led  in  the  cities 
to  the  establishment  of  special  gambling-hou.ses. 
Mining,  being  itself  a  chance  occupation,  gave  here  an 
additional  impulse  to  the  pastime,  which  some  culti- 
vated as  a  mental  stimulant,  others  as  an  anajsthetic. 
With  easy  acquisition  losses  were  less  poignant.  In 
San  Francisco  the  plaza  was  the  centre  of  these  re- 
sorts, with  the  El  Dorado  saloon  as  the  dividing  point 
between  the  low  places  to  the  north  and  the  select 
clubs  southward."  Gay  flags  and  streamers  and  do- 
coy  lamps  strike  the  eye  from  a  distance;  within  a 
blaze  of  light  reveals  a  moving  silhouette  of  figui 


es. 


"  It  can  readily  be  understood  that  Auch  general  devotion  to  tlic  ciuso 
must  have  brought  forth  many  innovations  and  inventions  in  the  raiigr  (if 
drinks.  For  instances,  I  refer  to  Overland,  July  1875,  80-1;  May  1874,  477; 
Aug.  18G8,  14G;  Helper's  Land  of  Gold,  66.  Also,  Saxms  Ftve  Yeunt,  -.'(i; 
Cal.  Pilijrim,  64,  136;  Mayne'a  B.  Col.,  163;  Cremonys  Afxiche,  348. 

*•  A  meeting  at  S.  F.  is  recorded  in  Alia  Cal.,  Jan.  25,  1849.  At  Siicra- 
mento  a  society  was  formed  in  1850.  Sac.  Illust.,  13;  Sac.  Direct.,  1871,  "tJ; 
Pm.  NeioK,  May  16,  21,  Dec.  24,  1850. 

'■''ihe  leading  resorts  of  1849-50  embraced  the  Rendezvous,  Bella  Uiiii*, 
Verandah,  Parker  house  (one  floor  in  it),  Aguila  de  Oro,  Empire,  the  latter 
opened  in  May  1850,  being  140  feet  long,  ancf  finely  frescoed. 


h' 


ORTHODOX  GAMES. 


239 


Tlic  abode  of  fortune  seeks  naturally  to  etHpse  all 
otlior  saloons  in  splendor;  and  indeed,  the  mirrors  are 
lari^or,  the  paintings  more  costly,  and  the  eanvased 
Willis  adorned  with  brighter  figures.  At  one  end  is 
the  indispensable  drink ing-bar,  at  the  other  a  gallery 
lor  the  orchestra,  from  which  loud  if  not  hannonious 
music  floats  upon  the  murky  atmosphere  laden  with 
funics  of  smoke  and  foul  breaths/"^  These  and  other 
attractions  are  employed  to  excite  the  scuises,  and 
l)nak  down  all  barriers  before  the  strongest  tempta- 
tion, the  piles  of  silver  and  gold  in  coin  and  dust,  and 
glittering  lumps  which  border  the  leather-covered 
caiuing-tlibles,  sometimes  a  dozen  in.  number.  Fi'oni 
(litlerent  directions  is  heard  the  cry,  "Make  3'our  bets, 
L,'(-iitl<;men!"  midst  the  hum  and  the  chink  of  coin. 
"The  game  is  made,"  and  a  hush  of  strained  expect- 
ancy attends  the  rolling  ball  or  the  turning  cards; 
then  a  resumpti(m  of  the  murmur  and  the  jingling,  as 
the  stakes  are  counted  out  or  raked  in  by  the  croupier. 
Gainl)lers  and  spectators  form  several  lines  in  depth 
round  the  tables;  broadcloth,  pea-jacket,  and  woollen 
sliirt  side  by  side,  merchant  and  laborer,  dandy  and 
shoeblack,  and  even  the  whilom  pastor  or  deacon  of 
the  church.  Some  moving  from  group  to  group  are 
beut  merely  on  watching  ilices  and  fickle  fortune,  till, 
seized  by  desire,  they  yield  to  the  excitement  and 
join  in  the  infatuation.  Once  initiated,  the  slow  game 
of  calculation  in  money  matters  which  has  hitherto 
sutlii'ed  for  pastime,  falls  before  the  stirring  pulsation 
imjtarted  by  quickly  alternating  loss  and  gain.  The 
(hief  games  were  faro,  preferred  by  Americans  and 
]'ritons;  monte,  beloved  of  the  Latin  race;''  roulette, 


■'''-'At  tlie  Aguila  ile  Oro  Ethiopian  sercnailcrs  a(I<lcil  to  the  attraction.  An- 
ptlicr  l)i)iUitc((  a  Mexican  quintotto  of  guitars.  The  later  Chinese  resorts  liail 
Ryiiiliols,  etc.  According  to  Torres,  I'enp.,  99,  a  hrother  of  Hon.  Ben.  IJutler 
kfjit  (iiio  of  these  places;  cxi>en8e8  $(500  a  night,  leaving  large  protits.  Tlie 
El  Dorado  kept  a  ^niale  violinist.   Tuylnrx  El  Dorado,  i.  118. 

•'■'  For  this  game  were  useil  Spanisli  cards,  48  in  a  pack,  the  ten  1>eing  latk- 
ini;.  There  were  frequently  two  dealers  at  opposite  ends  of  tlie  talile  each 
Mith  a  hank  pile  of  ^5,000  or  $10,000.  'I  he  mere  matching  of  two  cards, 
Sometimes  four,  the  game  l>eing  decided  hy  the  first  similar  card  ilrawn 
troiii  tiu!  pack,  would  seem  to  afffird  facilities  for  trickery,  while  certain  cun- 
ditiuiis  ruled  iu  favor  of  the  banker. 


240 


SOCIETY 


rougc-ct-noir,  rondo,  vingt-et-un,  paire-ou-non,  tronto* 
et-qiiarunte,  and  chuck -a-luck  with  dice."  The  stakes 
ranged  usually  between  fifty  cents  and  five  dollars, 
but  rose  frequently  to  $500  and  $1,000,  while  amounts 
as  high  as  $45,000  are  spoken  of  as  being  risked  up<iii 
the  turn  of  a  card/^  The  most  reckless  patroiiH  weio 
richly  laden  miners,  who  instead  of  pursuing  tlnir 
intended  journey  homeward,  surrendered  here  tliuir 
hard-earned  wealth,  and  returned  sadder,  if  not  wistr, 
to  fresh  toils  and  hardships.  The  most  impassive  us 
well  as  constant  gamblers  were  the  Mexicans,  wIkj, 
otherwise  so  readily  excited,  could  lose  their  all  witii- 
out  betraying  an  emotion ;  while  sober-faced  Anuri- 
cans,  who,  though  they  n)ight  crack  a  grim  joke  ovir 
their  misfortune,  dl  concealed  their  disappointnuiit 
over  losses.  In  the  one  case  there  was  a  fatalistic 
submission  to  the  inevitable ;  in  the  other  the  player 
Would  not  yield  his  entire  personality  to  the  fickle 
goddess.  Although  in  the  mining  camps  were  many 
honest  gamblers,  yet  play  there  was  oftentimes  riot- 
ous and  attended  by  swindling,  and  a  consequent 
ap[)eal  to  weapons;  in  the  towns  the  system  of  liccns- 
intj  what  was  then  deemed  an  unavoidable  evil  tenthd 
to  preserve  decorum.  An  air  of  respectability  was 
further  imparted  by  the  appearance  of  the  professional 

^  At  the  street  comers  were  thimble-rig  and  other  delusive  guess  ganics. 
Tlie  rent  for  a  table  was  heavy,  as  may  bo  judged  from  the  fact  tiiat  tiie 
greater  part  of  the  income  from  tlie  Parker  house,  at  one  time  $ir>,0(M)  a 
month,  came  from  the  one  ganiblins  floor.  Half  of  the  gamblers  used  to  pay 
f  ],0U0  iic-r  mouth  for  a  table,  says  McCnllum.  CiiL,  61. 

**  A  Ivig  of  dust,  $10,000  iu  value,  was  one  evening  covered  by  a  faro  dealer 
without  a  niumiur.  Aiinab  S.  /'.,  249  The  editor  of  Pliwer  Times,  Alar.  "••, 
18o0,  claims  to  have  known  of  bets  of  $32,000  and  ^5,000  at  moute.  Oti  one 
occasion  the  money  in  bank  on  monte  tables  exceeded  $200,000,  and  more 
than  that  was  at  stake  in  other  games.  Home  Mi«rionary,  xxvii.  ItiO.  Woods 
relates  that  a  lawyer  once  swept  three  tables  in  succession.  A  youug  man 
just  arrived,  and  en  route  to  the  mines,  borrowed  $10  and  approached  a  faro- 
table.  By  the  following  morning  he  had  won  $7,000,  with  which  lie  rettiniu>l 
by  next  steamer,  <letermined  never  to  play  again.  Davidson,  the  banker, 
said  that  some  professed  gamblers  used  to  remit  home  an  average  of  $I7,<MX> 
a  month.  Suleen  Mo.,  75.  Among  other  instances  of  gains  was  one  of  I^IOO,- 
000  by  a  man  who  started  with  ^,000.  After  losing  half  of  his  winnings  lie 
stoppetl,  boucht  a  steamer  ticket,  and  went  home.  Ptucer  Times,  Mar.  0,  Ks'><). 
The  rcconl  of  losses,  however,  is  a  thousand  to  one  greater,  hundreds  of  cane:) 
being  cited  where  the  miner  en  route  for  home  staked  his  all  and  lost. 

^  At  S.  F.  the  permit  cost  $50  per  month,  with  $25  extra  for  each  Suu<lay. 


MERCANTILE  THIMBLE-RIO 


241 


p.inil)lers,  who  greatly  aftected  dress,  although  with  a 
jindiloctioii  for  display.  With  the  growth  of  home 
iiitluonee  the  pastime  began  to  fall  into  disrepute,  and 
in  September  1850  San  Francisco  took  the  first  step 
toward  itf<  suppression  by  forbidding  the  practice  on 
Sundays."  An  insidious  and  long-countenanced  ad- 
jiiiitt  to  the  vice  Houri^hed  in  the  form  of  lotteries,  which 
vrro  carried  on  with  frequent  drawings,  especially  at 
holiday  seasons,  as  a  regular  business,  as  well  as  a 
casual  means  for  getting  rid  of  worthless  or  unprofit- 
al»lo  goods.  Jewelry  formed  the  main  attraction, 
liiit  articles  of  all  classes  were  embraced,  even  land, 
wliarves,  and  pretentious  buildings."^ 


"  Cil.  Courier,  Sept.  14,  1860  Some  of  the  hotels  aaaiated  by  oxclutling 
i'  |.iil)lic  practice,  us  the  Union.  S-  F.  Pknyune,  Nov.  20,  1850.  Yet  it  was 
nut  till  1855  that  abaolutc  re8t''<ctive  nieaaures  were  taken.  8o  far  ganiUling 
(lilitH  wore  recoverable.  Alta  (j,^L,  Apr.  17,  1855;  Sac.  Trntutcriftf,Fc\>.  14, 
iS.'ij.  Ill  Jan.  1848  an  order  to  permit  games  of  ohanue  was  vetoed  in  S.  F. 
('■tlijomutn,  Jan.  12,  1848;  penalty  $10  to  $50,  hut  a  rei)«al  came  quickly. 
.S'f.  I'inoii,  May  21,  1850>  Pac.  NetM,  Feb.  14,  1851,  refers  to  the  arrest  of 
gamblers. 

'"  K.  P.  Jones  lield  a  real  estate  lottery  in  the  autumn  of  1850,  with  4,000 
tii'ket»  at  $100.  The  500  lots  offered  as  prizes  embraced  valuable  central  city 
land.  In  Oct.  1850  H.  llowison  sought  to  pay  his  debts  an<l  avoid  a  sacriKve 
of  property  by  offering  liis  wharf  with  9  stores  and  19  offices,  renting  for 
S.'),0<x»  .1  month,  Ijesiiles  two  water  lots  with  a  store-ship,  tor  $200,000,  in 
'J.(Nio  Aw  r-es  at  $100.  The  prominent  St  Francis  hotel  was  offered  the  same 
ih  'iitli.  'iif.  Nvws,  Oct.  19,  Nov.  8,  13,  1850.  A  regular  lottery  firm  was 
Till-..  ■  (V,  Reeves.  By  advertisement  in  Cal.  Courier,  etc.,  of  Dec.  17,  18,'iO, 
ji-JOjOOi)  worth  of  jewelry  was  offered.  Their  usual  first  prize  was  a  gold  ingot 
of  from  i>i(),()00  to  .«8,000  in  value.  In  1853  Reeves  offered  stuff  valued  at 
.*.'1(),(H)(»  at  $1  tickets.  In  Sacramento  the  Pacific  theatre  and  99  other  pieces 
!•■  real  estate  were  offered  in  1850.  These  real  estate  and  other  ratlfes,  as 
tiny  were  sometimes  termed,  encroached  seriously  on  legitimate  business 
TIr'  California  Lottery  and  Hayes  &  Bailey  figure  in  the  1850  list  of  lottery 
tiiiiis.  See  journals  of  Dec.,  any  early  year.  Further  references  to  gandding 
i  I  ''iir.tDii's  Early  Diiya,  29;  Ki'Uy'«  Excursion,  ii.  245-7;  Witutm  SUU.,  MS., 
:>  I);  //;uell's  S.  F.,  2:15-7;  Up/uim'a  A'oted,  2lVi-G;  Helper's  Land  q/'  fiolil, 
71  :i;  Uiiiliertie,  To//.,  204-0;  Coke's  Hide,  355-7;  Fri<jnet,  C<d.,94,  117;  Lett's 
(\<l.,  48  50;  Col.  Post  and  Present,  103;  Xetdt's  Vi<f.,  MS.,  25-8;  Onruiss 
L'trli/  Dittjn,  MS.,  15-10;  Bartlett's  SUit.,  MS.,  3,  14;  Armstromj's  Ej-ver., 
MS,,  ,S;  Delano's  Life,  289-90;  WlUey's  Thirty  Years,  39;  McDnniels'  Early 
/^'(/v,  49-50;  /'ayvi/ww'sCa/.,  271-4;  Jioach's  i>t(it.,}>\S.,Q;  Sutton's  Stat.,  MS., 
lit;  Cerriiti's  Ramblinijs,  MS.,  25-7;  Hutc/iin'/s'  Mai/.,  i.  215;  iii.  374;  Schiiiicdell's 
Sint.,  MS.,  4;  Cassin's  Stat.,  MS.,  10  12;  Merrill's  Sttt.,  MS.,  9-10;  Van 
Di,L-'\i  Stat.,  MS.,  3;  Miscel.  Stat.,  MS.,  i:^14;  Home  Mis.<i.,  xxiii.  209; 
<n„mm's  Early  Days,  MS.,  1-2;  Cal.  lliist.,  44,  99,  130;  Cal.  Piiirim,  243; 
<hrrh,„/,  Nov.  1871;  Feb.  1872;  Shaw's  OoUlen  Dreams,  42;  S.  F.  Herald, 
.\pr.  7,  1852;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Sept.  15,  25,  Dec.  4,  1850.  Tliu  Mexicans  calletl 
>.'ainl)liTs  gremio  de  Virjan.  Torres,  Pertjt.,  100.  According  to  Sae.  Direc- 
tory, 1853-4,  0-7,  two  c-ergymen  could  be  seen  at  the  hells,  one  as  dealer. 
Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    16 


I 

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il'. 


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SOCIETY. 

The  taste  for  other  pastimes  rose  little  above  the 
preceding,  as  might  be  expected  from  a  community  of 
men  bent  on  adventure.  The  bull-fighting  of  pre-con- 
quest  times  found  such  favor,  that,  not  content  with  tlie 
two  arenas  already  existing  at  the  mission,  San  Fran- 
cisco constructed  two  more  within  her  own  limits.'" 
Here  it  flourished  under  official  sanction  throughout 
the  fifties,**  but  invested  with  few  of  the  attractions 
which  have  tended  to  maintain  its  popularity  elsewhere, 
such  as  knightly  matadores,  pugnacious  bulls,  and  a 
fashionable  attendance.  American  women  never  took 
kindly  to  the  butchery.  California  excelled  in  one 
feature,  however,  the  spectacle  of  a  fight  between  bull 
and  bear,  if  the  usually  tame  contest  could  be  digni- 
fied by  that  term.'^  In  cock-fighting  the  new-comors 
had  little  to  learn  from  the  Mexicans,  although  witli 
these  the  diversion  stood  under  high  patronage;  but 
they  could  oflPer  novelties  in  the  form  of  regattas,  and 
the  less  commendable  prize-fighting,*^^  and  in  horse  and 
foot  racing  they  soon  carried  off  the  honors."" 

The  great  resort  on  Sundays  and  holidays  was  tlu; 
mission,  with  its  creek,  gardens,  and  arenas,  and  its 
adjoining  hills  and  marshes  which  offered  for  hunters  an 
attractive  field.     The  ride  out  was  in  itself  an  enjoy 

*•  One  on  Vallejo  st,  at  the  western  foot  of  Telegraph  hill;  another  ain]>lii- 
tlieatrc  was  erected  near  Washington  square.  S.  F  Herald,  Aug.  10,  1S.")(I; 
S.  F.  Director!/,  1850,  12(5. 

'"S.  F.  Bulletin  of  Aug.  IR,  1859,  describes  a  fight.  For  scenes  and  inci- 
dents, I  refer  to  my  Cali/'orniu  Paatornl. 

"  Bruiu  usually  took  a  defensive  attitude,  with  his  attention  rivcteil  lui 
tlie  bull's  nose.  In  Hghts  between  bears  an<l  dogs,  the  latter  generally  fell 
l>ack  shaken  and  squeezed.  Pac.  Netoa,  May  17-18,  1850;  Sur.  Tniiinrrqi, 
Oct.  14,  1850;  Barry  uml  Piittens  Men  nvd  Alevi.,  251.  Even  Marysville  ami 
other  northern  towns  indulged  in  the  sport.  Keliifn  Krcitrn.,  ii.  248  ",). 

*■''  Several  notable  encounters  took  place  before  the  great  contests  of  Mor- 
rissey  in  1852.  Pac.  NewM,  Oct.  17,  1850;  Cat,  Courier,  Jan.  1,  4,  Oct.  18,  !.•«, 
1850;  Dec.  13,  1849. 

'^  Althouuh  not  decisively  until  1852,  when  Austmlian  hones  were  intro- 
<luced,  as  relatod  by  A.  A.  Oreen  of  ahlcrnianic  fame,  who  claims  the  crrilit 
of  constnicting  in  1850  the  first  regular  track  in  8.  F.,  between  20th  and  'Jiih 
street:*,  at  the  so-calleil  Pavilion,  the  later  Rid  house.  In  tiie  interior,  iviiii|i.s 
and  towns  pitted  horses  against  one  another.  Foot-races  by  proteBsinnaU 
were  usually  against  time;  amateurs  often  ran  in  tiie  usual  way.  CnUfhrniui, 
>l;»r.  4,  15,  1848;  Alt<t  Cii,  Mar.  25,  Sept.  15,  1851.  la  Hnll'n  Jllst,  'S.V2, 
i»  mentioned  a  race  at  S.  Jose  for  l$10,0U0,  a  man  ruuuiiig  against  a  ISuiKuna 
horoe. 


THEATRICALS. 


243 


<> 


ment,  notwithstanding  the  intervening  and  ofttimes 
N\  ind-whipped  sand  hills,  and  on  festive  occasions  the 
]»lace  was  crowded.  The  lack  of  ready  communication 
Avitli  the  opposite  shores  of  the  bay  confined  the  people 
to  the  peninsula  for  a  time,  only  to  render  the  more 
k'lnonstrative  the  revelry  called  for  by  feast  days  and 
jtlior  joyous  occasions,  with  volleys,  crackers,  illumina- 
tions, and  fanciful  parades,  with  caricatures  and  squibs 
upon  officials,  followed  by  banquets  and  balls,  the 
latter  stimulated  by  the  chilly  evenings  and  frequent 
potations." 

The  first  public  dranatic  performances  are  claimed 
for  the  United  States  garrison  at  Sonocna  in  September 
]  S47,  and  for  an  amateur  company,  chiefiy  Spanish  Cal- 
itornians,  at  San  Francisco.*^  About  the  same  time 
some  of  the  New  York  volunteers  gave  minstrel  en- 
ti'itaimnents  at  Santa  Barbara  and  Monterey."  The 
U(»ld  excitement  diverted  attention  from  the  drama  in 
1S48,*^  but  by  the  following  year  professionals  from 
altroati  hf  J  arrived  to  supply  the  reviving  demand, 
ami  on  June  22,  1849,  Stephen  C.  Massett  opened  a 
srrit'S  of  entertainments  with  a  concert  at  the  plaza 
school-house,  including  songs,  recitations,  and  mimicry, 
with  piano  accompaniment.**   On  October  29th,  Rowe's 

"♦A  masquerade  ball  of  Fel>.  C"2,  1845,  is  described  in  the  Caltf'ornian. 
Ailitiisniiiii  to  soinu  of  the  ImIIs  of  1849-50  was  S25,  and  more.  Placer  Times, 
Ajir  'i'J,  1850.  The  pioneers  held  a  formal  new-year's  celebration  in  1851. 
-Inly  4th  always  receivol  its  fiery  ovation,  partly  by  the  use  of  half-buriod 
<|\iuk.silvor  flasks.  St  Patrick's  day  and  May  day  were  early  introduced  by 
tile  IriMhand<iermans.  The  thankagivins  day  of  184*J  was  tixod  for  Nov.  2*.>th 
with  lut  official  proclamation,  observes  Williams,  SOil.,  MS.,  12-13.  New 
Mnfjliintl  dinners  found  favor,  and  pilgrims'  landing  day  touche<l  a  fiorrespond- 
iii>;  ciiord.  St  Andrews  and  other  societies  added  tlicir  special  days.  /fo>i(7i'.4 
>'/'/.,  MS.,  »;  P,tr.  A^irs,  May  3,  Nov  (i, ;«»,  18.jO;  Jau.  11,  Apr.  1,  1851;  S.  F. 
l'i.;i>IHm\  Oct.  30,  1850,  etc.;  V,U.  VMirtfi;  Sept.  14,  Nov.  27,  Die.  2,  1850; 
.Ian.  3,  Fek  1,  1851;  AWi  Vid.,  passim. 

''■'  \Vhich  gave  the  Morayma,  relating  to  the  wars  of  Oranada.  See  Calk- 
I'liniiiui,  Oct.  (),  1847;  May  10,  Nov.  4,  1848;  and  my  preceding  vol.,  v.  (U)7. 
Till-  Ma.iic  journal  alludes  to  the  Kii^lu  Olympic  club  association  for  plays  and 
siilwcriptions  for  a  theatre    Pobfiifninn,  v.  111. 

""  l>ctails  in  S.  Joni  Piotuvr,  May  4,  1878.  A  writer  in  Solnnn  PreM,  }h'c. 
II,  I8(w.  declares  that  they  first  performed  at  S.  F.  in  Marcii  1847,  the  tirat 
iiiglit'ft  receipts  l>eing  963. 

'"The  Virginia  minstrels  played  with  success  during  the  winter,  Star  anil 
Cal.,  IVo.  0,  1848,  and  other  amateur  efforts  may  be  traced 

''^  Admisbiuu  1^3,  which  yielded  over  $500.    Tlio  crowded  audience  cuutaiued 


244 


SOCIETY. 


Olympic  circus  appeared  at  San  Francisco,^  with 
prices  at  two  and  three  dollars. 

The  first  professional  dramatic  performance  took 
place  at  Sacramento  on  October  18, 1849,  m  the  Eagle 
theatre/"  a  frail  structure  which  was  soon  eclipsed 
by  the  Tehama.  At  San  Francisco  the  season  began 
at  Washington  hall,  early  m  1850.'^  Five  weeks 
kter  the  first  theatre  building,  the  National,  was 
o|>ened,'*  followed  among  others  by  Robinson  an.l 
Everard's  Dramatic  Museum,'*  Dr  Colly er'*"  Athe- 
naeum, with  prurient  model  artist  exhibitions,'*  and 

only  four  women.  Prograinmo  repro<lucc(l  in  Annals  S.  F.,  65(5;  Uphani'it 
Aotf/>,  271-2.  The  piano  t»  here  claimed  as  the  only  one  iu  the  country,  hut 
II  writer  in  S.  Josi  Pion  ,  Dec.  1,  1877,  shows  by  Icttors  that  four  niani-s 
Wttre  at  S.  F.  early  in  1847,  beiiideg  the  comraou  guitars  and  harps.  Territ. 
Pionceri,  FirH  An.,  75. 

^  On  Kearny  st  oouth  of  Clay  st.  Boxes  cost  $10.  The  performances 
iH'giui  at  7  P.  M  ,  and  embraced  the  naual  circus  features,  as  given  in  Ali'i 
('<d.  of  following  day.  This  the  first  play  l>ill  is  reproduced  in  Id.,  Oct.  2y. 
1S04.  The  circus  closed  Jan.  17,  1850,  to  reojtcn  as  an  amphitheatre  on  Ftli. 
4tli,  with  drama,  farce,  and  ring  performance.  The  Annah  S.  F.,  23(i,  cuIIh 
il  a  tent  holding  1,200  or  1,500  people,  and  places  the  prices  at  $.3,  ^,  una 
Si.'^i5.  Previous  to  this,  on  Oct.  22d,  says  McCuI)e,  in  Territ.  Pioneers,  ubisup., 
the  Philadelphia  iniustrcla  commenced  a  seaonn  at  Bulla  Union  hall,  ticket.^ 
>}•!,  and  in  Dec.  1840  the  Pacitic  miustreU  prepared  to  play  at  Washington 
hall,  but  were  prevented  by  fire. 

'•  A  frame  30  feet  by  95  covered  with  canvas,  metal-roofed,  on  Front  «i, 
between  I  and  J  st,  which  cost  97''>,000.  AdmisHion  jiii2  and  $3.  '1  he  coiniiuiix 
«!:iibr;vced  J.  B.  Atwater,  C.  B.  Price,  H.  F.  Daley,  J.  H.  McCalje,  H.  Hay 
and  wifo,  T.  B'airchild,  iF.  Harris,  Lt  A.  W.  Wright,  whose  salaries  ruiigi.l 
from  IjMiO  per  night  for  Atwater,  to  ifJK)  i)er  week  for  Daley,  Mrs  Itay,  v'tli 
buAband,  co:;!<nanded  lj^275  per  week,  including  expenses.  Mci'tifn,  iu  Tvn-it. 
I'unirfrH,  Firnl  An.,  72  .'».  The  total  nightly  expense  ■was  iHHM.  li;i>ai'<l 
Taylor  ^Jli/ortulo,  ii  31-2,  is  rather  severe  on  the  iiurforinance.  The  si  anon 
aiul  theatre  closed  Jan.  4,  1850.  The  Biuidit  Chief  is  mentioned  an  tlif 
opening  piece.  The  Tuhama  theatre  o]H!ned  soon  after  under  mauageiiuMit 
oi  Mrs  Kirliy,  later  Mrs  Stark.  Soc.  llhmt.,  12-13;  S.  Josi  Pioneer,  Dec.  l."<, 
I.S77.  The  Pacific  theatre  in  nearly  completeil,  observea  Placer  Times,  Apr. 
13.  IS-W. 

"Jan.  16th,  nea  ■  N.  w.  comer  of  Kearny  and  Waahington,  by  the  Eagli- 
tliontre  company  ut  Sacramento,  whence  also  tliis  name  tor  the  hall,  later 
Foley's.  Par.  News,  Jan.  17,  1850.  Alkn  and  liolaml  figure  on  the  pi««- 
^rainnie,  which  presented  The  Wife,  and  the  farce  Sentinel;  Mc<Jal>e  lia.'« 
t'harle.i  II.  as  an  after-pi-'ce.     Tickets  $3. 

"^  On  the  site  of  th^  latter  Maguire'a,  Washington  st.  It  was  built  of 
brii'k;  (jpened  by  n  French  company,  and  burned  May  4th.  It  was  replaciMl 
liy  the  Italian  theatre,  opened  Sept.  12,  1S50,  at  the  corner  of  Jackson  ami 
Kearny  sts,  by  a  similar  coin[>any.  Tiie  shortlivetl  Phteuix  theatre  wai*  in- 
augurated March  2.1il.  The  following  day  the  Pha>uix  exchange,  on  tliu 
plaza,  presented  model  artists. 

'M>n  the  norvh  side  of  California  at,  west  of  Kearny  st,  with  partly 
amateur  talent.  Kvurard,  known  for  )ii8  Yankee  rOle.i,  often  aasuiued  feuiali; 
garb.  (\ii*Mn's  SUU.,  M.S.,  16. 

''Ou  Cuiuuturciul  at;  tickets  |1. 


MUSIC  AND  RECREATION. 


245 


the  fame'!  Jenny  Lind  theatre,  opened  in  October 
lo50,  on  tie  plaza."  The  resorts  wliich  had  so  far 
escaped  were  swept  away  by  the  conflagrations  of 
!May  and  June  1851,  yet  new  edifices  rose  again  with 
httle  delay.  The  flush  times  of  a  gold  country  brought 
many  sterling  actors,  such  as  Stark,  Atwater,  Kirby, 
Bingham,  Thome  Sr,  who  also  m^  -  u  their  bow  at 
interior  towns,^"  but  inferior  talent  preponderated  in 
the  race  for  patronage,"  the  blood  and  thunder  variety 
gaining  favor,  especially  in  the  mining  region,  where 
the  nif*'^  appearence  of  a  woman  sufficed  in  early  days 
to  insuie  success.^**  The  general  effect  of  the  drama 
was  nevertheless  good,  partly  fnjm  the  moral  lessons 
conveyed,  but  mainly  as  a  diversion  from  gambling 
and  drinking  resorts.'*  By  1851  tliere  was  s<-arcely  a 
town  of  1,00C  inhabitants  without  its  hall  for  enter- 
tainments. Mere  instrumental  pn)ficiency  was  not  so 
widely  appreciated,*"  but  female  vocalists  witli  sym- 
pathetic voices  and  stirring  home  melodies  never  failed 
to  evoke  applause  which  not  unfr?quently  came  at- 
tiuded  by  a  shower  of  oresents.** 

**Wliich  evcntuallv  after  many  transformations  became  what  is  now 
known  as  the  old  city  hall,  aiul  which,  indeed,  is  the  third  Jenny  Lind  struu- 
ture,  the  lirst  having  been  burned  on  May  4,  VooO,  together  wiili  several 
ttllitr  rtiMorta,  and  the  sec«>nd  in  June  following.  Aide  Korsinsky  from  Nil- 
])lfK  opened  the  first  on  Oct.  23th,  aaxistcd  by  aingcm,  niu^ticians,  etc.  Adelnlii 
a:id  Foky's  amphitheatre  were  inaujipiratcd  in  Nov.  and  Dec,  respectively, 
t*ie  former  on  Clay  st,  the  other  on  the  pliuia.  The  next  important  eillfice 
M,t«  the  American  tlieatre  on  8.-insome  st,  north  of  Sacramento  st,  which 
l)i'li>n>ra  to  1851.     Vallcjo  lioll  was  used  for  parties. 

^'liin^'ham  inaugurated  aseaaim  at  Stocl^ton,  in  the  Stockton  house,  as- 
8i..ted  by  Know  of  Mormon  fame.  ^rClonlvy,  in  S.  JttKc  Pioneer,  Dec.  13,  1S77; 
I'liuvr  I'iuitt,  Apr.  13,  ISTiO.  Ho  al  lo  ojicnwl  t!io  re^il  t  season  at  Monten;-. 
}li>iibr»y  J/ertild,  Feb.  i'i,  1875.  Robinson  did  bo  at  Neva<la  in  June.  Oni'ut 
y,iL  DlirfC,  1850,  29-30. 

'*  In  Dec.  1850  the  museum  reduced  prices  one  half,  although  this  had 
only  a  partial  effect  elsewhere. 

"As  Taylor,  Eliionulo,  iL  31-2,  found  even  at  Sacramento.  A  Swihs 
prl  here  collcct«<l  ^,000  within  six  unniths.  Orjan  grinders  started  thtir 
nuisance  at  S.  F.  in  Ajir.  1850.  Ptie.  A<  «•«,  Apr.  31),  18.'0.  A  pioneiT  in  tlio 
OiiiliitHl  Tnnw<crij4,  Feu.  27,  1672,  gives  some  leading  names  in  tlio  {in)fessi(in. 
Jh'rtfi  timl  Patten,  Men  ami  Mem.,  213. 

'"Ity  ordinance  of  Sept.  14,  1850,  the  city  autltorities  sought  to  close  ev<:n 
thratres  on  Sundays,  but  the  attempt  M'ua  not  sneeessfuL  tSherman,  Mem., 
i.  '.'  t,  refers  to  passion  plays  in  connection  wilh  clinrehes. 

**  To  judge  by  the  rcceptiim  in  KTOof  the  i)iani.<t  llerz,  though  highly 

Sniisi  il  by  the  Pliicrr  Time*,  Apr.  22,  1850^  etc.     Other  cone.-rts  tmik  place  in 
;iM.  and  ApriL 
•^'flold  pieces  of  $10,  $20,  and  $50  in  value  eanio  raining  down,  says  Cfar- 


SOCIETY, 


Sunday  became  identified  with  enjoyment  rather 
tiian  solemn  devotion.  The  voyage  out  had  sufficed 
to  break  down  puritanical  habits.  In  the  camps, 
after  a  week's  arduous  pursuit  of  gold,  the  day  was 
welcomed  for  rest,  vet  not  for  repose.  Mending 
( h  thes,  washing,  bakmg,  and  letter- writing  occupied 
t)ne  part  of  it;  then  came  marketing  with  attendant 
conviviality,  the  harvest  for  traders,  saloon-keepers,  and 
tlieir  ilk.  This  routine,  more  or  less  prevalent  also  iu 
tlie  towns,  left  little  leisure  for  the  duties  of  religion, 
which  for  that  matter  were  generally  postponed  for 
the  return  home.  In  the  interior  the  necessary  leaders 
were  lacking,  and  the  fear  of  ridicule  from  a  rollicking 
crowd  restrained  non-professional  devotees.  Among 
the  multitudes  of  the  cities,  however,  the  clergyuiuii 
was  present,  and  could  always  count  upon  a  numlter 
of  sedate  folk  who  in  church  attendance  found  refresh- 
ing comfort.  The  influence  of  this  class,  embracing  as 
it  did  employers  and  family  men,  aided  by  the  mag- 
netism of  woman,  succeeded  by  tlie  middle  of  1850  in 
establishing  seven  places  of  worship,  and  in  extending 
Sabbath  observance,  in  connection  with  which  educa- 
tion, literature,  and  art  received  a  beneficent  impuls<\'*' 

The  admission  of  Califoniia  into  the  union  tended 
to  stamp  improvements  with  the  strengthening  tone  of 
permanency.     With  unfolding  resources  and  growing 

nisD,  Early  Days,  MS.,  15,  81-9,  although  smaller  pieces  were  more  comnioii. 
Wlicn  Kate  Uayes  uave  concerts  in  the  winter  of  1851,  the  tirst  tickitU 
at  Sao.  and  S.  F.  boUT  for  $:l,2U0  and  $l,rJ5,  respectively.  Alia  Cal .  Feb  <.». 
1853.  It  was  proposed  to  suhHcrilie  $500,000  for  bringing  hither  Jenny 
Lfnd.  Pac.  News,  Jan.  23,  1851.  Lecturers  fared  well.  J.  S.  Uittell  aji- 
jicamd as  a  phrenologist  in  Dec.  1850.  Cal.  Courier,  Due.  2,  1850,  Addilioiiil 
r.fureuces  to  aniusenienta  in  Id.,  March  31,  1851.  McCabe,  Territ.  Pioufvrs, 
First  A  n.,  75-8,  adde  some  valuable  details  on  early  amusementa.  Pac.  aV"'  s 
Oct.  184'J-50,  passim;  Ctil.  Scrajm,  Amuse.,  5,  253,  etc.;  HVmww'  Slut.,  MS., 
13;  BoHhwifk'a Cat.,  77,  289,  334,  357;  EarlVa  SUU.,  MS.,  6;  8.  F.  P<mt,  F.l>. 
10,  187G;  Stit  Cruz  Sentinel,  Feb,  20,  1875;  Shaw's  Golden  Dream*,  20!i;  Lliffis 
J.;jLt8  atul  Shades,  146-54.  Torres,  Perip ,  145,  comments  on  the  inoaiiii  to 
supply  the  scarcity  of  actresses.  Annals  S.  F.,  655,  etc.;  S.  F.  C%romcle,  Sept. 
9,  18f8. 

"All  of  which  will  be  considered  in  later  chapters.  In  Nov.  1849  ilray- 
nien,  among  others,  resolved  to  abstain  from  Sunday  work  when  possiMu. 
JW.  News,  Nov.  10,  1849.  It  t(Mik  some  years  before  the  smaller  totM\!t 
CO'.- Id  be  made  to  adopt  similar  resolutions.  Sec  Calaveras  Chroiiick,  Feb. 
1855. 


PROGRESS  AND  IMPROVEMENT. 


247 


|849  <lrav- 

hick,  V'jU. 


population  caiue  greater  traffic,  increased  and  varied 
supplies,  and  new  industries,  comforts,  and  conven- 
iences of  every  grade. 

The  progression  made  by  California  during  the  first 
t\v(j  yeai-s  of  the  golden  era  is  remarkable,  not  only  for 
its  individuality,  but  for  its  rapidity,  and  as  being 
taken  by  a  community  of  energetic  and  intelligent  men, 
aided  by  the  appliances  of  their  age.  The  main  con- 
siderations for  the  present  are  the  suddenness,  magni- 
tude, and  mixed  composition  of  the  gathering,  the 
])redomuiating  and  marked  influence  of  Americans 
tn»m  the  first,  and  the  peculiar  features  evolved  there- 
fr<  ini,  and  in  connection  with  the  adventurous  trip,  the 
mania  for  enrichment,  the  general  opulence,  sex  limita- 
tion, camp  life,  and  climate.  Note  especially  the  reek- 
loss  self-reliance  which  braved  hardship  and  dangers  by 
sta  and  land,  in  solitude  and  amidst  the  mongrel  crowil, 
and  marked  its  advance  by  upturned  valleys  and  ra- 
vines; by  the  deviated  course  of  rivers,  the  living  evi- 
dence of  settlements  and  towns  that  sprang  up  in  a 
day,  or  the  mute  eloquence  of  their  ruins;  by  the 
transformed  wilderness  and  the  busy  avenues  of  traffic ; 
by  thixmged  roads  and  steam-furrowed  rivers.  Note 
tin;  lusty  exuberance  which  trod  down  obstacles  and 
lii,ditly  treated  reverses ;  lightened  work  with  the  spirit 
of  play,  and  carried  play  into  extravagance,  and  all 
tlie  while  tempering  avarice  with  a  whole-souled  lib- 
erality Note  the  elevation  of  labor  and  equalization 
of  ranks,  which,  rejecting  empty  pretensions  and  exalt- 
injjf  honor  and  other  principles,  elevated  into  promi- 
iH-nee  the  best  natural  types  of  manhood,  physical  and 
nuMital,  for  the  strain  of  life  in  the  mines  demanded  a 
.'itrong  frame  and  constitution,  and  in  other  fields  the 
prizes  fell  to  the  shrewd  and  energetic  This  wild 
gaii^e  and  gaml)ol  could  not  pass  without  deplorable 
excesses,  but  even  these  had  a  manly  stamp.  Vice 
was  more  prominent  than  general,  however.  Deceivwi 
l>y  the  all-absorbing  loudness  of  its  asptK^t  and  outcry, 
writers  are  led  to  exaggerate  the  extent.     On  the 


248 


SOCIETY. 


other  hand,  the  sudden  abundn'^^e  of  means  exploded 
economic  habits  in  general,  and  the  prevalence  of  hinh 
prices  and  speculative  ideas,  together  with  the  abseiue 
of  restraining  family  ties,  did  not  tend  to  promote 
prudence. 

In  this  short,  spirited  race  between  representatives 
of  all  nationalities  and  classes,  save  the  very  [X)or  aiul 
the  rich,  all  started  under  certain  primitive  conditions, 
unfettered  by  traditional  and  conventional  forms,  ytt 
assisted  by  the  training  and  resources  derived  from 
their  respective  cultures.  Some  aimed  short-sightedly 
only  for  the  nearest  golden  stake,  and  this  gained,  a 
few  retired  contented;  most  of  them,  however,  con- 
tinued in  pursuit  of  ever-flitting  visions.  Others,  with 
more  forethought  and  enterprise,  enlisted  wider  agen- 
cies, organization,  machinery,  and  for  a  greater  goal ; 
and  seizing  other  opportunities  by  the  way,  they  mul- 
tiplied the  chances  of  success  in  difl^erent  direction!?. 
While  accustomed  to  subdue  the  wilderness,  Yanket^ 
character  and  institutions  have  here  dcmonstratid 
their  versatility  and  adaptiveness  under  somewhat 
different  conditions,  and  in  close  contest  with  those 
of  other  nationalities,  by  taking  the  decisive  lead  in 
evolving  from  magnificent  disorder  the  framework  for 
a  great  commonwealth,  the  progress  of  which  structure 
is  presented  in  the  succeeding  chapters.** 

*'  For  fuller  and  additional  authorities  bearin,^  on  early  California  society, 
I  refer  to  Burnett's  HeetM.  qf  P(U)t,  MS.,  i.-ii.,  pasaim;  BartUit'it  StuU'iticiit, 
MS.,  2-.S,  7-9;  Bnrry  and  PiiUen's  Men  ami  Mem.,  46,  (51-92,  144-8,  2'J3,  251, 
.^1;  CarsonH  Early  RecoU.,  21,  25-«,  29;  Jan^ten's  Vuln  y  Av.,  198;  Aim- 
»trowj'it  '.^9  Eeperienren,  MS.,  8,  12;  Larhins  Doe.,  vi.  41,  43,  51-2,  Wi,  1+4, 
172,  175,  195,  198;  vii.  92,  140,  200,  219,  231,  287,  3JW;  Clarke's  SUUemad, 
MS.,  1-2;  Hyile'a  Hint.  Facta  on  Cal.,  MS.,  9-13;  Dow's  Viy.  Com.,  MS.,  2,  5 
Aiw*  OUmjmt,  MS.,  266-78:  Farnham's  Cal,  22-7,  271^;  Fay's  IJi'tori.-al 
Farts,  MS.,  1-3,  10;  Fermimlez,  Cal.,  184,  189-92;  Anmib  qf  S.  F.,  passim; 
Du  Hailly,  in  Rev.  ties  deux  Motuiea,  Feb.  15,  1859,  932;  Bauer's  SUUennui, 
MS.,  2-3,  5;  AUjer's  Youtuj  Miner,  passim;  BouUnCs  Cal.  Intliuns,  MS.;  An-li. 
Monterey  Co.,  xiv.  18{  Beadle's  Western  WiUls,  38;  AveriU's  L{/'e  in  Cal.,  |ia.t- 
siin;  Bancroft's  Hand-book;  A  View  of  Cal.,  107;  Ariz.  i4)rA.,  iii.  297;  AntKuk 
Letl<jer,  July  1,  \^l<ii  BarsUno's  SUUement,  MS.,  1-4,  7-12;  Cal,  The  Di<i<ier'.i 
HandfHjok,  7,  »»-4r,  49-54,  65-71;  Buffum's  Six  Mmllis,  83-4,  117-18,  l-'l, 
124;  Dutch  Flat  Em/nirer,  Nov.  2(5,  1804;  Farujell's  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  6;  John- 
son's Cal  and  Ogn,  96-209,.  236,  244;  Kelly's  Excursion,  ii.  244-9;  SehmtKlill'^ 
StAite.ment,  MS.,  4-6,  145-0;  Ftisftie's  tteminisc.,  MS.,  3(>-7;  Oamiss'  Kiiili/ 
Days  qf  S.  F.,  MS.,  8-23,  29-.S2;  Fri,ik's  Vi,,.  Com.,  MS.,  25;  Blujmme'o  I  -v- 
Tom.,  MS.,  1,  5;  Gemtaeker,  Kreiitz  niiil  <,hier:  Kiji's  Cal  Sketrhes,  18  I'.i; 
Lambertie,  Voy.  Pittorrstjue,  202-9;  Lett's  Cal  Jllusl.,  48-55,  70-129;  Alamnla 


AUTHOPITIES. 


249 


R^forter,  May  31,  1879;  Kanem.,  Iowa,  Front  Guard,  May  10,  1849;  Feb.  .  , 
1H50;  Polynftiiin,  iv.  \62,  183,  207;  v.-vii.,  passim;  MenUl'n  SliUemenl,  MS., 
2-0,  9-10;  LavmmH  Autoimxj.,  MS.,  11-17;  Currfy's  IwulenU,  MS.,  4,  8;  Fri- 
mmt''*  Year  Anier.  Travel,  G6-8,  98-103,  112-13,  148;  Bi-ook^'  Four  MojU/im, 
8:<,  'JOl-2;  Dnolittk'i  SUiUmetU,  MS.,  21-2;  iJriiikmUer,  iii  Mmrl.  StutemenU, 
l-'J;  OillfMpif'a  Viij.  Com.,  MS.,  1-<J;  Carmm  City  Trih.,  Sept.  23,  1879;  Chko 
Eiitemrixf,  Aug.  8,  1879;  Bn/nnt'g  WhiU  I  Saw  in  CaL,  427;  Sehenrk'n  VUj. 
Com.,  MS.,  14,  16,  20,  22,  44^8;  BarlC»  SUttement,  MS.,  6,  8-10;  Coa-:s  AnntiU 
of'  Trinity  Co.,  C2-3;  Contmiy'g  Early  Day^  in  California,  MS.,  1-2;  Hreieer'n 
iinmni^.,  MS.,  35-7;  Helpers  LamiqfGoUl,  3tt-«,  47,  «:i-75,  82-4,  144,  I. IS, 
lti7-'.»,  237-53;  Ihlnnon  /.(/«,  249-54,  289-90,  »i6;  Grimnhnw'H  AurriUire,  MS., 
14:  liortliirick'ii  Three  Year»  in  Cal.,4t\-&I,  77,  83-6,  127,  151-4,  165-0,  289, 
■,m.  :ir>7-74;  Ilonrodtn  Thirteen  Years,  MS.,  119-20;  IMI'm  Hint.,  232;  Qreenn 
J.ij,  iiikI  Adv.,  MS.,  17,  19;  Ouiile  to  Cat.,  80-132,  157;  Kirkpatrick'a  Journal, 
U  16;  <ioUl  Hill  A'ewH,  Nov.  29,  18<>7;  Oeary,  in  Mitirel.  Statements,  5;  Haw- 
Inj's  oUnntionK,  MS.,  5,  9-10;  BoUm  vs  U.  S.,  Aj>p.  to  Brief,  99-101;  Biny- 
hum,  ill  .Solano  Co.  Hist.,  333;  Damrron's  Autotiioy.,  22-3;  Hunt's  Merck.  Maif., 
XX.  458;  xxi.  i:W;  xxii.  696;  xxxi.  114,  38<>;  Los  Any.  Star,  May  14,  18t0; 
Kiii'i^/leptonCal.,!, 215;  HiUell,  in  Dietz  Our  Boys,  166-8,  174-7,  179;  Bnnm's 
StiUe.inent,  MS.,  14;  Dean s  Statement,  MS.,  1-2;  Marin  Co.  Hint.,  121;  Masons 
Ji'ijif:  Masxett's  t'jfter.  of  a  ^4^er,  10;  Bennett,  in  Sawtellvs  I'toneers,  5;  Want's 
l.ithrnf  Awj.  1,  /S49,  in  Neio  York  Courier  ami  Fmiuirer;  Nei'uila  Journal, 
Dec.  19,  1856;  NeixulaGaz.,  May  2,  1864;  Sonora  Union  Dem.,  Si-pt.  29,  1877; 
Morne,  in  Direct.  Sac.,  1853-4,  5-10;  Berkeley  Advocate,  Dec.  25,  1879;  Cnty's 
li./.  Com.,  MS.,  1;  Costa  It.,  AtL  awl  Pac.  R.  R.,  7-16;  Hiilmer's  Rarime 
oroiiwl  tJie  World,  W);  JVtw  West,  342;  Emns'  A  la  California,  226,  2;«6,  272, 
;<.■)!»,  etc.;  Dilke's  Greater  Britain,  209,  22H-32;  Red  Bluff  Sentinel,  June  14, 
187H;  AVw  rtw/  OW,  35, 37, 69;  MeCollum't  CaL  as  / Saw  U,  33-6,  60-3;  Dona's 
Tiro  Years,  432;  Nidever's  L&e  and  Adv.,  MS.,  139;  Low's  OlmerrKitions,  M.S., 
4  7:  HtttcJunys  lllust.  Cat.  Alaq.,  i.  33,  78,  a%  215,  300,  416,  464;  ii.  401;  iii. 
(iO,  \'3i,  210,  254;  v.  297,  334-7;  Holinski,  La  CaL,  108-10,  136;  Benton,  in 
I  III  lies'  Scraps,  CaL  Notes,  v.  60;  Biijler's  Diary,  M.S.,  77-9;  S.  I.  Friend,  vi. 
l(i,-24,  32,  40,  48,  56,  64,  72,  80,  85,  88,  96;  vii.  8,  15,  69,  74;  viii.  28,  95. 
et^■. ;  S.  I.  Neres,  ii.,  pasaim;  Morse's  Pion.  Exj>.,  MS.,  7;  Colton's  Deck  and 
Pi'ii,  352,  386,  401 ;  Pioche  Journal,  June  4,  1875;  Pierce's  Rmyh  Sketch, 
MS.,  105-8,  111;  Cole's  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  3;  Mex.,  ReroL  Sta  Anna,  154;  Pan. 
SUir,  Fl!>.  24,  1849;  Commerce  and  Navig.  Refits,  1850-67;  Grerland  Monthly, 
xiv.  .-VJO,  327-8;  xv.  241-8,  etc.;  Nouv.  Annaleji,  1849,  3,  224;  Parsons  Life 
0/  Murshall,  96,  99-103,  157;  Connors  Earlif  CaL,  MS.,  2;  (wt^  Review,  Oct. 
1S77,  377;  Oakland  Transcript,  March  1,  1873;  May  5,  1875;  March  25,  July 
14,  1877;  MoiUerey  Herald,  Feb.  13,  1875;  Le  NationaL  Oct.  4,  1869;  Rusnian 
/tiiir  /'/(((/.Jan.  9,  1873;  Morse's  Statement,  MS.;  Henshnw's  Hist.  Events,  MS., 
1  •_',  7-8;  Hesperian,  ii.  10,  492,  494;  Rediiitz,  Reine,  106;  Olney's  I'iij.  Con., 
MS,,  1-3;  y'enturii  Free  Press,  Sept.  29,  1877;  Minimj  ami  ScietUijic  Press, 
Auji.  3,  1878;  Lyon  Co.,  Nev.,  Ttmts,  March  24,  1877;  San  Dieao  Arch.,  331; 
Siii,  Dieijo  HertM,  Deo.  6,  1874;  Friynet,  La  CaL,  83,  94,  117,  121  2,  13.->; 
Foster's  Gold  Reyions,  passim;  CemUi's  RamhUnys,  25-7,  50,  67;  Clemens' 
liiMiijIiiiiy  It,  410,"  417,  444;  Home  Missionary,  xxii.  92-3,  163-7,  186;  xxiii. 
L'dH  1);  xxvii.  159-60;  LomUm  Quart.  Rev.,  'Jan.  1881,  45-6;  Pion.  May.,  i. 
174;  ii.  80;  iii.  80-1,  147;  iv.  314;  Player-Frmtsl's  Six  MonUu  in  CaL,  22-3; 
I'litrernile  ReptibL,  July  19,  1877;  Coke's  Ride,  3M-7:  Pion.  Arch.,  29-31;  S. 
F.  ih;klent,  March  5,  1874:  S.  F.  News  Letter,  Jan.  17,  1874;  S.  F.  Ejchan,,e, 
Jiiti.  13,  1876;  EUte  Directory,  1879,  11-19;  S.  F.  Gohlen  Era,  March  8,  18/4; 
Jan.  2ti,  1878;  S.  F.  Chronkle,  July  6,  1878;  June  4,  1879;  Oct.  3,  31,  1>>80; 
S.  F.  <M,  Jan.  6,  28,  March  1,  Aug.  23,  1865;  Sept  1,  I8('>6;  Aug.  1,  1867, 
etc.;  San  Josd  Pioneer,  Aug.  4,  Dec.  1,  14,  1877;  Feb.  16,  May  4,  July  27, 
1^78;  Aug.  16,  1879;  Hist.  San  Josi,  20S»-16;  San  Jotupiin  Co.  Hist.,  21,  23, 
3+-.');  S.  F.  Times,  JsM.  12,  1867;  S.  F.  Toivn  Talk,  Apr.  10,  1857;  S.  F.  Post, 
Apr.  3,  1875;  Feb.  10,  1876;  July  27,  Nov.  1,  23,  1878;  ChamlierlaiH's  Stale- 
nil  lit.  MS.,  1;  Cttssin's  Statement,  MS.,  6-7,  10-18;  Hist.  Doc.  CaL,  1  508; 
iHi/iiijiia  Standard,  July  22,  1876;  San/ent,  in  Nevada  Grass  Val.  Dimt., 
ISAii,  29-31;  Sta  Cruz  Sentinel,  Feb.  20,   1875;  Sta  Cruz  Times,  March  12, 


250 


SOCIETY 


1870;  R<m'  Narrative,  MS.,  12,  15-18;  Roach's  Hitt.  FaetK,  MS.,  3;  MwlvHo 
IJeraUl,  h'eh.  14,  1878;  Ridtardsona  Mininn  Exper.,  MS.,  10-11,  27-30;  J/,/- 
Imunie  Atom.  UeraUl,  March  29,  1849;  //i4.  qf  Lou  Aim.,  73-4;  Lloyd' 8  Liyhtx 
and  Shades,  18-21,  513-16;  RMnsons  Col.  and  Us  Oold  Rei/ions,  10,  105,  214; 
Capi-OHS  Hist.  CaL,  125-6,  129,  146,  165,  220,  233;  Roarh's  Statement,  MS., 
2-3,  9;  CampbeWs  Circular  Notes,  i,  98-129;  Revue  des  Deux  Mondes,  Fel..  1, 

1849,  475;  MisceUany,  ix.,  pt.  i.  77;  McDaniels'  Early  Days,  M.S.,  6,  49  M); 
S'ic.  Union,  Dec.  16,  1854;  Sept.  1,  1855;  March  13-16,  Apr.  4,  May  21,  Junu 
20,  Sept.  16,  Dec.  25,  26,  31,  1856;  Sept.  14,  1858;  Sept  4,  1865,  etc.;  Sar. 
lire,  June  12,  1874;  Site.  Wkly  Bee,  Aug.  16,  1879;  Shasta  Courier,  March  I'S, 
1865;  Shaws  OoUlen  Dreams,  37-42,  47,  179-at;  CiUholie  World,  795.  807; 
CaL,  Pom.  and  Col.  Scraps,  126-7;  Sayionnl's  Pioneer  Remin.,  MS.,  4,  2y-3.'{; 
Ryan's  Pers.  Adv.,  ii.  170-220,  250-7,  265-6;  Id.,  Jwlyes  and  Crim.,  80  •.'; 
Cat.  PU,jrim,  54,  136;  8.  F.  Bulletin.  Jan.  2,  March  29,  Apr.  1,  July  7,  8, 
Aug.  5,  Sept.  16,  20,  25,  Nov.  27,  Dec.  4,  1856;  Sept.  27, 1862;  Feb.  28,  Oct. 
28,  1866;  Apr.  30,  1866;  Jan.  23,  25,  1867,  etc.;  CaL,  Pion.  Cekhratini,» 
Scraps,  8-10;  Id.,  Poltt.  Scraps,  123;  CaL  Archives,  Unbound  Doc.,  20,  6'),  5«i, 
58,  69,  64-7,  224-6,  228,  319-20,  322-3,  328-9;  CaL,  Advent,  qf  a  Cajitoins 

Wife,  18,  20,  27-8,  41-2;  Ctd.  Past  and  Present,  107-9,  149-60,  159-60,  l(i:{; 
Sacramento  I llust.,  8,  12-13;  Tlte  World  Over,  92-110;  The  Mines,  Miners,  etc  , 
790-1;  Tliomas,  in  Sac.  Direct.,  1871,  52-3,  76,  1034;  McCalx's  Our  Coim- 
tni,  1054-6;  Ma;/ne's  Br.  Columbia,  157,  163;  The  World  Here  and  Tliar, 
14-27;  MtUtfiewson's  Statement,  MS.,  2-3;  Sutton's  Early  Exper.,  MS.,  patiHiiii: 
Stockton  Indep.,  Aug.  31,  1878;  July  28,  1879;  SouU's  Statement,  MS.,  2,  4; 
ElSonorense,  May  2,  1849,  p.  4;  La  Amwnia  Social  (Guadalajara),  March  '_', 
1849;  Miller's  Somjs  qf  the  Sierras,  69,  70,  280;  Solano  Press,  Dec.  II,  lS(i7; 
Solam  Co.  Hist.,  164;  Wilminijton  Enterprise,  Jan.  ''A,  1876;  TuthiU's  llUt. 
CaL,  passim;  VanderUU,  in  MiiceL  Statements,  32,  35;  Shuck's  Repres.  Men  oj 
S.  F.,  936-7;  Shinn's  Mining  Camps,  137;  Virginia,  Nev.,  Chron.,  May  21, 
1877;  Sac.  Record,  March  6,  1876;  Tinkham's  Hist.  Stockton,  166-75;  Sim-- 
wood's  Pocket  Ouide,  64-6;  London  Titnes,  July  25,  1850;  Little's  Statement, 
MS.,  3,  11,  16;  Upham's  Notes,  221-2,  225-6,  266-72;  Mrs  Tiltbey,  in  J/m.,/. 
Sttitements,  19-20;  Tiffany's  Pocket  Exch.  Ouide,  16,  124-6;  Tyler's  Mornnm 
BiUtalion,  242-334;  Taylor's  Oregonltns,  MS.,  1-2;  Id.,  Spec.  Press,  IW,,  W), 
57i,  600-3;  Id.,  Eldmado,  i.-ii.,  passim;  Id.,  CaL  Life  Illust.,  164-7,  11X^4; 
Crosliy's  EmUs  in  CaL,  MS.,  10-17,  22-3,  25,  38-9,  46;  Torres,  Perip.,  62,  !H» 
100,  109,  112,  145;  La  Matte's  Statement,  MS.,  1;  Rychnan's  Vig.  Com.,  MS,; 
Van  Dyke's  Statement,  MS.,  3;  Voorfiies'  Oration,  1863,  4-6;  Vinton's  i^naiitr- 
master's  Rept  U.  S.  A.,  1860,  246-8;  CaL  In  and  Out,  254,  344,  380;  Wr 
Mehr's  Checkei-ed  Life,  344,  367-8;  Todd,  in  Miscel.  Statement,  21;  Watlcln's 
Vi<f.  Com.,  MS.,  1,  24;  Vallejo  Wkly  Chron.,  July  26,  1873;  Vehwcn,  Son., 
325;  Soc.  Mex.  Oeog.,  Bolet.,  xi.  129;  VaUejo,  CoL  Doc.,  xxxv.  47,  148,  lili'; 
Willei/'s  Thirty  Years,  MS.,  37,  39;  Id.,  Podonal  Memoramla,  MS.,  1'27  N; 
Whealon's  Statement,  MS.,  2-4;  U.  S.  Govt  Doc.,  3l8t  Cong.,  Ist  Sess.,  H.  Kx. 
17,  pp.  693, 845,  968-9;  Yulsi  Co.  History,  HI;  WUmington  Enterprise,  Jim. '2\, 
1875;  Williams' Statement,  MS.,  3-14;  Id.,  Rec.  qf  Early  Days,  MS.,  1-13;  /-A, 
Pioti.  Pastorate,  44-8;  Carson  State  Register,  Oct  19,  1871;  Upton,  in  Overlmiil 
Mlhly,  ii.  136-7;  Winans'  SUUetnent,  MS.,  3-«,  14-18;  TurriU's  CaL  Not<^, 
22-7;  Shirley,  in  MisreL  Statements,  13-16;  Woods'  Pion.  Work,  17-18;  /,/., 
Sixteen  Montiis,  46,  62,  68,  72,  74-6,  87,  148,  167;  CaL,  Statutes,  1850  et  sccj  ; 
Id.,  Journal  House,  1860,  p.  1344;  Id.,  Journ.  Sen.,  1850,  pp.  481,  1299,  i:«)7, 
1340,  and  index;  1851,  pp.  921-4,  999,  1516-34,  1583,  1658-76;  S.  F.  A  in 
CaL,  Jan.  25,  June  6,  14,  Aug.  2,  Dec.  16,  1849;  Jan.  14,  16,  May  27,  June 
25,  July  1,  Dec.  19,  21,  24,  1860;  1851-2,  passim,  etc.;  8.  F.  Daily  Henil'l, 

1850,  passim;  Feb.  19,  Sept  30,  1851;  Apr.  7,  1862;  NeaWs  Vig.  Com.,  MS.. 
3-5,  14-16,  23-8;  S.  F.  MimUes  Asaemldy,  1849,  passim;  Id.,  Munic.  Ih]'!, 
1859-60,  pp.  167-«;  1861-2,  pp.  259-60;  1866-7,  p.  620;  Id.,  Manuel,  pp.  ix. 
xvi.;  Sac.  Transcript,  Apr.  26,  May  29,  June  29,  Sept  18,  30,  Oct  14,  No'. 
14,  29,  1860;  Jan.  14,  May  15,  1861;  HitteWs  Hist.  S.  F.,  passim;  S.  F.  I'uri- 
Jic  News,  Nov.-Dec.  1849,  passim;  1860,  passim;  Jan.  1,  10,  21,  23,  Fub.  7, 
14,  Apr.  11,  1861;  Parker's  S.  F.  Direct.,  1852-3,  7-18;  KimlMtt'sS.  F.  IHrect., 
1850,  124-30;  Sac,  Placer  Times,  May  5, 12, 19,  26,  June  2,  30, 1849,  passim. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

184G-I840. 

TlIK  Sl.AVKRY  Ql'ESnOM  BEFORK  CoNORESS — TN\(mON  AND  DeLAY— Mn-ITARV 

Uri.E  IN  California — Mexican  Forms  ok  Civil  and  .Judicial  (Jovern- 
MENT  Maintained  —  Federal  Officials  in  California  —  (Joveknor 
Mason — Prankh  of  T.  Butler  Kino— f  Jovernor  Riley— Leoislative 

As-SKMBLY — CV>SSTITUriONAL  CONVENTION  AT  MoNTEREV — HoME  BlO<iRA> 

I'll  I  KM— Personnel  of  the  Convention — Money  MArrERs — Aiioi-rioN 
OF  the  Constitution — Election. 


In  tlie  anthem  of  human  progress  there  is  here  and 
there  a  cliorus  of  events  which  rolls  its  iuat>uiticent 
voluino  around  tlie  world,  making  all  that  went  before 
or  tliiit  follows  seem  but  the  drowsy  murmur  of  the 
iilLjht.  In  this  crash  of  chorus  we  regard  not  the  in- 
struments nor  the  players,  but  are  lifted  from  the 
plane  by  the  blended  power  of  its  thousand-stringed 
eloquence,  and  under  the  spell  of  its  mighty  harmonies 
become  capable  of  those  great  emotions  which  lead 
to  heroic  deeds.  The  political  history  of  California 
opens  as  such  a  chorus,  whose  minghng  strains,  dis- 
tiiietive  heard  for  more  than  a  decade,  come  from  a 
few  heavy -brained  white  mon  and  four  millions  of  negro 
slaves. 

Calhoun,  the  great  yet  sinister  Carolinian,  knew, 
when  he  opposed  the  conquest  of  California,  tliat  the 
south,  and  he  more  than  all,  had  brought  about  the 
event;*  and  while  pretending  not  to  desire  more  ter- 

'  tieiiton.  in  the  congressional  deliatefl  of  1847,  in  which  Calhoun  opposed 
tilt!  itci^uiaitiun  of  more  territory,  and  into  which  he  introduced  his  firebrand 
resolutions — see  Cong.  Olohr,  184t>-7,  p.  456 — made  a  clear  case  against  Cal- 
houn, sboMring  onequiTOcally  that  either  be  had  three  times  changed  his 

(251) 


lUv 


'i; 


m 


i 
if  i 


i|-:!     ll 


252 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


10 


ritory,  the  slave  power  was  covertly  grasping  at  tl 
Spuiiish-speaking  countries  beyond  the  Kio  Grande, 


policy,  or  that  he  woh  tho  MiichaivvUi  of  Ainvriuan  ^oliticti. 
(if  thu  caUHC'H  of  thu  wiir  wim  aa  fullowa:   'Tliu  cviiaiuu  of  Tu 


Bc'litoii'H  liiMtory 

L'UXIIM  18    tllU    iH^gill. 

iiiiig  ]ioiiit  ill  tilts  cliiiiii  of  caiiMua  wliiuh  l.avu  le.l  to  this  war;  for  iiiiIi'mm  tim 
vountry  had  been  cetlud  away  there  couM  have  licoii  no  quarrel  witii  imy 
power  ill  fietting  it  l)ack.  For  a  lonu  time  the  nesotiator  of  that  treat)  of 
ceHtiion  [Sir  J.  Q.  AdainsJ  iKtrc  all  the  bl.inio  of  the  Iohh  of  TexaH,  ami  Iih 
motives  for  giving  it  away  were  act  down  to  hostility  to  the  south  and  wi  .st, 
and  a  desire  tu  clip  the  wings  of  the  slave-hohling  states.  At  last  the  truth 
of  liistoiy  has  vindicated  itself,  and  has  shown  who  was  tho  true  autlinr  ut 
that  niiiichiof  to  the  south  and  west.  Mr  Adams  has  made  a  public  declara- 
tion, which  no  one  controverts,  that  that  ccHsion  was  made  in  conforniity  to 
tho  decision  of  Mr  Monroe's  cabinet,  a  majority  of  which  was  slave-holilm^-, 
and  among  them  the  present  senator  from  Soith  Carolina  [Mr  CalhounJ,  and 
now  the  only  survivor  of  that  majority.  He  does  not  contradict  the  Ktntu- 
meiit  of  Mr  Adams;  he  therefore  stands  admitted  tho  co-author  of  the  inis- 
chief  to  the  south  and  west  wliich  the  cession  of  Texas  involved,  and  tu 
escape  from  which  it  became  necessary,  in  l<ie  opinion  of  the  senator  fi'n.u 
South  Carolina,  to  get  back  Texas  at  the  exiMiiise  of  a  war  with  Mexico.  TKi't 
conduct  of  the  senator  in  giving  away  Texas  when  wo  had  her,  and  tli<  ii 
making  war  to  get  her  back,  is  an  enigma  which  ho  has  never  yet  coikIc- 
Hcended  to  explain,  and  which  until  explained  leaves  him  in  a  state  of  .hcIi'. 
contradiction,  which,  whether  it  impairs  his  own  contidenco  in  himself  nr 
not,  must  have  the  effect  of  destroying  tho  contidenco  of  others  in  him,  ami 
wholly  diwiiialities  him  for  the  office  of  champion  of  tho  slavedioldiug  Ntatrs. 
It  was  tho  heaviest  blow  they  had  ever  received,  and  put  an  en<l,  in  conjunc- 
tion  with  the  Missouri  compromise  and  the  ^jermanent  location  of  tlie  In- 
dians west  of  the  Mississippi,  to  their  future  growth  or  extension  as  kIivu 
states  beyond  the  Mississippi.  The  [Missouri]  conipnmiise,  which  was  tlnii 
in  full  progress,  and  established  at  the  next  session  of  congress,  cut  olf  tlic 
slave  stiites  from  all  territory  north  and  west  of  Missouri,  and  south  of  liii/ 
of  north  latitude;  tho  treaty  of  1N19  ceded  nearly  all  south  of  that  dcgni', 
comprehending  not  only  Texas,  but  a  large  part  of  the  valley  of  the  Missis- 
sippi on  the  Red  River  and  the  Arkansas,  to  a  foreign  jMiwer,  and  brou^lit  ii 
non-slave-holding  empire  to  the  confines  of  Louisiana  and  Arkansas;  tlio  iicr- 
nianent  appropriation  of  tho  rest  of  the  territory  for  the  abode  of  civilixed  In- 
dians swept  the  little  Blave-li<d<liiig  territory  west  of  Arkansas,  and  lyi  ig 
between  tlio  compromise  lino  and  the  cession  line,  and  left  tho  slave  states 
without  one  inch  of  ground  for  their  future  growth.  Even  the  then  tcrrituiy 
of  Arkansas  was  encroached  upon.  A  brea«lth  of  40  miles  wide  and  ',HM  long 
w:us  cut  off  from  her  and  given  to  tho  Cherokees;  and  there  was  not  as  nuu  li 
territory  loft  west  of  the  Mississippi  as  a  ilove  could  have  rested  the  sole  of  Inr 
foot  U[ion.  It  was  not  merely  a  curtailment  but  a  total  extinction  of  slavc- 
holiling  territory;  and  done  at  a  time  when  the  Misiiouri  controversy  was 
raging,  and  every  effort  made  by  northern  abolitionists  to  stop  tho  growtli  ot 
the  slave  states.  [The  northern  states,  in  1824,  gave  nearly  aa  large  a  vote 
for  Calhoun  for  vice-president  as  they  did  for  Adams  for  president.]  'I'liu 
senator  from  South  Carolina,  in  his  support  of  tho  cession  of  Texas,  and  n  I- 
iiig  a  part  of  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi,  was  then  the  most  etlicient  ally 
of  the  restrictionists  at  that  time,  and  deprives  him  of  the  right  of  sotting'  ii[i 
as  tho  champion  of  the  slave  states  now.  I  denounced  the  sacrifice  of  Tcxaa 
then,  believing  Mr  Adams  to  have  l>een  the  author  of  it;  I  denounce  it  now, 
knowing  the  senator  from  South  Carolina  to  l)e  its  author;  and  for  this,  h\* 
flagrant  recreancy  to  the  slave  interest  in  their  hour  of  utmost  peril,  I  hold 
him  disqualified  for  the  office  of  champion  of  the  14  slave  states,  and  sliall 
certainly  require  him  to  keep  out  of  Missouri  and  to  confine  himself  to  lad 
own  bailiwick  when  he  comes  to  discuss  his  string  of  resolutions.     I  > o 


SLAVE  TKRUITORY. 


263 


as  it  Imd  at  the  lands  boyoml  the  Sabiuo,  the  wlu>le 
tu  Uecoiuo   a    breedinjr-ground  for  millions  nune  of 

iiuw  to  the  direct  t>roofa  of  the  autluirship  of  tlie  war,  and  twgin  with  tho 
\.:\r  \H'M\,  and  with  the  month  of  May  ot  tliut  year,  and  with  the  27th  ilay 
tit  tliut  niontJi,  aixl  with  tlie  HrMt  rumors  of  the  victory  of  San  Jacinto.  Tho 
(iiii^niM  of  the  United  States  waa  tiien  in  session;  the  senator  from  South 
Ciroliti.i  Wiis  then  a  mendier  of  this  ho<ly;  and  without  even  waiting  for  the 
iiilici.il  contirniation  of  the  uruut  event,  he  (iroiMsud  at  onuu  thu  imnifdiutu 
ri'ciigtiition  of  the  indeiHindunce  of  I'l  xas,  and  liur  inunudiato  admiitsion  to 
th>'  union.  He  put  tlie  two  ]>ro))o8itioiii«  together — recognition  an<l  ailniiMsion. 
. .  .Mr  L'aliioun  was  of  opinion  that  it  woidd  add  more  strenuth  to  tlm  cuuhc 
lit  Texas  to  wait  a  few  days  until  they  rt'ceivcd  oiKcial  conhrmation  of  tho 
victory  an<l  capture  of  Santa  Ana,  in  order  to  obtain  a  more  unanimous  vote 
ill  I'avor  of  thu  recognition  of  Texas. . .  .He  had  uuide  up  his  mind,  not  only 
to  rci'o^'nizc  the  independence  of  Texas,  Imt  for  her  admission  into  this  union: 
aihi  it'  the  Texana  managed  their  affairs  prudently,  they  would  s(M-n  lie  calK  >l 
iipiin  til  decide  that  question.  There  were  powerful  reas<ins  why  Texas  slioiil>l 
li'  a  \y.irt  of  the  union.  Tho  southern  status,  owning  a  slave  population,  were 
(lri'|ily  interested  in  preventing  that  country  from  haviiitf  the  power  to  annoy 
tlii'iii;  and  the  navigating  and  manufacturing  interests  <ii  the  north  and  vnut 
were  equallv  interested  in  making  it  a  part  of  this  union.  He  thought  tluy 
Would  Nooiilie  calletl  on  to  deoiile  these  iiuestions;  and  when  they  did  act  on 
it,  liu  w.is  for  acting  on  Ixith  together — for  recognising  the  iiidependi-iice  of 
'IVxiiH  and  for  admitting  her  into  tho  union. . .  .lie  hoped  there  would  lie  no 
)iiiiiucuM!*ary  delay,  f<ir  in  such  coses  delays  were  danuiTous;  but  that  they 
would  act  with  unanimity  and  act  promptly.  Here,  then,  is  the  proof  that 
ttMi  years  ago,  and  without  a  word  of  explanation  with  Mexico  or  any  request 
ti'oiji  'i'uxas — without  the  least  notice  to  the  American  people,  or  time  for 
ili'lilicrating  among  ourselves,  or  any  regard  to  existing  commerce — he  was 
fur  iduiiKiug  us  into  instant '  .r  with  Mexico.  I  say,  instant  war;  for  Mex- 
ini  and  Texas  were  then  in  open  war;  and  to  iucoriKirate  Texas  was  to  incor- 
porate  the  war  at  the  same  time. . .  .1  well  rcniemlHir  the  senator's  look  and 
altitude  on  that  occasion — the  tixediiess  of  his  liNik  and  the  magiiiteriality  of 
lii.'i  attitude.  It  was  such  an  he  often  favors  us  with,  esiiecially  when  be  is  in 
a  (.'riiiii,  and  brings  forward  something  which  ought  to  lie  instantly  and  iinaiii- 
ihou.^Iy  rejected,  as  when  he  brought  in  bis  string  of  abstractions  <in  Tl.urM- 
(l.iy  la.st.  So  it  was  in  ISDti — prompt  and  unanimous  action,  and  a  look  to 
|iut  down  opposition.  But  tho  senate  were  not  lo<iked  down  in  I8:t<i.  Tliuy 
|iroiiq)tly  and  unanimously  refused  thu  senator's  motion ...  .Tlie  oingresH  of 
IMiO  Would  not  admit  Texas.  The  seuat<ir  from  South  Carolina  became 
jiatii'iit;  the  Texas  question  went  to  sleep,  and  for  seven  good  years  it  made 
III!  di.it^irliance.  It  then  woke  up,  and  with  a  suddenness  and  violence  pro- 
liortioned  to  its  long  repose.  Mr  Tylur  was  then  president;  the  senator  from 
Noutli  Cart  <ina  was  potent  under  his  administration,  and  stKin  becamu  bis 
Ntrri'tary  of  titAto.  All  the  springs  of  intrigue  ami  dipbimacy  were  imiiie- 
(liatuly  set  in  motion  to  renuscitate  the  Texas  questiiui,  ami  to  reiiivcMt  it  with 
■:'.[  liie  dangers  and  alarms  which  it  had  worn  in  18;k)...all  these  inline- 
ili.itt'ly  develoi)e<l  themselves,  and  intriguing  agents  traverstMl  earth  antl  sea, 
li'oiii  Washington  to  Texas,  and  from  Lomlon  to  Mexico.'  1  will  ntiw  give  a 
lui't  of  a  letter,  which  Benton  puts  in  evidence,  from  the  Te.\an  mini.'iter, 
Vail  Zauilt,  to  Upiher,  the  American  sec.  of  stiite,  in  Jan.  1844,  ami  the 
reply  of  Calhoun,  his  8Ucce8:jor,  in  April.  'In  view,  then,  of  these  thiiign,' 
xaid  tile  Texan  minister,  '  I  desire  to  submit,  tlirough  ytiu,  to  his  excelleiK'y, 
the  prcsitleiit  of  the  U.  S.,  this  ini{niry:  Sliould  the  president  of  Texas 
aicfde  to  the  proposition  of  annexation,  would  the  presitleiit  of  the  L'.  S., 
alter  the  signing  of  the  treaty  and  before  it  shall  be  ratified  and  recinvi;  the 
tinal  ai'tion  of  the  other  branches  of  both  governments,  in  c.iso  Texa.<«  hIiouIiI 
dumro  it,  or  with  her  consent,  order  such  number  of  the  military  and  n  ival 


(;■*■§ 


POUTIuAL  HISTORY. 


i*;'ti 


liuman  chattels.  To  the  original  slave  territory  ha<] 
been  atldcd,  hy  consent  of  congress,  the  Floridas,  whirli 
c(»st  $45,000,000  in  a  war,  and  $5,000,000  dt^ceiu  y 
ntuney  to  bind  the  bargain;  Louisiana,  which  co>t 
$15,000,000,  or  as  much  of  it  as  made  three  statr-^; 
Texas,  which  cost  $28,000,000  in  the  form  of  tlir 
^lexican  war,  and  before  we  were  done  with  it,  Ix;- 
tween  $18,000,000  and  $19,000,000  indecency  moiuv. 
That  the  government  was  able  to  reimburse  itst  It 
through  the  conquest  of  California  does  not  affect  the 
justice  of  the  charge  against  the  southern  politicians, 
who  were  always  ready  with  their  cry  of  nortlierii 
aggression,*  and  the  unconstitutionality  of  northern 
acts,  while  gathering  to  themselves  all  the  acquired  t»  r- 

forcca  of  the  U.  S.  to  such  neceBsary  points  or  places  ujion  the  territory  or 
Iwplers  of  Texas  or  the  gulf  of  Mexico  as  shall  be  stitticient  to  protu-t  In  r 
against  fonagn  agt^rcsHioii  7  Thix  coininuiiication,  as  well  as  the  reply  v«)ii< li 
Volt  may  niakc,  will  l>e  coiisidereil  1>y  nie  entirely  confidential,  and  not  to  Ih;  cni- 
uraced  in  my  regular  otiiciiil  correspondence  to  my  government,  but  encliiKcl 
direct  to  the  president  of  Texas  for  his  information.  To  this  letter  U|Mii<  r 
made  no  reply,  and  six  weeks  afterward  he  died.  His  temporary  successor, 
Attorney-general  Nelson,  <lid  reply  indirectly,  hut  to  suy  that  the  U.  S.  o'liilil 
not  employ  its  army  and  navy  ngiiinst  a  foreign  power  with  which  they  wcri; 
at  peace.  Calhoun,  however,  when  he  l>ecame  seo.  of  state,  wrote:  '  1  am 
directed  by  the  president  to  s?y  that  the  secretary  of  the  nt\vy  has  bet-n  in- 
structed to  onler  a  strong  naval  ffirce  to  concentrate  in  the  gulf  of  Mcxieci 
to  meet  any  emergency;  and  that  sintilar  orders  have  Iieen  issued  by  the  mx- 
retary  of  war,  to  move  the  disposable  ;nilitary  forces  on  our  southern  fmii- 
tier  for  the  same  purpose.'  C'.i«;/.  Ololie,  iS40-7,  494-501.  I  have  not  riKiin 
for  further  quotations,  but  this  is  enough  to  show  the  southern  authenticity 
of  the  Mexican  war,  which  the  democratic  administration  of  Polk  brniigl.t 
to  a  crisis  in  l!>45-4i,  but  which  was  ready  prepared  to  his  hand  at  the  iniinunt 
of  his  inauguration,  by  the  scheming  of  the  most  bitter  opponent  of  coiitpii  ^t 
— after  the  restriction  of  slavery  began  again  to  \te  agitated. 

*  No  more  convincing  reference  could  l)o  made  to  prove  the  conciliatory 
spirit  of  the  free  states  than  the  constitution  itself,  nor  to  show  that  tlu'V  re- 
garile«l  slavery  as  local  and  temporary.  Section  9  of  article  1  declares:  'Tliu 
migration  or  imifortation  of  such  persons  as  any  of  the  states  now  existing 
■hall  think  proper  to  admit  shall  not  be  )irohibited  by  tiie  congress  privimi!* 
to  the  year  I8()M,  but  a  tax  or  duty  may  be  imposed  on  such  importiition,  nut 
exceeding  ten  dollars  for  each  person.'  Tiie  slave  stivtes  were  fewer  in  num- 
ber and  more  thinly  settled  than  the  free  states;  therefore  the  latter,  to  e<|uali/.e 
the  power  of  the  two  sections,  and  secure  the  federation  of  all  tlie  states,  in»ik' 
important  concessions;  and  while  saying  that '  no  capitiition  or  direct  tax  aIi.iII 
be  laiil,  unless  in  pmportion  to  the  census  or  enumeration  hercinlieforc  <li- 
rectetl  to  l>e  taken,'  and  that  representation  should  be  determined  by  nuinkT:', 
says  farther,  'which  shall  be  determined  by  adding  to  the  whole  nuiiil"T  i>t 
free  persons,  including  those  Itound  to  service  for  a  term  of  years,  ainl  ox- 
clu'ling  Indians  not  taxed,  three  fifths  of  all  other  persons,' meaning  tiir<e 
fifths  of  the  slaves  in  the  slave  states,  which  were  not  subject  to  tJixati^n. 
though  held  as  projierty,  ami  though  not  acknowleilged  to  bu  iiion,  »irc 
represented  in  congress.     See  sec.  1,  article  I,  of  the  constitution. 


CONQUEST  OF  CAUPORNIA. 


2M 


rltory,  f'nioying  privilej^es  of  exemption  from  just  tax- 
aiioii,  iind  having  excessive  representation  in  congrrss 
anil  a  preponderance  of  the  political  j)atronage  The 
north,  in  1846,  had  more  than  twice  the  fno  voting 
jtupiilation  of  the  south,  while  the  south  had  more 
stilt*  s  than  the  north,'  consequently  more  votes  in  the 
I'nitcd  States  senate,  wi^^h  the  privilege  of  a  prop- 
iity  representation  in  the  lower  house.  Such  was 
tli<'  iigjjfressiveness  of  the  north  toward  the  south,  of 
Avliich  for  a  dozen  years  we  heard  so  much  in  con- 
^rrcss.* 

It  was  said  in  seeming  earnest  that  the  south  had 
not  desired  the  acquisition  of  Mexican  territory.  This 
wa.s  hut  a  feint  on  the  part  of  the  southern  h'adcTS. 
Tlic  whigs  of  the  north  and  south,  in  the  senat«s  op- 
))(»so(l  the  war  policy,  while  the  democrats  fuvond  it. 
X<tr  was  it  ditteront  in  the  house  of  representatives. 
Yet  when  it  came  to  be  voted  upon,  the  matter  had 
^'oiic  I  last  the  nation's  power  to  retract,  and  the  last 
3:?, 000, 000  was  placed  in  the  president's  han*ls  l>y  a 
lit  jirly  e(jual  vote  in  the  senate,  and  a  large  majority 
ill  the  house.  Having  done  the  final  act,  the  people 
ciiuld  exult  in  their  new  possessions,  and  ele<'t  a  whig 
to  the  presidency  for  having  been  the  conquering  hero 
in  the  decisive  Mexican  battles. 

The  conquest  of  California  had  been  a  triHing  mat- 


•'  At  the  period  when  these  discussions  were  being  carried  on,  Fuli.  1847, 
tln>  iinrtlaTU  or  free  status  were  Maine,  New  Hain|isliirt!,  Veriiioiit,  Ma.ssa- 
cliiisftts,  I'oniieuticut,  liliode  Island,  New  York,  New  .lersoy,  rcniMylvaaia, 
Oliio,  illinoix,  Indiana,  Iowa,  and  Michigan,  14.  The  soiitliern  or  slave 
Ht.itc-i  Were  Delaware,  Maryland,  Virginia,  North  Ciirolina,  Soiitli  Carolina, 
•  ifiirijia,  Alabama,  Florida,  Mississipni,  Louisiana,  Kentucky,  Tennessee, 
Mis-iiniri,  Arkansiis,  and  Texas,  I."),  In  August  Wisconsin  was  adnutted, 
wliich  rt'storcd  tlio  1)alance  in  the  senate.  The  struggle  which  followed  owr 
tlic  admi.tsion  of  California  was  a  battle  for  political  supremacy  as  well  as  for 
nUvr  territory.  That  this  cause  underlying  this  strife  has  Ijceu  removed,  the 
iiatiiin  should  be  profoundly  grateful. 

'  >>olicnk  of  Ohio,  speaking  to  the  house  of  representatives,  said:  'This 
iiuii'li  we  do  know  in  the  free  states,  if  we  know  nothing  else,  that  a  man  at 
tlic  siiuth  with  his  hundred  slaves  counts  t>l  in  the  weight  of  iiilluence  and 
jMiuir  upon  this  Hoor,  while  the  man  at  the  north  with  liis  KM)  tarnis  counts 
I'lit  I.  Sir,  we  want  no  more  of  that;  and  with  the  help  of  (!od  and  our  own 
111. II  iiurposo  wo  will  have  uo  mure  oi  it.'  Couj.  Gtofie,  vol.  18,  1847-8,  H)23. 


2o6 


POUTICAL   HISTORY. 


ter,  mere  guerrilla  practice  between  a  few  hundrod 
American  settlers  of  the  border  class  and  a  slightly 
larger  force  of  Californians.  At  the  proper  juncture 
the  former  were  given  aid  and  comfort  by  the  United 
States  military*  and  naval  forces,  and  the  conquest 
had  cost  little  blotidshed.  It  is  true,  there  was  a  re- 
volt, which  was  cut  short  by  the  treaty  of  Cahueiijjfa 
in  January  1847  There  was  the  irony  of  fate  in 
what  followed  the  conquest,  first  plaimed  by  southern 
politicians,  and  accomplished  in  defiance  of  their  suit- 
sequent  opposition  ;  namely,  the  contemporaneous  dis- 
covery of  gold,  and  the  inllux  of  a  large  population, 
chietly  from  the  northern  states.  As  to  the  real  Cali- 
fornians, those  of  them  who  had  not  been  masters  hud 
once  been  slaves,  and  they  now  would  have  only  free- 
dom. 

The  idea  of  conquest  in  the  American  mind  has 
never  been  associated  with  tyranny.*  On  the  con- 
trary, such  is  tiie  natioiial  trust  in  its  own  supc  riority 
and  beneficence,  thut  either  as  a  government  or  as 
individuals  we  have  believed  ourselves  bestowing  a 
precious  boon  upon  whomsoever  we  could  confer  in  u 
brotherly  spirit  our  institutions.  And  down  to  tlie 
present  time  the  other  nations  of  tlie  earth  have  not 
l>een  able  to  j)rove  us  far  in  the  wrong  in  indul^in;^' 
this  patriotic  self-esttnnn.  But  there  are  ciicuni- 
stanei'S  whicjj  ol>struct  all  transitions  of  this  iiature, 
jind  temptations  which  being  yielded  to  by  individuals 
ini))art  an  odor  of  inicjuity  to  governments  which  tluy 
have  not  justly  njerited.      It  was   so  when  soldieis 

'Prof.  .Touiiili  Roye'e,  f.f  Harviird  coUeji'e,  by  philosopliie  reasoning  as  «<II 
,18  l)y  '•ollateriil  evideiice,  arrivos  at  uiinuar  conuludiimii.  l-ilwly  tif'  Amencuii 
I  '/iiirnctir. 

"Luis  (I.  CufViiH,  Hc'f.  (if  interior  a:ul  foreij;n  relations  of  Mexico,  in  liis 
report  to  coiigrec.s  oi  .ith  Jan.,  IMi),  Rpeaking  of  tliu  treaty  of  (Juadaliijn'  Hi- 
dalgo, says  tli;it  t)ie  futoru  of  tlit  ( 'aliforniand  w.is  an  olijuit  of  deop  Holieituilo 
to  tlie  govt  and  eongress,  and  to  the  plenipotentiaries  of  Mexico,  'anil  tin; 
reliiti\)!  stipidations  of  tli<j  treaty,  and  the  measures  Bul)se(|Ujntly  taken  to 
diminish  their  misfortune,  make  evident  how  deep  is  the  fet.ling  caused  hy 
the  se|Miration  from  the  nati<:'ial  union  uf  Mexicans,  those  so  worthy  (>f  pio- 
teetion,  aihl  of  marked  eonsiileration.'  Mi:i-.  Mem.  Rdnc.,  I84S>,  p  14.  >ii 
far  as  the  Californians  were  coutorucd,  they  Were  ripo  tor  separatiou,  as  the 
secretary  must  have  knuwu. 


;  1  M 


MIUTARY   RULE. 


SS7 


in  a 

tho 
e  not 

vuni- 
iturc. 
luals 
tluy 

as  Will 
mi'i'icuii 

in  Ins 
a\»-  III- 
lii'it\iili' 
uul  tin; 
ikt'u  to 
lisi'tl  l>y 
«f  l>r<'- 
114.     So 

as  the 


of  tho  Castilian  race,  under  the  seeming  k  ithorit^  of 
tlu'  S[)aiiish  rulers  at  Madrid,  robbed  and  massacred 
the  native  races  of  this  continent,  notwithstandinj^  tho 
mandate  not  to  commit  these  crimes  aj^ainst  human- 
itv.  It  is  .so  to-day,  when  tlie  cry  is  daily  goinj^  up 
ai^ainst  our  Indian  j)olicy,  which  thou^jflittully  exam- 
jiiiil  in  the  light  of  history  is  in  some  respects  an 
(■nlii,^litened  and  christian  policy;  for  instead  of  reduc- 
ing the  saxages  to  slavery  or  taxing  them  to  support 
the  <;overnnient  of  the  invader,  it  simply  kills  them, 
tlio  few  survivors  being  supported  and  educated  at 
public  I'xpense.  It  is  a  wise  policy,  a  huma'ie  policy, 
Imt  in  the  hands  of  vile  politicians  and  their  troatures, 
it  results  in  acts  that  satisfy  Satan  most  of  all.  Still, 
if  certain  Americans,  being  possessed  of  the  souls  of 
sliarks  rather  than  of  men,  contrived  by  the  aid  of 
laws  inaleadministered  to  swallow  up  the  patrimony 
of  many  a  Juan  and  Ignacio  of  this  dolce  tar  niente 
land,  it  cannot  be  said  that  the  United  States  was  an 
iiiteiliL,^»!nt  party  to  the  scandal. 

When  Commodore  Sloat,  at  Monterey,  in  July 
184(1,  proclaimed  California  free  from  Mexican  rule, 
aiul  a  territory  of  the  United  States,  he  exercised  no 
tyrannous  authority,  simply  informing  the  people  that 
until  the  Ignited  States  should  ereet  a  ti[overnment 
they  would  be  under  the  authority  and  protection  of 
iiiiHtaty  laws.^  He  assured  them  that  their  rights  of 
conscience,  of  property,  and  ^>f  suffrage  should  be  n- 
s|)oft(.'(i ;  that  the  clergy  bhouic!  remain  in  posse.ssion  of 
the  rhurclies;  and  tha*i  whilo  the  manufactures  of  the 
I'litrd  States  would  bo:  admitted  free  of  tluty,  about 
I  MIL  fourth  of  the  former  rates  would  be  charged  on 
f«trc.<^Mi  merchandise.  Should  any  not  wish  to  live 
uiukr  the  new  government  as  citizens  of  it,  tln^y  would 
1)0  atl'o.'ded  every  facility  for  selling  their  property 
and  ivti  ing  from  the  country.  Should  they  prefer  to 
ivuiain,  in  order  that  the  peace  of  the  country  and 

•Jiatl,     !M.  ,'s^^^y.w^,  148-50 

;      ST.  CAL.,  Vnl,.  VI.      17 


x--i 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


!l 


r 


the  course  of  justice  sliould  not  be  disturbed,  the  pre- 
fects of  districts  and  alcaldes*  of  municipalities  were 
to  retain  their  offices,  and  continue  the  exercise  of  tlio 
functions  pertaining  to  them  in  the  same  mamicr  as 
formerly.  Provisions  furnished  the  United  States 
officers  and  troops  should  be  fairly  purchased,  and  the 
holders  of  real  estate  should  have  their  tithes  confiriiud 
to  them.  Such  were  the  promises  and  intentions  of 
the  government,  reiterated  from  time  to  time  by  tlio 
military  governors. 

In  the  disquiet  incident  to  a  sudden  change  of  <j;(»v- 
ernnient,  it  happened  that  Americans  not  infrequently 
were  appointed  to  the  office  of  alcalde,  to  fill  vacaiiciiH 
occurring  through  these  disruptive  conditions.  Wal- 
ter Colton,  the  American  alcalde  at  Monterey,  exer- 
cising the  unlimited  authority  conferred  upon  liini  liy 
the  office,  impanelled  the  first  jury  ever  summoned  in 
Monterey,  September  4,    1840,   composed  one  third 

*BiUim;U,  JS^t  to  18^8,  MS.,  2.11.  The  district  of  Sonoma  was  ImiuiuI..! 
by  S.  F.  IJiiy,  tlio  ocean,  tiio  Oregon  liuu,  and  tlio  Sue.  Hive;;  the  Sac.  iln- 
trict,  thu  territory  east  of  tlio  Siurraniento,  and  north  aii<l  eiuit  of  tlie  Smi  .Ina- 
ijuin;  and  «to  on.  There  was  an  alualdo  wherever  tliere  wim  a  HcttlciiitMit. 
Crotiliy'H  Stntfiiirid,  MS.,  IG.  It  waa  not  neueiMury  that  an  nloahh;  hIkhiIiI 
know  much  ahont  written  law  or  precedents.  In  hotli  civil  and  criniin.d 
Buita  hroUi^ht  In^foro  him  hix  deci.sions  were  final,  the  ponaltiett  licing  Mi'von' 
ami  inviiri.ddy  ni>i)licd.  Btiniett,  /{vull.,  MS.,  ii.  14H.  The  pnuinliiuriit  of 
stcfiling,  the  niimt  common  crime,  wuh  for  Mexicans  a  fine,  and  for  lii'1i;tu8 
whipping.  The  Califoniiaus  had  no  penitentiary  8y»tem,  nor  work  lumsn. 
Colton,  wlio  was  appointed  hy  Stockton  aloallo  of  Alonterey,  .Iidy  'JS,  IMii, 
intnuluced  compulHory  lalmr  for  criininaU,  ami  Ixforo  tiioond  of  a  inoutli  li.id 
8  Intlians,  3  Californiaus,  and  one  KngliHhman  making  aihdtex,  all  Hcntinitd 
for  stealing  horses  or  cattle.  Eacli  inu.^t  make  •'>:)  a<lolH!S  per  <l:iy;  for  all  nvcr 
that  nnndier  tlu'y  were  paid  a  cent  a  jdoce,  the  totid  of  their  weekly  caniirigi 
being  paid  every  Satunlay  ni^l^t.  A  captain  wa.s  jtut  over  them,  chosen  irnia 
their  own  nundier,  and  no  other  guard  was  re((iiired.  Tlirt'e  Yfiiri*  in  <  '■'/.,  41- 
'2.  Colttm  Was  chaplain  onboard  the  HliipCoH^rr.'M  when  appointed.  Me  li<il 
the  pooition  oidy  until  Sept.  loth,  when  he  returned  to  his  duties  on  li<>,inl 
the  ship,  lie  really  clischar^'ed  the  duties  of  iirofeet,  for,  ho  says:  'It  develvnl 
Upon  me  duties  similar  to  those  of  a  mavor  of  one  of  our  cities,  willmiit  ,iiiy 
of  those  judicial  aids  which  ho  enjoys.  It  involves  every  breach  of  the  jn  ai r, 
every  case  of  crime,  every  business  obligation,  and  every  disputeil  LukI  tiilo 
within  'MM  ndles.  From  every  other  alcalde's  court  in  this  jurisdiction  tlicro 
is  an  appoid  to  this,  and  none  from  this  to  any  lii;.hcr  tribunal.  Such  an  il'- 
solute  tli.-ipaHiil  of  questions  affecting  property  and  per^nal  lilMrty  mvir 
ou^'ht  to  he  conlldetf  to  one  mau.  There  is  not  a  judge  on  any  IhuicIi  iu  i.ii^'- 
Liiid  or  the  Unite.l  States  whose  power  is  so  alisoluto  as  that  of  the  alcaMr  i.t 
Monterey.'  C'ldton  held  under  a  militiiry  commission,  micceeding  the  jMirMr 
of  iiiii  Coiii/irM't,  K.  M,  Price,  and  tlie  uurgeon,  Edwanl  (Ulchrist.  Attn  tli>^ 
15th  of  Sept.  the  oHice  was  restored  to  its  uivil  ttatua,  thu  incumbent  Uiii); 
«lect«il  liy  the  (Hiuple. 


ill 


ALCALDE  JUSTICE. 


250 


each  of  native  Californians,  Mexicans,  and  Americans. 
TIm'  case  being  an  important  one,  involving  propcity 
oil  one  side  and  character  on  the  other,  and  the  dis- 
putants being  some  of  the  princi[)al  citizens  of  tlie 
(oaiity,  it  excited  unusual  interest,  to  which  being 
adtlcd  the  novel  excitement  of  the  new  mode  of  trial, 
tluTc  was  created  a  profound  impression,  liy  means 
(if  interpreters,  and  with  the  help  of  experienced 
lawyers,  the  case  was  carefully  examined,  and  a  ver- 
dict rendered  by  Jie  jury  of  mixed  nationalities,  which 
was  accepted  as  justice  by  both  sides,  though  neither 
party  completely  triumphed.  One  recovered  his  prop- 
rity  which  had  been  taken  by  mi-stake,  and  the  otlur 
liis  character  which  had  been  slandered  by  design." 
Witli  this  verdict  the  inhai)itants  expressed  satisfac- 
tion, because  they  could  see  in  the  method  pursued  no 
(»pp»trtunity  for  bribery  They  had  yet  to  learn  tliat 
t'vcii  juries  could  be  purchased. 

Stockton,  who  suc<;eeded  Sloat,  acted  toward  the 
r''''^'ornian  population  in  the  same  conciliatory  s[)irit. 
T  •  -^  i'ife  in  1847  was  not  between  them  and  the  niili- 
tary  authorities,  but  between  the  military  chiefs,  wlio 
( acli  aspired  to  be  the  first  to  establish  a  civil  govern- 
ment in  the  conquered  country,  as  I  have  shown  in  a 
previous  volume.'"  Kearny  claimed  that  he  had  hovu 
instructed  by  the  secretary  of  war  to  march  from 
Mexico  to  California,  and  to  "take  possession  "  of  all  the 
8ea-coa.st  and  other  towns,  and  establish  civil  g(  veiii- 
iiunt  therein.  When  he  arrived,  possession  had  al- 
ready been  taken,  and  a  certain  form  of  government, 
liidf  civil  and  half  militiiry,  had  been  put  in  «>peratit>n. 
Stockton  had  dtitermined  upon  Fremont  as  military 
coiinnander  and  governor,  who  was  to  report  to  him 
as  c(»iMmander-in-chief.  Kearny  wouhl  have  made 
Fremont  governor  had  he  joined  hiin  against  Stockton. 
Hii  January  11),  1847,  Fremont  assumed  the  civil  gov- 
ernment, with  William  11.  Kussell  secretary  of  sUite, 

*<  iiUnnn  Thiif  Ymiit  in  f'nl.,  47. 
'"///-/.  C'.i/.,  V.  444 -fll,  Uim  auriei. 


2G0 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


:  .5  «l 


III 


under  coramissiona  from  Stockton.  A  legislative 
council  was  appointed,  consisting  of  Juan  Bandiiii, 
Juan  B.  Alvarado,  David  Spence,  Eliab  Grimes,  San- 
tiago Arguello,  M.  G.  Vallejo,  and  T.  O.  Lark  in, 
summoned  to  convene  at  Los  Angeles,  March  1st;  l)ut 
no  meeting  was  ever  held.  Finally,  the  authoritio!? 
at  Wasliington  ordered  Fremont  to  return  to  the  capi- 
tal as  soon  as  his  military  services  could  be  dispen-std 
witli.  There  was  a  new  naval  commander  in  Jaimarv, 
Shubrick,  who  sided  with  Kearny.  Together  tiny 
issued  a  circular,  in  which  Kearny  assumed  executive 
powers,  fixing  the  capital  at  Monterey.  The  country 
was  to  be  held  simply  as  a  conquest,  and  as  nearly  as 
possible  under  the  old  laws,  until  such  time  as  the 
United  States  should  provide  a  territorial  governuKiit. 
In  June,  Kearny  set  out  for  Washingtcm  with  Fre- 
mont. In  July,  Stockton  also  took  his  departure.  The 
person  left  in  command  of  the  land  forces,  and  to  act 
as  governor,  was  R.  B.  Mason,  colonel  1st  dragoons, 
who,  perceiving  the  rock  up<m  which  his  predecessors 
had  split,  confined  his  ambition  to  compliance  with 
instructions,  and  who  ruled  as  accei)tably  as  was  pos- 
sible under  the  anomalous  condition  of  affairs  in  tlie 
country. 

In  October,  Governor  Mason  visited  San  Francisco, 
where  he  found  a  newly  elected  town  council.  On 
taking  leave,  after  a  flattering  reception,  he  addressed 
a  communication  to  the  council,"  reminding  them  that 
their  jurisdiction  was  limited  to  the  ttjrritory  embraced 
by  the  town  limits,  which  the  alcalde*'  was  directed  to 

"  Till!  council  cnnsiatoil  of  William  CJlover,  William  I).  M.  Howai-il,  Wil- 
liam A.  lAti(le8tlorti°,  K.  P.  .loiies,  Kolicrt  A.  I'lirker,  ami  William  S.  (laili. 
Howard,  .Jones,  ami  Clark  were  cIumoii  a  committee  to  draught  a  code  of  iiiuiii- 
ei|>al  lawn.  Umler  thosu  re)^ulatiunH  (fuorgu  llydu  was  first  alcaltlu,  aii'l  w  ti 
not  i)o|)nlar.  The  second  ulcahlu,  fur  there  were  two,  waaT.  M.  Ijeavcnwortii. 
LeitloHdortf  was  nominated  town  treaHurer,  and  William  Pettet  secretaiy  nf 
the  council.  At  the  Hamu  meeting  the  council  inipoxed  a  lino  of  ^KN),  aiil  It 
inontliH'  impriHonmcnt  on  any  one  who  enticed  a  sailor  t<>  dcMcrt,  or  wlm  li  ir- 
b«>rod  dcMorting  tieamen.  Certain  (Mliouit  conditionH  iu  the  titles  to  towu  hits 
were  removed. 

'^  Washington  A.  Bartlett,  a  lieutenant  attached  to  a  U.  S.  vensel.  was 
the  first  American  alcalde  of  S.  F.,  appointed  in  .Ian.  1847,  and  re.spiiti'<il>!o 
fur  tlio  reutoration  ut  uauio  from  Verba  Bueua  to  the  mure  auuorou>,  ^tt'lI- 


CONSTITUTIONAL  CONVENTION. 


2G1 


witli 
II  the 


Oil 
livssid 
lilthiit 

tfd  to 

Inl,  Wil- 
k  I'l.ii'.. 
I(i(  iniiiii- 
laii.l  «  H 
i>u  worth. 
Irotiiiy  "I 
IXt.  nil  I :» 
iho  li »' 

toNVU  I'll* 
1,1,   Wll* 

lus,  vtll- 


(Utormlnc  without  unnecessary  delay ;  that  their  duties 
\v«iv  {»n>s|K'etive,  not  retrospective;  warnin*;  them 
a'_'i»inst  abrogating  contracts  made  by  previous  author- 
ities, turther  than  to  exercise  the  right  of  ap|H>al  in 
tlic  cas«5  of  injurious  regulations,  and  advising  the 
t-MUUcil  to  keep  the  municipality  free  from  debt.  Three 
prtitions  l)eing  presented  U)  him  for  the  ren»oval  of  the 
tilt  II  alcalde,  he  ordered  an  investigation  of  the  eharges, 
which  nsulted  in  the  resignation  of  that  otticer  and 
tlie  aj»pointment  of  another  in  his  place.  Having 
settltd  these  affairs,  Mason  returned  to  Monterey; 
juid  from  the  proceedings  here  hinted  it  may  Im*  in- 
f  rn«l  how  rapidly,  even  at  this  date,  the  country  wius 
JHroining  Americanized,  the  best  evidence  of  wiiieii 
was  the  freedom  with  which  the  existing  institution-'^ 
Wire  assjiiled  by  the  press,  represented  by  two  weekly 
In  wspapers,  l>oth  published  at  San  Franciseo. 

As  early  as  February  13,  1847,  the  California  Star 
up'nl  the  calling  of  a  conventi<m  tt)  form  a  c.»nstitu- 
t;«>n  for  tlie  territory,  justifying  the  demand  by  rail- 
ing at  the  existing  order  of  tilings.  The  autlior  of 
tli«  so  tii"atles  was  Doctor  Semple,  of  whom  I  shall 
have  more  to  say  hereafter,  and  whom  Colton  ejtlU 
his  "tall  partner."  "We  have  alcaldes,"  he  siiid,  "all 
ovtr  the  country,  assuming  the  }»ower  of  legi.slatures, 
issuing  an«l  pronudgating  their  bandos,  laws,  and  orders, 
and  oppressing  the  people."  He  declared  that  the 
•'iu(»st  nefarious  scheming,  trickery,  and  speculating 
have  lieen  practised  by  some."  He  sp«>ke  propheti- 
callv  of  what  was  still  in  the  future  rather  than  ot 

kiiown,  an<l  saintly  apiielliktion  wliich  it  now  ItuAn.  It  hail  at  thia  timr  %0 
iiili^lutaiiU,  .'»(»  ailiilio  noiii«t's,  ami  a  weekly  iirwsjiaiMT,  the  i'-iitj.trHi>i  .v<ir, 
t.wnfi  liy  Niiiii  Brannaii  ami  imIiIcmI  by  K.  1'.  Joiium.  lit  May  the  I'tlijomi'tH, 
^u^tt.■«i  ,tt  M"iit«Tcy  Aug.  15,  IMtJ,  was  n'mnvml  to  S.  F.  I>urin>{  Hirtlftt'» 
a<iiiiiiii>trttiiiu  Ja8tH,T  O'Farrt'U  xtirvnyeil  iniil  |ilaiiiuM|  thi-iifk.  S<>iii<- <l>i>- 
s.tti'>;.ii-ti<iii  exiHtt'if  witii  the  graiitti  inaile  liv  IiIm  NUcfcMHitr.  Myile,  wit.,  wui 
it|>|><iiiitt.il  Fell.  2*2,  IH47.  Ho  M'.ia  sucwi'iiotl  l»y  K.lwiii  Bryant:  ^'itln.r  »>i 
nlt'i  I  S'lir  in  i'iil{lhriiiit,  who  ri'tumt'il  to  tlie  state'*  with  Kejiriiy  arnl  Kri"- 
nioiit.  Hyilc  wa-s  a^'aiii  ajijM>iiite(I.  ami  w.i.s  .Hueeeedcil,  a.«<  I  \.,iVf  n*ul.  •>.  .1. 
T 'utiMtiiil.  T.  M.  Leav«soworth,  ami  J.  W.  (reary,  thu  last  alcalile  mn-l  tarat 
niavur  ut  S.  F. 


iii 


P-; 


m  n'i 

i  ^^  ' 

;!■■ 

1  1    - 

1 

i 

11 

11 

H  <"     - 

}  • 

i  1 1*1 

ir 

yp 

% 


202 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


aiiN'tliiiijL^  of  which  complaint  had  been  niado  at  tliat 
time,  iiefore  the  end  of  the  year,  however,  causes 
of  di.ssatisfaction  had  multipHed  with  the  population,'* 
and  the  "inefficient  mongrel  military  rule"  was  becom- 
ing odious.  Some  of  the  alcaldes  refused  to  take  cogni- 
zance (jf  cases  involving  over  $100;  but  the  governor 
failing  to  provide  higher  tribunals,  they  were  fon  t  d 
to  adjudicate  in  any  amount  or  leave  sucli  ctises  with- 
out remedy;  and  the  authority  they  tsxercised,  wliich 
combined  t)ie  executive,  legislative,  and  judicial  func- 
tii>ns  in  their  persons,  constantly  became  more  poten- 
tial, and  also  more  liable  to  abuse.  But  there  was  no 
helj»  for  the  condition  of  public  attairs  until  the  United 
States  and  Mexico  should  agree  upon  some  treaty 
terms  by  which  military  rule  could  be  suspended  and 
a  civil  government  erected. 

The  year  1848  opened  with  the  discovery  that  the 
territory  acquired  by  the  merest  show  of  arms,  and 
for  which  the  conquering  power  was  offering  to  pay  a 
friendship-token  ot  nearly  twenty  millions,  was  a  gold- 
firld,  wiiieh  promised  to  reimburse  the  purcha.ser.  It 
had  hardly  become  known  in  California,  and  was  un- 
known in  iVfexico  and  the  United  States,  when  on 
the  L'd  of  February,  1848,  the  treaty  of  Guadahipf 
Hidalgo  was  signed;'*  nor  was  it  fully  substantiatt d 
at  the  seat  of  govermnent  when,  on  the  IDth  of  .lunc, 
the  treaty  was  proclaimed  by  the  president.  Tht' 
news  did  not  reach  California  until  August,  wluii  it 
was  here  proclaimed  on  the  7th  of  that  month. 

Mason  seems  to  have  been  at  his  wit's  end  lon;4 
btd'ore  this.  He  was  undoubtedly  favorable  t«»  th»' 
])roieet  of  a  civil  government,  and  he  was  aware  that 
the  administratitui  secretly  held  the  same  views.  Folk 
undi'rstood  the  American  people — they  ha<l  given  him 
a  preci><lcnt  in  Oregon.  When  Mason  had  n'ason  tn 
think  tiiat  any  day  he  might  receive  despatehrs  t'loni 
Waslun;.a)n  appointing  a  governcr,  and  furnisiiin;;  a 

"  rVi/j/bniKi  Sfiir,  Jan.  'JV.',  I»4S. 
''  ///«<.  Mrx.,  V.  542,  this  Mcrica. 


AFFAIRS  AT  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


283 


riitlo  of  laws  for  the  teui|x)rary  govornment  of  the 
i(»iintrv,  he  drew  back  fnun  the  res|K)nsibility.  But 
tlio  rush  and  roar  of  the  tide  bomg  turned  upon  the 
cuiintry  by  the  gold  discovery  staggered  him.  In 
Juiu'  lie  visited  the  mines  to  judge  for  hiniKelf  of  the 
mccssity  for  [K)litieal  action.  '  When  he  issued  his 
]iro(lumation  of  the  treaty  two  months  later,  he  an- 
iiouiK-cd  that  he  had  instructions  from  Washington 
♦to  take  proper  measures  for  the  permanent  occuiMi- 
tiori  of  the  newly  acquired  territory;""  and  in  conso- 
luiiwv  with  this  declaration  ho  formally  promulgated 
0  code,  printed  in  Knglish  and  Spanish.'"  With  this 
the  American  population  were  not  satisfied,  in.sisting 
on  a  <-umplete  territorial  organization,  such  as  he  had 
IK)  authority  to  establish.'" 

San  Francisco  was,  unlike  Monterey,  Los  Angeles, 

:uh1  San  Jose,  to  all  intents  an  American  town,  whose 

iiiliiil)itants  demanded  security  for  their  persons  and 

imperty,  and  titles  to  tluur  real  estate.     But  this  was 

>y  tin  means  the  sole  or  most  urgent  cause  of  anxiety 

ti>  the  governor.'"     Early  in  the  spring  there  had  ar- 


^^Ltirlhi,  Dor.,  vi.  1.35. 

*U;ili/;>,„i,i,i,  S.  v..  .Seiit.  2,  1848,  iv.,  p.  1. 

"A/.,  Aug.  14,  1848,  Jii.  U. 

'"//,/'/<.  iStnlriHuU,  MM.,  11. 

'"  'I'lii'  Aini-riciiiiu,  Matioii  knew,  onuM  take  care  of  thentMilveii.  They  hail 
alri'ii'ly  <>r)!iuiixu«l  tho  Sati  FraiiuiHco  guanU.  A  HHHittiku  wim  huM  Scitt,  '2il 
ill  till'  piililu'  ItuiMiiig  oik  I'ortMiiiouth  Ht|uur(!.  It  wiis  oiklli  <l  t<i  ordiir  uy  I'. 
A.  Ild.icli;  .1.  ('.  Wur'l  wan  n|)|Miiiiti-il  eliairtiian.  aiid  K.  M.  Morrimiii  Hccty. 
dlliriTH  ('Ict'tfil:  I'Mwaril  (iilliert,  eai>Uuii;  .litUH'^i  ('.  U'lini,  Int  liciit;  .lainut 
<■  !.■  i«lil(tii,  'J(l  liiut;  Willuiii  (Jrovu,  3il  lii-ut;  W.  I>.  M.  ilowanl,  l«t  wrjjti 
A.  .1.  Klli«,  'Jil  Kirtft;  <ii'i>rgii  W.  Wliittix'k,  S<1  mTut;  fumo.s  Iaw,  4tli  Horg*; 
^•ir|i(inil.s,  Francis  >!urr!iy,  A.  I  »urUiu,  Uaniel  lA!uh\.  lr»  lllancliuril;  Hiir),'tMiii, 
^^ .  ('.  I'.irkcr;  i(uart*>riii<utt(T,  K.  H.  IliirriHou;  i»,i\  miuttiT,  K.  M.  Sluiriiiuu. 
Civil  ii|lii'«irH  of  tho  i-(>rjM»  HftccUiil  wuro,  t>r«!«t,  '1.  U,  I*.  Lt-r;  Int  viet'-jirtiiit, 
.l.iiiiiis  ('rut)^liUiu;  'ill  vic»'.j>re»}.,  i<.  M.  Nlorri.son;  tn.'imunir,  A.  A.  HriiiM 
iii.tilc;  Ki'L'ty,  11.  L.  Sholiliin.  \  i-oniiiiitti>e  whm  apiMiintfl  in  ixlilrvMii  th'i 
gi'vcriiiH-,  tutkinu  tor  a  Iiuui  i>f  uriiiH.  i'-il{f'i<i-nuiii,  .S.  l-.,  .Stipt.  1»,  IMS,  in.,  ji. 
.'••  Oil  tlio  24th  ol  Sopt.,  lH4'.t,  l>i>l>«  wtrt)  rcctivnl  l)y  tlu!  <!iiii!iln  f.«r  thu 
"Tutimi  (if  ii  huilihng  on  tlm  conuT  nf  .lacksmi  iiiul  l)u|ii>nt  nix,  4(txr)5  ft,  .'1 
^tl||•i(■)^  luf-h.  Till)  ooiitrnt't  wiui  j;ivt^ii  ti>  .loliu  ^^lm!  ut  ;*'i!,<HH).  Sui^ii  a 
I'lnl.liii)^  w.iul.l  he  worth  in  isys  al.out  iy,.'>«l(».  WilLnmM  Sl<l>,iivt,l,  ViS.,  10- 
II.  A  iiMiirh  iii'Kiiiiiy.alion  waH  fnritifil  at  Sac.  in  J^.V*.  i^uUi'il  tin-  S^uTaiinMitu 
l^H.inU,  having  l>4  int'iiihurH.  Tlio  ollioirn  w»t«'  J>a\iil  Mchowt-ll,  r.ipt. ; 
n.iny  Hall',  Tut  li'iMt;  W.  H.  Cruw.  11,  'Jil  litiit,  .laiiui*  Qiu'in,  M  litut; 
MD-'ts,  l.Ht,  II,  (i.  Liuiglt-y;  1.M,  H.  H.  <i..ir;  'M.  ('.  i  .  FhiuK:  4ili.  W.  II.  'I'al 
"MKc:  .•.■iporalM,  I,.  1.  \ViM.r,  (J.  I.,  ll-witt,  T.  II.  lior.l.n,  W.  i:  MiHi.ly; 
'1  rk,  W.  U.  Mct'ratkou.  Siir.  Tiumiciivt,  Aiiu.  ."«»,  IHfMJ;  Jiluj-omi,  M.S., 
t>,  'M. 


264 


roUTICAL  HISTORY. 


Mi 


rived  a  number  of  vessels  with  troops,  despatched  to 
Cahforiiia  in  tlie  autumn  of"  1841),  while  the  Mexican 
war  was  in  progress.*"  Such  were  the  tcm|>tati(ni,s 
offered  hy  the  ^old  mines  that  the  seamen  desirtcd, 
leaving  their  vessels  without  men  to  navigate  tliciii. 
The  newlv  arrivt'd  soUliers  did  the  same,'''  and  it  was 
found  necessary  to  grant  furloughs  to  the  men,  to  give 
them  an  opportunity  to  try  their  fortunes  in  gold-gct- 


tmg 


22 


On  the  arrival  of  Commodore  T.  Ap  Catesby  Jones, 
in  October,  he  felt  compelled  to  otter  immunity  from 
punishment  to  such  di^serters  from  the  navy  as  were 
guilty  of  no  other  ott'ence  than  desertion.  This  clem- 
ency was  based  upon  the  information,  real  or  j>n'- 
ti'uded,  that  many  of  them  were  in  distress,'"'  uiid 
deterred  from  returning  to  duty  <mly  by  their  fears; 
but  the  majority  of  seamen  were  by  no  means  eager 
to  forsake  the  mines  for  the  ft>recastle,  or  the  cliancis 
of  a  fortune  ft)ra  few  dollars  a  month  and  rations.  In 
August,  Mason  v^rote  to  the  (|uartennaster-general  of 
tile  urniy  that,  in  consequence  of  the  quantity  of  gold 
(►btainetl  in  the  country,  cash — meaning  silver  coin — 
was  in  great  demand,  and  that  drafts  could  not  Ite 
negotiated  excej)t  at  a  ruinous  discount.  At  the  same 
time,  disbursements  were  heavy,  in  consequence  of 
the  small  garrisons,  and  the  necessity  of  hiring  laborers 
and  guards  for  the  quartermaster  storehouses,  at 
"trenuiuhms  wages;"  namely,  from  $50  to  $;i()0 
monthly."' 

'•Thure  was  the  AiMi,  purchased  by  the  govt  for  the  quartoniwstei's 
(Lfit,  ami  placi'd  under  ii;i«t  iiiiiUhiimiaii  Selim  E.  Woodworth,  wlm  it  will 
li.'  remeiidKTfd  arrived  overland  with  thu  Orugou  iniiiiigratidii  the  jirevidus 
year.  She  is  mentioned  in  the  Ciilijonud  Sl(ii;  Feb.  2(»,  1S48.  She  was  arimd 
M'ith  two  gun«,  to  Ihj  used  a.s  a  man-of-war  on  tho  upper  California  coast,  ami 
manned  with  Heainen  from  the  sloop-of-war  WniTrn  at  Monterey.  Tin-  ^liips 
tmilxllii  and  Sirci/cn  arrived  in  Feb.  with  reeruiti*  for  N.  Y.  vols.,  who  "in: 
employed  in  ^'arriitoninj'  the  L'al.  military  posts.  The  J/iiiitrcin  arrived  l.itir 
with  recruits,  mIio  nearly  all  tlescrted.  Jl.  Ex.  Doe.,  31,  i.,  no.  17,  i>p.  l>4s  !•. 

'•"The  history  «>f  the  arrival  in  t'al.  of  Comp.  F,  3d  artillery,  Jan.  1^47, 
the  N.  Y.  Volunteers  in  March  1»S47  and  Feb.  1848,  ami  a  battalion  of  ilra- 
goons  from  Mexico  in  Aug.  IMS,  is  given  in  my  Hixl.  Cnl.,  v.,  oh.  xix. 

"  Ldiin/,  Cruisf  of't/ii'  Dult;  'J*JiI;  (I'litimlitiw,  A'lin:,  M.S.,  12-13. 

"I'olifnnwtii,  H.'V.,  Dec.  2.1,  IS48. 

"7/.  iV,  J)oc.,  17,  p.  041.     Sec  order  of  A.  A.  Adjut.  W.  T.  Shcniian 


ATTITUDK  OF  THE  AUMV. 


266 


II — 

be 
line 

■0    (»f 
Dl'el'S 
at 


iii(<ter  s 
il  will 
I'vioii!) 
iiniu'il 
<t,  iiiwl 

0  were 

1  l.it.r 
(i4S-'.l. 

1S47, 
it  iln- 


iTiuau 


It  wa»  iiulecd  a  Uifiicult  pusitiun  to  occupy,  that  ot 
cliief  ill  a  country  wliere  tlio  forts  were  without  hoI- 
(liers,  ordnance  without  troops  onoujjfh  to  j^uard  it, 
towns  witiiout  able-bodied  men  left  in  tiieni ;  a  eolonial 
tiiritory  without  laws  or  le*^i8latt)rs,  or  conununication 
with  the  home  {government,  or  even  witii  the  nuvv, 
for  many  months.  "The  army  officers,"  writes  one  ot 
them,  "could  have  seized  the  lar<^e  amount  of  funds  in 
their  hands,  levied  heavily  on  the  country,  and  been 
livinu:  eomfortably  in  New  York  for  the  la-;t  year,  and 
n<tt  a  soul  at  Washinj^ton  be  the  wiser  or  W(»rse  for  it. 
IniKt'd,  such  is  the  ease  with  whicii  power  can  ljo  un- 
ehiiked  and  crime  unpunished  in  this  rei^ion,  that  it 
will  he  hard  for  the  officers  to  resist  temptation;  for  a 
salary  here  is  certain  poverty  and  debt,  unless  one 
makes  up  by  big  hauls."  That  tem])tations  were  not 
yielded  to  under  these  circumstances'"'  redounds  to  the 
lionorable  repute  of  disbursin<»'  officers  and  collectors 
of  the  special  war  tax  known  afterward  as  the  civil 
fund. 

This  was  a  duty  levied  on  imports  by  the  Unite<l 
States  authorities  in  California  duriny:  the  military 
oceuitation  of  and  previous  to  the  extension  of  cusUnn- 
liouse  laws  over  the  country,'*  and  amounted  in  1S4D 
to  ,'?f;00,000.  The  custodian  of  this  fund  in  1848  at 
San  Francisco  was  Assistant  Quartermaster  Captain 
J.  J  J.  Folsom,  who  was  under  no  bonds,  and  account- 

r  l.ilivi!  to  ])urchiUiiiig  or  receiving  arms,  clothing,  etc.,  from  tleserterH,  iii 
Cnli/nnii'i  Stm;  June  14,  1S48. 

-'  RiitniiL-e  to  the  C'ul.  Sfurnml  C'(il{f'urniaiio{  Dec.  9  aiul  10,  1848,  rcveiil.s 
till!  fict  tliat  (Jov.  MiUion  ami  his  adjutant,  Sherman,  were  ilriven  hy  inaile- 
qiiatL'  K<iLii'ii'S  to  attempt  some  unoliicial  oixirations  to  eko  out  a  living. 
(  ha.-lis  i;.  I'iikett,  who,  wliethiT  ho  was  on  the  banks  of  the  Willaiiietti',  the 
s'liirus  lit'  S.  F.  Bay,  or  among  the  peaks  of  tlie  Sierra,  was  always  critic-in-chief 
of  the  emnmunity  afllicted  with  his  jjreaeuce,  was  the  author  of  charges 
ng:iiiist  these  officers,  and  against  ('apt.  Folsom,  which  had  their  foundatinti 
ill  tliesc  etlcirts.  Sherman  tells  us  in  his  Mvuwira,  04-.'),  that  Mason  never 
;|iiitil.ited,  nUhough  urged  to  do  so;  hut  'did  tiiko  a  share  in  the  store  whicli 
Warner,  Uestor,  and  I  oiieued  at  Coloma,  paid  his  share  <if  the  capital,  S.")<)0, 
iiii'l  n-ci'lved  his  share  of  the  prolits,  til.GOO.  I  think  he  also  took  a  ^^hare  in 
a  Venture  to  Chinii  with  Liirkin  and  otliers;  hut  on  leaving  I'al.  was  glad  to 
K'll  nut  witiiout  profit  or  loss.'  Com.  Jones  was  convicted  in  IS.'jI  of  specu- 
li;ni,'  in  j^oM-ilust  with  govt  funds,  and  sentenced  to  suspension  from  the 
navy  t'lir  .")  years,  ynih  lews  of  pay  for  half  that  time. 

■"'I'irlii,  McinoirK,  MS.,  40,  111;  Crosby,  Events  in  CnL,  MS.,  43. 


266 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


able  to  no  one  except  his  coinnianding  officer.  Tie 
wtiH,  in  fact,  collecting  duties  from  Aniericun  iniportt  is 
OH  if  he  were  the  servant  of  a  foreign  power,  wiicnas 
lie  was,  in  that  capacity,  the  servant  of  no  power  at 
all,  there  being  no  government  existing  in  California 
after  the  aoth  of  May,  1848.  The  fuml,  however, 
proved  a  very  convtuiient  treasury  to  fall  back  upon 
during  the  no-govermnent  period,  as  we  shall  see  iiere- 
aft 


(;r. 


•27 


Notwithstanding  the  treaty,  the  opinion  was  ]>reva- 
lent  that  congress  would  fail  to  estaolish  a  territorial 
government,  it  being  well  understood  that  the  «iueHtititi 
of  slavery  would  obstruct  the  passage  of  a  territorial 
bill ,  but  the  difficulties  already  referred  to,  with  tlie 
necessity  for  mining  laws  and  an  alarming  increast;  in 
crime,  furnished  sufficient  ground  on  which  the  a^n- 
tators  might  reasonably  demand  an  organization,  or  at 
least  a  governor  and  council,  which  they  insisted  that 
Mason,  as  commander  of  the  United  States  forces,  had 
tlie  power  to  appoint,  liut  Mason  knew  that  while 
the  president  would  willingly  enough  have  eonlerrni 
on  him  this  power,  had  he  himself  [Htssessed  it,  with- 
out the  consent  of  ctmgress,  no  such  authority  existed 
anywhere  out  of  congress;  and  what  the  president  could 
not  do,  he  could  not  undertake.  The  agitators  were 
thus  compelled  to  wait  to  hear  what  action  had  hrtii 
taken  by  congress  before  proceeding  to  take  afl'aiis  in 
their  own  hands. 

The  subject  received  a  fresh  impetus  by  the  arrival 
in  November  of  Commodore  Jones,  with  whom  Mason 
had  0,  conference.     It  was  airreed  between  them  that 


'''^Thnru  wiiH  no  nyHtoin  of  direct  taxation  uxiHtiug  in  (California  Iwfciri'  it 
liooouK!  a  Htatc  of  tliu  union.  The  only  revuuuu  Mexico  (k-rivcil  from  ii  wa* 
that  itHMluecd  liy  a  liigli  tariff  on  iniiiortM.  Thu  'military  vontrilnituuis,' lui 
thu  (J  8  govt  wiui  pluaainl  to  tlououiinatu  this  ruvunuu,  divurtud  to  iist'li, 
liavu  hcun  thu  suhjovt  of  uiuuh  diitcuHHion.  l>r  Holiurt  St^niplti,  in  an  artu  Ic  in 
thu  L'al{f'oriiuin  of  Out  '21,  1848,  atatva  that  tliuro  wiui  no  hIiow  of  riulit  to  rol- 
lout tliiH  tariff  aftur  tlio  war  had  cvaitud,  Ittit  that  the  jNtrtH,  ooai;tM,  iKiys.  mmI 
rivvrs  of  UpiHir  C.-ilifornia  were  *a8  fn.'u  im  the  ikland  of  ,luan  Ffrnanili/, '  iii 
iioint  of  faut,  until  thu  ruvunuo  lawH  of  tliu  U.  S.  were  extunduil  over  tlnin. 
liut  tliu  coliectiou  went  un,  oud  thu  Auiericau  »lii[)piug-uiatftura  and  uitr- 
choittii  i>aul  it 


TIRESOME  WAITINrt. 


267 


slit'tiM  c()n<;ro8.s  prove  to  have  ndiouriied  without  pro- 
vidiiii;  Ji  !j;ovL'rninent  for  Californiu,  tlie  peoph'  hIiouM 
Im>  assisted  to  orj^uiiize  a  tein|Njrary  eoiiHtitutioii  tor 
tliiinHeiveH,'*'*  and  Mason  was  understood  as  proniisin*; 
tit  turn  over  to  the  provisional  j^overnuient  the  civil 
si'ivice  fund,  above  alluded  to,'^"  for  its  expenses. 

Time  iMissed,  and  the  last  vessel  on  wiiieh  u.iv  coin- 
iiiiinieations  from  Washington  eould  he  hoped  f«>r  had 
nnived,  while  the  agitators  oj)enly  declared  that  the 
yuvernnient  evidently  intended  that  thev,  its  military 
ntlicers,  should  have  taken  the  responsihiiity  of  making 
matters  easy  for  the  people  in  the  estahlishnitMit  of  a 
( i\  il  organization,  the  inference  heing  that  they  were 
(Atrcisiiig  unjustifiable  power  in  impeding  it.  An 
a.r<iit  was,  liowever,  actually  on  his  way  at  that  mo- 
iiirtit,  who  was  commissioned  to  observe  and  report 
u|M)n  the  character  and  disixtsition  of  the  inhabitants, 
with  a  view  to  determining  whether  it  were  wise  or 
not  to  encourage  political  movements  in  California,  in 
the  event  of  the  struggle  in  congress  over  slavery  be- 
iiiif  prolonged.  The  letter  of  instructions  furnislu'd  to 
this  agent*'  by  Secretary  l^uchanan  contained,  indeed, 
iit»  sutji  admission.  On  the  ctuitrary,  after  expressing 
the  ngrets  ot  the  ])resident  that  California  had  not 
rtttivol  a  territorial  government,  the  secretary  "ur- 
(fently  advised  the  peojile  of  California  to  live  pem-e- 
aiily  and  <piietly  under  the  existing  government," 
(•iiMS(»ling  themselves  with  the  reHection  tiiat  it  would 
rii(hire  but  for  a  few  months,  or  until  the  next  session 
of  congress,  liut  to  live  peaceably  and  quietly  under 
the  govermnent  de  facto,  half  Mexican  and  half  mili- 


»»r.i/(/;)Mi,iH,  S   F,  Oct.  21,  1848;  TuUM,  IliM.  Ci,  247. 
"I'liU.iiwl  Dim-.,  MS.,  140-1;  .St>ir  iiii<HnlUhnwiii,  N.tv.  18,  1848, 
^'William  v.  ViHirliiuM  wiw  tliu  a^'uiit  otiiiilnytiil  Ity  the  inintiiiaMtcr-goncral 
to  make  arrangfiiiL'iiU  for  tlm  uHtaliliHliiii^  of  iMMt-ollii-cH,  ami  for  tint  traim- 

IIIIS.SI riTL'iiit,  uikI  uoiivuyuiiuu  of  IctturH  in  Ori'gon  and  Civlilornia.'     To  liini 

Wax  intiMiMtfti  tlie  itucrutury'M  o|H!|i  numiukgu  to  thv  itfonlu  of  i'al.,  and  huuIi 
imtniriionii  an  oonuvrnud  luoru  privalu  niattvra.  Kuclianan'H  letter  n^cou- 
n:m\n  tlui  govt  iuft  at  the  ttirinination  of  the  war  aM  Htill  existing  ami  valid, 
w'.ii'ii  not  ill  eon'  \dietion  to  tliu  ennHtitiition  of  tiu!  {.'.  S.,  in  found  in  Aiufi: 
t,>ii>iii.  III,).,  IV.  .ilO  i:);  ami  in  A'c.  hitc.,  \.,  avuoiniiauyiiig  tlio  i>ruiiidunt'>i 
iiiesHitgu  at  tliu  2d  HUM.  of  tho  3Utli  cuiig. 


■>%. 


<>o^.^>      ▼'    «0. 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0    itt  III 


I.I 


1.25 


Sim 


M    ill  2.5 


^63 


IIIW 

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*       2.0 


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1.8 


1.4    11.6 


Hiotographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


23  VVF>T  MAIN  STREET 
WEBSTER,  NY.  14580 

(716)  ?.72--^y03 


^^; 


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268 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


tary,  was  what  they  had  decided  they  were  unable 
to  do.  Before  the  message  arrived  they  had  begun  to 
act  upon  their  own  convictions,  and  were  not  hkely  to 
be  turned  back.*^     Meantime,  to  the  population  already 

''Proofs  of  this  were  not  lacking,  Mrs  Hetty  C  Brown  of  S.  F.,  having 
been  deserted  by  her  husband,  applied  to  the  governor  for  a  divorce  in  I)ec. 
1847.  He  decided  that  neither  he  nor  any  alcalde  had  the  authority  to  grant 
a  divorce;  but  gave  it  as  his  opinion  that  there  being  no  law  in  Cal.  on  tlie 
subjtict  of  divorce,  and  she  being  left  without  any  support,  she  might  view 
her  husband  as  dead,  so  far  as  she  was  concerned.  Uniound  Doc,  MS.,  137. 
Continual  complaints  were  made  of  the  alcaldes.  Pickett  wrote  to  Gen. 
Kearny,  in  March  1849,  that  John  H.  Nash,  alcalde  at  Sonoma,  was  ignorant, 
conceited,  and  dogmatical,  and  governed  by  whims;  he  was  also  under  the 
induence  of  a  pettifogger  named  Green.  The  unrestricted  powers  assuintd 
by  tliese  magistrates  were  laying  the  foundations  for  much  litigation  in  thu 
future  wiien  their  decisions  would  be  appealed  from.  J.  S.  Ruckel  wrote  to 
tlie  gov.  Dec.  28th  on  the  affairs  of  the  pueblo  of  San  Jos6  that '  matters  wliich 
were  originally  bad  are  growing  worse  and  worse — large  portions  of  the  popu- 
lation lazy  and  addicted  to  gambling  have  no  visible  means  of  livelihood,  and 
of  course  must  support  themselves  by  stealing  cattle  or  horses ....  Wanted, 
an  alcalde  who  is  not  afraid  to  do  his  duty,  and  who  knows  what  his  duty  is. ' 
On  the  other  liand,  there  were  complaints  that  Monterey  was  frequently  visited 
by  '  American  desperadoes,  who  committed  assaults  on  the  native  population, 
and  defied  the  authorities.  They  were  at  last  put  down;  some  were  shot  on 
the  spot,  and  some  were  afterwards  disposed  of  by  lynch  law. '  Roach,  Faets, 
on  Calif oniia,  MS.,  5.  Charles  White,  alcalde  of  San  Jose,  wrote  to  fJov. 
Mason  in  March  1848,  that  he  had  received  information  of  60  men  organizing, 
and  daily  receiving  recruits,  who  had  constant  comminication  with  volun- 
teers in  the  service,  who  had  in  view  to  soon  attack  the  prison  at  Monterey 
and  release  the  prisoners.  '  They  also  have  formed  the  plan  of  establishing 
an  indopendent  government  in  California.  They  are  well  armed;  the  good 
people  of  the  country  standing  in  fear  of  exposing  these  people,  lest  they 
might  be  killed  in  revenge.'  Unlxmnd  Doc.,  MS.,  169.  Immigrants  had  taken 
possession  of  the  missions  of  San  Jose  and  Santa  Clara,  injured  the  buildings, 
and  destroyed  the  vineyards  and  orchards,  having  no  respect  to  any  part  of 
them  except  the  churches.  At  the  same  titin'  wild  Indians  were  making  or- 
ganized and  successful  raids  on  the  sti  inging  to  Americans  and  iiiinii- 
granta,  and  were  aided  by  the  missii.  lans.  W.  G.  Dana  writing  from 
San  Luis  Obispo  in  June  1847,  complmi.  .  that  'society  was  reduced  to  the 
most  horrid  state.  Tlie  whole  place  has  tor  a  long  time  past  been  a  complete 
sink  of  drunkenness  and  debauchery. '  Murders  were  also  reported  by  tlie 
alcalde.  Affairs  were  a  little  less  deplorable  at  the  more  southern  missions, 
where  lawless  persons,  both  native  and  foreign,  committed  depredations  on 
mission  property  everywhere.  In  July  1848  a  meeting  waa  held  at  S.  F.  to 
consider  the  question  of  currency,  and  a  committee  consisting  of  W.  D.  M. 
Howard,  C.  V.  Gillespie,  and  James  C.  Ward  presented  to  Gov.  Mason  the 
following  resolutions:  1st.  That  the  gov'r  be  petitioned  to  appoint  one  or 
more  assayers  to  test  the  quality  of  the  gold  taken  from  the  placers  on  the 
Sacramento.  2d.  That  the  gov'r  he  asked  to  extend  the  time  allowed  for 
the  redemption  of  the  gold-dust,  deposited  as  collateral  security  for  payment 
of  duties,  to  6  months,  so  as  to  allow  time  for  the  importation  of  coined  money 
into  the  country  for  that  purpose.  3d.  That  the  gov'r  be  requested  to  ap- 
point a  competent  person  to  superintend  the  conversion  of  gold  into  ingots  of 
convenient  weights,  the  same  to  be  stamped  with  the  name  of  the  person  fur- 
nishing the  gold  to  be  cast;  the  weight,  and  if  possible,  its  fineness,  in  refer- 
ence to  standard;  the  said  ofiicer  to  keep  a  record  of  all  the  gold  cast,  the 
expense  of  casting  to  be  defrayed  by  the  person  furnishing  the  raw  material. 


DETERMINED  ACTION. 


2C9 


ill  the  country  were  added  a  company  of  miners  from 
the  "state  of  Deseret,"  and  several  companies  from  the 
province  of  Oregon.  These  were  all  men  who  had 
supported  independent  governments;  some  of  them 
had  assisted  in  forming  one,  and  regarded  themselves 
as  experienced  in  state-craft.  There  was  also  consid- 
erable overland  immigration  in  the  autumn. 

The  murder  in  the  mining  district  of  Mr  Pomeroyand 
a  companion  in  November,  for  the  gold-dust  they  car- 
ried, furnished  the  occasion  seized  upon  by  the  Star  and 
Califomian  of  renewing  the  agitation  for  a  civil  govern- 
ment. Meetings  were  held  December  11,  1 8  4  8 ,  at  San 
Jose;  December  21st,  at  San  Francisco;  and  at  Sacra- 
mento on  the  6th  and  8th  of  January,  1849.^^   The  San 

Last  resolution  itot  carried.  4th.  Appointment  of  a  committee  to  petition 
congress  to  establish  a  mint  in  this  town — the  petition  to  be  circulated  in  the 
Sacramento  Valley  and  elsewhere  for  signatures.  The  said  committee  to 
consist  of  C.  V.  Gillespie,  James  C.  Ward,  W.  D.  M.  Howard,  and  Capt. 
Joseph  L.  Folsom,  U.  S.  A.  M.,  1.30-7. 

"  The  meeting  was  held  at  the  alcalde's  office  in  San  Jose,  Charles  White 
ill  the  chair;  James  Stokes,  Maj.  Thomas  Campbell,  Julius  Mar.;in,  vice-prests; 
P.  B.  Cornwall,  William  L.  Beelcs,  sees;  Capt.  K.  H.  Dinunick,  Ord,  Ben- 
jamin Cory,  Myron  Norton,  and  J.  D.  Hoppe  were  appointed  a  committee  to 
frame  resolutions.  The  meeting  was  addressed  by  O.  C.  Pratt  of  111.  A  con- 
vention was  appointed  for  the  2d  Monday  in  Jan.,  and  Dimmick,  Cory,  and 
Hoppe  elected  delegates.  Star  and  C'al\fornian,  l)ec.  23,  1848.  Reports  of 
these  meetings  are  contained  in  the  Alta  California,  then  published  by  Edward 
Gilbert,  Ed'vard  Kemble,  and  George  C.  Hubbard,  and  supporting  the  provis- 
ional govt  movement.  Of  the  Sac.  meetings  Peter  H.  Burnett,  ■w'lio  had  bec:i 
jii(li,'e  and  legislator  in  Oregon,  and  helped  to  form  the  Oregon  laws,  wan 
president.  The  vice-prests  were  Frank  Bates  and  M.  D.  Winship;  and  t!.o 
sees  Jeremiah  Sherwood  and  George  McKinstry.  A  committee  consi^tiny 
of  Samuel  Brannan,  John  S.  Fowler,  John  Sinclair,  P.  B.  Reading,  and  Bar- 
ton Lee  was  appomted  to  frame  a  set  of  resolutions  which  should  express  t'.ie 
sense  of  the  meeting.  These  resolutions  recited  that  congress  had  not  ex- 
tended the  laws  of  the  U.  S.  over  the  country,  as  recommended  by  the  prest, 
Imt  had  left  it  without  protection;  that  the  frequency  of  robberies  and  mur- 
ders had  deeply  impressed  the  people  with  the  necessity  of  having  some  reg- 
ular form  of  government,  with  laws  and  officers  to  enforce  them;  that  tl;3 
discovery  of  gold  would  attract  immigration  from  all  parts  of  the  world,  and 
add  to  the  existing  danger  end  confusion;  therefore,  tliat  trusting  to  the  go'vt 
and  people  of  the  U.  S.  for  sanction,  it  was  resolved  that  it  was  not  ouly 
proper  but  necessary  that  the  inhabitants  of  Cal.  should  form  a  provisiourd 
govt  and  administer  the  same;  and  that  while  lamenting  t'.ie  inactivity  of 
congress  in  their  behalf,  they  still  desired  to  manifest  their  confidence  in  ami 
loyalty  to  the  U.  S.  'ihe  proceedings  of  the  San  Jose  and  S.  F.  meeting! 
were  concurred  in,  and  the  people  were  recommended  to  hold  meetings  and 
elect  delegates  to  represent  them  in  a  convention  to  bo  held  March  Gth  at 
San  Jose  for  the  purpose  of  draughting  a  form  of  govt  to  he  submitted  to  the 
people  for  tlieir  sanction.  A  meeting  was  appointed  to  take  place  on  the  loth 
to  elect  5  delegates  from  that  district  to  the  convention  at  San  Jose.  A  coni- 
mittee  waa  chosen  by  the  preat  to  correspond  with  the  other  districts;  uainely, 


270 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


Josd  meeting  recommended  that  the  convention  assem- 
ble at  that  place  on  the  second  Monday  of  January; 
the  San  Francisco  meeting,  that  the  convention  should 
assemble  on  the  5th  day  of  March;  but  on  the  24th 
of  January  the  corresponding  committee  of  San  Fran- 
cisco notified  a  postponement  of  the  convention  to  the 
6th  of  May.*^  The  reasons  given  for  the  change  of 
date  were  the  inclemency  of  the  weather,  making  it 
difficult  to  communicate  with  the  southern  districts; 
and  recent  intelligence  from  the  United  States,  from 
which  it  appeared  probable  that  congress  would  organ- 
ize a  territorial  government  before  the  adjournment  of 
the  session  ending  March  4th.  A  month  being  al- 
lowed for  the  receipt  of  mformation,**  there  could  be  no 
further  objection  to  the  proposed  convention  should 
congress  again  disappoint  them.  All  these  circum- 
stances together  operated  to  defeat  the  movement  for 
a  convention.  The  Sacramento  delegates,  Charles  E. 
Pickefjt  and  John  Sinclair,  protested  against  a  change 
of  time,  but  the  majority  prevailed,  and  the  conven- 

Frank  Bates,  P.  B.  Reading,  and  John  S.  Fowler.  Frank  Bates,  Barton  Lee, 
and  Albert  Priest  were  appointed  judges  of  the  election  of  delegates.  A  res- 
olution was  offered  l>y  Sam  Brannan  that  the  delegates  be  instructed  to 
'  oppose  slavery  in  eveiy  shape  and  form  in  the  territory  of  California, '  which 
was  adopted.  Burnett,  Reco^.,  295-8.  The  meeting  at  S.  F.  was  presided 
over  by  John  Townsend;  William  S.  Clark  and  J.  C.  Ward  were  chosen  vite- 
prests,  and  William  M.  Smith  and  S.  S.  Howison  sees.  The  committee  on 
resolutions  consisted  of  Edward  Gilbert,  George  Hyde,  B.  R.  Buckelew, 
Henry  A.  Schoolcraft,  Myron  Norton,  Henry  M,  Naglee,  and  James  Creigh- 
ton.  They  reported  on  the  23d,  and  their  resolutions  were  atlopted.  Gilbert, 
Ward,  Hyde,  Toler,  and  Davis  were  appointed  judges  of  election.  Buckekw 
moved  that  duties  collected  at  all  ports  in  CaL,  after  the  ratification  of  the 
treaty  of  peace  in  Aug.,  rightfully  belonged  to  CaL;  and  furthermore,  that  as 
the  U.  S.  congress  had  not  provided  a  government  for  the  people  of  the  ter- 
ritory, 'such  duties  as  have  been  collected  since  the  disbandment  of  the  ex- 
traordinary military  force  justly  belongs  to  the  people  of  this  territory,  and 
should  be  claimed  for  our  benefit  by  the  govt  we  may  succeed  in  creating.' 
Adopted  after  some  debate;  Gilbert,  Warcl,  and  Hyde  were  appointed  corre- 
sponding committee.     Stcir  and  Cali/bnikin,  Dec.  23,  1848. 

^ Alta  Calif ornia,  Jan.  24,  1849;  S.  F.  JUinutes  Proceedinys  Legis.  Asuem., 
etc.,  296  (no.  1,  in  S.  F.  Hint.  Inc.,  etc.).  Meetings  were  held  at  Santa  Cruz  and 
Monterey  to  elect  delegates  to  the  convention  in  May.  Santa  Cruz  delegates 
were  William  Blackburn,  J.  L.  Majors,  Eli  Moore,  John  Dobindiss,  J.  ( ''.  S. 
Duideavv,  Henry  Speal,  and  Juan  Gonzales.  Arrk  Sla  Cna,  102.  Waltet 
Col  ton  (Iraughted  the  resolutions  for  the  Monterey  meeting.  Cotton,  T/irH 
Years,  393;  An.  S.  F.,  13G;  Mendocino  Co.  HisL,  2G9-319. 

''*The  ocean  mail  steamers  were  announced  to  commence  their  regular 
trips  between  Panami  and  California  and  Oregon  early  in  the  spring. 


\:^ 


SELF-GOVERNMENT. 


271 


tion  was  finally  postponed  to  the  first  Monday  of 
August,^^  when,  should  congress  not  then  have  created 
a  territorial  government  for  California,  there  should 
be  no  further  delay  in  organizing  a  provisional  gov- 
ernment. In  the  mean  time  event  crowded  on  the 
heels  of  event,  changing  the  purposes  of  the  people  as 
their  condition  changed. 

With  the  expiration  of  1848  expired  also  the  term 
of  the  town  council  of  San  Francisco  which  Mason 
had  authorized  in  August  of  the  previous  year.  By 
a  municipal  law,  an  election  for  their  successors  was 
held  on  the  27th  of  December,  wnen  seven  new  coun- 
cilmen  were  chosen.  The  former  council^  declared  the 
election  fraudulent  and  void,  and  ordered  a  new  one. 
A  majority  of  the  population  opposed  this  unwarrant- 
able assumption  of  power,  and  refused  to  attend,  but 
an  election  was  held  and  another  council  chosen. 
Until  the  15tli  of  January,  when  the  old  council  voted 
itself  out  of  existence,  three  town  governments  were 
in  operation  at  the  same  time,  and  the  two  remaining 
ones  for  some  weeks  longer.  Wearied  and  exasper- 
ated by  the  confusion  in  their  affairs,  the  people  of 
San  Francisco  district  called  a  meeting  on  the  12th 
of  February,  at  which  it  was  resolved  to  elect  a  legis- 
lative assembly  of  fifteen  members,  who  siiould  be 
empowered  to  make  such  necessary  laws  "as  did  not 
conflict  with  the  constitution  of  the  United  States, 
nor  tiie  common  law  thereof."'^     This  legislative  body 

'^This  postponemenl;  was  made  in  a  communication  addressed  to  the  AUa 
Citl.  of  March  22d,  signed  by  the  following  delegates:  W.  M.  Steuart, 
Myron  Norton,  Francis  J.  Lippitt,  from  S.  F. ;  Charles  T.  Bolts,  Monterey; 
J.  D.  Stevenson,  Los  Angeles;  R.  Semple,  Benicia;  John  B.  Frishio  and  M. 
".  Vallejo,  Sonoma;  S.  Brannan,  J.  A.  Sutter,  Samuel  J.  Hensley,  and  P.  B, 
Reading,  from  Sac. 

^'' Refer  to  note  11,  this  chapter,  for  names. 

''  M.  Norton  presided  at  the  meeting  of  the  12th,  and  T.  W,  Perkins  acted 
as  sec'y.  The  preamble  to  the  ordinances  established  by  the  meeting  recited 
tlwit  'the  people  of  S.  F.,  perceiving  the  necessity  of  having  some  better  de- 
li umI  and  more  permanent  civil  regulations  for  our  general  security  tiian  tiie 
vague,  unlimited,  and  irresponsible  authority  that  now  exists,  do,  in  general 
cfi.ivuntion  assembled,  hereby  establish  audordam.'  Then  follow  the  regu- 
lations. Alta  Cat.,  Feb.  15,  1849. 


272 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


It 


1 

Ml 


also  appointed  an  election  of  three  justices  of  the  peace, 
abolished  the  office  of  alcalde,  his  books  and  papers 
being  ordered  to  be  resigned  to  one  of  the  justices; 
and  abolished  both  the  town  councils,  the  members 
being  commanded  to  send  their  resignations  to  a  com- 
mittee appointed  to  receive  them.^  The  election  of 
the  legislative  assembly  and  justices  was  ordered  for 
the  21st  of  the  month,  and  took  place;  but  as  there 
was  no  actual  power  in  the  legislature  to  enforce  its 
acts,  the  new  government  threatened  to  prove  as  pcnv- 
erless  for  good  as  its  predecessor.  The  alcaide  Leav- 
enworth refused  to  relinquish  the  town  records'"'  to 
the  chief  magistrate,  Norton,  as  directed ;  and  such  was 
the  pressure  of  private  business  that  it  was  found 
difficult  to  procure  a  quorum  at  the  meetings  of  the 
legislature.  To  correct  the  latter  defect  in  the  govern- 
ment, the  members  were  added  to  the  assembly  in 
May,  and  the  offices  of  register,  sheriff,  and  treasurer 
created. 

On  the  26th  of  February,  five  days  after  the  first 
election  of  assemblymen,  there  arrived  at  San  Fran- 
cisco the  mail  steamer  California,  having  on  board 
General  Persifer  F.  Smith,  who  as  commander  of  tlie 
military  division  of  California  superseded  Colonel 
Mason.  Smith  blundered,  as  military  men  are  prone 
to  do  in  managing  civil  affairs.  He  wrote  to  the 
secretary  of  war  from  Panamd,  that  he  was  "partly 
inclined  to  think  it  would  be  right  for  me  to  prohibit 
foreigners  from  taking  the  gold,  unless  they  intend  to 
become  citizens."  Next  he  wrote  to  the  consuls  on 
South  American  coast  "that  the  laws  of  the  United 
States  forbade  trespassing  on  the  public  lauds,"  antl 
that  on  arriving  in  California  he  should  enforce  tliis 
law  against  persons  not  citizens.  To  the  secretary  he 
again  wrote:  "I  shall  consider  every  one  not  a  citizen 
of  the  United  States,  who  enters  on  public  land  and 
digs  for  gold,  as  a  trespasser,  and  shall  enforce  that 

'"  The  committeemen  were  AUre.l  J.  Lllu,  Wm  F.  Swasey,  B.  R.  Buckc- 
i9w,  and  ( Jeorge  Hyde.  Bumi-tf,  recoil:,  310. 
'>*Ftndla,  Statement,  MS.,  10. 


LEADING  QUESTIONS. 


273 


view  of  the  matter  if  possible,  depending  upon  tlie 
distinction  made  in  favor  of  American  citizens  to  en- 
o-ii»»e  tlie  assistance  of  the  latter  in  carrying  out  what 
I  propose.  All  are  undoubtedly  trespassers ;  but  as 
coni^^ress  has  hitherto  made  distinctions  in  favor  of 
early  settlers  by  granting  preemptions,  the  difficulties 
of  present  circumstances  in  California  may  justify  for- 
bearance with  regard  to  citizens,  to  whom  some  favor 
may  be  hereafter  granted." 

This  doctrine  of  trespass  furnished  the  Hounds,  an 
organized  band  of  Australian  criminals  and  deserting 
English  sailors,  with  their  only  apology  for  robbing 
every  Mexican  oi  Califomian  they  met,  upon  the 
ground  that  they  were  foreigners,  at  least  not  citizens; 
and  passports  had  actually  to  be  furnished  to  these 
people  in  the  land  where  they  were  born.^  The 
Hounds  did  not  long  remain,  but  had  their  conge  from 
the  authorities  civil  and  military. 

To  General  Smith  the  legislature  of  San  Francisco 
district  addressed  a  letter  inviting  his  sympathy  and 
support,  to  which  he  returned  a  noncommittal  reply, 
without  attempting  to  interfere  with  the  operations  of 
the  experimental  government.  There  was  no  exigency 
requiring  him  to  intermeddle  while  awaiting  the  action 
of  congress,  drawing  to  a  close,  and  the  incoming  of  a 
new  national  administration  whose  policy  was  yet  un- 
known. The  community  in  general  supporting  the 
assembly,  the  sheriff,  furnished  by  Judge  Xorton  with 
a  Avrit  of  replevin,  and  assisted  by  a  number  of  volun- 
teer deputies,  finally  compelled  Alcalde  Leavenworth 
to  surrender  the  records,  which  were  deposited  in  the 
court-house,  where  justice  was  hereafter  to  be  admin- 
istered. This  did  not  occur,  however,  before  the  in- 
action of  congress  had  become  known,  and  California 
had  received  another  governor. 

I  think  the  American  inhabitants  of  California 
exhibited   great   and    undeserved   animosity   toward 


296. 


**Kx.  Doc.,  311,  no.  17,  p.  703-6,  708-10,  869,  870;  Amei:  Quart.  Bcj.,  ii. 
Hist.  Cai,.,  Vol..  VI.    18 


\m 


174 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


!.:    1 


1 1   ;  y! 


'J  i  ' 


'  li' 


Colonel  Mason  in  his  position  as  governor.  Tlicy 
failed  to  remember  that  it  required  as  much  patience 
in  him  to  govern  them,  as  it  did  in  them  to  bo  goveriitd 
by  him.  Into  his  ear  for  nearly  two  years  had  bein 
poured  an  incessant  stream  of  complaints  from  both 
the  natives  and  themselves  Quite  often  enough  they 
had  been  in  the  wrong  If  they  did  not  steal  horses 
and  cattle  like  the  Indians,  or  rob  and  assassinate  like 
the  Mexicans,  they  had  other  ways  of  being  selfish 
and  unchristian — not  to  say  criminal — which  made 
bad  blood  in  those  ruder  people.  He  did  the  best  he 
could  between  them  all.  Had  his  soldiers  not  ab- 
sconded to  the  gold  mines,  even  then  he  would  have 
required  ten  times  their  number  to  keep  up  a  police 
system  throughout  the  country.  Only  law  can  reach 
to  every  part  of  a  territory,  but  to  do  that  it  must  he 
organized;  and  here  was  just  where  Mason's  delin- 
quencies were  mos't  flagrant.  He  was  not  an  execu- 
tive officer  according  to  law,  but  a  military  governor, 
which  as  they  reasoned  was  an  offence  in  time  of  peace. 
That  he  was  only  obeying  instructions,  and  that  he 
had  leaned  to  their  side  while  executing  his  trust,  did 
not  serve  to  soften  the  asperity  of  their  judgment,  and 
no  friendly  regrets  were  expressed  when  his  successor 
relieved  him  of  his  thankless  office.*^  He  left  Califor- 
nia on  the  1st  of  May,  and  died  of  cholera  at  St  Louis 
the  same  summer,  at  the  age  of  sixty  years.*^ 

^'The  orders  of  Gen.  Smith  'vere  dated  Nov.  15,  1848,  and  ran  aa  follows: 
*  By  direction  of  the  prest,  you  are  hereby  assigned,  under  and  by  virtue  of 
your  rank  of  brev.  brig.-gen.  of  the  army  of  the  U.  S.,  to  the  comniaml  of 
the  third  geographical  or  Pacifio  division,  and  will  proceed  by  way  of  New 
Orleaus,  thence  to  Chagres,  and  across  the  isthmus  of  Pauaui4  to  Cal.,  ami 
assume  the  command  of  the  said  division.  You  will  establish  your  head- 
quarters either  iu  CaL  or  Or.,  and  change  them  from  time  to  time,  as  the 
exigencies  of  the  public  service  may  require.  Besides  the  general  duties  of 
defj:i(ling  the  territories  of  Cal.  and  Or.,  and  of  preserving  peace  and  protect- 
ing the  inhabitants  from  Indian  depredations,  you  will  carry  out  the  orders 
a:id  instructions  contained  iu  the  letter  from  the  department  to  Col  K.  B. 
I.Iaaoa,  a  copy  of  which  you  are  herewith  furnished,  and  such  other  or<lera 
and  instructions  as  you  may  receive  from  your  govt.'  H.  Ex.  Doc,  31,  1,  no. 
17,  p.  204^. 

"Sherman  in  his  Memoirs,  64,  says:  'He  possessed  a  strong  native  intel- 
lect, and  far  more  knowledge  of  the  principles  of  civil  government  and  law 
than  he  got  credit  for; '  and  •  he  was  the  very  embodiment  of  the  prineiplo  of 
.fidelity  to  the  interests  of  the  gen.  govt.' 


GOVERNOR  RILEY. 


^5 


On  the  1 2th  of  April  the  transport  ship  Iowa  landed 
at  Monterey  brevet  Brigadier-general  Bennett  Riley ,** 
lieutenant-colonel  2d  infantry,  with  his  brigade.** 
Kiley  had  instructions  from  the  secretary  of  war  to 
assume  the  administration  of  civil  affairs  in  California, 
not  as  a  military  governor,  but  as  the  executive  of  the 
existing  civil  government.  According  to  contempo- 
rary accounts,  he  was  a  "grim  old  fellow,"  and  a  "fine 
free  swearer."**  According  to  his  own  statement  he 
was  not  much  acquainted  with  civil  affairs,  but  knew 
hew  to  obey  orders.  He  also  knew  how  to  make 
others  obey  orders — except  in  California.  Here  his 
soldiers  soon  deserted,**  leaving  him  without  the 
means  of  enforcing  the  laws.  In  this  dilemma  his 
good  sense  came  to  his  aid,  and  on  the  3d  of  June, 
having  sent  the  steamer  Edith  to  Mazatlan  for  the 
necessary  intelligence,  and  learning  that  nothing  had 
been  done  by  congress  toward  the  establishment  of  a 
territorial  government,  he  issued  a  proclamation  show- 
ing that  he  had  lost  no  time  in  improving  his  knowl- 
edue  of  civil  affairs.  He  endeavored  to  remove  the 
prejudice  against  a  military  government  by  putting 
it  out  of  sight  •  and  proposed  a  scheme  of  civil  gov- 
ernment, which  he  assured  them  should  be  temporary, 
but  which  while  it  existed  must  be  recognized.  The 
laws  of  California,  not  inconsistent  with  the  laws, 
constitution,  and  treaties  of  the  United  States,  he 
declared  to  be  in  force  until  changed  by  competent 
authority,  which  did  not  exist  in  a  provisional  legisla- 


**Larhn,  Doc,  MS.,  vi.  203;  Ang.  Anh.,  MS.,  iii.  246,  246, 272;  H.  Ex, 
Doc.,  31,  1,  no.  17,  p.  873;  WUley,  Pergonal  Memoranda,  MS.,  119;  Hyde^ 
Statement,  MS.,  12;  Caj^an,  Cal,  44;  'rinkham,  HiH.  Stockton,  120;  Hist. 
Lou  Angeks,  46;  Sol  Co.  Hist.,  438;  Sherman,  Mem.,  L  10. 

**  The  brigade,  650  strong,  was  officered  as  follows:  Lieut  Hayden,  com- 
manding officer  of  Co.  H;  Turner,  surgeon;  adjutant,  Jones,  com  d'g  Cos.  C 
and  G;  Xaeut  A.  Sully,  regimental  quartermaster  and  commissary,  com'd'g 
Co.  K;  Lieut  Mumwr,  Co.  J;  Lieut Schareman,  Co.  A;  Lieut  Jarvis,  Co.  B;  2d 
Lieut  Hendershot,  Co.  F;  2d  Lieut  Johnson,  Co.  E;  2d  Lieut  Sweeny,  Co.  D. 
N.  T.  Herald,  Sept  19,  1848,  in  Niles' Reg.,  Ixxiv.  193. 

*>  Foster's  Angeles  in  1847,  MS.,  17-18.  He  had  a  defect  in  his  speech,  and 
was  65  or  66  years  old.  Val.,  Doe.,  MS.,  36,  116;  8.  D.  Arch.,  MS.,  iL  ^9; 
A^eal,  Vig.  Com.,  MS.,  23. 

*' Crosby,  Statmtent,  MS.,  30-2;  Bttmett,  BeeotL,  38S-4. 


v:! 


27G 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


turo.  The  situation  of  California  was  not  identical 
with  that  of  Oregon,  which  was  without  laws  until  a 
provisional  government  was  formed;  but  was  nearly 
identical  with  that  of  Louisiana,  whose  laws  wcio 
recognized  as  valid  until  constitutionally  repeaKd, 
He  proposed  to  put  in  vigorous  operation  the  exlstlm,' 
laws  as  designed  by  the  central  government,  but  to 
give  an  American  cliaractcr  to  the  administration  Ly 
making  the  officers  of  the  law  elective  instead  of  ap- 
pointive; and  at  the  same  time  proposed  a  convention 
of  delegates  from  every  part  of  tlie  territory  to  form 
a  state  constitution  or  territorial  organization,  to  ho 
ratified  by  the  people  and  submitted  to  congress  for 
approval.  A  complete  set  of  Mexican  officials  was 
named  in  the  proclamation,  with  the  salaries  of  each 
and  the  duration  of  their  term  of  office. 

The  first  election  was  ordered  for  August  1st,  when 
also  delegates  to  the  convention  were  to  be  elected. 
The  officers  chosen  would  serve  until  January  1,  1850 
The  convention  would  meet  September  1st.     A  regu- 
lar annual  election  would  be  held  in  November,  to 
V  choose  members  of  the  territorial  assembly,  and  to  fill 
-'the  oflfices   temporarily  supplied    by  the    election  of 
'^August  1st.     The  territory  was  divided  into  ten  dis- 
tricts for  the  election  of  thirty-seven  delegates,  aj)- 
portioned  as  follows:  San  Diego  two,  Los  Angcks 
four,  Santa  Bdrbara  two,  San  Luis  Obispo  two,  ^lon- 
'terey  five,  San  Josd  five,  San  Francisco  five,  Sonoma 
four,  Sacramento  four,  and  San  Joaquin  four.*'^ 

Such  was  the  result  of  Riley's  civil  studies.*^  The 
people  could  not  see,  however,  what  constitutional 
power  the  president  had  to  govern  a  territory  by  ap 
pointing  a  military  executive  in  time  of  peace,  or  any 
at  all  before  the  Mexican  laws  had  been  repealed; 
much  less  what  right  the  secretary  of  war  had  to  in- 

"  Debates  Conatit.  CaL,  3-5;  Crmtiae,  mu.  Weahh,  58-9;  HUtell,  S.  F., 
140-1;  LarklHy  Doc.,  MS.,  vii.  137;  Vnl,  Doc.,  MS.,  35,  124;  San  Lui.^  Oh. 
Arch.,  MS.,  sec.  i.;  Savage,  Doc.,  MS.,  ii.  85;  Amj.  Arch.,  MS.,  iii.  240-00; 
Placer  Times,  June  23,  1849. 

'^Gen.  Riley  publicly  acknowledged  the  'efficient  aid'  rendered  him  by 
Capt.  U.  W.  Halleck,  ma  sect,  of  state. 


LFXSISLATIVK  ASSEMBLY.  277 

struct  General  Riley  to  act  as  civil  governor.  Ai;«l 
]i  rliaps  tJK'ir  reasoning  was  as  good  as  tlie  general V , 
^vllt  II  he  declared  they  luid  no  right  to  legislate  ft»r 
themselves  without  the  sanction  of  congress.  This 
(|iustion  had  been  argued  at  some  length  in  the  Alta 
('(tH/ornia  alxmt  the  time  of  Riley's  arrival  by  l*eter 
][,  Burnett,  who  had  come  down  from  Oregrin  with 
tlio  g(»ld-hunters  from  the  north  in  1848,  and  whose 
(XjiLrience  with  the  provisional  government  of  the 
American  community  on  the  Columbia  made  him  a 
sort  of  umpire. 

On  the  day  following  the  above  proclamation  tlie 
trovtinor  issued  another,  addressed  to  the  people  of 
}Saii  Francisco,  wliicli  reached  them  on  tlie  9th,  in 
wliicli  he  declared  that  "the  body  of  men  styling 
tlinnsclves  the  legislative  assembly  of  San  Francis^-o 
has  usurped  j^owers  which  are  vested  only  in  the  con- 
«rrtss  of  the  United  States."  Both  were  i)rinted  in 
Sjiaul.>h  as  well  as  English,  for  circulation  among  the 
inhabitants,  and  produced  no  small  excitement,  taken 
in  connection  with  the  arrival  of  the  mail  steamer  on 
the  4t]i  with  the  news  of  the  failure  of  congress  to 
provide  a  government,  aggravated  by  the  «'xtension  of 
tlic  revenue  laws  over  California  and  the  appointment 
of  a  collector.*'  Taxation  without  representation  was 
not  to  be  borne;  and  straightway  a  public  meeting 
]:a(l  been  held,  and  an  address  prepared  by  a  committee 
of  tlie  legislative  assembly,  of  which  Burnett  was  chair- 
man, })rotesting  against  the  injustice.  Among  other 
things,  it  declared  thi "-  "the  legislative  assembly  of 
the  district  of  San  Francisco  have  believed  it  to  be 
tlieir  duty  to  earnestly  recommend  to  their  fellow- 

"  James  Collier  ■was  appointed  collector  of  customs  and  special  depositary 
of  moneys  at  S.  F.,  in  March  1849  He  came  overland,  and  diil  not  arrive 
uiiiil  Lite  in  the  autumn.  No  moneys  were  tsver  depositeil  with  him.  Tlie 
act  mentioned  establLshed  porta  of  delivery  at  San  Diej,'o  and  Mfinterey,  and 
a  port  of  entry  at  S.  F.  AUes'  Be;/.,  Ixxv.  193;  Cal.  SUilntvx,  \bM,  app.  3>j; 
U.S.  Arts  aitd  Rm.,  70-5,  107-8,  30th  Cong.,  21  Sess.;  Hunt's  Mi'rrh.  Ma,j., 
xxiii.  6(J3-5.  King  succeeded  Collier  in  May  ISol,  at  S.  F.,  and  did  act  a«  a 
'h'piisitary,  the  sums  collected  being  deposited  with  himself.  U.  S.  Sen.  JJrx-., 
W.  vil.  X.,  32dCong.,  IstScss.  Major  Snyder  was  appointed  collector  in  1S."3, 
ami  remained  in  ofiice  until  16G2.  Sicaeey's  Remarks  on  Snyder,  MS.,  15-10. 


S78 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


citizens  the  propriety  of  electing  twelve  delegates  from 
each  district  to  attend  a  ifeneral  convention  to  ha  litld 
at  the  pueblo  de  San  tfosd  on  the  third  Monday  of 
August  next,  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  a  govcm- 
nient  for  the  whole  territory  of  California.  Wo  w»»uM 
recommend  that  the  delegates  be  intrusted  with  lur*,'e 
discretion  to  deliberate  upon  the  best  moasures  to  ho 
taken;  and  to  form,  if  they  upon  mature  consideration 
should  deem  it  advisable,  a  state  constitution,  to  hu 
submitted  to  the  people  for  their  ratification  or  rojtc- 
tion  by  a  direct  vote  at  the  polls.  .  .  .  From  the  l)uist 
information  both  parties  in  congress  are  anxiou.s  that 
this  should  be  done;  and  there  can  exist  no  doubt  of 
the  fact  that  the  present  perplexing  state  of  the  ques- 
tion at  Washington  would  insure  the  admission  of 
California  at  once.  We  have  the  question  to  settle 
for  ourselves;  and  the  sooner  we  do  it,  the  better." 
It  so  happened  that  this  address,  which  had  been  suh- 
mitted  to  and  adopted  by  the  assembly  previ<jus  to  the 
promulgation  of  Riley's  proclamation,  was  published 
in  the  Alta  June  14th,  five  days  after,  making  it  ap- 
pear, but  for  the  explanation  given  by  the  editor,  Hko 
a  carefully  designed  defiance  of  the  authority  of  the 
governor. 

Three  days  after  the  proclamation  addressed  to  the 
people  of  San  Francisco  was  received,  a  mass  meetiiii,' 
in  favor  of  a  convention  for  forming  a  state  constitu- 
tion was  held  in  Po?  smouth  square,  presided  over  hy 
William  M.  Steuart.""  Resolutions  were  passed  de- 
claring the  right  of  the  people  of  the  territory,  the 
last  congress  having  failed  them,  to  organize  for  their 
own  protection,  and  to  elect  delegates  to  a  convention 
to  forma  state  government,  "that  the  great  and  grow- 
ing interests  of  California  may  be  represented  in  the 


;i:' 


^  The  vice-prests  were  William  D.  M.  Howard,  E.  H.  Harrison,  C.  V.  Gilles- 
pie, Robert  A.  Parker,  Myron  Norton,  Francis  J  Lippett,  J.  H.  Mirrill, 
George  Hyde,  William  Hooper,  Hiram  Grimes,  John  A.  Patterson,  ('.  H. 
Johnson,  William  H.  Davis,  Alfred  Ellis,  Edward  Gilbert,  and  John  T<i\vii»- 
end.  The  secretaries  were  E.  Gould  Buffum,  J.  R.  Per  Lee,  and  W.  C. 
Parker, 


MEETINGS  AND  MEASURES. 


270 


noxt  oonfjroas  of  the  United  States."  A  coniniitteo 
wjis  ajipointed  to  corresjHmd  with  tlie  otlu;r  distriets, 
and  Hx  an  early  day  for  the  election  of  delegates  and 
ft»r  the  convention,  as  also  to  determine  the  nund)er 
ot'  (Iclegates,  the  eoiumittee  con.sisting  of  P.  H.  J^ur- 
iKtt,  W.  ]).  M.  Howard,  M.  Nort<»n,  E.  G.  Butt'uni, 
and  E.  Gilhert.  A  motion  to  amend  a  resolution, 
bv  adopting  the  days  appointed  by  the  governor,  was 
rejected.  The  meeting  was  addressed  l)y  Burnett, 
Tliomas  Butler  King,  congressman  from  Georgia  and 
confidential  agent  of  the  government,  William  M. 
(ilwin,  a  former  congressman  from  Mississippi,  and 
otliers.  King  had  been  sent  out  to  work  up  the  state 
movement,''*  which  he  was  doing  in  eonjimction  with 
tlie  uovernor:  and  Gwin  had  come  out  ti:  the  same 
steamer  to  become  a  senator  from  California.  Ho 
adchessed  the  people  of  Sacramento  July  4th,  and 
on  the  following  day  a  mass  met  'ng  at  Fouier's 
hotel,  and  resolutions  passed  to  cooperat*'  with  San 
Fi.uK.sco  and  the  other  districts  in  fcrniing  a  civil 
government. ^^  At  a  meeting  held  July  4th  at  Mor- 
mon Island,  W.  C.  Bigelow  in  the  chair, '^^  and  James 
Queen  secretary,  resolutions  were  adopted  declaring 
tliat  in  consequence  of  the  failure  of  congress  to  pro- 
vide a  government,  the  separation  of  this  country 
from  tlie  mother  country  has  been  loudly  talked  of; 
but  ])ledging  themselves  "to  discountenance  every 
cH'ort  at  se])aration,  or  any  movement  that  maj'  tend 
to  counteract  the  action  of  the  jjeneral  (.government 
in  regard  to  California."  Also  that  believing  slavery 
to  be  injurious,  they  would   do  everything    in  their 

^^DHfTum,  Sir.  Month)*,  118;  H  Ex.  Doc.,  .31,  1,  no.  17,  p.  9-11. 

''■(Iwiii,  Memoirs,  MS.,  5.  M.  M.  McCarver,  tlie  '  oM  brasa  gnu'  of  the 
Oregon  legislature,  presided  at  this  meeting.  (.Jeorge  MeKinstry  wjis  sec. 
t'.  K.  I'ickett,  Chapman,  and  Carpenter  constituted  a  committee  to  draught  rea- 
olutioiiM.  A  com.  of  12  was  appointed  to  organize  the  district  into  proeincts, 
and  apportion  the  representatives,  and  to  nominate  candidates.  Corrospoiid- 
iiig  com.  appointed.  Committee  of  12  was  comjiosed  of  P.  B.  (."oriiwall,  Car- 
ptiitir,  Blackburn,  J.  R.  Robb,  Mark  Stewart,  John  Fowler,  C.  E.  Pickett, 
8ain.  Brannan,  John  McDougal,  Samuel  Uousley,  M.  T.  McClellan,  and  Col 
Wiim. 

''^Placer  Times,  July  9,  1849. 


280 


POLITICAL  HISTORY, 


power  to  prevent  its  extension  to  this  countr}'.     Taking 
alarm  at  some  of  these  proceedings,  Rihiy  gave  utter- 
ance to  his  views  in  the  Alta,  declaring  that  instruc- 
tions received  since  his  proclamations  fully  confiruied 
the  policy  there  set  forth,  and  that  it  was  distinctly 
said  that  "the  plan  of  establishing    an    independent 
government   in    California  cannot   be   sanctioned,  no 
luatttT  from  what  source  it  may  come."     The  phrase 
'independent   government'    drew  forth  a  re])ly  from 
Burnett  disclaiming  any  design    on  the  part  of  the 
agitators  of  a  civil  organization  to  erect  a  government 
not  dependent  on  the  United  States,  and    repelling 
as  a  libel  the  insinuation  contained  in  the  governor's 
communication  that  the  people  of  San  Francisco  had 
ever  contemplated  becoming  "the  sport  and  play  of 
the  great  powers  of  the  world,"   which  they  would  be 
should  they  attempt  a  separate  existence.     The  Alta 
also  denied  the  charge  in  a  subsequent  issue;  and  the 
connnittee    of  which    Burnett  was  chairman  liaviiijjf 
published  a  notice   making  the  day  of  election  and 
convention    conformable    to   the    governor's  ap})oint- 
ments,  while  asserting  their  perfect  right  to  do  other- 
wise, there  was  a  lull  in  the  political  breeze  for  the 
intervening  period.^* 

In  the  mean  time  San  Francisco  had  received  a  post- 
master, John  W.  Geary,"'^  who  in  spite  of  the  preju- 

"*Alta  Cal,  July  12  and  10,  1849;  Cajyron,  4.^-4;  U.  S.  H.  Mmc.  Dor.,  44, 
i.,  p.  5-9,  31st  coug.,  1st  sess.  At  a  mass  meeting  in  Sao.,  that  district  was 
declared  entitled  to  10  delegates.  Pliu-vr  Times  (Sac),  July  14,  IS41). 

^■^  Unhouml  Docs.,  MS.,  ."jS.  John  W.  fJeary  was  born  \n  Westmoreland 
CO.,  Pa,  in  1820.  He  had  been  col  ot  a  reg.  from  his  state  in  tlie  Mexican 
war,  and  fought  at  the  battles  of  La  Hoya,  ChaiJultepec,  (Jaritade  Boleii,  and 
city  of  Mexico.  His  duties  as  alcalde  were  those  of  mayor,  sheriff,  ])r(il)ate 
and  police  judge,  recorder,  coroner,  and  notary  public.  After  the  appoiiit- 
nient  of  W.  B.  Almoml,  a  man  of  fair  legal  attainments  from  Missouri,  who 
was  at  his  request  made  judge  of  first  instance,  with  civil  jurisdiction,  liis 
duties  were  loss  complex.  Geary  was  reelected  in  1850,  with  only  12  vntes 
against  him  in  4,000.  He  wa.s  a  'splendid-looking  man,  corilial  and  ati'ul'h'.' 
Ho  returned  to  Pa  in  1852,  and  was  appointed  governor  of  Kansas.  Ho  si'ivcd 
h\  the  civil  war  as  col  of  the  28th  regt  Pa  vols.  His  death  occurred  at  llar- 
risburg,  Fob.  8,  1873.  An.ofS.  F.,  718-34;  Sw.  Record,  Feb.  10,  1873;  (hik- 
laiul  HiivUc,  Fob.  15,  1873;  Neoula  Tnimcript,  Fel).  11,  1873;  Oakhwl 
TrniiKcript,  Feb.  9,  1873;  Folmni  Tflcijrapli,  Apr.  4,  18CS;  Alpine  Sili-<r  M"iiih 
Uiin  Chronirl,;  Fob.  1."),  1873;  Alhiny  Rfiji^tfi;  Fob.  14,  1873;  r/ifftl'.  S.  /'., 
139;  AUa  (Jaliforniu,  Jan.  9,  18(50,  and  Feb.  9,  1873;  Upluim,  Rem.  o/J'ininvr 


GEARY  AND  KING 


281 


dice  at  once  manifested  against  imported  officials, 
acliieved  a  popularity  which  obtained  for  him  the 
office  of  first  alcalde,  or  judge  of  the  first  instance, 
at  the  election,  and  which  kept  him  in  office  after  a 
change  of  government  had  been  effected/"* 

In  July,  T.  Butler  King,  in  his  character  of  confi- 
dential agent  of  the  government,  paid  a  visit  to  the 
mining  districts.  He  travelled  in  state,  accompanied 
by  General  Smith  and  staff,  Commodore  Jones  and 
staff,  Dr  Tyson,  geologist,  and  a  cavalry  detachment 
under  Lieutenant  Stoneman,  who  afterward  became  a 
general."     He  made  an  extended  tour,  and  a  report  in 

Jounutlmn,  ia  Adt'ertuier'n  Guide,  105,  Dec.  1876;  S.  F.  vn  U.  S.,  1854,  docs. 
'1-1,  2:i;  i\  /'.  C<ill,  Nov.  9,  1884;  Plerrea  Roinjk  Sketch,  MS.,  188-9;  Auburn 
Pkif.ei-  Arijm,  Fol).  15,  1873;  S.  F.  Elemtoi;  Feb.  15,  lS7:i. 

'■"I  find  the  following  ofBcers  under  military  govt  in  1848-9,  mentioned 
in  VuUmud  Divs.,  M.S.,  319-40-  Jamea  W.  Weeks,  K.  H.  ]>imniick,  alcaldes, 
Siiu  Jose;  Kstevan  Addison,  alcalde,  Sta  Barbara;  Isaac  Callahan,  .iloaldc, 
Los  Angeles,  1848.  In  1849,  William  Myers,  alcalde;  and  Albert  (r.  Toonies 
;iiiil  I 'avid  Plemnions,  jntlgea  in  the  upper  north  California  district;  Jolin  T. 
Richardson,  alcalde,  San  Jos*);  Stephen  Cooper,  Bonicia;  Dennis  (raiiagan, 
;ili;alile,  San  Diego;  J.  L.  Majo's,  subprefect  at  Santa  Cruz;  Mij^uel  Avila,  al- 
ciMc,  San  Luis  Obispo;  I\.  M.  May,  alcalde,  San  Jose;  A.  M.  White,  alcalde, 
Meri'ccles  River;  CJ.  D.  Dickerson,  prefect  of  the  district  of  Sau  Joaquin; 
(  liarlis  P.  Wilkins,  prefect  of  Sonoma;  W.  B.  Almond,  alcalde,  S.  V.  (asso- 
ciate of  deary),  Horace  Hawea,  prefect  of  S.  F.  district;  Pacilicus  Ord,  judge 
of  supreme  tribunal;  Lewis  Dent,  ditto;  John  E.  Townes,  high-sheritF  of  S.  F. 
(hstrict;  Ivhvard  H.  Harrison,  collector  at  S.  F. ;  Rodman  M.  Price,  purser 
;uid  navy  jij^ent,  and  chairman  of  town  council  committee;  Philip  A.  Koaoh, 
iu  his  FiK'lH  on  Cal.,  MS.,  7-8,  mentions  being  elected  to  the  otfices  of  1st 
alcalde  and  recorder  of  Monterey,  in  Oct.  1849.  From  other  docs.— Ignacio 
Ezquer,  1st  alcalde,  Monterey;  Jacinto  Rodriguez,  2il  alcalde,  Monterey;  Jose 
Maria  Covarrubias  and  Augustin  Jansseu,  jueces  de  j)az;  Antonio  Maria  Pico, 
prefect  of  northern  Cal.  district;  N.  B.  Smith  and  Wellner,  8ui)prefeets. 

*'  Crosby  gives  quite  a  particular  accou-it  of  this  oiRcial  '  progress  '  through 
the  country.  King,  he  says,  nearly  lost  his  life  by  it,  through  his  inability 
to  adapt  himself  to  the  customs  of  border  life.  '  He  would  rise  in  the  morn- 
ing after  the  sun  was  well  up,  and  after  making  an  elaborate  toilet,  having 
his  boots  bhicked,  and  dressing  as  if  going  to  the  senate-chandjer,  would  then 
t;ike  breakfast,  and  by  the  time  he  was  ready  to  start,  it  would  be  8  or  9 
ii'clock,  the  sua  would  bo  hot,  and  the  marciies  made  in  the  worst  part  of  the 

ilay (icn.  Smith  said  to  him:  "Not  only  you,  but  all  the  rest  of  the  party, 

are  rendering  yourselves  liable  to  fever  and  sickness. ..  .We  ought  to  go  in 
tiie  early  iMoniing,  and  lie  by  iu  the  middle  of  the  day."  But  Khig  would 
iii)t  agnie  to  this.  I  felt  premonitions  of  a  fever  coining  on,  and  took  my 
leave  (if  tiie  party,  and  made  my  way  to  Sutter's  Fort,  anil  was  laicl  up  three 
or  four  Weeks  with  a  fever.  The  party  went  down  to  tlio  .Soutli  Fork,  and 
tluii  (iv(!r  to  tiie  Mokelumne,  to  the  .southern  mines.  King  brouj;ht  u[)  at 
!^.  !•'.,  and  came  near  losing  his  life  with  a  fever.'  Eit'titi  in  Cnl.,  MS.,  '_".»  M); 
Uttiroj  Lieut  Cmlimliler  Nini/i/old,  in  //.  Ejc,  Doc,  31,  1,  no.  17,  I)p.  954-5; 
Pilar  Tiii,e,'<,  July  14  and  Aug.'  1,  1849. 


282 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


¥  4l; '! 


i!  i 


J  ■  i 


which  he  gave  a  very  flattering  account  of  the  mines, 
and  reiterated  what  the  reader  already  knows  concern- 
ing the  people — their  anxiety  for  a  government  which 
they  could  recognize,  and  its  causes;  namely,  igno- 
rance of  Mexican  laws,  and  their  oppressive  nature 
when  understood ;  the  absence  of  any  legal  system  of 
taxation  to  provide  the  means  of  supporting  a  govern- 
ment; the  imposition  of  import  duties  by  the  United 
States,  without  representation;  and  the  uncertainty 
of  titles,  with  other  things  of  less  importance. 

After  reporting  the  action  of  the  people  in  their 
efforts  to  correct  some  of  these  evils,  and  that  they 
had  resolved  upon  the  immediate  formation  of  a  state 
government,  he  further  remarked  that  "  they  consid- 
ered they  had  a  right  to  decide,  so  far  as  they  were 
concerned,  the  question  of  slavery,  and  believed  tliat 
in  their  decision  they  would  be  sanctioned  by  all  par- 
ties." King  declared  that  he  had  no  secret  instruc- 
tions, verbal  or  written,  on  the  subject  of  slavery; 
"  nor  was  it  ever  hinted  or  intimated  to  mc  that  I 
was  expected  to  attempt  to  influence  their  action  in 
the  slightest  degree  on  that  subject."  "  In  the  elec- 
tion of  delegates,"  he  said,  "  no  questions  were  asked 
about  a  candidate's  politics;  the  object  was  to  find 
competent  men."  But  of  the  thirty-seven  delegates, 
sixteen  were  from  the  slave-holding  states,  ten  from 
the  free  states,  and  eleven  were  native  citizens  of 
California,  all  but  one  of  whom  came  from  districts 
south  of  the  Missouri  compromise  line  of  3G°  30'. 
The  convention  therefore  would  have  a  presunji)tivo 
majority  of  twenty-seven  leaning  toward  the  south."* 
This  was  not  the  actual  proportion  after  the  election, 
forty-eight  members  being  chosen,  the  additional  (Kle- 
gates  being  from  the  mining  districts  and  San  I'ran- 
cisco,  where  the  population  was  greatest.  Twenty-two 
were  then  from  the  northern  states,  fifteen  from  the 
slave  states,  seven  native  Californians,  and  four  for- 
eign born. 

**  King's  rept,  in  //.  Ex,  Doc,,  31,  1,  no.  59,  pp.  1-0;  Oreen'a  IJ/e  and 
Adv.,  21. 


POPULAR  roEAS. 


288 


King  was  one  of  those  anomalous  individuals — a 
northern  man  with  a  southerner's  views.  Born  and 
reared  in  Pennsylvania,  he  went  early  in  life  to 
Georgia,  and  marrying  a  woman  of  that  state,  be- 
came infected  with  the  state-rights  doctrine,  and  in 
1838  was  elected  to  congress  as  its  representative. 
As  a  whig  he  supported  Harrison  and  Tyler  in  1840, 
and  Taylor  and  Fillmore  in  1848,  and  advocated  lead- 
ing whig  measures.  But  the  virus  of  slavery  with 
which  he  was  inoculated  developed  itself  later  in 
secession,  which  made  an  end  of  all  his  greatness. 
Wliile  laboring  to  bring  California  into  the  union,  he 
had  in  view  the  division  of  the  territory  by  congress, 
and  that  all  south  of  36°  30'  should  be  devoted  to 
slavery.  This  was  to  be  the  price  of  the  admission 
of  California,  or  any  part  of  it.  Under  this  belief  he 
was  willing  to  be  and  was  useful  to  the  people  of 
CaHfornia  in  their  efforts  to  obtain  a  civil  govern- 
ment. The  administration  paid  him  well  for  his  ser- 
vices, and  rewarded  him  with  the  office  of  collector  of 
customs.  If  the  people  would  willingly  have  had  no 
more  of  him  they  had  their  reasons.^* 

'•'  King  made  an  ass  of  himself,  generally.  Crane  relates  with  much  gusto 
the  following  as  illustrative  of  King's  character.  When  the  custom-hou»o 
w;i.s  burned  in  the  great  fire  of  18G1,  King  had  occasion  to  remove  the  treas- 
ure from  a  vault  in  the  ruins  to  the  corner  of  Washington  and  Kearny  streets, 
and  ii.s8end)led  his  force  of  eniplf)yes  to  act  as  guard.  They  came  together, 
ariiiuil  with  cutlasses,  pistols,  etc.,  and  a  cart  being  loaded,  formed  a  line, 
liiiJisL'lf  at  the  hetid,  leading  o£f  with  a  sword  in  one  hand  and  a  pistol  in  the 
otliur.  In  this  manner  several  cart-loads  were  escorted  to  the  place  of  deposit. 
^^'lu■n  the  last  train  was  en  route,  some  wags  intluced  the  waiters  of  a  public 
eating-house  to  charge  upon  it  with  knives,  when  some  of  the  guard  ran 
away,  King,  however,  holding  his  ground.  Ptint,  Present,  ami  Future,  MS., 
\'2.  Some  one  had  a  caricature  of  the  proceedings  lithographed,  and  entitled 
'  Ye  King  and  ye  Commcnes,  or  ye  Manners  and  Customes  of  California — a 
new  farce  lately  enacted  in  May  28,  1851.'  S.  F.  AlUi,  May  29,  30,  1851. 
Owi:i  attacked  Taylor's  administration  for  the  expense  of  King  s  mission,  say- 
ing lie  had  at  his  disposal  the  army,  navy,  and  treasury.  There  was  much 
tnitli  ill  the  declaration.  His  pay  was  §8  per  diem;  he  waa  ilrawing  pay  as  a 
meiiilier  of  congress,  although  he  subsequently  resigned,  and  the  olticers  of 
the  ai'iny  and  navy  were  enjoined  to  '  in  all  matters  aid  ami  assist  him  in 
carrying  out  the  views  of  the  government,'  and  'be  guided  by  his  advice  and 
council  in  the  conduct  of  all  proper  measures  within  the  scope  of  those  [his] 
instructions. '  But  the  government  had  a  right  to  employ  all  its  means  for  an 
nlij.vl.  H.  Ex.  Doc.,  31,  1,  no.  17,  p.  146;  Vomj.  GM>e,  1851-2;  App  ,  5:U-6. 
King  went  with  the  southern  states  when  they  seceded,  and  was  sent  as  a 
cninniissioner  to  Europe.  He  died  at  his  home  iu  Georgia  May  10,  1804. 
t>.  F.  Call,  June  20,  1804. 


POUTICAL  HISTORY 


!'      -1 


Affairs  moved  on  with  occasional  disturbances  to 
the  public  peace,  which  were  suppressed  in  San  Fran- 
cisco by  a  popular  court,  and  in  the  outlying  districts 
by  military  authority.*'  The  election  of  August  1st 
for  delegates  to  the  constitutional  convention,  and 
municipal  officers,"^  passed  without  disturbance,  and 
preparations  began  to  be  made  for  the  convention 
itself,  which  was  to  be  held  at  Monterey.  But  now 
it  was  found  that  such  was  the  pressing  nature  of 
private  business,  such  the  expense  and  inconvenience 
of  a  journey  to  the  capital  from  the  northern  and 
southern  districts,  that  some  doubt  bejian  to  be  enter- 
tained  of  the  presence  of  the  delegates.  King,  who 
had  the  principal  management  of  affairs,  overcame  this 
difficulty  by  directing  Commodore  Jones  to  send  tlie 
United  States  steamer  Edith  to  San  Diego,  Los  An- 
geles, and  Santa  Bdrbara,  to  bring  the  southern  dole- 
gates  to  Monterey;^'  while  the  northern  delegates 
chartered  the  brig  Fremont  to  carry  them  from  San 
Francisco.  The  Edith  was  wrecked  on  the  passage, 
and  the  Fremont  narrowly  escaped  the  same  fate.  All 
arrived  safely  at  their  destination,  however,  and  were 
ready  to  organize  on  the  3d  of  September 

Never  in  the  history  of  the  world  did  a  similar  con- 
vention come  together.  They  were  there  to  form  a 
state  out  of  unorganized  territory;  out  of  torritoiy 
only  lately  wrested  from  a  subjugated  people,  who 
were  elected  to  assist  in  framing  a  constitution  in  con- 
formity with  the  political  views  of  the  conquirors. 
These  native  delegates  were  averse  to  the  change 
about  to  be  made.  They  feared  that  because  they  were 
large   land-owners  they  would   have   the  burden  of 

*•  Riley,  Order  No.  22,  to  commander  of  posts,  to  investigate  outrages. 
Savaije,  Coll.,  MS.,  iii.  .%;  fL  S.  Sin.  Doc.,  52,  xiii.  p.  12-41;  31st  Conj:.,  ht 
Sess. ;  //.  Ex.  Doc,  5,  p.  i.  pp.  150,  101,  105-78,  31st  Cong.,  1st  Sess. 

*'  Peter  H.  Burnett  was  elected  chief  justice,  Jose  M.  C'ovarrubias,  I'acili- 
ous  Onl,  and  Louis  Dent  were  chosen  associate  judges.  Alcaldes  were  clfctuil 
in  the  several  districts. 

**Tlio  Eilith  was  commanded  by  Lieut  McCormick,  wlio  knew  littU'  "f  tlie 
coast,  and  being  bewildered  in  a  fog,  lost  the  steamer.  Letter  of  ( '(nuiihilnvc 
Jones,  \n  H.  Ex.  Dnc,  .TI,  1,  no.  17,  pp.  951-2;  Coiuj.  Globe,  1S51-2,  5u.">,  J7ii; 
Naiia  Jh'ifUler,  April  20,  1872. 


PERSONNEL  OF  THE  CONVENTION. 


285 


sup|)orting  the  new  government  laid  upon  their  shoul- 
dei;^,  and  naturally  feared  other  innovations  painful 
to  tlieir  feelings  because  opposed  to  their  habits  of 
tliouifJi  t.  These  very  apprehensions  forced  thani  to  be- 
Cdiiic  the  representatives  of  their  class,  in  order  to  avert 
as  iiiuili  as  possible  the  evils  they  foreboded.  Such 
men  as  Vallejo,  Carrillo,  and  De  la  Guerra  could  not 
be  i<;nored,  though  they  spoke  only  through  an  inter- 
preter. Carrillo  was  from  one  of  the  southern  di.stricts, 
a  pine  Castilian,  of  decided  character,  and  prejudiced 
auainst  the  invaders.  De  la  Guerra  was  perhaps  the 
most  accomplished  and  best  educated  of  the  Spanish 
(Ic'k'gation,  and  had  no  love  for  the  Americans,  although 
he  accepted  his  place  among  them,  and  sat  afterward 
in  tlie  state  senate.  Vallejo  had  not  forgotten  the 
Bear  Flag  filibusters  who  had  subjected  him  to  the 
ignominy  of  arrest;  and  each  had  his  reason  for  being 
somewliat  a  drawback  on  the  proceedings.®' 

Of  foreign-born  delegates  there  were  few.  Captain 
Sutter  was  noticeable,  owing  to  his  long  residence  in 
the  country,  and  his  reputation  for  hospitality;  but 
otlieiwise  he  carried  little  weight.  Louis  Dent,  dele- 
gate from  Santa  Bdrbara,  an  Englishman,  voted  with 
Do  la  Guerra.  Among  the  Americans  were  a  num- 
ber wJio  were,  or  afterward  became,  more  or  less 
famous;  H.  W.  Halleck,  then  secretar}'^ of  state  under 
Governor  Riley;  Thomas  O.  Larkin,®*  first  and  last 

^  C'rcisljy,  to  whom  I  am  indebted  for  many  hints  regarding  character, 
savd  that  Avheii  the  state  seal  was  under  discussion,  the  Spanish  members 
cxliiliited  considerable  feeling  upon  tlie  l)ear  being  us>'d  as  the  emblem  of 
C:ilif(iiiii:i.  Vallejo  objected  to  it;  he  thought  it  should  at  least  be  uuiler  the 
cuiitriil  of  a  vaquero,  with  a  lasso  round  its  neck!  Events  in  CuL,  MS.,  34. 
(.'aUli  Lyoii  of  Lyousdale  enjoyed  the  reputation  of  designing  the  state  seal, 
altli(iii<.'li  it  was  not  justly  his  duo.  Major  R.  S.  Garnet  de  signed  it,  but 
bi'iiig  of  a  retiring  disposition,  gave  his  drawing  to  Lyon,  who  added  some 
sUrs  around  the  rim,  and  obtained  the  prize  of  ^1,000,  but  forgot  to  purclia^o 
witli  !♦•  a  ])riuting-presa,  which  was  one  of  the  conditions.  Rons  Browne,  in 
Oiv/Ar  '  mthhi,  xv.  346;  First  Ann  I  Terrlt.  Pioneers,  50-7;  S.  F.  Cil. 
Courid,  .ii'ly  18.50;  Sm.  Union,  March  17,  1858.  Ihe  great  seal  represents 
tlie  l)ay  of  San  Francisco,  with  tlie  goddess  Minerva  in  the  foreground,  the 
Sierra  in  tlie  Ijackground,  mining  in  the  middle  distance,  the  grizzly  bear  at 
the  fi't't  of  Minerva,  and  the  word  Eureka  at  the  top,  under  a  belt  of  stars. 
Aroun.l  the  whole,  'The  Great  Seal  of  the  State  of  California.'  S.  F.  Ann. 
Ajf.,  S'M). 

''^Thomas  Oliver  Larkin  was  born  in  Mass.  :n  1803,  and  migrated  to  Cali> 


286 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


United  States  consul  to  California;  Edward  Gilbert, 
who  established  the  Alta  Calif onda,  was  sent  to  con- 
gress,  and  killed  in  a  duel,  McDougal  became  gov- 
ernor,  and  Gwin  United  States  senator;  J  Ross 
Browne,  reporter  of  the  convention,  and  a  popular 
writer,  was  afterward  employed  as  a  secret  and  open 
agent  of  the  government,  to  look  mto  politics  and  into 
mines, "^  Jacob  R.  Snyder,  a  Philadelphian,  wlioni 
Commodore  Stockton  found  in  the  country,  and  to 
whom  he  intrusted  the  organization  of  an  artillery 
corps,  and  made  quartermaster  to  Fremont's  battalion. 
Under  Mason's  administration  he  was  surveyor  for 
the  middle  department  of  California,  and  one  of  the 
founders  of  Sacramento.  Stephen  G.  Foster,  Elisha 
0.  Crosby,  K.  H.  Dimmick,  Lansford  W.  Hastin*js, 
were  all  enterprising  northern  men ;  besides  others  k  ss 
well  known.  Rodman  M.  Price  was  subsequently 
member  of  congress  from,  and  governor  of,  the  state 
of  New  Jersey;  and  Pacificus  Ord  district  attorney 
for  the  United  States  in  California. 

The  convention  was  not  lacking  in  talent  It  was 
not  chosen  with  regard  to  party  proclivities,  but  was 
understood  to  be  under  the  management,  imaginary  if 
not  real,  of  southern  men.  It  was  a  curious  mixture. 
On  one  hand  a  refined,  and  in  his  own  esteem  at  least 
an  already  distinguished,  representative  of  the  after- 
ward arrogant  chivalry  who  sought  to  rule  California, 


ll 


fornia  in  1832.  He  was  deeply  concerned  in  all  the  measures  which  severed 
Cal.  from  Mexico,  loaning  his  funds  and  credit  to  nteet  the  exigencies  of  tlio 
war.  He  was  made  consul  and  navy  agent  by  the  U.  S.  govt.  He  gave  each 
of  the  officers  of  the  Southampton  a  lot  in  Benicia.  Larkin,  Doc.,  vii.  7-;  Vdltmi, 
Three  Years,  28-30.  He  was  at  one  time  supposed  to  be  the  richest  iiuui  ia 
America.  S.  I.  Frrnid,  vii.  85. 

*'>  John  Ross  Browne  was  an  Irishman,  bom  in  182J  at  Dublin,  where  his 
father  edited  the  Comet,  a  political  paper,  and  who  immigrated  to  the  L'.  S. 
in  1833.  The  lad,  whose  new  home  was  in  Louisville,  Ky.,  exhibited  a  pas- 
sion for  travel,  which  he  gratified.  He  had  talent,  and  became  reporter  to  a 
Cincinnati  paper,  studied  medicine,  reported  for  the  U.  S.  senate,  ami  liclil 
several  situations  under  govt,  at  last  being  given  a  place  as  lieut  in  tlic 
revenue  service,  and  sent  to  Cal.,  where  he  found  the  service  had  been  reduced 
and  himself  discharged.  He  then  became  reporter  for  the  convention.  Suit- 
sequently  he  was  secret  treasury  agent,  and  emyloyed  to  report  upon  nil ii us. 
His  last  appointment  waa  as  minister  to  China.  His  death  occnrred  in  Uec, 
1875. 


MEMBERS  OF  THE  CONVENTION. 


S87 


was  William  M.  Gwin.  On  the  other  the  loose-jointed, 
honest,  but  blatant  and  unkempt  McCarver,  whom 
we  have  known  m  Oregon.  Another  kind  of  south- 
erner was  Benjamin  F.  Moore,  who  had  migrated 
from  Florida  through  Texas,  carried  a  huge  bowie- 
knife,  and  was  usually  half  drunk.*"  Joel  P.  Walker 
we  have  seen  coming  overland  in  1840  and  1841  with 
his  family  and  household  gods,  first  to  Oregon  and 
then  to  California,  a  pioneer  of  pioneers;  Charles  T. 
Betts  of  Virginia,  who  was  a  man  of  ability,  and  an 
earnest  southerner;  James  M.  Jones,  a  young  man,  a 
fine  linguist,  and  gcod  lawyer,  who  was  United  States 
district  judge  for  the  southern  district  of  California 
after  the  admission  of  CaUfornia,  and  who  died  in  1851 
of  consumption,  at  San  Joa6,'"  an  extreme  southerner 
in  his  views,  fully  believing  in  and  insisting  on  the 
divine  right  of  slave-holders  to  the  labor  of  the  African 
race;  the  genial  and  scholarly  O.  M.  Wozencraft, 
William  E.  Shannon,  an  Irishman  by  birth,  and  a 
lawyer, who  introduced  that  section  in  the  bill  of  rights 
which  made  California  a  free  state — borrowed,  it  is 
true,  but  as  illustrious  and  imperishable  aa  it  is  Ameri- 


can 


as 


On  the  1st  of  the  month  the  members  present  met 
in  Colton  hall  to  adjourn  to  the  3d.  Some  debate 
was  had  on  the  apportionment  as  it  had  been  made, 
the  election  as  it  stood,  and  the  justice  of  increasing 
the  delegation  from  several  districts,  which  was  finally 
admitted,  when  forty-eight  instead  of  thirty-seven 
members  were  received.*     Of  these,  fourteen  were 

'^ Foster,  Angekam  1847,  MS.,  17;  Crosby,  Eventa  in  Cal,  MS.,  47.  In  1852 
Moore  received  the  whig  nomination  for  congress  but  was  defeated.  As  a 
criminal  lawyer  he  was  somewhat  noted.  He  several  times  represented 
Tuolumne  co.  in  the  legislature.  He  died  Jan.  2,  I8C6,  at  Stockton.  Pajaro 
Tinifs,  Jan.  13,  ISCO;  Havilah  Courier,  Jan.  12, 1867. 

^''BnrmU,  RecolL,  MS.,  ii.  255-67;  Owin,  Mem.,  MS.,  14. 

^.VcClellan,  Repub.  in  Amer.,  115-16.  Shannon  came  to  the  IT.  S.  in 
1830  at  the  age  of  7  years,  his  father  settling  in  Steuben  co.,  N.  Y.  He  studied 
law,  but  joined  the  N.  Y.  rejf.  for  Cal.  in  1846.  Ho  was  elected  to  the  state 
senate  in  1850,  and  died  of  cnolera  Nov.  13th  of  that  year.  Sixc.  Tratutrript, 
Nov.  14,  1850;  Shuck'8  Eeprea.  Men,  853-4;  San  Jod  Pioneer,  March,  30,  1878. 

''The  rule  under  which  the  additional  delegates  were  admitted  was  that 


II 

! 

!|;! 

It 

v- 

V 

ii 

1 

POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


lawyers,  twelve  farmers,  seven  merchants.     The  re- 
mainder were  engineers,  bankers,  physicians,  and  piint- 

every  one  having  received  over  100  votes  in  hia  district  should  l)e  a  member. 

The  list  of  regular  delegates  stood  as  follows: 

NanieH.  Nativity.  Residence.  Age. 

John  A.  Sutter Switzerland 47 

H.  \y.  Halleuk     New  York  ....  Monterey :12 

William  M.  Gwin Tennessee San  Francisco ....  44 

William  M.  Steuart Maryland San  Franciac* 49 

Joseph  Hoborn Maryland   San  Francisco. ... 39 

Thomas  L.  Vermeule New  Jersey Ii5 

O.  M.  Wozencraft ,, ...  Ohio San  Joaquin 34 

B.  F.  Moore Florida San  Joaquin  29 

William  E.  Shannon New  York Sacramento. ...  .  .'27 

Winfield  S.  Sherwood New  York Sacramento 32 

Elani  Brown . .  New  York  ....  San  Jose ry2 

Joseph  Aram New  York San  Jose 39 

J.  D.  Hoppe Maryland San  Jos6 35 

John  McDougal Ohio Sutter 32 


, .  Vernon 34 

. .  San  Jose 34 

..San Jose. 39 

.Sacramento 42 

San  Francisco ....  37 


ir-i  m 


Eliaha  0.  Crosby New  York 

H.  K.  Dimmick , , . .  .New  York 

Julian  Hanks. Connecticut.. . 

M.  M.  McCarver Kentucky.   .  . 

Francis  J.  Lippitt Rhode  Island 

Rodman  M.  Price Massachusetts. Monterey 47 

Thomas  O.  Larkin New  York San  Francisco ....  36 

Louis  Dent. ,    ........... .Missouri Monterey 20 

Henry  Hill ...    .   Virginia Monterey 33 

Charles  T.  Betts. Virginia Monterey 40 

Myron  Norton Vermont San  Francisco ....  27 

James  M.  Jones Kentucky San  Joaquin 25 

Pedro  Sainsevain Bordeaux San  Jose 26 

Jose  M.  Covarrubias France Santa  Barbara. .  ..41 

Antonio  M.  Pico California. ....  San  Jos6 40 

Jacinto  Rodriguez California Monterey ...  36 

Stephen  G.  Foster Maine Los  Angeles 28 

Henry  A.  Teff  t ,    ....  New  York Sau  Luis  Obispo  .  26 

J.  M.  H.  HoUings worth.'.  .Maryland San  Joaquin 25 

Abel  Stearns ....  Massachusetts  .Los  Angeles 51' 

Hugh  Reid Scotland San  Gabriel 38 

Benjamin  S.  Lippincott. . .  .New  York San  Joaquin 34 

Joel  P.  Walker Virginia Sonoma 52 

Jacob  R.  Snyder Pennslyvania .  .Sacramento 34 

Lansford  W.  Hastings Ohio Sacramento 30 

Pablo  de  la  Guerra California   . . .  .Santa  Barbara 3^ 

M.  G.  Vallejo California.   .  .  .Sonoma 42 

Jose  Antonio  Carrillo .   ....  California Los  Angeles 53 

Manuel  Dominguez California. ....  Los  Angeles 46 

Robert  Semple Kentucky Benicia 42 

Pacificus  Ord Maryland Monterey 33 

Edward  Gilbert. .  .   New  York San  Francisco 27 

A.  J.  Ellis New  York San  Francisco. . .  .33 

Miguel  de  Pedrorena Spain San  Diego 41 

S.  F.  Bulklin,  May  25,  1878;  Mendoam  Co.  Hist.,  292-7;  Browne,  CoiialU. 

DelMten,  An.  S.  F.,  136-7;  San  Jomjuin  Co.  Hist.,  22-3;  Alameda  Co.  H14. 

Atlas,  13;    Yuhi  Co.  Hist.,  37-8;  James  Queen  and  W.  Lacy  were  elected 

'additional  delegates*  to  represent  Sac.    Sutter  Co.  Hist,,  26;  Ea^uer,  Mem., 

31-2;  S.  F.  Post,  June  26,  1886. 


NORTH  AND  SOUTH. 


289 


ers.""  These  professions  did  not  prevent  their  being 
miners  any  more  than  it  disquahfied  them  from  legis- 
lation, and  nothing  but  crime  bars  the  American  from 
that  privilege.  AH  were  in  the  prime  of  life,  all  very 
niui'li  in  earnest,  and  patriotic  according  to  their  light, 
albt'it  their  light  was  colored  more  or  less  by  local 
prejudices.  To  be  a  patriot,  a  man  must  be  prejudiced ; 
but  the  respect  we  accord  to  his  patriotism  depends 
upon  the  breadth  or  quality  of  his  bias. 

As  I  have  remarked,  the  northern  spirit  was  pre- 
pared to  array  itself,  if  necessary,  against  any  assump- 
tion on  the  part  of  the  chivalry  in  the  convention, 
whose  pretensions  to  the  divine  right  to  rule  displayed 
itself,  not  only  upon  slave  soil>  but  was  carried  into 
the  national  senate  chamber,  and  had  already  flaunted 
itself  rather  indiscreetly  in  California.  While  the 
choice  of  a  president  was  under  discussion,  Snyder 
took  occasion  to  state  in  a  facetious  and  yet  pointed 
manner  that  Mr  Gwin  had  come  down  prepared  to  be 
president,  and  had  also  a  constitution  in  his  pocket 
which  the  delegates  would  be  expected  to  adopt,  sec- 
tion by  section.'*  Both  Snyder's  remarks  and  Gvvin's 
denial  were  received  with  laughter,  but  the  hint  was 
not  lost.  Snyder  proposed  Doctor  Semple  for  presi- 
dent of  the  convention,  and  the  pioneer  printer  of 
Monterey,  a  giant  in  height  if  not  in  intellect,  was 
duly  elected."^  He  was  a  large-hearted  and  measur- 
ably astute  man,  with  tact  enough  to  preside  well, 
and  as  much  wisdom  in  debate  as  his  fellows.'* 

The  chosen  reporter  of  the  convention,  J.  Ross 
Browne,  had  a  commission  to  establish  post-offices, 
and  established  one  at  San  Josd  before  the  conven- 
tion,  and    none   anywhere   afterward.     William   G., 

''^Overlaml  Monthly,  ix.  14-16;  Simonin,  Grand  Quest.,  820-3-, 

^'  Crosby,  Events  in  Cal.,  MS.,  38-40.  This  waa  true;  but  iit  was  the  consti- 
tution of  Iowa. 

'■''  ( fwin  explains  that  it  was  the  distrust  of  the  natiye-born  members  that 
defeated  him.  They  attributed  to  him  '  the  most  dawgerous  designs  upon 
their  property,  in  the  formation  of  a  state  government.'  Memoirs,  MS.,  11. 

''^lioi/rp,  California,  62;  Colton,  Three  J^car*,  82;,  Sherman,  Mem.,  i.  78;, 
CoproH,  47-8. 

Hist  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    19 


290 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


':\',l 


Marcy  was  selected  secretary ;  Caleb  Lyon,  of  Lyons- 
dale,  first  assistant,  and  J.  G.  Field,  second  assistant 
secretaries.  William  Hartnellwas  employed  to  inter- 
pret for  the  Spanish  members.  Chaplains  were  at 
hand,  Padre  Ramirez  and  S.  H.  Willey  alternating 
with  the  refugee  superior  of  the  Lower  California  mis- 
sions,  Ignacio  Arrellanes.'* 

Thus  equipped  the  delegates  proceeded  harmoniously 
with  their  work.  They  did  not  pretend  to  originate 
a  constitution;  they  carefully  compared  those  of  the 
several  states  with  whose  workings  they  were  familiar, 
and  borrowed  from  each  what  was  best  and  most  ap- 
plicable, or  could  be  most  easily  made  to  conform  to 
the  requirements  of  California,  all  of  which,  l)y  amend- 
ments frequentl}-  suggested,  became  modelled  into  a 
new  and  nearly  faultless  instrument. 

To  the  surpri'o  of  northern  men,  no  objection  was 
made  by  the  southerners  to  that  section  in  the  bill  ( f 
rights  which  declared  that  neither  slavery  nor  invol- 
untary servitude,^*  except  in  punishment  of  crime, 
should  ever  be  tolerated  in  the  state.  It  was  nut  in 
the  bill  as  reported  by  the  committee'*  having  it  in 

''*  Browne,  L.  Cal,  51;   Willey'g  Tltirty  Yearg,  32. 

'*  The  temper  of  the  majority  was  understootl.  As  early  as  1848  the  ijues- 
tion  was  discussed  in  Cal.  in  relation  to  its  future.  The  editor  of  the  i'nli- 
Jbmian,  in  May  of  that  year,  declares  that  he  echoes  the  sentiment  of  the 
people  of  California  in  saying  that '  slavery  is  neither  needed  nor  desireit  hcru, 
and  that  if  their  voices  could  be  heard  in  the  halls  of  our  national  legi;>hituru, 
it  would  be  as  the  voice  of  one  man ; '  rather  than  put  this  blighting  ciir!>c  ujma 
us,  let  us  remain  as  we  are,  unacknowledged,  unaided.'  A  correspondent, 
signins  himself  G.  C.  H.,  in  the  same  journal  of  Nov.  4,  1848,  writes:  'If 
white  labor  is  too  high  for  agriculture,  laborers  on  contract  may  be  brougLt 
from  China,  or  elsewhere,  who  if  well  treated  will  work  faithfully  for  low 
wages.'  Buckelcw,  in  the  issue  of  March  15,  1848,  said:  '  Wo  have  not  lieanl 
one  of  our  acquaintance  in  this  country  advocate  the  measure,  and  we  are 
almost  certain  that  97-100  of  the  present  population  are  opposed  to  it. '  '  We 
left  the  slave  states,'  remarked  the  etlitor  again,  '  because  we  did  not  like  to 
bring  up  a  family  in  a  miserable,  can't-help-oue's-self  condition,'  ami  Jearly 
as  he  loved  the  union  he  should  prefer  Cal.  independent  to  seeing  her  a  slave 
state.  The  N.  Y.  Express  of  Sept.  10,  1848,  thought  the  immigration  winiU 
settle  the  question.  It  did  not  change  the  sentiment,  except  to  add  ratlur 
more  friends  of  slavery  to  the  population,  but  still  with  a  majority  against  it. 
On  the  8th  of  Jan.,  1849,  a  mass  meeting  in  Sac.  passed  resolutions  opposing 
slavery.     This  was  the  first  public  expression  of  the  kind. 

"Gwin  vraa  chairman  of  the  committee  on  constitution.  Norton,  Hill, 
Poster,  De  la  Guerra,  Rodriguez,  Teflft,  Covarrubias,  Dent,  Halleck,  Dim- 
mick,  Hoppe,  Vallejo,  Walker,  Snyder,  Sherwood,  Lippincott,  and  Moore 
constituted  the  committee.  Browne,  ConstU.  Debates,  29. 


THE  BAD  BLACK  MAN. 


flii 


(Larfjo,  but  when  ofFerccl  by  Shannon  was  unanimously 
jiduptcd.  Gwin  had  set  out  on  the  road  to  the  United 
States  senate,"  and  could  not  afford  to  raise  anv 
ti'iuljlesoine  questions;  and  most  of  the  southern  men 
among  the  delegates  having  office  in  view  were  sim- 
ilarly situated.  Some  of  them  hoped  to  regain  all 
that  they  lost  when  they  came  to  the  subject  t»f 
l.uuiidary.  Let  northern  California  be  a  free  state; 
(.ut  of  the  remainder  of  the  territory  acquired  from 
M.  xico  half  a  dozen  slave  states  might  be  made. 

But  the  African,  a  veritable  Banquo's  ghost,  would 
not  down,  even  when  as  fairly  treated  as  I  have 
sliown;  and  McCarver  insisted  on  the  adoption  of  a 
section  preventing  free  negroes  from  coming  to  or 
residing  in  the  state.  It  was  adroitly  laid  to  rest  l»y 
Green,  who  persuaded  McCarver  that  his  proposed 
section  properly  belonged  in  the  legislative  chapter  ot 
tlie  constitution,  where,  however,  it  never  appeared. 

Tlie  boundarv  was  more  difficult  to  deal  with,  intro- 
(hieing  the  question  of  slavery  in  an  unexpected  pha.se, 
Tlie  report  of  the  committee  on  boundary  included  in 
tlie  proposed  state  all  the  territory  between  the  line 
estal)lislied  by  the  treaty  of  1848  between  Mexico  and 
the  United  States,  on  the  south,  and  the  parallel  of 
42  on  the  north,  and  west  of  the  116th  meridian  of 
longitude.  McDougal,  chairman  of  the  committee, 
dift'ered  from  it,  and  proposed  the  105th  meridian  as 
the  eastern  boundary,  taking  in  all  territory  acquired 
from  Mexico  by  the  recent  treaty,  and  a  portion  of 
the  former  Louisiana  territory  besides.  Semple  was 
in  favor  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  as  the  eastern  boundar\-, 
but  proposed  leaving  it  open  for  congress  to  decide. 
Gwiu  took  a  little  less,  naming  for  the  eastern  line  the 
boundarj'^  between  California  and  New  Mexico,  as  laid 

"Cjv'ta  says  in  his  MemmrH,  MS.,  5,  that  on  the  day  of  Prest  Taylor's 
funeral  he  met  Stephen  A.  Douglas  in  front  of  the  Willard's  Hotel,  anil  in- 
formed him  that  on  the  morrow  he  should  he  en  route  for  California,  which 
liy  the  failure  of  congress  to  give  it  a  territorial  government,  would  l>e  force«l 
to  make  itself  a  state,  to  urge  that  policy  and  to  become  a  candidate  for 
U.  .s.  senator;  and  that  within  a  year  ne  would  present  his  credentials.  He 
was  enabled  to  keep  his  word. 


292 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


h:- 


down  on  Preuss'  map  of  Oregon  and  California  fidiii 
the  survey  of  Fremont  and  others.     Halleck  suggesttd 
givinj^  the  legislature  power  to  accede  to  any  projtohi- 
tion  of  congress  which  did  not  throw  the  eastern  line 
west  of  the  Sierra;  to  which  Gwin  agreed.     "If  wo 
include  territory  enough  for  several  states,"  said  tlio 
latter,"  it  is  competent  for  the  people  and  the  state  ot 
California  to  divide  it  hereafter."     He  thought  tlio 
fact  that  a  groat  portion  of  the  territory  was  uru  x- 
plorod,  and  that  the  Mormons  had  already  applied  for 
a  territorial  government,  should  not  prevent  them  from 
including  the  whole  area  named.     Then  arose  McCar- 
ver,  and  declared  it  the  duty  of  the  house  to  fix  a 
permanent   boundary,   both    that   they  might  know 
definitely  what  they  were  to  have,  and  to  prevent  the 
agitation  of  the  slavery  question  in  the  event  of  a  fu- 
ture division  of  "territory  enough  for  several  states." 
Shannon  proposed  nearly  the  line  which  was  finally 
adopted  for  California,  which  he  said  included  "eviry 
prominent  and  valuable  point  in  the  territory;  every 
point  which  is  of  any  real  value  to  the  state  ;"  and  in- 
sisted upon  fixing  the  boundary  in  the  constitution. 
"  I  believe,  if  we  do  not,  it  will  occasion  in  the  congress 
of  the  United  States  a  tremendous  struggle,"  said  he; 
and  gave  good  reasons  for  so  believing.     "The  slave- 
holding  states  of  the  south  will  undoubtedly  strive 
their  utmost  to  exclude  as  much  of  that  territory  ai 
they  can,  and  contract  the  limits  of  the  new  free  state 
within  the  smallest  possible  bounds.     They  will  nat- 
urally desire  to  leave  open  as  large  a  tract  of  country 
as  they  can  for  the  introduction  of  slavery  hereafter 
The  northern  states  will  oppose  it  [the  constitution], 
because' that  question  is  left  open" — and  so  the  admis- 
sion of  California  would  ue  long  delayed,  whereas  the 
thing     hey  all  most  desired  was  that  there  should  bo 
nodel.i".     Hastings  also  took  this  view.     "The  south 
will  re.    ily  see  that  the  object  [of  Gwin's  boundary] 
is  to  fc  i?e  the  settlement  of  the  question  [slavery]. 
The  sou  ii  will  never  agree  to  it.     It  raises  the  ques- 


BOUNDARY  QUKSTION. 


SOB 


tiiin  in  all  its  bilterness  niid  in  its  worse  ftn'iii,  lHf«)re 
coiiLrrt'ss." 

'riit'se  remarks  aroused  Betts,  who  plunj^ed  into  the 
coiitroversv :  "1  understand  now,  from  one  of  the  j^en- 
tlciiun  that  constitute  the  new  firm  ofCiwin  anil  Hal- 
Ittk — the  gentleman  from  Monterey — who  avows  at 
last  the  reason  forextendin*^  this  eastern  l.oundary  i>e- 
V(Mi(l  the  natural  limits  of  California,  that  it  will  settle 
111  the  United  States  the  question  of  slavery  over  a 
district  beyond  our  reasonable  and  proj)er  limits,  which 
wo  do  not  want,  but  which  we  take  in  for  the  purpose 
of  arresting  further  dispute  on  the  subject  of  slavery 
ill  that  territory.  It  has  been  well  asked  if  the  gen- 
tliiiian  can  suppose  that  Southern  men  can  be  ai^leep 
whni  such  a  proposition  is  sounded  in  their  ears.  Sir, 
the  avowal  of  this  dc^U'ine  on  the  Hoor  of  this  house 
iit'ccssarily  and  of  itself  excites  feelings  that  1  had 
hoped  might  be  permitted  to  slumber  in  my  breast 
wiiile  I  was  a  resident  of  California.  But  it  is  not  to 
he.  This  harrowing  and  distracting  «|uestion  of  the 
rights  of  the  south  and  the  aggressions  of  the  north 
— this  agitating  question  of  slavery — is  to  be  intro- 
(hued  here.  .  . .  Why  not  indirectly  settle  it  by  cxtond- 
inui'  your  limits  to  the  Mississippi?  Why  not  include 
the  island  of  Cuba,  a  future  accjuisition "  of  territory 
that  we  may  one  day  or  other  obtain,  ami  forever  settle 
this  question  by  our  action  here  ?"  And  then  he  gave 
his  reasons  for  fixing  a  boundary,  and  not  a  too  exten- 
sive one,  urging  the  greater  political  power  of  small 
states. 

McDougal  seems  to  have  been  enlightened  by  the 
discussion,  and  to  have  made  up  his  mind  to  present 
his  views;  this  being  his  first  attempt  to  deliver  any 
kind  of  argument  in  a  deliberative  body.  He  was  now 
e[)posed  to  taking  in  the  country  east  of  the  Sierra, 
whieh  he  had  first  advocated.  "Tlie  people  may 
oliaiige  their  notions  about  slavery  after  thev  get  hold 
ot  tlie  territory;  they  may  assemble  in  convention  and 
ad(i[)t  slavery.     It  leaves  this    hole    open.     You    at 


I!f 


294 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


1      ;        r> 


if  i 


once  acquire  the  sole  control  over  this  confederacy  ftir 
time  imnitmorial.  We  do  not  wish  to  give  you  this 
power,  because  other  subjects,  as  important  as  that  of 
slavery,  may  arise  in  this  government,  and  you  would 
have  power  alone  to  control  tliem.  And  another  very 
good  reason,  which  they  might  urge  with  a  great  deal 
of  plausibility:  Suppose  this  state  should  have  this 
immense  population,  this  immense  representation — 
suppose,  like  South  Carolina,  she  should  undertake  to 
act  independently,  and  recede  from  the  confederacy — 
she  could  do  it,  having  the  physical  and  all  othtr 
powers  to  do  it.  If,  therefore,  we  adopt  this  line,  I 
am  very  sure  it  will  be  sent  back  to  us.  We  will  ha\  e 
to  call  another  convention  and  adopt  other  lines  to  suit 
the  views  of  conuress.  In  the  mean  time  we  have  no 
law.  We  are  in  the  same  chaotic  condition  that  \\c 
are  now  in.  And  that  is  the  very  thing,  Mr  Cliaii- 
man,  if  the  secret  was  known,  which  I  apprehend  they 
Wciiit  to  do.  They  want  a  constitution  presented  to 
congress  so  objectionable  that  it  will  be  thrown  back 
for  another  convention.  Gentlemen  have  risen  on 
this  floor  and  stated  that  they  had  received  letters 
from  the  south,  and  that  they  knew  of  many  others 
who  want  to  brmg  their  slaves  here  and  work  tluiii 
for  a  short  period  in  the  mines,  and  then  emanci[)atL! 
them.  If  this  constitution  is  thrown  back  upon  us 
for  reconsideration,  it  leaves  them  the  opportunity  of 
bringing  their  slaves  here.  It  is  what  they  desire  to 
do,  to  create  some  strongly  objectionable  feature  in 
the  constitution  in  order  that  they  may  bring  their 
slaves  here  and  work  them  three  months.  They  will 
even  then  get  more  than  the}'  can  get  for  them  in  the 
states.  I  look  upon  that  as  the  result  if  we  send  our 
constitution  to  congress  with  a  boundary  so  objection- 
able as  this.  We  will  have  herds  of  slaves  thrown 
upon  us — people  totally  incapable  of  sclf-governniciit; 
and  they  are  so  far  from  the  mother  country  tliat  we 
can  never  get  rid  of  them;  and  we  will  hav^e  an  wW 


!i  ? 


NATIVE  CALIFORNIAN  MEMBERS. 


295 


imposed  upon  us  that  will  be  a  curse  to  California  as 
lun_i,  as  she  exists." 

What  McDougal's  speech  lacked  in  grammar  and 
rhetoric  it  supplied  in  facts,  and  was  therefore  of 
value.  After  some  further  remarks  on  both  sides, 
Semi)lc  related  a  conversation  he  had  held  with 
Tlionias  Butler  King,  who  had  said:  "For  God's 
sake,  leave  us  no  territory  to  legislate  upon  in  con- 
gress;" whereupon  Betts  repudiated  the  idea  of  King 
ai  an  exponent  of  the  wishes  of  congress.  Norton 
spoke  in  favor  of  Gwin's  boundary;  Sutter  of  that  re- 
ported by  the  committee,  except  that  he  suggested 
the  southern  line  to  be  the  confluence  of  the  Gila 
Elver  with  the  Colorado,  in  order  to  facilitate  the 
trade  of  the  people  of  San  Diego  with  Sonora  and 
New  Mexico. 

The  debates  waxed  warm,  and  Shannon  took  occa- 
sion to  say  that  King  did  not  utter  the  sentiments  of 
the  entire  congress.  **  The  secret  of  it  is  this,"  said  he, 
"tliat  the  cabinet  of  the  United  States  have  found 
themselves  in  difficulty  about  the  Wilniot  proviso,  and 
Mr  Thomas  Butler  King — it  may  be  others — is  sent 
here,  in  the  first  place,  for  the  purpose  of  influencing 
the  people  of  California  to  form  a  state  government, 
and  in  the  next  place  to  include  the  entire  territory. 
Sir,  it  Is  a  political  quarrel  at  home  into  which  they 
wish  to  drag  the  new  state  of  California.  For  my 
part  I  wish  to  keep  as  far  away  from  such  rocks  and 
breakers  as  possible.  Let  the  president  and  his 
cabinet  shoulder  their  own  difficulties.  I  have  no 
desire  to  see  California  dragged  into  any  political 
quarrel.  Are  these  the  high  authorities  to  which  we 
should  so  reverentially  bow?  1  think  not.  I  believe 
they  speak  but  their  own  sentiments,  or  his  own  senti- 
ments, or  the  sentiments  of  the  cabinet.  Besides,  sir, 
I  always  wish  to  watch  a  political  agent;  I  would 
ahvavs  be  careful  of  men  of  that  description." 

When  Carrillo  had  spoken,  through  an  interpreter, 
in  favor  of  comprehending  in  the  state  of  California 


296 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


all  the  country  assigned  by  the  Spanish  government 
to  the  province  of  Upper  California,  in  17G8,  and  rec- 
ognized as  such  by  Mexico,  upon  the  ground  tliat  they 
had  no  right  to  leave  any  part  of  the  people  without 
government,  Betts  raised  a  new  point,  which  was  that 
the  convention  had  been  called  by  proclamation  of 
General  Riley  to  represent  the  ten  districts  there 
named,  and  all  lying  west  of  the  Sierra.  How,  then, 
could  they  represent  any  more?  Some  of  them  had 
received  a  hundred  votes ;  he  but  ninety-six ;  how 
could  they  assume  to  legislate  for  30,000  Mormons  at 
Salt  Lake? 

The  subject  occupied  several  days  in  debate,  and 
was  laid  aside  to  be  brought  up  two  weeks  later,  when 
it  came  near  wrecking  the  constitution  altogether; 
but  after  a  scene  of  wild  confusion,  and  the  rejection 
of  several  amendments,  a  compromise  oftered  by  Jones 
was  adopted  fixing  the  eastern  boundary  on  the  I'iOth 
meridian  from  the  Oregon  line  to  the  39tli  parallel, 
running  thence  to  the  Colorado  River  in  a  strai<«lit 
line  south-easterly,  to  the  intersection  of  the  35th  par- 
allel; and  thence  down  the  middle  of  the  chann<'l  to 
the  boundary  established  between  the  United  States 
and  Mexico  by  the  treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo.  A 
proviso  was  attached  that  should  congress  refuse  to 
admit  the  state  with  that  boundary,  then  it  should 
include  all  the  territory  as  far  east  as  the  boundary 
line  of  New  Mexico,  as  drawn  by  Preuss  from  the 
surveys  of  Fremont  and  others.  In  this  form  it  was 
passed  by  a  vote  of  thirty-two  to  seven. 

No  other  subject  engei^dered  much  controversy,  and 
there  was  a  good  deal  of  "  slavish  copying  "  of  the  con- 
stitutions of  New  York  and  Iowa,  which  indeed  was 
the  highest  wisdom.  Every  white  male  citizen  of  the 
United  States,  and  every  white  male  citizen  of  Mex- 
ico who  had  chosen  to  become  a  citizen  of  the  United 
States  under  the  treaty  of  peace  of  1848,  of  tlie  ai.'^e 
of  twenty-four  years,  and  who  had  resided  six  months 


ir 


STATE  DEBT  AND  TAXATION. 


297 


[)ar- 
A  to 
states 
A 
so  to 
lould 
ndary 
the 
t  was 


n 


and 
3  con- 
cl  was 

of  the 

'iiitecl 
le  ajio 
lonths 


in  the  state  preceding  the  election,  and  thirty  days  in 
the  district  in  which  he  claimed  his  vote,  was  eli<jfible. 
A  proviso  permitted  the  legislature  by  a  two-thirds 
vote  to  admit  to  suffrage  Indians  or  the  descendants 
of  Indians,  in  special  cases  as  that  body  might  deem 
proper,  a  concession  to  the  native  Californians."* 

The  questions  of  corporations  and  state  debt,  and  of 
taxati(^n,  received  much  attention  from  the  convention, 
whic^i  restricted  the  legislature  in  its  power  to  create 
corporations  by  special  act,  or  to  charter  banks,  leav- 
inu^  it  to  form  general  laws  under  which  associations 
inii,^]it  be  formed  for  the  deposit  of  gold  and  silver 
only,  but  without  the  power  to  issue  paper  of  any 
kind.  The  legislature  was  also  restricted  from  creat- 
ing a  state  debt  exceeding  the  amount  of  $300,000, 
unless  in  the  case  of  war;  but  it  might  pass  a  law 
authorizing  a  greater  expenditure  for  some  special 
object,  by  providing  ways  and  means  exclusive  of  a 
lo'an  for  the  payment  of  interest  and  principal.  Lot- 
teries were  also  prohibited  as  dangerous  to  the  welfare 
of  the  people. 

It  was  impossible  to  avoid  saying  in  the  constitu- 
tion tliat  taxation  should  be  equal;  but  the  delegates 
from  that  portion  of  the  state  covered  by  Spanish 
grants  refused  to  listen  to  any  proposition  subjecting 
their  real  estate  to  taxation,  while  the  bulk  of  the 
population,  who  had  no  real  estate  nor  anything  that 
couhl  be  taxed,  enjoyed  the  benefits  of  a  government 
for  which  they,  the  Mexican  population,  paid.  To 
obviate  this  difficulty  the  assessors  and  boards  of 
supervisors  were  to  be  elected  by  the  voters  in  the 
county  or  town  in  which  the  property  was  situated, 
and  eonsequently  influenced  by  them.  This  provis- 
ion was  a  defect  of  which  tiie  constitution-makers 
conscious,   but  for  which  at   that   time   there 


Were 


seemed  no  remedy.     Some  guaranty  against  oppress- 
ive taxation  was  required,  and  none   better  offered, 

'''Siiftt'i;  Aiitoliioi/.,  198-9;  Broione,  Conntit.  Delmtes,  179-80;  Omn,  Memoir, 
MS.,  Iti. 


m 


m 


i 


1(1 


298 


POLITICAL  fflSTORY. 


although  it  was  plain  that  as  the  provision  stood,  it 
could  be  made  to  protect  the  great  and  oppress  the 
small  land-holders. 

The  legislature  was  forbidden  to  grant  divorces,  and 
was  required  to  pass  a  homestead  law.  All  property, 
real  and  personal,  of  married  women,  owned  at  the 
date  of  marriage  or  afterward  acquired  by  gift,  devise 
or  inheritance,  was  made  separate  property,  and  the 
legislature  was  enjoined  to  pass  laws  for  its  registra- 
tion; and  other  laws  clearly  defining  the  rights  of 
wives  in  relation  to  property  and  other  matters. 

With  regard  to  education,  the  legislature  was  re- 
quired to  provide  for  a  system  of  common  schools,  by 
which  a  school  should  be  kept  up  in  each  district 
three  months  in  the  year;  and  any  district  neglecting 
to  sustain  such  a  school  should  be  deprived  of  its  pro- 
portion of  the  public  fund  during  such  neglect.  The 
support  of  common  schools  was  expected  to  be  derived 
from  the  sale  of  lands  with  which  the  state  was  in  the 
future  to  be  supplied  by  congress.  The  position  of 
California  was  quite  unlike  that  of  other  members  of 
the  United  States  when  demandin*;  admission,  liaviiii; 
passed  through  no  territorial  period,  and  having  no 
land  laws.  Considerable  time  would  elapse  before  it 
could  be  known  how  land  matters  stood,  how  much 
belonged  to  tiie  former  inhabitants,  the  nature  of 
their  titles,  and  other  questions  likely  to  arise.  But 
the  framers  of  the  constitution  could  only  proceed 
upon  tlie  ground  that  congress  would  not  be  less 
bountiful  to  California  in  the  matter  of  seliool  land 
than  it  had  been  to  Oregon  and  Minnesota."'     Has- 

"  I  have  been  at  some  trouble  to  fintl  who  first  suggested  our  present  lib- 
eral school  land  law.  It  seems  that  in  184G  James  H.  Piper,  acting  eoiiiinis- 
sioner  of  tlie  gen.  land  office,  made  a  report  to  Roht  J.  Walker,  sec.  of  the 
treasury,  on  the  'expediency  of  making  further  provision  for  the  support  (if 
common  schools  in  land,'  saying  that  it  was  attracting  much  attentitm,  and 
was  ce;  cainly  worthy  of  the  most  favorable  consideration.  '  Tliose  states  are 
sparsely  settled  by  an  active,  industrious,  and  enterprising  people;  wlio,  liow- 
ever,  may  not  have  sufficient  means,  in)lei>endent  of  their  support,  to  cihIow 
or  maintain  public  schools.  In  aid  to  this  important  matter,  congress,  at  iIr' 
commencement  of  our  land  system,  and  when  the  reins  of  government  wiiv 
held  by  the  sages  of  the  revolution,  set  apart  one  section  out  of  every  trnvn- 
ship  of  3(1  sq.  mile£>.     At  that  early  day,  this  provision  doubtless  appeared 


GOVERNMENT  AND  JUDICIARY. 


399 


tiiiys  made  au  effort  to  have  the  obhgatory  school  term 
extended  to  six  months;  but  Gwin  and  Dimmiek  op- 
])()S('d  the  amendment,  and  it  was  lost.  The  legisla- 
ture was  required  to  take  measures  for  the  protection, 
iiniirovement,  and  disposition  of  such  lands  as  congress 
should  grant  for  the  use  of  a  university,  and  to  secure 
the  funds  arising  therefrom ;  and  should  "  encourage 
bv  all  suitable  means  the  promotion  of  intellectual, 
scientific,  moral,  and  agricultural  improvement." 

As  to  the  government  of  the  state,  its  executive  de- 
})artuient  consisted  of  a  governor,  lieutenant-governor, 
secretary  of  state,  comptroller,  treasurer,  attorney- 
gen oral,  and  surveyor-general;  the  governor  and  lieu- 
tenant-governor to  be  elected  by  the  people;  the 
secretary  to  be  appointed  by  the  governor,  with  the 
otlur  officers  chosen  by  consent  of  the  senate,  and 
the  joint  vote  of  the  two  houses  of  the  legislature. 
The  judiciary  department  was  elective,""  and  consisted 
of  a  supreme  court,  district  courts,  county  courts,  and 
justices  of  the  peace. 

Among  the  miscellaneous  provisions  was  one  dis- 
franchising any  one  who  should  fight  a  duel  with  deadly 
weapons,  or  assist  in  any  manner  at  a  duel.**^     The 

iiuiniticent,  but  experience  has  provetl  it  to  be  inadequate.'  He  recommended 
furtlier  grants.  //.  Ex.  Doc,  9,  vol.  ii.,  29th  cong.,  '2d  sess.  Walker  sent  tlie 
iviKirt  to  John  W.  Davis,  speaker  of  the  house.  In  tlie  report  of  sec.  Walker 
fdi-  Ituc.  1847,  he  refers  to  tlie  subject  again;  and  reeoninienils  'tlie  grant  of  a 
sclinipl  section  in  the  centre  of  every  quarter  of  a  township,  whicli  would 
bring  the  school-house  within  a  point  not  exceeding  a  mile  and  a  half  from 
tlif  most  remote  inhabitant  of  such  qr  township.'  'iliis  applied  first  to  Ore- 
gnu,  which  was  then  under  consideration  as  to  land  donations.  JL  E.r.  Doc, 
0,  \\.  10  of  Kept  of  Sec  Treas.,  29th cong.,  Ist  sess.  Addressed  to  Hon.  Kobt 
C.  Wiiitliop,  speaker  of  the  house.  In  1848,  Walker  Jigain  recommends  the 
grant  of  4  sections  in  every  township  for  school  purposes,  '  in  each  of  the  new 
states, '  mentioning  however,  Dr.,  Cal.,  and  New  Me.xico.  Jl.  Ex  Dch\,  7, 
vol,  ii.,  3()th  cong.,  2d  sess.  The  committee  to  which  it  was  referred  finally 
(leoiiled  upon  two  sections  to  every. township,  (iwin  (pioted  from  Walkers 
report.  Broirue,  Constit.  Delxitva,  207 

■^Ihi  Hailly,  in  livrue  den  Deux  Mondea,  Feb  1,  1859,  G08-9,  remarks 
upon  the  judiciary  being  subject  to  the  caprices  and  instabilities  of  elections 
at  short  intervals.  There  were  seven  iu  tlie  convention  opposed  to  it-  among 
whom  was  Crosby.  Events  in  Cat.,  MS.,  44. 

•■'  Ihiriiig  the  discussions  in  the  early  part  of  the  session,  Jones  and  TeflFt 
had  a  wordy  encounter  wliich  nearly  resulted  in  a  bloody  one,  but  the  would- 
lie  ihiellists  were  brought  to  a  mutual  apology  by  the  iiiterijosition  of  tiwin, 
whose  knowledge  of  parliamentary  usases  was,  though  often  paraded,  really 
of  much  use  to  the  couveutiou,  as  this  incident  illustrates 


300 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


::!iJl! 


question  of  a  capital  was  avoided  by  requiring  the 
legislature  to  meet  at  San  Josd  until  removed  by  law, 
the  consent  of  two  thirds  of  all  the  members  of  buth 
branches  of  the  legislature  being  necessary  to  its 
removal. 

When  the  committ  e  on  finance  was  instructed  to 
report  on  the  compensation  of  members  of  the  cou- 
venticMi,  Gwin  summed  up  the  condition  of  tlie  revenue 
of  the  country  l)rietly  to  the  effect  that  the  new  state 
was  in  want  of  everything — public  buildings,  court- 
houses, jails,  roads,  bridges,  and  all  internal  improve- 
ments— prices  were  excessively  high,  there  was  not  a 
dollar  of  public  money,  nor  could  any  be  raised  l»ut  \)y 
leyymg  taxes  which  the  population  was  in  no  condition 
to  bear.  Ranchos  were  abandoned  and  the  laborers 
gone  to  the  mines.  There  were  consequently  no 
crops,  and  property  that  yielded  $100,000  income 
three  years  before  was  then  yielding  nothing.  In  the 
mines  the  people  could  not  be  taxed,  having  no  prop- 
ert}'^  but  the  gold  they  dug  out  of  the  earth,  and  needing 
that  to  make  improvements.  The  proposiLion  was  niudo 
to  la}''  before  congress  in  a  memorial,  to  acconii)any 
the  constitution,  the  condition  of  the  people,  and  call- 
ing fttr  support  to  a  state  government,  either  by  donat- 
ing a  part  of  the  public  domain,  or  appropriating  from 
the  moneys  collected  in  California  from  the  customs 
and  sale  of  the  public  lands  an  amount  sufficient  tor 
the  object.  This  Gwin  thought  w  >uld  not  be  objected 
to  by  congress,  which  in  the  case  of  fourteen  other 
states  had  paid  the  expenses  of  a  territorial  govern- 
ment for  many  years.  The  memorial  which  was 
finally  presented  to  congress  with  the  constitution  did 
not  make  the  demand  proposed,  and  only  very  slightly 
alluded  to  the  fund  created  by  customs  collected  in 
California  while  in  its  transition  state.^^     The  scliedule 

^'^I  have  already  several  times  alluded  to  this  fund,  but  without  giviiij;  its 
entire  history,  which  is  this:  In  Oct.  1849,  a  Military  Contribution  taritl  \va« 
proniulgateil  by  the  president,  and  established  in  the  ports  of  l';il.  Tlic  'iis- 
toni-houses,  which  until  then  had  remained  in  the  hands  of  citizens,  who 
accounted  to  the  military  governor,  or  commodore  of  the  Pacitic  siniailnm, 
were  now  tilled  with  army  or  navy  officers,  dowu  to  the  period  wlicu,  piace 


CONVENTION  WORK  COMPLETED. 


301 


attac  lied  to  the  main  instrument  continued  tlio  exist- 
iivj;  laws  in  force  until  altered  or  repealed  by  the  legis- 

l)eiii>.'  procliiiined,  collectors  were  appointed  by  Mason,  in  hia  position  of  gov. 
ot  CA.,  customs  buiuK  collected  oa  all  foreign  goods  as  directed  in  the  tariff 
of  1^4o — the  coniinodoro  of  the  Pacilic  squadron  continuing  the  direction  of 
all  iiiitti'i's  rtJating  to  port  regulations.  'A  double  neces-iity,' says  Riley, 
'iiiiji-nrd  the  gov.  to  this  course;  the  country  was  in  pressing  need  of  these 
f(irt'i;-'ii  goods,  and  congress  had  established  no  port  of  entry  on  this  coast;  the 
want  el  a  more  complete  organization  of  the  existing  civil  govt  was  daily  in- 
cri'iisiiig;  and  as  congress  had  made  no  provision  for  supporting  a  territorial 
govt  ill  this  country,  it  was  absolutely  necessary  to  create  a  fund  for  that 
jmriicise  from  duties  collected  on  these  foreign  goods.  It  is  true,  there  was  no 
l:n\- 1  if  coiigrt'ss  authorizing  the  collection  of  those  duties,  but  at  the  same  time 
thf  hwA  forbade  the  landing  of  the  goods  until  the  duties  were  paiil.  Congress 
h:i'l  (litlinod  to  legislate  on  the  subject,  and  both  the  president  and  secretary 
of  till'  treasury  acknowledged  the  want  of  power  of  the  treasury  department 
to  cMiUuL't  revenue  in  Cal.  The  gov.  of  Cal.,  therefore,  assumed  the  respon- 
siliility  of  collecting  tliis  revenue  for  the  support  of  the  govt  of  tliis  coun- 
try.' Letter  of  Riley  to  Col  J.  Hooker,  com'g  dcpt,  asst  a<lj.-gen.  Pacitio 
ilivisiiin,  in  //.  Ex.  Doc.,  31,  i.  no.  17,  p.  814-29.  The  writer  goes  on  to  say 
that  ill  the  interim  between  the  signing  of  the  treaty  of  peace  and  the  exten- 
sion iif  the  revenue  laws  over  this  country,  it  is  a  fair  presumption  that  the 
tuiiiiKirary  regulations  established  by  the  executive  authority  continued  in 
force,  .so  far  as  they  conflicted  with  no  treaties,  or  laws  of  the  U.  S.,  or  con- 
stitutional provisions;  at  any  rate,  that  Mason  had  communicated  his  pro- 
ceedings to  Washington,  and  met  with  no  rebuke,  from  which  he  inferred 
they  were  approved;  in  fact,  that  congress  had  entirely  ignored  the  whole 
case.  'Tlie  reason  of  this  is  obvious:  as  congress  had  failed  to  oriranize  a 
territorial  govt  here,  all  were  aware  the  existing  govt  nmst  continue  in  force, 
ami  that  it  must  have  some  means  of  support.'  Such  was  the  extraordinary 
ori;.'in  and  lii.story  of  the  civil  fund,  which  began  aa  a  military  contribution, 
and  after  peace  was  continued  solely  by  the  will  of  a  military  officer,  without 
tlic  instructions  or  even  the  notice  of  congress,  but  which  congress  permitted 
to  lie  applied  as  the  military  governors  saw  fit  until  the  state  govt  was  estab- 
lished, and  then  diverted  into  the  U.  S.  treasury.  In  Aug.  1849,  an  attempt 
was  made  to  remove  this  money  from  the  control  of  Riley,  and  to  place  it  at 
the  disposition  of  the  military  commander  who  had  had  '  no  responsibility  in 
its  collection,  and  who  of  right  can  exercise  no  authority  over  it.  It  was  the 
corres[i<jnd(  nee  on  this  subject  which  brought  out  the  aljove  statements. 
Among  otlier  facts  elicited  was  this,  that  when  money  was  wanted  by  the 
military  department  (formerly),  on  application  a  loan  or  temporary  transfer 
was  made  from  the  civil  fund  Halleck  also,  in  May  1849,  complained  that 
it  was  difficult  to  keep  the  civil  funds  separate  from  the  nulitary  appropria- 
tions. The  reason  was,  that  the  army  and  navy  officers  foimd  their  pay  so 
inaileijuate  to  their  expenses  as  to  force  them  to  make  calls  upon  the  civil 
fund.  That  'grim  old  fellow, '  Riley,  refused  to  give  up  the  money  already 
collected  under  his  administration,  and  in  his  charge,  to  Gen.  Smith,  who  had 
certainly  no  right  to  demand  it.  On  the  3d  of  Aug.  the  gov.  appointed  Maj. 
Robert  Allen  treasurer  of  Cal ,  who  in  direct  violation  of  his  instructions  trans- 
ferred .S35, 124.79  to  the  quartermaster's  department,  and  $500  to  Maj.  Fitz- 
geraM,  asst  qr  master.  In  Aug.  the  amounts  due  the  civil  fund  from  the 
military  dept  was  ^10,000,  transferred  to  Maj.  Hardie  for  raising  troops  in 
Or  ;  ^70,000  to  Naval  Purser  Forest,  for  the  expenses  of  bringing  immigrants 
from  Lower  Cal.;  $3,500  to  Maj.  Rich,  and  8200  to  Lieut  Warren;  $10,804.50 
transferred  by  Lieut  Davidson  to  the  qr  master  and  commissary  ilepts,  and 
§890.70  delivered  to  Capt.  Ingall  by  the  collector  at  San  Pedro.  Previous  to 
this,  in  1848,  Gen,  Kearny  appointed  two  sub-Indian  agents,  and  paid  them 
from  the  civil  fund,  and  there  nad  been  loaned  $3,210  to  officers  of  the  navy. 


I 


i! «! 


\\. 


1^ 
!5  ■( 


308 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


!>3 


lature,  and  transferred  all  causes  which  might  be 
pending  to  the  courts  created  by  the  constitution  on 
the  adinission  of  the  state.  It  provided  for  its  ratifi- 
cation by  the  people,  at  an  election  to  be  held  Xovcm- 
ber  13th,  and  for  the  election  at  the  same  time  of  a 
governor,  lieutenant-governor,  a  legislature,  and  two 
members  of  congress.  Should  the  constitution  ho 
adopted,  the  legislature  should  assemble  at  the  seat  of 
government  on  the  15th  of  December,  and  prorood  to 
install  the  officers  elect,  to  choose  two  senators  to  the 
congress  of  the  United  States,  and  to  negotiate  for 
money  to  pay  the  expenses  of  the  state  gov<!rjHn(Mit. 
By  close  application  to  business,  day  and  iiiiflit," 
the  constitution  was  brought  to  completion,  and  sijrued 
on  the  13th  of  October,  thirty-one  guns  being  tire<l 
from  the  fort  in  honor  of  the  occasion;  the  last  one  for 
the  constitution  of  the  new  state  of  California,***  It 
was  an  instrument  of  which  its  makers  might  justly 
be  proud ;  its  faults  being  rather  those  of  circumstance 

None  of  this  money  had  been  accounted  for  in  Aug.  1849,  nor  do  I  llml  any 
evidence  that  it  ever  was  returned  to  the  civil  fund.  In  Sejit.  Kiloy  autlmr- 
iz  'd  the  loan  of  ^30,000  for  the  use  of  the  pay  <lept  of  the  army,  from  tlie  fund 
colloeted  at  Benicia.  In  Oct.  $15,000  was  loaned  Maj.  McKinatry,  for  tlio 
use  of  the  qr  master's  dept;  and  for  Lieut  Derby's  use  §3,000.  One  otlur 
source  of  revenue,  besides  customs,  was  the  money  received  from  the  rent  vi 
the  missions — unauthorized,  like  the  first — all  of  which  is  to  be  found  in  tlio 
document  quoted  above.  8ee  also  AUa  Cul.,  Dec.  15,  1849,  and  Front'i  lli<l. 
Cni,  485-G.  King,  on  his  arrival,  had  to  have  a  linger  in  the  pie.  llu  iu- 
etrueted  the  oc'.lectors  not  to  exact  duties,  but  to  receive  deposits  at  the  ilnor 
of  the  treasury,  subject  to  the  action  of  congress.  On  the  20th  of  June  tlurt' 
was  half  a  million  in  the  hands  of  the  quartermaster,  a  part  of  whicli  Ixliingcil 
to  the  revenue,  congress  having  extended  tlie  revenue  laws  to  Cal.  Kilty  liail 
always  been  of  the  opinion  that  the  civil  fund  l)elonged  in  justice  to  tlie  jit'o- 
pie  of  Cal.,  from  whom  it  had  been  collected  without  a  shadow  of  law,  ami 
made  several  recommendations  on  the  subject,  some  of  which  were  that  it 
should  bo  applied  to  school  purjtoses  and  to  public  improvements.  Neither 
object  ever  rticeived  a  dollar  of  it;  but  tlie  money  was  ordered  into  tin'  U.  S. 
treasury,  after  the  expenses  of  the  convention  were  paid  out  of  it,  whirli  tiie 
goneral  took  care  should  be  liberal. 

*^  Among  the  relics  of  the  convention  preserved  is  a  candlestick  vliieli 
served  to  help  illuminate  its  evening  sessions. 

"*  Crosby  mentions  that  Sutter  had  a  great  love  for  the  noise  of  artillery, 
and  was  much  excited  by  the  discharge  of  the  cannon,  exclainung  ovit  ami 
over,  'This  is  the  proudest  day  I  ever  saw  !'  Cal.  Events,  MS.,  37.  The  i,'en- 
tle  Swiss  was  mellow.  See,  further,  Sar.  Union,  Sept.  1859;  Val.  I'd"!  "lal 
Pt-esent,  IS];  S.  F.  Alta,  June  17,  1878;  Jtoach,  Statement,  MS.,  4;  S.  /'.  Poxt, 
June  29,  1878;  Tnylor's  Eldorado,  i.  146-56;  Friynet,  125  et  seq.;  Jenhiiii 
U.  S.  Ex.  Ex.,  440;  Sac.  Reporter,  Jan.  7,  1809;  Willey'a  Per.  Mem.,  MS., 
128-34. 


PAY  AND  PLAY 


303 


than  of  judgment.  The  heterogeneous  personnel  of 
the  convention  proved  a  safeguard  rather  than  a  draw- 
hack;  New  York  being  forced  to  consult  Mississippi, 
^Maryland  to  confer  with  Vermont,  Rhode  Island  with 
Kentucky,  and  all  with  California.  Strangers  to  each 
other  when  they  met,  in  contending  for  the  faith  tliat 
was  ill  them  they  had  become  brothers,  and  felt  like 
congratulating  each  other  on  their  mutual  achiev- 
ment.''' 

Governor  Riley  had  made  no  secret  of  his  intention 
to  |)ny  tlie  expenses  of  the  convention  from  the  civil 
fun<l,  and  on  being  visited  by  the  delegates,  en  masse, 
received  them  with  his  usual  grim  humor,  and  allowed 
tlieir  not  too  modest  demand  of  sixteen  dollars  per  day, 
and  sixteen  dollars  for  every  twenty  miles  of  travel  in 
coining  and  returning.  The  reporter  of  the  proceed- 
ings received  $10,000,  he  contracting  to  furnish  one 
tliousand  printed  and  bound  copies  in  English,  and  one 
quaiter  as  many  in  Spanish,  for  that  money.  The 
nearest  news[)aper  office  being  in  San  Francisco,  and 
tlierc  lacking  but  one  month  to  the  tune  of  ?loction,  a 
courier  was  despatched  post-haste  to  the  Alta  office  to 
procure  the  printing  of  copies'^  for  immediate  circula- 
tion for  election  purposes,  together  with  a  proclamation 
l)y  Governor  Riley  submitting  the  constitution  and 
an  address  to  the  people,  prepared  by  Steuart,  and 
signed  by  the  delegates.  Then  they  all  drew  a  breath 
of  relief,  and  voted  to  have  a  ball,  in  which  men  of 
half  a  dozen  nationalities,  and  almost  as  many  shades 
of  complexion,  trod  the  giddy  mazes  of  the  dance  with 

•^  Lii'ut  Hamilton  mode  the  haiidsoincly  engrossed  copy  of  the  constitu- 
tion, wliitii  was  forwarik'd  to  congress,  for  $500.  For  the  text  of  the  funda- 
iiKiital  laws  (if  Cal.,  see  Cdl.  Stiituteit,  1850,  24-0;  U.  S.  Si'n.  Doc.  '28,  viii. ;  31st 
tdML'.,  l.*t  Bess.;  U.  S.  JI.  Miiic.  Doc.,  44,  i.  18-34;  31.st  cong.,  Istsess. ;  U.  S. 
II.  Ki:  Dor.  3S),  vii.  17;  3l8tcoug.,  Istsesa.;  JJroirm!,  t'onnltt.  Delmtci  .\]p.,  iii.- 
xiii. ;  Uiirtnell's  Convention,  Otiijinal,  MS.,  pts.  1-lG;  Am.  (Jiuirt.  Ueg.,  iii.  575- 
88;  S.  I.  Friend,  vii.  90;  Simonin,  Qrnnd  Quest.,  324-30;  (\ipron,  48-50;  Poly- 
Vivian,  vi.  110.  The  autographs  of  the  signers  are  to  be  found  in  the  museum 
of  tlio  Pioneer  Society,  S.  F.  In  1875  only  15  out  of  the  48  were  living,  and 
the  orator  of  the  anniversary  celebration  for  that  year  (Ross  Browne)  died  a 
few  weeks  later. 

J''' Foster  n  Angelei>  in  1847,  MS.,   17-18;   //.   E.r.  Doc.  31,  i.    no.    17,   p. 
845-C;  Greijory,  Guide,  11-4G;    ?'<f/.,  Doc.,  35,  153-7. 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


:;i! 


California  seiloras  in  striking  costumes,  wiiose  dark 
splendors  were  relieved  here  and  there  by  a  woman  of 
a  blonde  type  and  less  picturesque  attire. 

In  a  few  days  the  constitution  was  carried  to  every 
mining  camp  and  rancho  in  the  land."^  Candidates 
took  the  field  for  office  under  it,  should  it  be  sanctioned 
by  the  people,  and  made  their  speeches  as  in  any 
ordinary  campaign.  The  democracy,  whose  deli|^dit  it 
always  was  to  *  organize,*  held  their  first  party  leather- 
ing in  Portsmouth  square,  San  Francisco,  October 
25th,  Alcalde  Geary  acting  as  chairman.**  The  or 
ganization,  however,  being  suspected  to  be  a  piece  of 
political  legerdemain  to  put  in  nomination  for  congress 
a  member  of  a  clique,  some  of  the  solid,  old-fashioned 
democrats  in  attendance  offered  a  resolution  to  invite 
the  towns  in  the  interior  to  participate  in  the  nomina- 
tions, which  resolution  being  adopted,  a  convention 
was  the  result,  and  Edward  Gilbert  was  nominated 
for  that  position.  Other  democrats  gave  as  a  reason 
for  introducing  party  politics  at  this  period  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  state,  that  T.  Butler  King,  having  resigned 
his  place  in  the  lower  house  of  congress,  was  aiming 
at  the  senate,  expecting  to  be  elected  by  a  no-})arty 
majority,  and  they  wished  to  defeat  these  aspirations.^ 

Large  assemblages  were  held  in  Sacramento  of  the 
no-party  politicians,  the  object  of  which  was  to  select 
and  present  candidates  for  election  to  both  houses  of 
the  legislature,  and  also  to  obtain  the  United  States 
senatorship  for  some  man  of  that  district.*'     The  can- 


"  Rather  at  a  loss  to  some  of  the  most  active  of  the  prefects  and  sub- 
prefects  whose  duty  it  was  to  disseminate  the  political  news.  Crosby  says  he 
spent  about  $1,400  for  v/hich  he  was  never  reimbursed.  EvenU  in  Vnl.,  M.S., 
6ti;  Fermindez,  Doc.,  4;  Awj.  Arch.,  iii.  277-8;  Taylor,  Eldorado,  i.  15'J-(iO. 

**0.  P.  Sutton,  McMillan,  Thos  J.  Aguew,  John  McVickar,  W.  H.  Jdiies, 
E.  V.  Joyce,  and  Annis  Merrill  acted  as  vice-presidents;  J.  Ross  Browne, 
Joseph  T.  Downey,  Daniel  Cronin,  and  John  H.  McGlynn  as  secretiiries. 
Oakland  Transcript,  March  5,  1873;  Solano  Vallejo  Democrat,  Feb.  11,  1871; 
Upham,  Note.%  2(i,  25. 

*•  Geary,  Van  Voorhies,  and  Sutton  were  opposed  to  King.  Stittoii,  Stnk- 
ment,  MS.,  9.  'St  Chupostom,'  in  Placer  Times,  Nov.  17,  1849,  coiulemns 
the  formation  of  parties,  and  says  King  'ought  to  have  sense  enough  iir.l,  to 
set  the  ball  rolling. '  Polynesian,  vi.  98. 

**  A  mass  meeting  for  these  purposes  in  Sac  was  held  on  the  29th  of  Oct, 


ASPIRANTS  FOR  OFFICE. 


305 


(lidatcs  in  the  field  for  the  executive  office  were  Peter 
II.  Burnett,  Wiiham  M.  Steuart,  Jolin  W.  Geary, 
John  A.  Sutter,  and  Winfield  S.  Sherwood.  Burnett 
was  superi(»r  judge  at  the  time,  havinj^  been  api»f>inted 
hy  Governor  Riley  to  that  position  on  the  l^Uh  of 
August.  He  was  in  Monterey  during  the  sessirin  of 
the  constitutional  convention,  and  being  satisfied  that 
it  would  go  before  the  people  and  Ije  miopted,  an- 
nounced himself  a  candidate  in  Septenil>er,  and  re- 
turned to  San  Jose  before  the  close  of  the  proceedinj;s 
to  coninience  a  canvass.  Sherwood"'  pro|H»seil  that 
J>ui latt  and  himself  should  submit  their  claims  to  a 
ooiinnittee  of  mutual  friends,  who  should  decide  which 
.should  withdraw;  but  this  Burnett  declined.  The 
elt'tti(»n  showed  that  he  knew  his  streM<^h,  the  vote 
standing:  Burnett,  6,710;  Sherwood,  3,188;  Sutter, 
2,1:01 ;  Geary,  1,475;  Steuart,  G19.  The  offiee  of 
lit  utenant-governor  was  sought  by  John  McDougal 
and  A.  !M.  Winn,  the  former  being  elected. 

The  13th  of  November,  the  day  appointed  for  the 
♦  Itction,  was  one  of  storm,  and  the  vote  in  conserjuence 
v/as  light.  The  population  of  California  at  this  [leriod 
was  estimated  at  107,000;  the  number  of  Americans 
in  tlie  country  7G,000 ;  of  foreigners  1 8,000 ;  of  natives 
13,000.  The  whole  vote  polled  was  12,004  for  and 
811  against  the  constitution ;  or  the  vote  of  alxjut  one 
.sixtli  of  the  American  inhabitants.     It  was  a  satis- 


iii  front  of  the  City  hotel;  S.  C.  Hastings,  prest;  Albert  Prie<it,  vice-prest; 
W.  K.  firimshaw,  sec;  W.  M.  Steuart,  Joliu  McDougal,  E,  tiill)ert,  J.  K. 
Suyiler,  W.  S.  Sherwood,  P.  A.  Morse,  (J.  B.  Tiiigley,  Edward  J.  C  Kewen. 
Tlio  iiieetin;;  adjourned  to  the  30th,  when  it  put  iu  uouiination  tor  !<tate  *eiia- 
t.irs  .Tohii  Bidwell,  E.  O.  Crosby,  Henry  E.  Robinson,  and  Thoa  -f.  <;r»-«:i; 
an  1  tiir  the  assembly  Tlioa  J.  White,  John  ¥.  Williams,  R.  (iale,  E.  W.  Mc- 
Kiuitry,  P.  B.  Cornwall,  Oeorge  B.  Tingley,  John  Bigler,  J.  P.  Long,  aud 
John  T.  Hughes.  The  meeting  divided  anil  another  nominating  cornmittte 
rfixirted  another  ticket,  which  was  adopted.  For  state  senators.  Bi-iwell, 
Robinson,  Crosby,  and  Harding  Bigelow.  For  assemblymen,  Car-Iw*!], 
Cornwall,  Fowler,  Forii,  Walthal,  W.  B.  Dickinson,  James  fJreen,  T.  M. 
Aims,  and  A.  K.  Berry.  PUicfr  Time.t,  Nov.  Sand  Dec.  1,  1S49. 

"  Sherwoo«l  was  a  native  of  Wa.shington  co.,  N.  Y.  He  had  serve<I  in  the 
N.  Y.  legislature,  ami  although  awkward  in  appearance  wa.^  i»nsst«.t*«l  of 
i'oo.1  acr|uirenients  and  ready  wit.  He  was  still  a  young  man.  In  1*02  he 
was  a  flemocrati':  presidential  elector.  S.  F.  Alt",  July  24,  1852;  H-triLak, 
Courier,  Jan  il',  18<>7;  TiiMaw,  Hist.  Stockton,  124. 
Hist.  Cai..,  Vol.  VI.    20 


' 


!i^   " 


8M 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


factory  majority  of  those  who  took  enouj^h  interest  iti 
the  future  of  the  couiitiy  to  tro  to  the  polls.  Edwjiid 
Gilbert  and  Georjjje  W.  Wright  were  elected  rejuv- 
sentatives  in  congress.  Statu  senators  and  represent- 
atives were  also  elected. 

The  schedule  to  the  constitution  provided  that  if 
the  instrument  should  be  ratified,  the  legislature 
should  meet  on  the  15th  of  December,  elect  a  presi- 
dent ]>r()  tempore,  proceed  to  complete  the  organiziitiou 
of  that  body,  and  to  install  all  the  officers  of  state  as 
soon  as  practicable.  Three  days  previous  to  tlie 
meeting  of  the  legislature,  Governor  Riley  had  issued 
a  proclamation  declaring  the  constitution  submitted 
to  the  people  in  November  to  be  "ordained  and  estul)- 
lished  as  the  constitution  of  the  state  of  California. " 
On  the  20th  Burnett  was  installed  governor.  General 
Riley  having  by  proclamation  laid  down  that  office  on 
the  same  day,*^  together  with  that  of  his  secretary  dt' 
state,  Halleck.  The  civil  appointments  made  uiuler 
him  expired  gradually,  as  the  state  government  came 
into  action  in  all  its  branches.®' 

The  services  of  General  Riley  to  California  were  of 
the  highest  value,  combining,  as  he  did,  in  his  admin- 
istration the  firmness  of  a  military  dictatorship,  witli 
a  statesmanlike  tact  in  leading  the  people  to  tlie 
results  aimed  at  by  them,  and  in  a  manner  to  correct 
any  leaning  toward  independence,  but  uniting  them 
firmly  with  the  general  government  by  showing  them 
their  dependence  upon  it.  He  continued  to  reside  at 
Monterey  until  July  1850,  when  he  returned  to  the 

*'Supp.  Padjic  Neimt,  Dec.  27,  1849;  Wilminaton  Journal,  May  27,  ISOJ. 
Petor  Ii^stead,  ' the  erratic  and  talented  son  of  a  dUtinguiaheil  fatlicr, '  Mas 
a  candidate  for  congressman  on  the  whig  side  of  politics.  He  was  from  New 
Jersey,  and  died  in  Nev:  York  subsequently,  being  assassinated  in  a  house  of 
ill-fame.  Otoin,  Mem.,  MS.,  529. 

•'The  several  nrocUmat  '>n8  are  given  entire  in  Burnett,  Recoil.,  359-60; 
Pico,  Doc,  i.  228;  8un  Ln'm  Oh.,  Arch.,  sec.  19;  Hall,  Hint.  San  Jom\  '1\>>; 
Hittell,  S.  F.,  145-6.  L  l' .anksgiving  proclamation  was  issued  by  Gov.  Riley, 
Betting  apart  the  291h  day  of  Nov.  to  be  kept  in  making  a  general  and  imMic 
acknowledgment  of  gratitude  to  the  Supreme  Ruler  of  the  universe  for  liis 
kind  and  ^stering  care  during  the  year  that  was  past.  //.  Ex.  Doc.  .SI.  i. 
no.  17,  p.  867;  Pico,  Doc.,  i.  198;  Ang.  Arch.,  iiL  281;  San  Josi  Pioneer,  Juno 
23,  1877. 


PRESENTATION  AND  BANQUET. 


ao7 


states,  bearinjjf  with  him  tangible  proof's  of  the  estcorii 
ill  whit'li  he  was  held  by  the  citizens  of  that  town,  in 
the  form  of  a  massive  gold  medal,  and  a  heavy  chain 
(•(»ui])08ed  of  nuggets  of  gold  in  their  native  shapes."* 
Thus  etided  with  a  banquet  and  a  presentation  (me  of 
the  most  important  pernxls  through  which  the  Cali- 
fornia country  was  to  pass. 

*'TliCHe  gifts  wure  prcBented  nii  tke  occasion  of  a  farcwull  banquet  given 
to  <it)ii«ral  Kiloy  at  tfie  PaciKc  house  at  Monterey,  where  2U0  covofh  were 
laiil,  ami  the  ucrenuinios  were  in  an  imposing  style,  (ton.  T.  H.  Kowcn  pre- 
«iiie«l.  Tlie  city  of  Monterey  voted  him  a  medal  of  gold  weighinj(  one  pound, 
wliioli  wiis  presented  to  him  b^  Maj.  P.  A.  Koach.  It  cost  I^KM).  On  one 
HJilu  it  bure  the  arms  of  the  city;  on  the  other,  this  legend:  ''the  man  who 
I'.iiiic  to  do  his  duty,  an<l  who  accomplished  his  purpose.  Id.,  April  '20,  1878. 
t'jiiiitii  Cruz  SetUinel,  July  23,  1870;  iju'ujley,  Iriith  Race,  34.3.  Some  citizens  ot 
S.  V.  had  previously  presented  him  with  a  gold  suutf-box.  Pacific  Stioa,  ••nu. 
1,  1S50. 


:!ui! 


!  i 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

1849-1860. 

The  First  LEOiSLATtmE — Qhestion  of  State  Capital — Meetino  of  the 
Legislature  at  San  JosA — Organization  and  Acts— Personnel  of 
THE  Body — State  Officers — Further  State  Capital  Schemes— Cali- 
fornia IN  Congress — Impending  Issues — Slavery  or  No  Slavefiy— 
Admission  into  the  Union — California  Rejoices. 

The  first  legislature  of  the  state  of  California  con- 
sisted of  sixteen  senators  and  thirty-six  assemblynuiii. 
The  rainy  season  which  had  set  in  on  the  28tli  of  Oc- 
tober, 1849,  was  at  its  height  by  the  middle  of  Decem- 
ber, and  did  not  close  until  the  22d  of  March,  during 
which  period  thirty-six  inches  of  water  fell  upon  the 
thirsty  earth.^  The  roads  were  rendered  nearly  im- 
passable, and  the  means  of  travel,  otherwise  tlian  on 
horseback,  being  limited,  it  was  with  difficulty  that 
the  members  made  their  way  to  San  Jose  from  their 
different  districts,  no  quorum  being  present  on  the 
first  and  second  days. 

The  people  of  San  Jose  had  sent  as  commissioners 
Charles  White  and  James  F.  Reed  to  Monterey,  dur- 
ing the  session  of  the  constitutional  convention,  to 
endeavor  to  secure  the  location  of  the  capital  at  their 
town.     They  were  compelled  to  pledge  themselves  to 

f)rovide  a  suitable  building  for  the  meetings  of  the  first 
egislature,  upon  the  chance  that  the  capital  might  l»c 
fixed  there.     The  legislative  building  furnislied  was 

'  Dr  Ix)gan,  at  Sac.,  kept  a  raiu-gauge,  iTom  which  the  fall  for  the  season 
was  takun. 

C308) 


THE  FIRST  LEGISLATURE. 


an  unfinished  box,  sixty  feet  long  and  forty  feet  wide, 
two  stories  in  height,  having  a  piazza  in  front.  The 
upper  story,  devoted  to  the  use  of  the  assembly,  was 
simply  one  large  room,  approached  by  a  flight  of  stairs 
fioui  the  senate-chamber,  a  hall  forty  by  twenty  feet 
on  the  ground -floor;  the  remainder  of  the  space  being 
occupied  by  the  rooms  of  the  secretary  of  state,  and 
various  committees.^  For  the  first  few  weeks,  owing 
to  the  incompleteness  of  their  hall,  the  senators  held 
their  meetings  in  the  house  of  Isaac  Branham,  on  the 
south-west  corner  of  the  plaza. 

The  crudity  of  the  arrangements  occasioned  much 
dissatisfaction,  and  on  the  19th  a  bill  to  immediately 
remove  the  capital  to  Monterey  passed  its  first  read- 
ing-, but  was  laid  over,  and  the  business  of  the  session 
allowed  to  proceed.*     The  senate  was  organized  on  the 

^This  house  was  destroyed  by  fire  April  29,  1853.  S.  P.  Argonaut,  Dec.  1, 
1S77. 

^  There  being  no  county  organizations,  the  members  of  the  legislature  were 
elected  by  districts.  San  Diego  district  sent  to  the  senate  E.  Kirby  Chaiiiber- 
l;iin;  8au  Joaquin,  D.  F.  Douglas,  B.  S.  Lippincott,  T-  L.  Vernieule,  NcIkou 
Taylor,  and  W.  D.  Pair;  San  Jose,  VV.  R.  Bassham:  Sonoma,  M.  G.  Valiejo; 
M'liiktTcy,  Sclim  E.  Wood  worth;  Santa  Barbara,  Pablo  de  la  Guerra;  Los 
Aiifii'kx,  A.  W.  Hope;  Sac,  E.  0.  Crosby,  JohnBidwell,  H.  E.  Robinson,  and 
Tliiim;i3  Jeflferson  Green;  S.  F.,  N.  Bennett,  G.  B.  Post,  D.  C.  Broderick. 
Post  resigned,  and  E.  Hydenfeldt  was  elected  to  fill  his  place.  Broderick 
was  not  elected  until  Jan.  1850.  Six  of  the  senators  were  from  New  York 
state;  namely,  John  Bidwell,  born  1819,  immigrated  to  Pa,  Ohio,  Mo.,  and 
thence  in  1841  to  California;  E.  O.  Crosby,  aged  34,  came  to  Cal.  in  1848;  D. 
('.  IJroderick,  born  in  D.  C,  but  brought  up  in  New  York,  came  to  Cal.  in 
184!);  B.  S.  Lippincott,  aged  34,  born  in  New  York,  came  out  with  N.  Y. 
Vdl.  from  New  .Jersey:  Thomas  L.  Vermeule,  born  in  New  York  in  1814, 
came  to  Civl.  in  Nov.  1849;  he  resigned  his  seat;  S.  E.  Woodworth,  born  in 
New  York  in  1815,  began  life  as  a  sailor  in  1832,  entered  the  navy  in  18.38, 
came  to  Cal.  overland  through  Or.  in  1840,  resigned  his  commission  in  Oct. 
lS4i),  and  was  elected  senator  for  two  years  in  Nov.  He  was  a  son  of  the 
author  of  the  *  Old  Oaken  Bucket.'  Connecticut  furnished  2  senators:  E.  K. 
Chamberlain,  bom  1805,  removed  to  New  York  in  1815,  to  Pa  in  1829,  to 
('ineiniiati  subseijuently,  where  \\i  studied  >nedicine,  served  during  the  Mexi- 
can war  as  army  surgeon,  and  a'-;  ompaniod  the  Boundary  Lino  Commission 
to  Cal.  in  1849;  C.  Robinson,  Ixiia  in  Conn.,  removed  at  an  early  age  to  La, 
stiiilied  law,  but  engaged  \v.  mercantile  pursuits,  anU  came  to  Cal.  on  the  first 
mail  steamer  in  Feb.  1849.  Cal.  furnished  2  senators:  Pablo  de  la  Guerra, 
born  at  Santa  Bdrbara  in  1829.  He  entered  the  public  service  at  the  age  of 
1!>,  heiug  appointed  adiainistrator-gen.,  which  position  he  held  until  184(i. 
M.  (!.  Vallcjo  was  l)orn  at  Monterey  in  1807.  In  1824  he  commenced  his 
military  career  as  a  cadet,  and  served  as  lieut,  lieut-col,  and  commander  of 
northern  Cal.  He  founded  the  town  of  Sonoma.  E.  Heydenfeldt  was  born 
in  S.  C.  in  1821,  removed  to  Alabama  in  1841,  to  La  in  1844,  and  to  Cal.  in 
IJU'.t.  I).  F.  Douglas  was  born  in  Tenn.  in  1821,  removed  to  Ark.  in  183<i. 
Tlirc'   , .    rs  afterward  he  fought  a  duel  with  Dr  William  Howell,  killing  his 


'kiliVV 


II]! 


I  : 


y 


810 


POUTICAL  HISTORY 


17th,  E.  Kirby  Chamberlain  being  elected  president 
pro  tem.  On  the  same  day  the  assembly  elected 
Thomas  J.  White  speaker.*  On  the  20th  the  governor 
and  lieutenant-governor  were  sworn  in  by  Kimble  H 
Dimraick,  judge  of  the  court  of  first  instance  of  San 
Jose.  Immediately  thereafte.  the  legislature  in  con- 
v«^ntion  proceeded  to  the  election  of  United  States 

antagonist.  He  was  imprisoned  over  a  year,  and  when  liberated  returned  to 
Tenn.,  but  afterward  removed  to  Miss,  and  engaeed  in  Choctaw  speculation, 
moved  with  the^je  Indians  as  their  commissary,  out  finally  lost  money,  and 
went  to  N.  O.,  where  he  was  clerk  to  a  firm;'from  N.  O.  he  went  to  Texas 
ill  the  winter  of  1845-6,  and  in  Mex.  war  joined  Hay's  regiment.  From 
Mex.  he  came  to  Cal.  in  1848.  W.  D.  Fair  was  born  in  Va,  and  came  to 
Ciil.  via  Rio  Grande  and  Gila  route  in  1840  from  Miss.,  as  president  of  the 
Mississippi  Rangers. 

*The  assemblymen  came  from  the  several  districts  as  follows:  San  Diego, 
O.  S.  Witherby;  Los  Angeles,  M.  Martin,  A.  P.  Crittenden;  Santa  Bai-1)ara, 
J.  Scott,  J.  M.  Covarrubias;  San  Luis  Obispo,  H.  A.  Tefift;  Monterey,  T.  R. 
Per  Lee,  J.  S.  Gray;  San  Jos<5,  Joseph  Aram,  Benjamin  Cory,  Elaiii  BroM-ii; 
S.  F.,  W.  Van  Voorhies,  Edmund  Randolph,  J.  H.  Watson,  Alexander  Pat- 
terson, Alfred  Wheeler,  L.  Stowell,  and  Clarke;  Sonoma,  J.  E.  Brackett.  J. 
S.  Bradford;  Sac.,  P.  B.  Cornwall,  H.  C.  Cardwell,  John  T.  Hughes,  E.  W. 
McKinstry,  J.  Bigler,  George  B.  Tingley,  Madison  Walthall,  Thomas  ! 
White,  John  F.  Williams;  San  Joaquin,  B.  F.  Moore,  R.  W.  Heath,  D.  1'. 
Baldwin,  Charles  M.  Creaner,  J.  S.  K.  Ogier,  James  C.  Moorehead,  J.  F. 
Stephens,  Van  Beascheten,  Crane,  and  Stewart,  4  of  these  being  substitutes 
for  memliers  who  resigned  during  the  session.  Those  who  resigned  were 
Martin,  Van  Voorhies,  Cornwall,  and  speaker  White.  Joseph  Aram  was  a  na- 
tive of  N.  Y.,  who  came  to  Cal.  in  184G.  Elam  Brown,  bom  in  N.  Y.  in  1797. 
removed  to  Mo.,  and  from  there  to  Cal.  in  1846.  E.  B.  Bateman  immigrateil 
from  Mo.  in  1847,  to  Stockton,  Cal.  D.  P.  Baldwin,  born  in  Ala,  came  to 
Cal.  in  May  1849,  and  resided  at  Sonora,  in  what  is  now  Tuolumne  co.  A. 
P.  Critteiuien,  born  in  Lexington,  Ky,  married  in  Va,  settled  in  Texas  in 
1839,  left  his  family  in  Tex.  and  came  to  Los  Angeles,  Cal.,  in  1849.  B. 
Cory,  born  in  Ohio  in  1825,  came  to  Cal.  in  1847,  and  resided  at  San  Jose. 
Jose  M.  Covarrubias,  born  in  France,  came  to  Cal.  in  1834,  and  resided  at 
Sta  Barbara.  James  A.  Gray,  born  in  Phil.,  came  to  Cal.  in  1846,  in  N.  Y. 
regt.  John  F.  Hughes,  born  in  Louisville,  Ky,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849.  Thomas 
J.  Henly,  born  in  Ind.,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849,  through  the  South  Pass;  resided 
at  Sac.  Joseph  C.  Moorehead,  born  in  Ky,  came  to  Cal.  in  1846.  Elisha 
W.  McKinstry,  born  in  Detroit,  Mich.,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849;  resided  at  Sut- 
ter. J.  S.  K.  Ogier,  born  in  S.  C,  removed  to  N.  0.,  and  thence  to  Cal.  in 
1848.  Edmund  Randolph,  born  in  Va,  migrated  via  N.  0.  to  S.  F.  in  1849. 
(reo.  B.  Tingley,  born  in  1815,  in  Ohio,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849.  John  Cave,  liorii 
in  Ky.  Alfred  Wheeler,  born  in  N.  Y.  c'ty,  in  1820,  came  to  Cal.  in  1849; 
resided  at  S.  F.  Marin  Co.  Hist.,  210-12;  Colwa  Sun,  in  Southern  Calijoi- 
nian,  May  22,  1873;  AnMtroj>o(jraj>hic  C/uirt,  1867;  Cat.  State  Remitter,  1857. 
The  secretary  of  the  senate  was  J.  I*'.  Howe;  asst  sec,  W.  B.  Olds;  enrolling 
clerk,  A.  W.  Lockett;  engrossing  clerk,  B.  Dexter — resigned  April  10,  18.')0— 
succeeded  by  F.  T.  Eldridge;  sergt-at-arms,  T.  J.  Austin;  door-keeper,  E. 
Russell.  Tlie  clerk  of  the  assembly  was  E.  H  Thorp,  who,  being  elected 
clerk  of  the  supreme  court  Feb.  2l8t,  was  succeeded  by  John  Nugent;  asst 
clerk,  F.  H.  Sandford;  enrolling  clerk,  A.  D.  Ohr,  appointed  asst  clerk,  ami 
Sandford  enrolliiig  clerk  in  Jan.  Engrossing  clerk,  C.  Miteh^^U;  tranacril>ing 
clerk  elected  in  i^n.,  G.  O.  McMullin;  sergt-at-arms,  S.  W.  Houston;  door- 
keeper, J.  H.  Warriugtoa.  Hay  en''  Scrapn,  Cal.  Notes,  iii.  198. 


ELECTION  OF  SENATORS. 


311 


senators,  this  being  the  object  of  the  so  early  meeting 
of  that  body,  th^  candidates  being  upon  the  ground, 
jilving  their  trade  of  blandishments,  including  an  inex- 
liaustible  supply  of  free  liquor.* 

Of  candidates  there  were  several,  Thomas  Butler 
King,  John  C.  Frdmont,  William  M.  Gwin,  Thomas 
J.  Henley,  John  W.  Geary,  Robert  Semple,  and  H. 
W.  Halleck.  On  the  first  count  Fremont  received 
twenty -nine  out  of  forty-six  votes,  and  was  declared 
elected.  On  the  second  count  Gwin  received  twenty- 
two  out  of  forty-seven  votes,  increased  to  twenty-four 
at  the  third  count,  and  he  was  declared  elected.  Hal- 
leck ran  next  best;  then  Henley.  King  received  ten 
votes  on  the  first  count,  the  number  declining  to  two, 
and  at  last  to  one.*  Charges  were  preferred  against 
him,  and  he  was  not  wanted  because  he  was  thought 
n()t  to  be  so  much  interested  in  California  as  in  his 
own  personal  aggrandizement.  Fremont  enjoyed  the 
popularity  which  came  from  his  connection  with  the 
contjuest,  and  his  subsequent  trial  in  Washington,  in 
which  he  had  the  sympathies  of  the  people.     Gwin 


^  It  has  always  been  alleged  that  the  American-Califomians  of  an  larly 
■period  drank  freely,  and  thia  Ixuly  has  been  styled  the  'legislatnre  of  a  thou- 
sand drinks.'  However  this  may  liave  been,  it  was  the  host  legislature  Cali- 
fornia ever  had.  For  what  they  drank,  tlie  niend)era  returned  thanks.  All 
wore  lionest — there  was  nothing  to  steal.  Their  pay  was  no  inducement,  as 
tliuy  could  mak))  thrice  as  much  elsewhere.  Furthermore,  tliis  was  before 
( ■:ililoi-iiiau8  began  to  sell  themselves  as  political  prostitutes.  In  ('urm/K  In- 
dilfiitx,  7,  I  find  it  stated  that  the  first  legislature  was  chielly  made  up  of  tlie 
'oiiivalry,'  who  were  aggressive,  and  so  on,  but  the  evidence  is  the  other 

V  a>  I .  hould  say  that  chiefly  they  were  hard-working  men.  The  candidates 
for  '!>.  TJ.  S.  senatorship  kept  'ranchos.'as  they  were  termed,  or  open  houses, 

V  h're  PiM  iiiight  enter,  drink  freely,  and  wish  their entertiiiner's  election.  But 
(.'It;  le;'!,'!'  'turf)  of  a  thousand  drinks  received  its  designation,  not  on  account 
J  t')i.s  ,iL'odigal  custom,  but  through  the  facetiousness  of  (Jreen  of  Sac,  wiio, 
ii  -  i  !  b.  ing  purposes,  kept  a  supply  of  liquors  near  the  state-house,  and 
vv|i  111 '\;r  t)ia  Icgi.slaturo  adjourned,  lie  crii'(l  to  the  members,  'Come  let  u.s 
;-'kt'  o  t.'ious  i)d  driaLs.'  Crosby  says:  'There  were  a  few  roistering  men  in 
tlie  ic^.  '■.  jrc.  more  in  the  ussembly,  the  senate  being  a  small  body,  and 
C(iii:po.sed  of  very  circuni'^pect  gentlemen.'  Eddy  Eirntx,  01-2;  Frnmmli'z, 
i''il..  MS.,  105;  WatsoHvilk  Pdjnro  Tinw-t,  April  29,  1805;  0»v»,  Stn  <'l<ini 
Vnlly,  10;  Hayes'  Scraps,  VaL  A'i)ti'ii,  v.  30;  Sac.  Record  Union,  Marcli  2T,  1875; 
J/'ill,  San  Joti6  Hint.,  220;  Peckluiin,  Bioij.,  in  San  Jo«6  Piomer,  July  28, 

1877,  .m 

»./oMr.  Cat.  Leg.,  1850,  23-26;  Pelaluma  .1  ;v/im,  Sept.  12,  187.1;  I'oli/ne-siaH, 
vi.  150;  Amer.  Qutrf.  Keg.,  iv.  515;  Shi>.  S.  F.  Par.  \cws,  iJcc.  27.  1849; 
TutliiU,  Col.,  7G-7;  Col.  Jour.  Sen.,  1850,  38-9;  /</.,  1851,  VJ  '21. 


ill 


ilii 


I 


812 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


was  no  l«ss  selfish  in  his  aspirations  than  King;  hut 
there  was  this  differenc  ;:  he  was  an  abler  man,  cooler 
and  more  crafty.  Furthermore,  while  King  cartxl 
only  for  himself  and  for  the  present,  Gwin's  selfishness 
was  less  proximate  and  prominent.  He  had  a  distinct 
object  in  view,  which  concerned  the  future  of  the  coun- 
try. His  sympathy  with  the  fire-eaters  of  the  S(nitli 
was  well  understood,  and  more  than  anything  else 
elected  him;  for  in  the  then  existing  struggle  between 
tlie  north  and  south  in  congress,  the  northern  men  in 
the  legislature  saw  that  to  elect  two  senators  with 
anti-slavery  sentiments  would  prevent  the  admission 
of  the  state.  Conceding  that  honesty  was  his  best 
policy,  his  fitness  for  the  position  was  admitted,  while 
his  per^iTial  interests,  it  was  believed,  would  lead  him 
to  laboi   J       '  ,3  good  of  California. 

On  the  -  Governor  Burnett  delivered  his  inaujifu- 
ral  message  oo  the  legislature.  "The  first  question 
you  have  to  determine,"  said  he,  "is  whether  you  will 
proceed  at  once  with  the  general  business  of  legisla- 
tion, or  await  the  action  of  congress  upon  the  question 
of  our  admission  into  the  union."  Upon  this  ho 
made  an  argument  which  was  conclusive  of  their  right 
to  proceed;  made  some  comments  on  the  science  of 
law;  cautioned  them  concerning  the  "grave  and  deli- 
cate subject  of  revenue,"  informing  them  that  the  ex- 
penses of  the  state  government  for  the  first  year  would 
probably  exceed  half  a  million  dollars;  recommended 
a  direct  tax,  to  be  received  in  California  gold  at  six- 
teen dollars  per  ounce;  advised  the  exclusion  of  free 
negroes  from  the  state;  and  made  suggestions  touch- 
ing the  judiciary.  It  is  a  verbose  document,  charac- 
terized by  no  special  ability.  The  exclusion  of  free 
negroes  was  always  a  hobby  of  Burnett's.  When  he 
revised  the  Oregon  fundamental  laws  in  1844,  he 
introduced  the  same  measure  again.st  negroes,  which 
was  finally  incorporated  in  the  constitution  of  that 
state,  where  it  remains  to  this  day,  a  dead  letter. 
The  negro  had  never  so  great  au  enemy  as  his  former 


GOVERNOR  BURNETT. 


818 


master,  with  whom  there  was  no  compromise ,  it  was 
luustor  or  nothing.  Burnett  had  been  brought  up  in 
a  slave  state,  and  although  he  had  resigned  the  privi- 
]e»»x'S  of  master,  he  could  not  brook  the  presence  of 
tlie  enslaved  race  in  the  character  of  freedmen.  Then, 
too,  if  to  exclude  black  slaves  was  a  popular  measure, 
to  exclude  black  freemen  must  be  more  popular,  and 
popularity  was  by  no  means  to  be  ignored.  There 
was  a  good  deal  of  apprehension  among  men  of  Bur- 
nett's class,  who  were  alarmed  at  the  rumor  that  many 
southern  men  designed  bringing  their  slaves  to  work 
in  the  mines,  taking  the  risk  of  their  becoming  free, 
lu  point  of  fact,  a  good  many  persons  of  the  African 
race  were  brought  to  California  in  1849  and  1850, 
who  being  thus  made  free,  asserted  their  rights  and 
rcinaiued  fiee,  c^'ten  acquiring  comfortable  fortunes 
aiul  becoming  usttu'  citizens.  As  soon  as  it  became 
established  by  experience  that  slavery  could  not  exist 
in  California  even  for  a  short  time,  the  importation 
of  negroes  ceased,  and  there  was  no  need  of  a  law  for 
their  exclusion,  and  the  preservation  of  society  from 
the  evils  apprehended  from  their  presence.  But  the 
eflort  to  maintain  the  right  of  the  master  to  the  slave' 

'  An  advertisement  appeared  in  the  Jackson  Missimiippiun,  of  April  1,  1850, 
lifiiikMl,  ' (Jalifornia,  the  Southern  Slave  Colony,'  inviting  citizens  of  tlioslave- 
hiilding  states  wishing  to  go  to  Cal.  to  send  their  names,  nuin1>cr  of  slaves, 
puriciil  of  contemplated  departure,  etj.,  to  the  Southern  Slave  Colony,  Jack- 
sDH,  Miss.  It  was  stated  that  the  design  of  the  friends  of  the  enterprise  was 
to  sfttk^  in  the  richest  mining  and  agricultural  portions  of  Cal.,  and  'to  se- 
cure tlie  uninterrupted  enjoyment  of  slave  property.'  The  colony  was  to 
comprise  ahout  5,000  white  persons,  and  10,000  slaves.  The  manner  of  eft'ect- 
iug  the  organization  was  to  be  privately  imparted.  Placer  Titnvs,  May  1,  1850. 
UiiiUt  the  influence  of  the  governor's  message,  and  their  apprehensions,  the 
assf iiihly  passed  a  bill  excluding  free  negroes,  which  was  indefinitely  post- 
poned ill  the  senate.  Jour.  Cal.  Leg.,  1850,  1232-3,  347.  On  the  23d  of  May 
a  colored  man  named  Lawrence  was  married  to  a  c(>1ored  woman,  Margaret, 
liireil  out  to  service  by  a  white  man  named  William  Marr,  who  claimed  her 
as  liis  L^Iiive.  Early  on  the  following  morning  Marr  forced  the  woman,  by 
threats,  and  showing  a  pistol,  to  leave  her  husband  and  go  witli  him.  He 
afterward  oflfured  to  resign  her  on  payment  of  $1,000.  Placer  Timex,  May  27, 
18.")0.  A  white  man  named  Best  brought  a  colored  woman,  Mary,  to  Nevada, 
Cal,  ill  1850,  from  Mo.  ""  M'as  a  cruel  master,  but  she  remained  with  iiim 
until  he  returned  in  1854,  wiic.i  she  borrowed  money  to  purchase  her  freedom. 
Soon  after  she  married  Harry  Dorsey,  a  colored  man,  and  live  I  happily  with 
iiiui  until  her  death  in  1864.  Xermla  Oazette,  Sept.  3,  18;i4.  (Miarles,  a 
colored  man,  came  to  Cal.  as  the  slave  of  Liiwlal  Hayes.  He  escaped,  and 
was  lifought  before  Judge  Thomas  on  a  writ  of  habeas  corpus,  and  discharged, 


314 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


■-I  i! 


1  i; 


was  not  relinquished  for  a  number  of  years,  as  will  be 
seen  hereafter. 

On  the  2 2d  and  succeeding  days  contributions  were 
made  to  a  state  library  of  the  Natural  History  of  the 
State  of  New  York,  and  reports  upon  the  common 
schools  and  agriculture  of  that  state,  Dana^s  Mineral- 
ogy, Fremont's  Geographical  Memoir  and  Map,  the  Micr 
Expedition,  and  a  copy  of  the  Bible.  If  any  of  tlio 
members  found  time  to  look  between  the  covers  of 
these  improving  books,  it  does  not  appear  in  the  jour- 
nals. 

An  election  of  state  officers  resulted  in  making 
Richard  Roman,  treasurer;  John  S.  Houston,  comp- 
troller; Edward  J.  C.  Kewen,  attorney-general;**  and 
Charles  A.  Whiting,  surveyor-general.  S.  C.  Has- 
tings was  elected  chief  justice  of  the  supreme  court, 
and  Henry  A.  Lyons  and  Nathaniel  Bennett  associ- 
ate judges.  There  was  not  so  much  as  a  quire  of 
writing  paper,  an  inkstand,  or  a  pen  belonging  to  the 
state,  nor  any  funds  with  which  to  purchase  tlieni. 
No  contract  had  been  made  for  printing,  and  each  sena- 

the  jutlge  maintaining  that  under  the  laws  of  Mexico,  which  prevailed  at  tlio 
time  of  liis  arrival,  he  was  free.  The  constitution  of  Cal.  forbade  slavery 
also;  aiul  the  man  having  been  freed  by  the  Mexican  law  could  not  lie,  in 
any  ciise,  seized  aa  a  slave.  On  the  24tli  of  May  Charles  was  brouglit  iqi  fur 
breach  of  the  peace,  charged  with  assault  on  Hayes,  and  resistance  tu  the 
sheriff.  It  turned  out  that  the  sheriff  had  no  warrant,  and  that  C'liarh's  liv- 
ing been  declared  a  freeman  was  justified  in  defending  himself  from  assault 
by  Hayes,  and  the  unauthorized  officers  who  assisted  him.  Couiisc'lhir 
Zabriskie  argued  the  law;  also  J.  W.  Winans;  Justice  Sackett  «liscliaru;i'd  the 
priaoner.  Pin-  r  Times,  May  27,  1850;  S.  F.  Pac.  Neiog,  May 29,  1S.")();  /'.;//< 
Statement,  18-21.  In  Aug.  1850,  one  (ialloway,  from  Mo.,  arrived  in  Cal. 
with  his  slave  Frank,  wliom  he  took  to  the  mines,  whence  he  escaped  in  the 
spring  of  1851,  going  to  S.  F.  (ialloway  found  him  in  March,  ami  luekcil 
hnn  up  in  the  Whiteliall  building  on  Long  wharf.  A  writ  of  habeas  eorinis 
was  issued  in  Frank's  behalf  by  Judge  Morrison,  the  negro  stating  that  he 
believed  <  Jalloway  meant  to  take  him  on  boiird  a  vessel  to  convey  him  to  the 
states.  Byrne  and  McGay,  and  Halliday  and  Saunders,  were  em[)l(iye(l  in 
the  interest  of  the  slave,  and  Frank  Pixlcy  for  the  master,  who  allcj^cd  that 
he  was  simply  travelling  with  his  attendant,  and  meant  to  leave  the  state 
soon.  But  tlie  juilgc  held  that  Galloway  could  not  restrain  Frank  of  liis  lili- 
erty,  as  he  was  not  a  fugitive  slave,  but  if  brought  at  all  to  the  state  by  <ial- 
loway,  was  so  brought  without  his  consent.  He  was  allowed  to  go  fruo.  .1  Itii 
Cat.,  April  2,  1851;  S.  F.  Courier,  March  31,  1851.  There  were  many  slaves 
in  the  mines  in  1851,  and  many  appeals  in  court  for  the  reclamation  of  slaves. 
Borthwirk,  1(54-5;  Hayes'  Scraps,  Anqele^,  MS.,  i.  28. 

"Kewen  resigned  in  1850,  and  James  A.  McDougall  was  elected  to  till  the 
vacancy. 


THE  POOR  LAW-MAKERS 


315 


tor  had  ordered  a  copy  of  the  governor's  message  for 
his  individual  use  In  this  strait  a  joint  resolution 
that  the  secretary  of  state,  comptroller,  judges  of  the 
supreme  court,  and  all  other  state  officers  should  have 
|)o\VL'r  to  procure  the  necessary  blank  books,  station- 
ery, and  furniture  for  their  offices,  was  offered — and 
lost.  The  weather,  their  accommodations,  and  their 
poverty  together  were  almost  more  than  men  who 
had  sacrificed  their  own  interests  to  perform  a  public 
(liitv  were  able  to  bear;  but  they  sturdily  refused  to 
a(ljt»urn,  taking  only  three  days  at  the  Christmas  holi- 
da'  s  in  which  to  recreate,  and  wait  for  printing  pro- 
posals. 

To  lighten  their  hearts  the  inhabitants  of  San  Jos^ 
gave  them  a  ball  on  the  27th  of  December,  in  the 
as.sembly-chamber,*  and  hither  came  the  beauty  and 
chivalry  of  California,  at  least  as  much  of  it  as  could 
get  there  through  a  drenching  rain,  on  a  Liliputian 
steamboat,  from  Benicia,  and  by  whatever  means  they 
had  from  other  directions.  About  the  1st  of  January 
they  settled  down  to  the  work  before  them. 

(ireen,  the  irrepressible  senator  to  whom  everything 
was  a  huge  joke,  who  had  been  elected  in  a  frolic,  and 
thought  legislation  a  comedy,  had  very  inappropriately 
heen  placed  at  the  head  of  the  finance  committee,  and 
hrought  in  a  bill  for  a  temporary  loan  at  ten  ]>er  cent 
per  annum,  when  the  lowest  bank  rate  was  five  per 
cent  per  month.  While  the  legislature  was  struggling 
with  the  problem  of  how  to  get  money  for  current 
expenses,  Michael  Reese,  long  a  prominent  money- 
bags of  San  Francisco,  made  a  suggestion  that  they 
pass  a  bill  authorizing  the  issue  of  treasury  notes, 
payable  in  six  or  twelve  months,  with  interest  at  the 
lowest  current  rate,  and  in  small  denominations,  which 
hotul-keepers  would  accept  for  board,  promising  to 
take  some  of  them  himself  for  money — he  did  not  say 


_  *.\nmhS.  F.,  237;  Cnl  State  Reijister,  1837,  189;  S.  F.  Par.  Xaos,  April 
27,  1850;  Hayen'  Scraps,  Atpfeleti,  i.  1.");  Oakhtwl  TmiMCiijit,  in  Went  Coast  Siij- 
ml.  May  27,  "1874;  S.  F.  Aiyonaut,  Doc.  1,  1877. 


316 


POUTICAL  fflSTORY. 


;.    ::|li: 


at  the  rate  of  fifty  cents  on  the  dollar.  An  act  author- 
izing a  loan  of  $200,000,  to  pay  the  immediate  demands 
on  the  treasury  until  a  permanent  fund  could  be  raised, 
passed,  and  was  approved  January  5th,  proposals  to 
be  received  until  the  25th,  the  loan  to  be  for  a  term 
of  not  less  than  six,  nor  more  than  twelve  years.  An- 
other act  was  passed  in  February  creating  a  tempo- 
rary state  loan,  authorizing  the  treasurer  to  issue  the 
bonds  of  the  state  in  sums  of  $100  and  upwards  to 
$1,000,  payable  in  six  months,  and  not  exceeding  in 
the  aggregate  $300,000,  with  interest  at  three  per 
cent  per  month.  The  bonds  were  to  remain  at  j)ar 
value,  be  received  for  taxes,  and  redeemed  as  soon  as 
there  was  sufficient  money  in  the  treasury.^" 

Laws,  enacted  for  the  collection  of  revenue,  taxed 
all  real  and  personal  estate,  excepting  only  that  de- 
vottd  to  public  uses  and  United  States  pru{)erty, 
exempting  the  amount  of  the  holder's  indebtechiess, 
and  exempting  the  personal  property  of  widows  and 
orphan  children  to  the  amount  of  $1,000  each.  JVIoney 
was  construed  to  be  personal  property,  and  incorporated 
companies  were  liable  to  be  taxed  on  their  capital. 
The  amount  levied  for  the  year  1850  was  fifty  cents 
on  every  $100  worth  of  taxable  property,  and  a  poll 
tax  of  $5  on  every  male  inhabitant  over  twenty-one 
and  under  fifty  years  of  age.  It  was  a  peculiarity  of 
California  at  that  period  that  there  were  few  men 
here  fifty  years  old,  excepting  the  elders  of  the  native 
Californians.     The  argonauts  were  all  in  their  prime. 

Courts  of  second  ana  third  instance  were  abolished, 
and  courts  of  first  instance  retained  until  the  district 
courts  should  be  organized.  Nine  judicial  districts 
were  created,  the  first  comprising  the  counties  of  San 
Diego  and  Los  Angeles ;  the  second  Santa  Barbara 
and  San  Luis  Obispo;  the  third  Monterey,  Santa 
Cruz,  Santa  Clara,  and  Contra  Costa;  the  fourth  San 
Francisco;   the   fifth  Calaveras,  San  Joaquin,  Tuol- 

^•Cnl.  SfattOeg,  1850,  53-4,468;  Crosby,  Events  in  Cal.,  MS.,  63;  o.  F.  AUa, 
Jail  14,  1850 


COUXTIES  AND  THEIR  BOUNDARIES. 


817 


uninc,  and  Mariposa;  the  sixth  Sacramento  and  El 
Dorado;  the  seventh  Marin,  Sonoma,  Napa,  Solano, 
and  Mendocino ;  the  eighth  Yolo,  Sutter,  and  Yuba ; 
the  ninth  Butte,  Colusa,  Trinity,  and  Shasta.  The 
judcfcs  were  to  be  elected  by  the  people,  and  commis-! 
sionod  by  the  governor.  Besides  the  supreme  c(mrt 
elected  by  the  legislature,  which  should  hold  its  ses- 
sions at  the  seat  of  government  after  holding  first  one 
special  term  at  San  Francisco,  there  was  created  the 
municipal  court  of  superior  judges  for  the  city  of  San 
Francisco,  consisting  of  a  chief  justice  and  two  asso- 
ciate justices.  Justices  of  the  peace  attended  to  minor 
causes.  Crosby  was  chairman  of  the  judiciary  com- 
mittee, and  made  an  able  report  on  the  adoption  of 
the  common  law,  as  against  the  civil  law,  as  tlie  rule 
nroverning  the  decisions  of  the  courts  in  the  absence  of 
statutory  law." 

Do  la  Guerra  was  chairman  of  the  committee  on 
counties  and  their  boundaries,  for  the  senate,  and 
Cornwall  for  the  assembly.  The  state  was  divided 
into  twenty-seven  counties,  and  a  commission  ap- 
pointed to  report  the  derivation  and  definition  of  their 
several  names,  of  which  Vallejo  was  the  chief,  and 
made  an  interesting  report.^'  No  objection  seems  to 
have  been  offered  by  the  inhabitants  to  the  boundaries, 
unless  in  the  case  oi  Monterey  district,  which  in  Au- 
gust 1849  had  petitioned  the  local  legislature  against  a 
pr<)[)()sed  division.  However,  the  state  legislature  re- 
ceived two  petitions  from  Santa  Cruz,  and  from  141 
Americans,  headed  by  A.  A.  Hecox,  and  another 
from  nineteen  native  Californians,  headed  by  Juan 
Perez,  asking  for  a  separate  county,  which  was  set  off 
in  accordance  with  a  report  of  a  joint  delegation  from 
Monterey  and  San  Jose.^* 

"  Crosby  says  there  was  quite  an  element  of  civil  Liw  in  the  legislature, 
which  naturally  might  be,  as  the  foreign  element  was  chiefly  descindud  from 
tlie  Litiii  races.  Being  a  New  Yorker,  he  favored  the  Englisli  coiinuoii  law. 
His  iL'port  was  scannetf  by  Bennett,  and  being  sent  to  mund)<;r.s  of  the  bar  in 
that  statf,  he  received  as  a  testimonial  a  handsome  seal  engraved  with  his 
crest.  Rnckirell,  Spun,  and  Mex.  Law,  500. 

'-./»«/■.  Cnl.  Leg.,  1850,523-7. 

^^ Smta  Cruz  Sentinel,  Aug.  1,  1868;  Jour.  Col.  Le,j.,  92. 


U  I- 


318 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


The  county  seats  were  established  at  the  principal 
towns,  except  in  the  cases  of  Marin  and  Mendocino, 
attached  to  Sonoma  for  judicial  purposes;  and  Colusa 
and  Trinity  attached  to  Shasta  until  organized,  sonic 
of  the  northern  counties  being  left  to  choose  their  own 
seats  of  justice."  The  expenses  of  county  go.ern- 
ments  were  to  be  defrayed  out  of  licenses  collected  in 
them,  upon  every  kind  of  trade  and  business  except 
mining  by  citizens  of  California."  County  elections 
were  to  be  held  on  the  first  Mondaj*^  of  April  1852, 
and  on  the  same  day  of  every  second  year  thereafter; 
but  the  annual  state  election  for  members  of  the  as- 
sembly, and  other  officers  required  te  be  chosen  by 
the  qualified  electors  of  the  state  or  of  districts,  was 
fixed  for  the  first  Monday  in  October. 

The  militia  law  declared  subject  to  enrolment  for 
military  duty  all  free  white  men  between  the  ages  of 
eighteen  and  forty-five,  excepting  such  as  had  served 
a  full  term  in  the  army  or  navy,  or  were  members  of 
volunteer  companies  within  the  state.  The  militia 
and  independent  companies  were  organized  into  four 
divisions  and  eight  brigades ;  the  governor  te  be  com- 
mander-in-chief, who  might  appoint  two  aides-de-camp, 
with  the  rank  of  colonels  of  cavalry;  but  the  legisla- 
ture should  elect  the  major  and  brigadier-generals,  one 
adjutant  and  one  quartermaster  general,  with  the  rank 
of  brigadier-general,  all  to  be  commissioned   by  the 

^*To  be  more  explicit,  and  preserve  some  early  names:  In  San  Diego,  Loa 
Angeles,  Santa  Barbara,  San  Luis  Obispo,  Monterey,  Santa  Cmz,  S.  F.,  .Sac., 
Napa,  and  Sonoma,  the  county  seats  had  the  same  name  as  the  county.  Of 
Santa  Clara,  San  Jose  was  made  the  county  seat;  Contra  Costa,  Martinez; 
Solano,  Benicia;  Yolo,  Fremont;  El  Dorado  could  choose  between  Colnma 
and  Placerville,  and  twok  the  latter;  Sutter,  Oro;  Yuba,  Marysville;  Batte 
had  to  choose  between  Butte  and  Chico,  and  took  the  latter;  Colusa  was  at- 
tached to  Butte  CO. ;  Shasta,  Reading;  Trinity  was  attached  to  Shasta;  Cala- 
veras was  first  given  Pleasant  Valley  for  a  county  seat,  but  it  was  changed  a 
few  weeks  later  to  Double  Springs;  San  Joaquin,  Stockton;  Tuolumne,  .Stew- 
art, formerly  known  aa  Sonoran  Camp;  Mariposa,  Aqua  Fria.  An  act  was 
piassed  providing  for  the  removal  and  permanent  location  of  the  seats  of  jus- 
tice, as  required  by  the  people. 

'^  A  law  was  enacted  taxing  foreign  miners  $20  per  month  as  part  of  the 
revenue  of  the  state,  until  the  gov.  should  be  '  officially  informed  of  the  pas- 
sage of  a  law  by  the  U.  S.  congress  aasuming  the  control  of  the  mines  of  the 
state.'  Cal.  Statutes,  1850,  221-2. 


MILITARY  MATTERS. 


S19 


;  of  the 

|the  pas- 

iof  the 


fjovfrnor.  All  persons  liable  to  enrolment,  and  not 
niiiiilxTS  of  any  company,  were  required  to  pay  two 
dulljirs  annually  into  the  county  treasury.  The  money 
tliiisi  collected  was  called  the  military  fund,  which  was 
incRa.sed  by  the  exemption  tax  of  minors  required  of 
their  |>arents  or  guardians,  and  applied  solely  Ut  the 
payment  of  the  expenses  of  that  department  of  the 
(oiVirnment,  including  salaries  of  officers.*'  The  four 
ii»aj«»r-f(eiierals  of  division  elected  were  Thomas  J, 
Green,  Jcjhn  E.  Brackett,  David  F.  Douglas,  and 
Jdshua  H.  Bean,  in  the  order  here  given.  The  gen- 
erals of  brigade  were  J.  H.  Eastland  and  William  M. 
Winn,  1st  division;  Robert  Semple  and  Major  Mc- 
Donald, 2d  division;  John  E.  Andison  and  D.  P. 
Bakiwin,  3d  division;  Thomas  H.  Bowen  and  J.  M. 
Covurrubias,  4th  division.  T.  R.  Per  Lee  was  chrjsen 
adjutant  and.  Joseph  C.  Moorehead  quartermaster- 
general.  Only  these  last  two  officers  drew  any  salary. 
In  tlie  following  October,  the  Indians  being  trouVjle- 
some  in  El  Dorado  county,  the  governor  called  on  the 
.sheriff  of  that  county,  William  Rogers,  to  raise  troops 
to  operate  against  them,  and  the  legislature  of  1»51 
pa.sse(l  laws  providing  for  the  payment  of  Rogers  as 
major,  and  of  the  troops  employed  in  two  expeditions 
against  the  Indians,  but  took  no  notice  of  generals, 
who  remained  in  office  merely  for  the  distinction  of 
tlieir  rank.  Nor  was  the  law  amended  for  many 
years;  but  in  1872  the  organized,  uniformed  troops 
of  the  state  were  the  subject  of  legislation  which 
Converted  them  into  the  present  National  Guard,  con- 
sisjting  of  thirty-two  infantry,  six  cavalry,  and  two 

J*Cal.  Statutes,  1850,  190-6.  This  law  was  several  times  revised,  and  in 
IS'i  took  its  present  form.  Col.  Codes,  154-84.  Only  two  officers  were 
salarietl;  the  adjutant-general  receiving  $1,000  per  annum,  and  the  qoarter- 
majter-general  ^,000.  Gen.  Winn  brought  in  a  claim  in  1860  for  services 
ren.lereil,  which  were  not,  however,  recognized  by  the  legislature,  as  no  law 
cool'l  then  l>e  found  authorizing  the  payment  of  any  officer  aliove  the  rank  of 
major.  Oil.  Jour.  Asgem.,  1860,  253-4.  The  clerk  of  the  house  military  !..:a. 
was  DavU  Dirine,  a  lawyer  from  Oneida  co.,  N.  Y.,  who  came  to  CaL  in  <  • 
an<l  settled  in  San  Jose.  He  was  also  clerk  of  the  judiciary  com.  of  the  senaie. 
He  was  for  many  years  justice  of  the  peace  and  judge  of  the  court  of  seasioos; 
and  proje-^d  the  first  R.  R.  co.  to  build  a  road  to  S.  F.  from  San  Joae. 
Oveni,  SuiUu  Clara  VaUey,  37. 


830 


POUTICAL  HISTORY 


!'!' 


artillery  companies,  whose  pay  when  in  service  is  the 
same  as  that  of  United  States  officers  and  soldiers. 
All  claims  are  submitted  to  a  board  of  military  audi- 
tors, consisting  of  the  commander-in-chief,  af'  mt- 
general,  and  attorney -general ;  and  its  warn  ,  aro 
paid  by  the  Htate  treasurer.  The  sum  of  $300  is  annu- 
ally allowed  to  each  company  of  over  sixty  members, 
a  proportionate  amount  to  smaller  companies,  and  8100 
to  each  detachment  of  engineers,  for  expenses.  Three 
officers  are  salaried :  the  armorer,  adjutant-general,  and 
assistant  adjutant-general 

An  act  was  passed,  which  was  allowed  by  tnc 
schedule  to  the  constitution,  to  the  first  legislature, 
authorizing  a  loan  in  New  York  on  the  faith  and 
credit  of  the  state,  for  the  expenses  of  the  state,  not  to 
exceed  $1,000,000,  at  ten  per  cent  per  annum,  and  re- 
deemaolo  in  twenty  years,  or  if  desired  by  the  state 
at  any  time  after  ten  years.  This  unfortunate  will- 
ingness to  plunge  into  debt  was  a  part  of  the  mental 
condition  of  Californians  at  this  period,  and  was  in 
marked  contrast  with  the  prudent  economy  of  the 
early  Oregonians.  Both  were  the  result  of  circum- 
stances. In  Oregon  there  was  no  money;  '  Califor- 
nia there  promised  to  be  no  limit  to  it.  j  mount 
required  to  pay  the  salaries  of  state  officers  was  $107,- 
500,  which  did  not  include  the  state  printing,  always 
considerable,  nor  the  pay  of  legislators  at  sixteen  dol- 
lars per  diem,  and  equally  extravagant  mileage.  Yet 
it  was  difficult  to  retain  a  quorum,  such  were  the  in- 
ducements to  members  to  look  after  their  mininjjf  or 
other  interests,  and  the  sergeant-at- arms  founil  his 
office  no  sinecure.  At  one  period  the  senate,  in  order 
to  go  on  with  its  business,  was  reduced  to  the  neces- 
sity of  deciding  that  eight  constituted  a  quorum  in- 
stead of  nine,  and  one  ever-busy  senator  was  arrested 
for  being  absent  long  enough  to  pay  a  sick  menihera 
morning  visit.  Several  resignations  and  new  elections 
took  place,  and  one  assemblyman  never  claimed  his 


SLAVERY  RESOLUTIONS. 


asi 


soat.  Xevcrtliclc'ss,  the  code  of  1850  is  a  very 
crt'ilitul)ie  jKrrforiuance,  liberal  in  its  tone,  and  re- 
markahly  well  a<lju8ted  to  the  new  conditions  in  which 
tli«'  Irj^qslutors  found  themselves. 

The  resolutions  passed  on  the  subject  of  slavery 
wero  soundinj^  br  ss  and  tinklin«»'  cymbal  ten  years 
later,'"  but  were  sound  denjocratic  doctrine,  though 
soinewliat  unsound  democratic  grammar,  in  I  HoO. 
The  (leiuoeratic  party  in  Ameriea  was  fast  becoming  the 
juo-sluvery  party.  In  congress  this  party  insisted  on 
the  right  of  a  state  to  determine  the  question  of  slav- 
ery for  itself,  but  when  such  stiite  elected  to  bo  free, 
ciideavored  to  keep  it  out  of  the  union.  California, 
with  a  strong  southern  element,  was  controlled  by 
northern  sentiment;  and  the  interests  of  all  men  as 
individuals  demanding  the  admission  of  the  state, 
there  was  by  universal  consent  at  this  time  an  effort 
to  ignore  the  necessity  for  the  tremendous  struggle 
yoiiig  on  at  the  national  capital.  At  a  later  period 
some  of  these  same  men  were  drawn  into  the  contlict. 

One  great  error  committed  by  the  first  legislature 
Avas  ill  not  making  a  permanent  location  of  the  capital. 
Instead  of  so  doing,  the  question  was  left  open  to 
eleetiou  between  the  towns  aspiring  to  the  honor,'* 
and  tlie  seat  of  government  was  hawked  about  for 
years  in  a  manner  disgraceful  to  the  state.  Monterey, 
Sail  Jose,  Sacramento,  and  Vallejo  all    desired   and 


"  '  That  any  .attempts  by  congress  to  interfere  with  the  institution  of  slavery 
in  any  nf  the  territories  of  the  U.  >S.  wouUl  create  just  grounds  of  alarm  iu 
many  of  the  states  of  the  union;  and  that  such  interference  is  iiunecessary, 
inexpedient,  and  in  violation  of  good  faith;  since,  when  any  such  territory 
apphe.s  for  admission  into  the  union  as  a  stiite,  the  people  thereof  alone  have 
the  right,  and  should  be  left  free  and  unrestrained,  to  decide  such  question 
for  themselves.'  Broderick,  who  had  been  elected  to  fill  the  place  of  Bennett, 
resigned  in  .fanuary,  moved  the  insertion  of  the  following:  'That  opposition 
to  tlie  admission  of  a  state  into  the  union  with  a  constitution  prohibiting 
slavery,  on  account  of  such  prohibition,  is  a  policy  wholly  unjustifiable  and 
unstatesman-like,  and  in  violation  of  that  spirit  of  ccmcession  and  ci>mpromise 
by  which  alone  the  fedenil  constitution  was  adopted,  and  by  which  alone  it 
can  be  perpetuated,'  which  addition  was  atlopted.  Jour.  Vul.  Letj.,  18i50, 

"•('«/.  SMMte.%  1850,  412;  S.  F.  Pac.  News,  Oct.  5,  7,  1850. 
Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    21 


I'M" 

i'-l 

I'i 

■  1 !  TT  ™p. 

■   i  ' 

:.Hi 

l< 


v.n   , 


in  ' 


iS 


•n 


322 


POIJTICAL  HISTORY. 


made  bids '"  for  the  seat  of  government.  Sacramento 
ojfered  publie  buildings,  and  actually  secured  $1,000,- 
000  in  subscriptions  toward  this  object.  The  »»tt'or 
of  Vallejo  being  considered  superior^  iu  many  respects, 
the  people  voted  to  accept  his  proposition.  But  wlit  u 
the  second  legislature  met,  they  found  the  new  town 
remote  and  dull,  hotel  accommodations  limited,  and 
anmscment  lacking;  whereuj)on,  after  a  few  days,  tlity 
adjourned  to  San  Jooe,  which  was  still  the  legal  ca]>- 
ital,  no  act  having  been  passed  changing  its  location, 
for  which  reason  and  others,  the  executive  had  it  - 
inaiiied  at  San  Jose,  this  town  being  his  resiiKiuc. 
On  the  4th  of  February  a  bill  was  passed  niakinv; 
Vallejo  the  permanent  seat  of  govenunent.  At  this 
place  the  third  legislature  was  convened,  but  iK'turc 
the  end  of  the  month  removed  to  Sacrament**,  "ti» 
procure  such  .accommodations  as  were  absolutely  v.ud 
itidisptnsably  necessary  for  a  proper  discharge  of  tin  ir 
legislative  duties,"  the  archives  and  the  state  otli»(is 
joining  in  these  perambulations  by  land  and  water,  tlic 
lattei-  uiidi'r  protest,  and  the  former  at  great  risk  ct 
destruction.  On  th.e  1st  of  June,  1852,  the  arcliivts 
wi'/e  <arried  back  to  Vaiuj«),  and  tiic  stjite  otHccis 
«»r(lered  to  transport  themselves  thither.  Tlu;  legis- 
lature i»f  IHT).'}  was  induced  to  move  to  Henicia,  win  ic 
it  was  solicited  to  accept  for  the  state  a  j>resi'nt  ot  a 
leg  slative  hall,  and  other  property,  and  «>n  the  4tli  of 
February  and  18th  of  May  of  that  year  passed  arts 
making  lienicia  the  "permanent  seat  of  govniinu  iit. 

'*Siiii  .low'  HiihscriluMl  a  tract  nf  land  a  inilu  square,  all  <'li/ilily  sitii.itiil, 
with  a  iKTit'i't  title;  water  ami  Imililiiig  .ftiiiie  on  tliu  laud;  tlic  I'Diisi.lciMthiii 
tuning  that  the  ntnU-  hIiouM  lay  it  otl'  in  lots,  to  he  Hold  to  the  l»e>t  a<l\  .intake 
((except  such  ]>ortioiii4  nn  hIioiiIcI  he  roHerved  for  Htatc  liiiiMiu^s),  .\  ot  thi  prii 
fee's  t<i)4<i  to  the  Hiihscriher!*  ami  »{  to  the  erection  of  the  |>ulilic  hinhhrms. 
I'dl.,  /'.-■.,  \iii.  72;  Stu  ri,ini  Co.  /fist.  A/h.t,  10  II;  Tiif/iill.  //Is/.  <;<!..  :«'! 
'2;  <-iil.Jn,n:S<ii.,  IS.TO,  4'.»8  .'iOI.  \'MY2,  VW,  I.HIO;  Kielianlmn,  //i^l.  \',>ll,}t 
Citji,  iu  Cil.  /'iiintcru,  no.  H,  p.  I'J. 

"'"See  ihaptt'r  on  hirth  of  town«,  thin  vol. ;  Cni.  SfntiitrM,  I8.">l,  4.'«»;  .»/.n" 
Co.  //M.,  •-'!•_>  14;  r<il.,  n,>r.,  MS.,  :«.  l^Jl;  /,/.,  MS.,  xiii.  7'J,  17'.»,  '-Ml.  •-•!>. 
'J*JS;  ('ill.  .Sf,,/i<tr.s,  IS.'»:»,  'MM;  y'llOjn  Chnmidi;  July  (>,  IS(i7;  A/.,  .'an.  -.'a, 
laCS;  S.  /'.  t^niiiKf  /'iniifHiw,  .luly  l(>,  IS,")!;  (hdUtwl  Trmisr,!),/,  M  i.\  i:t, 
II-74;  A'«/'vi  ll'iN^  CoiiMf  Sl(/iiiil,  May -7,  IH74;  Siirriiimiitit  Tniii.trriii.  I'"»'li. 
I.  IS.-.1:  /•nh/iii'si.ni,  VI.  I.VJ;  .!.«»  •»."  ./,mr.,  ISo'J,  .'»(«-'.>,  701-'-',  '.»1»;  Snlimi 
Hii-itin  /'/•'..-.<,  July  17,  '.SGI;  CU.  Hen.  Jour.  .l2'2>.,  TtO;*. 


STATE  CAPITAL  ON  WHEJ-ILS. 


323 


■  sifuiitiil. 

.sj.lcr.ithin 

;idvaiita:;i- 

1   111.   yro 

l)Uilcliiii;s. 

(■„!.. -.m 

ht.   \'t'lt'j'> 

:i(t;   .»/"W' 

•Jll.'JIS 

,  .l.m.  -J.'", 

M,\  i:t. 

•riht.  V'fli. 

(i);    S'l'ltlK 

Vallojo  bc'iig  thus  abandoned,  the  friends  of  8aii 
Jose  who  were  numerous  in  San  Francisco,  and  eoni- 
j)rised  some  of  the  principal  men  in  the  state,  and  tiie 
state  otticers,  beijan  to  j)h)t  for  the  return  of  the  cap- 
ital to  tliat  pueblo;  while  the  Sacramcntans  renewed 
their  eflbrts  to  secure  this  anything  but  permanent 
Messing.  The  fifth  legislature  met  at  Benicia  tlie 
sccoiul  day  of  January,  1854,  and  on  the  25t]i  of  Feb- 
luaiy  again  permanently  located  the  seat  of  govern- 
iiit'iit  at  Sacramento.  But  by  this  time  the  <^\ccutive 
and  judicial  branches  of  the  government  had  become 
si)  Iti'wildered  that  the  latter  refused  to  obey  the 
plain  letter  of  an  act  requiring  the  supreme  court  to 
Imld  its  sessions  "at  the  capital  ni'  tlie  state,"  and  sat 
instead  at  San  Francisco,  whither  it  had  been  <»r(lered 
ill  1S50  to  betake  itself,  and  two  of  the  judges  de- 
eland  Sacramento  not  the  legal  capital.  Distriet 
.ludge  Hester  also  threatened  those  state  officers  who 
had  complied  with  the  law  and  repaired  to  Sacramen- 
to with  an  attacliment  unless  they  came  to  San  Jose, 
thus  placing  themselves  above  the  legislative  j)(»w«  r 
throuL,di  which  they  held  their  office.  To  test  the 
question,  suits  were  brought  before  Hester,  of  the 
third  judicial  district,  and  tiie  mandamus  case  was 
argued  by  Parker  H.  French  and  Hall,  attorneys  for 
the  complainants,  Thomas  L.  N'ermeule,  and  others; 
r.  L.  Edwards,  he  who  in  18;]4  accompanied  Jason 
Tioe  to  Oregon,  and  the  acting  attorney-geneial, 
Stinvart,  ai>pearing  for  the  defence.  Ground  was 
taken  against  th(^  right  of  individuals  to  sue  the  state. 
The  relators,  however,  were  allowed  to  amend  their 
complaint  to  read,  "Tiie  people  of  the  state,"  as  plain- 
titlk.  They  relied  chielly  ujxm  the  j>osition  tliat  San 
Josd  was  the  constitutional  capital,  which  the  defi'nce 
denied,  denying  also  that  the  state  officers  were  re- 
quired  by  the  constitution  or  laws  to  reside  or  keeji 
their  offices  at  tlu'  seat  vS  ijovernment,  and  denviitLT 
♦^^liat  they  constituted  any  inferior  tribunal,  corpora- 


It  u 

Id 


324 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


ill  !-'i 


iiri 


'''  i 


tion,  board,  or  person  against  whom  a  writ  of  man- 
damus might  issue  according  to  statute. 

Judge  Hester's  decision  was  as  pecuhar  as  the  other 
features  of  the  case.  He  placed  himself  on  the  deliiis- 
ive,  and  in  the  light  of  a  partisan,  by  declaring  tliut 
the  legislature  had  in  March  passed  an  act  requiiing 
the  supreme  court,  then  in  session  at  San  Franciscn, 
to  hold  its  sessions  "at  the  capital  of  the  state;"  and 
that  the  supreme  court,  "in  determining  as  to  the  Itna- 
tiou  of  their  sessions,  as  required  by  the  act,  dociddl 
that  San  Josd  was  the  capitjil,  and  had  since  in  [»ur- 
suance  held  their  sessions  there."  The  reasoniiii>  hv 
which  the  court  had  come  to  this  conclusion  was  by 
assuming  that  the  constitution  established  the  caj)ital 
at  San  Josd;  that  the  second  legislature  removed  it  to 
Vallejo;  that  by  reason  of  the  failure  of  Vallejo  to 
fulfil  his  bond,  upon  which  the  removal  was  condi- 
tioned, the  act  became  void,  and  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment reverted  to  San  Jose,  from  which  it  had  never 
been  removed  by  a  constitutional  vote  of  two  tliiids 
of  both  houses  of  the  legislature.  On  the  otlicr 
hand.  Chief  Justice  Murray  differed  from  his  asso- 
ciates, Heydenfeldt  and  Wells,  and  from  Jud^c 
Hester.  He  held  that  the  lejjislature  had  acted  in  a 
constitutional  manner  in  fixing  the  seat  of  government 
by  the  act  of  1851;  and  had  an  equal  right  to  remove 
to  any  other  place  by  a  majority  vote,  the  two-thirds 
vote  being  applicable  only  to  the  act  of  first  removal 
from  San  Jose,  and  therefore  that  Sacramento  was 
the  legal  capital  of  the  state. 

To  se'ttle  these  vexed  questions  a  sjiecial  term  of 
the  supreme  court  was  ordered  to  be  held  at  Benieia. 
in  January  1855,  at  which  time  the  legislature  would 
be  in  session.  A  crisis  had  evidently  arrived  wlun  a 
filial  tleeision  must  be  made,  and  the  legislature  must 
vindicate  itself.  In  the  mean  time  the  case  of  tiie 
people  against  the  state  officers  had  been  appealed  to 
the  supreme  court,  and  sulunitted  on  stipulation  that 
a  decision  rendered   out  of  term  should  stand  a>  if 


STATE  OF  DESERET. 


325 


oiven  at  the  regular  session.  The  opinion  rendered 
ill  December  reversed  the  judgment  of  the  court 
Ik'Iow,  and  the  highest  judicial  authority  in  the  state 
made  its  obeisance  to  tlie  itinerant  law-making  power.^' 
From  that  time  to  this,  with  the  exception  of  the 
winter  of  18G2,  when  the  great  flood  forced  everybody 
out  of  Sacramento  who  could  go,  the  seat  of  legisla- 
tion and  government  has  remained  at  Sacramento. 

Tliat  money  was  used  freely  to  corrupt  members  of 
tlir  legislature  while  the  seat  of  government  was  for 
sil<',  no  one  has  ever  pretended  to  doubt. ^'  If  the 
IHiictice  which  has  prevailed  down  to  the  present  time, 
of  liiiving  and  selling  votes,  could  be  said  to  have 
orininated  in  the  race  for  the  capital,  it  is  to  be 
ivretttd  that  the  constitution  and  first  lejjislature 
left  the  subject  open  to  this  species  of  patriotism. 


In  February  1850,  the  governor  laid  before  the 
assembly  an  address  from  the  citizens  of  the  "State 
of  Deseret,"  presented  by  John  Wilson  and  Amasa 
Lyman,  delegates,  asking  tliat  a  new  convention  be 
lield,  to  allow  the  people  of  California  to  vote  upon  the 
}»roj»osition  of  uniting  Deseret  and  California  tenipo- 
raiily  in  one  state.  The  reason  given  for  this  request 
was  that  when  the  men  of  Deseret  formed  the  consti- 
tution of  their  state,  they  neglected  to  exclude  slavery, 
whieli  now  they  perceived,  in  order  to  relieve  eongnss 
of  tlie  existing  conflict,  they  should  have  done.  The 
true  reason  appeared  to  be,  however,  tin;  desire  to  se- 
ouie  the  privileges  of  state  goverinnent  witiiout  a 
suflicieut  population,  and  peradventure  to  prevent 
Cahfotnia  being  first  admitted,  with  the  boundary  as 

'■^■iniil,',  Stit^mefU,  MS.,  4;  Snntn  Cltira  Xi-w>>,'So\'.7,  \9Cu;  Pltun-  Timrs, 
.laii.  l.-i,  18."-;  ini  SutiUeK,  18.")3,  '217;  <'.»/.  Jour.  Sen.,  ]8.'V4,  574.  CO.'?,  (iOl; 
(nl.  <\,l,;  IS.">4,  45;  Al/aCiil.,  May 'J7,  l.S.->4;  S^n:  Union,  Xov.  l.S,  1854. 

"A  writer  in  the  .V.  /'.  Pitxt,  April  14,  1877,  says  th.it  he  was  told  hy  a 
■linwil  ami  wily  politician  that  to  sei-uro  tlie  passage  of  the  hill  removing  the 
tapital  to  Sac,  he  paid  |!10,0U0  in  gold  to  the  reignint,'  king  of  the  lobhy,  with 
«liiili  to  purchase  the  votes  of  ten  8enat4)rs,  and  that  tne  money  was  paid 
ovir  for  that  puqwse,  and  secured  the  measure.  Though  many  of  our  patriots 
who  !.■()  ti)  SiKTaniento  to  make  laws  can  he  bouj^'ht  for  #'J(JO  or  ?SStM),  as  high 
as  Sd.),OUO  haj  been  paid  for  a  siuglo  vote. 


32G 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


chosen  by  her,  whicli  cut  them  off  from  a  sea-port 
accessible  during  the  winter  season;  their  constitution 
taking  in  San  Diego  and  a  "very  small  portion  of  tlio 
coast.""'*^  The  governor,  in  lii.s  message  acconipanyiii"' 
the  address,  and  both  branches  of  the  legislature,  de- 
clined to  consider  the  proposal. 

With  regard  to  the  public  domain  and  mineral  lands, 
two  reports  were  presented  by  the  committee  on  tlicso 
subjects.  The  majority  report  presented  the  follow- 
ing views:  that  the  mineral  wealth  of  California  had 
cost  the  United  States  too  much  to  justify  its  unre- 
stricted diffusion  among  foreigners;  that  permitting 
persons  from  South  America  to  work  their  peons  in 
the  mines  was  giving  them  an  advantage  over  citizens 
of  the  United  States,  who  were  prohibited  from  bring- 
ing their  slaves  to  California  for  the  same  purpose; 
that  the  presence  of  so  large  a  foreign  population  as 
was  crowding  into  the  mines  was  dangerous  to  the 
peace  of  the  country,  tending  toward  collisions,  some 
of  which  had  alrea<ly  occurred ;  that  the  niorals  of  the 
young  men  flocking  here  from  the  states  were  jeopar- 
dized by  enforced  contact  with  tlie  convict  class  which 
the  mines  were  drawing  from  Australia;  in  short,  that 
the  mines  of  California  should  be  reserved  for  her  own 
citizens,  and  that  congress  be  a.sked  to  pass  laws  ex- 
cluding all  except  citizens,  and  those  who  honestly 
designed  to  become  such,  and  empowering  the  leoisla- 
ture  to  make  such  regulations  as  should  be  deiined 
necessary.  This  report  urged  on  the  government  the 
policy  of  not  selling,  but  of  leasing,  mineral  land,  in  small 
tracts,  and  only  to  American  citizens  or  naturalized 
foreigners.  This,  it  was  thought,  would  secure  the 
settlement  of  the  minin*;  reijions  with  a  moral  and 
mdustrious  class.     The  minority  report  opposed  both 


'"TljG  Mormon  legislators  as-summl  that  the  .Sierra  Nt'va<la  was  tla-  jjroiicr 
bouiulary  between  wext  and  eaat  California.  By  ext4.'niling  a  line  soutli  iniiii 
the  main  chain,  where  it  breaks  otf  aliove  thi-  ;i."»tli  paralk'l,  the  ft-a  is  nailicil, 
owing  to  the  south-east  treml  of  the  coast,  aliout  San  Peilm  Bay.  ^'ol•  tlio 
(locnments  in  this  case,  see  Jour.  t'al.  Lfj.,  i»3U,  7u<>-70;  TtU/iill,  ('«/.,  "JsT-S; 
NuU,  Hut.  San  Josi,  2*23-4. 


PUBLIC  DOMAIN. 


827 


soiling  and  leasing,  either  system  being  sure  to  result 
ill  the  control  by  monopolists  of  vast  districts,  to  the 
exclusion  of  the  great  mass  of  the  people,  the  holders 
combining  to  reduce  labor  to  the  lowest  point,  and  dc- 
urading  the  laborer.  But  congress  was  to  be  urged 
to  allow  the  mines  to  remain  free,  "a  common  inheri- 
tance for  the  American  people," 

The  legislature  finally  passed  joint  resolutions  on 
the  subject  of  lands  and  other  matters,  instructing  the 
California  delegates  to  ask  for  the  early  extension  of 
])ivt'niption  laws  over  California;  the  survey  of  tracts 
fronting  on  streams  of  water;  for  grants  of  land  for 
educational  and  other  purposes;  for  the  passage  of  a 
law  prohibiting  foreigners  from  working  in  the  mines; 
for  the  establishment  of  custom-houses  at  Sacramento, 
Stockton,  Benicia,  Monterey,  and  San  Diego;  for  a 
branch  mint  at  each  of  the  towns  of  Stockton  and 
Sacramento;  for  the  money  collected  in  California 
from  impost  duties  before  the  extension  of  the  revenue 
laws  of  the  United  States  over  the  country,  and  until 
the  adoption  of  the  state  constitution;  and  to  prevent 
any  action  by  congress  which  should  either  strengthen 
or  impair  the  title  to  land  in  the  state  of  California, 
hut  to  have  all  questions  concerning  titles  left  to  the 
judicial  tribunals  of  the  country.  The  only  law  passed 
touching  the  subject  of  lands  belonging  to  the  United 
States  gave  the  occupant  title  by  possession,  against 
intrusion,  provided  the  amount  of  land  claimed  did  not 
exceed  1 00  acres,  that  it  was  marked  out  by  boundaries 
easily  traced,  or  had  improvements  thereon  to  the 
value  of  $100;  but  a  neglect  to  occupy  or  cultivate 
for  a  period  of  three  months  should  be  considered  an 
ahaiidonment  of  the  claim.  Any  person  claiming 
uiidir  this  act  was  entitled  to  defend  his  rights  accord- 
ii';.^  lo  its  provisions  in  courts  of  law. 

Another  act  concerned  cases  of  forcible  entry  and 
detainer,  and  like  the  first  was  intended  to  prevent 
laud  troubles,  which,  as  has  already  been  shown,  com- 


hi 


328 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


I'i:!;" 


menced  with  the  conquest  of  the  country,"  and  par- 
ticularly in  Sacramento,  the  validity  of  the  Sutter 
title  to  lands  in  and  contiguous  to  that  city  b'jiui)  in 
dispute.  But  these  laws  had  exactly  the  opposite 
effect  to  that  intended,  since  they  gave  vitality  to  tlie 
squatter  organization,  which  became  contumelious  in 
consequence,  the  discontent  leading  up  to  serious  riot- 
ing, in  which  several  officers  of  the  law  and  citizens 
were  killed. 

The  squatter  party  was  composed  chiefly  of  men 
from  the  Missouri  border,  who  had  no  knowledge  of 
Spanish  grants,  and  who  regarded  the  whole  country 
as  belonging  to  the  United  States  and  subject  to  [»re- 
emption — the  same  class  of  men  who  rooted  out  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company  from  Oregon,  schooled  in 
the  idea  that  all  soil  under  the  American  flag  is  free 
to  all  Americans  until  patented  to  individuals  by  tlic 
government.  Finding  that  the  Sacramento  town  com- 
pany was  making  money  freely  out  of  sales  of  land 
to  which,  in  their  estimation,  no  title  had  yet  been 
obtained,  they  sat  down  on  vacant  lots  within  and 
without  the  surveyed  limits,  and  without  reference  to 
the  fact  that  other  men  had  purchased  those  same 
parcels  of  land  at  high  prices  from  the  Spanish  grantee 
and  his  associates,  proceeded  to  enclose  and  build  upon 
the  same.  To  the  laws  passed  by  the  legislature  tluy 
paid  no  heed,  except  to  condemn  them  as  hostile  to 
themselves,  refusing  to  yield  obedience  to  a  govern- 
ment not  yet  sanctioned  by  congress.  This  subject 
has  been  treated  of  in  a  general  way  in  my  chapter  on 
Mexican  land  titles;  but  the  incidents  attending  the 

**  As  early  as  1847  and  1848  the  Cal.  Star  published  articles  advocating'  a 
territorial  legislature  in  order  that  laws  might  be  enacted  for  the  settliiiunt 
of  land  titles.  The  author  of  tliese  articles  was  probably  L.  W.  Hastiuys,  td 
whom  I  have  often  had  occasion  to  refer.  Later,  when  he  was  a  ineiiilici-  of 
the  constitutional  convention,  he  was  held  in  check  by  the  necessity  uf  iiiakiiiL' 
such  regulations  as  congress  would  pronounce  valid  and  just  under  the  tii.it}-. 
But  Hastings  only  represented  the  western  idea  of  land  matters.  To  tlie 
people  belonged  all  the  unoccupied  U.  S.  territory.  Cal.  was,  after  the  con- 
quest and  treaty,  U.  S.  territory;  therefore  Cal.  belonge^^l  to  the  people. 
Better  informed  men  held  similar  views,  founded  upon  the  right  aud  duty  of 
the  people  to  frustrate  mouupulied — a  higher  law  doctrine. 


SQUATTER  RIOT. 


329 


squatter  outbreak  at  Sacramento  offering  a  striking 
commentary  upon  the  critical  condition  of  the  country 
while  waiting  for  congress  to  admit  the  state,  I  append 
an  account  condensed  in  the  form  of  a  note.^^ 

»*  Sacramento  was  surveyed  in  the  autumn  of  1848,  fur  Sutter  by  Warner, 
^v)ll'n  Burnett  became  agent  and  attorney  for  iSutter,  to  sell  bits  anil  col- 
lect iiiDiiey.  The  sales  were  rapid,  at  good  prices,  and  naturally  excited  re- 
jtiark  among  the  ultra- American  element  in  the  mines.  Sutter,  who  had  lx;en 
in  embiirrassed  circumstances,  was  quickly  relieved,  and  under  the  excite- 
ment of  success  sold  land  to  which  hi:*  title  wjis  doubtful,  ami  as  it  afterward 
provt'd  worthless — thiit  is,  on  his  Micbeltorena  grant,  M-liich  wiis  niaiie  to 
cover,  as  tlio  sijuatters  declared,  'the  whole  Sacramento  Valley.'  An  exami- 
nation of  the  Sutter  grants  showed,  as  many  believeil,  that  the  Alvara'Io  grant 
did  imt  reach  to  the  city  of  Sacramento  by  a  distance  of  4  miles,  as  has  else- 
wJK're  lucn  stated.  Those  who  had  no  respect  for  Spanish  and  Mexican 
grants  l)elieving  that  to  be  valid  they  must  first  be  continued  by  congress, 
and  tliat  congress  would  never  allow  sucli  vast  tracts  to  pass  to  siiigle  im  livid- 
u.ds;  anil  those  who  believed  that  the  Alvarailo  grant  did  not  cover  tlie  city 
(it  Sac. — liegan  in  1847  to  organize  themselves  into  a  Settlers'  Association, 
I'l'irir  Tillies,  June  3,  1850,  and  to  scpiat  upon  laud  both  in  the  town  and  out- 
ti.lc  of  it.  About  the  middle  of  October,  Z.  M.  Chapman,  erroneously  called 
(■eiiivo  Chaiuniiii  in  Morxe's  Directory  o/ Sue,  18r).'{-4,  17,  went  upon  a  j)iece 
«if  uniiceiipied  laud  out  of  city  limits  claimed  by  Priest,  Lee,  &  Co.,  and  cut 
tinilicr,  to  erect  a  cabin  and  for  other  purposes.  In  Chapman's  account  in 
the  S.  /'.  Bulletin,  of  June  15,  18U5,  which  seems  an  lumest  statement,  he 
gays  tliat  if  a  man  pitched  a  tent  witliin  the  limits  of  tlie  city  he  was  com- 
]iiik'il  to  pay  to  Priest,  Lee,  &  Co.  a  bonus  of  from  ^  to  $12  per  day.  This 
tax  fell  licavily  on  the  weary  gold-seeker  who  had  just  come  aeross  the  plaiua 
and  disiiud  to  have  a  starting-point  from  which  to  set  out  in  the  spring.  It 
wa.s  probably  designed  to  compel  such  persons  to  purchase  lots.  But  lots 
wen;  Inld  at  from  is^A)0  to  $(),00U  and  ^.8,0iA>;  and  Chapman,  who  was  a  new- 
conit-T,  'thought  he  had  as  good  a  right  to  any  unoccupietl  lands  adjacent  to 
the  city  as  any  citizen  of  tlie  U.  S.,'  srpiatted  accordingly,  a.s  I  have  said,  claim- 
ing  lOil  acres.  Twelve  days  after  he  began  building;  and  wlien  his  hou.->e  was 
reaily  for  the  roof,  he  was  visited  by  Pierre  B.  Cornwall  and  another  of  the 
town  owner.s,  who  required  him  to  desist  from  cutting  tind»er,  and  on  his  de- 
darinir  his  intention  to  preempt  the  lan<l,  warned  him  otf  at  the  peril  of  his 
liic.  I'hapman  replied  that  they  were  all  within  jurisdiction  of  civil  author- 
ity, anil  as  his  life  was  threateneil,  they  must  inunediately  report  at  the  al- 
calde's oltlco,  or  submit  to  arrest,  on  which  they  agreed  to  dispos.sess  him 
1  Lially  if  they  could.  On  the  following  day  a  writ  of  ejectment  was  served 
on  Cliapuiau,  who  was  ordered  to  stand  trial  a  few  days  afterward.  When 
the  suit  came  on  many  persons  were  in  attendance.  Chapman  called  for 
proofs  of  Sutter's  title,  and  none  satisfactory  were  produced.  Three  times 
tlic  case  was  adjourned,  but  finally  a  jury  decided  in  favor  of  Sutter's  claim, 
a  ile<'isiou  which  the  settlers'  organiziition  ignore<l,  calling  the  trial  a  sham. 
It  was  then  that  squatting  on  town  lots  began,  nearly  every  unoccupied  lot 
lieinj.'  taken.  Chapman  still  refused  to  quit  his  claim.  Plicer  Timen,  Dec.  1, 
and  l.'i,  I84y.  According  to  his  statement,  he  was  oU'ered  peaceable  possession 
(if  "ill  acres  to  relinquish  his  pretensions  to  the  remainder  of  the  100  acres, 
wliic'li  otl'iT  he  refused,  when  he  was  waited  on  by  the  sheritf  with  a  writ  of 
cjcctnicnt.  Still  Chapman  refu.sed  to  vacate  the  premises,  and  received  an- 
dtluT  vi^it  from  the  sheriflF,  with  a  posse  of  50  men,  who,  tlie  friends  of 
Chapman  being  absent,  pulled  his  house  down,  after  removing  his  portable 
jiropiTty.  This  was  Saturday  evening.  On  Monday  a  meeting  was  called 
for  Tn<'sday,  whicli  was  largely  attended,  and  resolutions  ]iassed  by  the 
wiuatters  that  no  more  houses  should  be  torn  dowu.     While  the  resolutioua 


330 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


i  I' 


The  land  questions  were  indeed  of  the  greatest  im- 
portance, while  congress  had  failed  to  take  any  nicas- 

woro  being  passed,  the  Sutter  party  set  fire  to  and  burned  a  cabin  Mhith 
li:ul  buuu  ereetud  on  Monday  by  the  Hcjuattera  on  CliupnianH  claim.  AnntJKjr 
caliiii  soon  arose  on  tlie  s.-uno  site,  and  the  squatters  lieM  another  ineetiu;.',  at 
which  it  was  resolved  to  retaliate  upon  Sacramento  if  any  more  8(|Uiitter 
buililings  wore  dcstroyetl.  The  rainy  aeasou  commencing  soon  aftt.Twjud 
and  a  Hood  causing  both  parties  to  a1)andon  temporarily  the  city  site,  no 
further  action  was  taken  before  the  following  spring.  As  for  Cliiipmaii,  In; 
returned  totlie  states,  having  lost  his  health  from  exposure  to  tlie  incU'iiicMcy 
of  that  season,  and  never  returned  to  renew  his  claim.  Not  i  o  liis  associates, 
who  in  tlie  spring  of  IS.IO  redoubled  their  efiforts  to  prove  Sutter's  cliiini  illcfr,;l. 
At  tiicir  liead  in  1850  Wiis  Charles  Robinson,  afterward  governor  of  Kansas, 
who  was  an  itnmi;^rant  from  Fitchburg,  Mass.,  a  college  graduate,  a  ]i|iv>i- 
cian,  and  a,  mau  of  honest  convictions,  wlio  was  fighting  for  squatteri.sm  liu- 
cause  he  bi'liuvcd  in  it.     J.  Royce,  in  Oirrlaiid  Monthli),  Sept.  18Kri. 

Ill  May  there  was  a  great  accession  to  the  squatter  force.  Tlie  or;,'anizii. 
tion  kept  a  recorder's  office,  paid  a  surveyor  and  register,  and  issued  certiticates 
of  title  as  follows: 

We  Itiow  our  riijhtu,  and  knotting  dare  dqfmxl  them. 

Office  of  the  Sacramento  City,  SErn.EK.s'  Ass(m"iatii)n. 
Sacramento  City 1850. 

Received  of fifteen  dollars  for  surveying  and  recording  lot  No 

situated  on  tlio  ....  side  of street,  between and striit; 

measuring  forty  feet  front  l)y  one  hundred  and  sixty  feet  in  depth,  accf)nlin;,' 
to  the  general  plan  of  the  city  of  Sacramento,  in  conformity  with  the  ruloM  of 
the  association. 
$15.  [Signed] 

Surveyor  and  Register  of  the  Sacramento  Settlers'  Association. 

The  public  domain  is  alike  tree  to  all. 

Men  wlio  liad  purchased  lots  of  Priest,  Lee,  &  Co.  had  their  ImiiiIrt 
brouglit  for  buihling  purposes  removed,  or  were  forbithlen  to  leave  it  ou  iliu 
ground.  Kven  a  sum  of  money  oll'ered  by  the  owner  failed  to  induce  tlie 
S(iuatter  to  vacate  the  lot.  A  petition  was  forwarded  to  congress  askini;  iii 
ett'ect  for  a  di.stributiou  of  the  puldic  lands  among  actual  settlers.  (  asi't 
brought  into  the  courts,  and  determined  against  the  squatters  produced  no 
cliangeiu  their  proceedings.  Two  suits  were  decided  adversely  totlieiu  in  .his- 
tice  Sackett's  court,  argued  by  McCaiie  im  their  side,  and  Murray  Morrison  uw 
the  opposite  side.  Nothing,  however,  moved  them  from  tlieir  position;  an.l 
least  ot  all  tlie  charge  of  cowardice,  which  was  hurled  at  tlicm  by  tlie  pruss. 
Complaint  being  made  that  the  squatters  )iad  not  a  fair  hearing  in  the  mw.-i- 
papers,  they  were  invited  to  '  come  out  o[ienly,  and  make  known  their  real 
views.  Merely  abstract  ideas  do  not  meet  the  present  occasion.  And  all 
who  properly  consider  their  own  interests  and  the  peace  and  welfare  f)t'  the 
city  must  take  immediate  and  summary  action.'  Plita-r  Titneji,  June  .'}  ami  j, 
1850.  Tiie  excitement  increascil;  squatters'  fences  were  pulled  down,  anil 
meetings  continued  to  be  held.  The  sijuatters  endeavored  to  evade  going  to 
court,  hoping  to  hold  out  until  the  state  should  be  admitted,  when  tluy  ex- 
pected that  U.  S.  laws  would  come  to  their  relief.  Yet  they  did  soinutinies 
get  into  the  courts. 

On  the  10th  of  August  an  a<lverse  decision  was  rendered  in  the  eitse  of 
John  F.  Madden,  who  had  squatted  ou  a  lot  belonging  to  Jolin  i*.  Ikii^urs 
and  others,  of  the  Sutter  party,  in  the  county  court,  by  Judge  Edward  .1. 
Willis.  The  attorneys  for  Mailden  talked  of  appeal  to  the  supreme  court,  on 
the  ground  that  the  plaintitl'  Rogers  had  shown  no  title.  Judge  Willis  re- 
marked that  lie  knew  of  no  law  authorizing  such  an  appeal.  The  ruiuor 
spread  abroad  that  Willis  ha4l  said  no  appeal  coubl  or  sliould  be  had.  'No 
appeal !     Shall  Judge  Willis  bo  dictator?    Outrage!'    Such  were  the  cjacuia- 


LAND  TITLES. 


331 


luiiilKr 
it  (III  llie 

llllfC   tllf 

uskiiiL;  in 

(luL't'd  no 

III  ill . Ins- 

urismiiui 

tidii;  iiii>l 

tlic  jiruss. 

luws- 

tliiir  real 

Aii-l  all 

are  of  tiie 

10  \i  ami  0, 

lowii,  and 

going  to 

tluy  ex- 

soiuutiiiics 

CIL-iC  of 

1'.  Uo-ors 
i^ilwanl  •!. 
I  tiiiirt,  on 
Willis  le- 
'hu  luinor 
lad.  ■  X'l 
le  cjacula- 


uros  provitlintjf  for  tlieir  adjustmont.  The  titles  to  tl»e 
land  on  wliicii  the  three  chief  cities  were  bailt  were 

tioiis.  A  ineetiog  was  called  for  that  evening,  and  resolutions  of  resistance 
to  ii[>iin!dsioii  passed.  On  the  I'ith,  being  Monday,  Rolnnaon  puldished  a  niani- 
f.",t>>  refusing  to  recognize  the  state  legislature  and  other  state  otiicials  as 
aiivtiiiiig  hut  private  citizens,  and  threatening  a  resort  to  arms  if  nitdusted 
liv  tiio  sheriff.  This  amounted  to  rebellion  and  revolution,  and  in  fact  re- 
t'lnliil  the  execution  of  the  judge's  order  to  dispossess  the  squatters  on  the 
I.iikI  ill  (|iiestiou.  About  '200  men  were  assemblcil  on  the  disputed  territory. 
liuliiii.siin  had  about  50  names  enrolled  of  men  he  could  depend  upon  to  fight, 
aiiil  managed,  by  adroitly  mingling  them  with  the  otiier  1  r>0,  to  make  his  army 
a|i|»'ai-  larger  tl»an  it  really  was.  Mayor  Bigelow  appeared  on  horseback 
a;i'l  iiiaile  an  aildress,  advising  the  crowd  to  disperse,  to  which  Robinson 
niiliiil  respectfully  but  firmly  that  his  men  were  upon  tlieir  own  ground, 
uikI  Ii  111  no  hostile  intentions  unless  assailed.  An  interview  was  finally  ar- 
niii^'i  il  between  Robinson  and  the  mayor  at  his  oiliee,  when  the  latter  said 
tliiit  lit-  wi>nld  use  his  personal  inHuei.co  to  prevent  the  destruction  of  the 
]i  i>|i  rty  of  the  settlers,  and  also  informed  Robinson  of  the  postponement  of 
til''  i:Xicutioiis  issued  by  the  court.  The  si^uatters  then  dispersed  for  the 
(lay.  Siiiiie  steps  had  been  t^iken  to  organize  militia  companies,  but  from  the 
uiin'aiiy  eonditiou  in  which  the  crisis  found  the  municipal  government,  it  is 
iijipar.'iit  that  Mayor  Bigelow  did  not  realize  tiie  danger  of  tlie  situaticm.  On 
the  Kith  .James  McClatchy  and  Michael  Moran  were  arrested  and  brought 
lieiiiio  .lustice  Fake,  charged  with  being  party  to  a  plan  to  resist  the  enforce- 
imiit  of  Juilge  Willis'  writ  of  ejectment.  The  evidence  being  strong,  in  de- 
fault of  .'52,000  bail  they  were  lodged  in  the  prison  brig,  anchored  in  the  river. 
The  county  attorney,  McC'uiie,  was  also  uiuler  arrest,  to  bo  tried  on  the  14th, 
a:iil  a  warrant  was  out  for  R(i1>ins(in,  but  he  was  not  tiiken.  Sac.  Tniii-icript, 
Aug.  14,  1850.  On  the  morning  of  the  14th  the  sheriff,  .Joseph  MeKinney, 
Mizeil  a  house  on  2d  street,  in  pursuance  of  his  duty.  A  party  of  30  squat- 
t.ii,  uiiiler  the  leadership  of  James  Maloiiey,  retook  the  hou-ie.  Maloney,  on 
liorseliaok  armed  with  a  sword  and  pistols,  next  marched  down  L  street  to 
tl:u  levee,  ill  the  direction  of  the  prison  ship,  followed  by  a  crowd  of  citizens, 
will)  thought  their  intention  was  to  release  the  prisoners.  By  this  time  tlie 
exeiteiiieiit  ran  high,  although  there  was  no  apprehension  of  bhiodsIuMl.  The 
aliair  seemed  rather  a  spectacle  than  a  coining  tragedy,  and  the  spectators 
liooteil,  lauj;lied,  ami  shouted.  But  the  mayor,  who  could  no  longer  blind 
liiiiiseli  to  the  necessity  of  asserting  his  authority  and  the  power  of  law,  rode 
U|i  anil  down  the  streets,  and  made  his  proclamation  to  the  people  to  sustain 
lfiit!i.  Many  then  ran  for  arms.  The  squatters  on  reaching  I  street  halted 
ami  1ie<,'an  to  remove  some  lumber  from  a  lot;  but  Maloney  checked  them, 
alleging  that  the  lumber  belonged  to  one  of  his  friends.  He  then  led  them 
nji  1  .Street,  still  followed  by  a  laughing  and  jeering  crowd.  At  tl>o  corner  of 
1  ami  iSeeoml  street,  seeing  the  mayor  approaching,  the  citizensi  waited  to 
hear  what  he  might  liave  to  say  to  them,  but  the  squatters  marche  I  on,  turn- 
iii^'  into  Tliird  street,  and  continuing  to  J  street.  In  the  ineaa  time  the 
111. Ivor  had  ordered  the  citizens  to  arrest  the  armed  squatters,  and  witii  three 
fillers  they  followed  his  leatl.  The  two  parties  approached  each  other  on 
.1  .street,  the  squatters  drawing  up  in  time  across  Fourth  street,  facing  J. 
The  mayor  and  sheriff  rode  up,  and  ordered  them  to  lay  down  their  arms 
and  yield  themselves  to  arrest.  While  they  were  yet  advancing,  Maloney 
gave  the  order  to  fire,  and  said  distinctly,  '  8hoot  the  mayor.'  His  order  was 
oaly  too  Well  obeyed,  seve  !  '^uns  being  pointed,  though  some  were  elevated 
til  lie  out  of  range.  The  liiaig  was  returned  l)y  those  citizens  who  had  se- 
eiireil  arms;  a  general  melee  ensued,  and  the  squatters  Hed  from  the  field, 
whieh  was  now  a  field  of  blood.  Tlie  mayin-  received  no  less  than  4  wounds, 
ill  the  cheek,  the  thigh,  the  hand,  and  through  the  body  in  the  region  of  th') 
liver.     He  recovered  in  a  maimed  cuuditiou,  after  a  long  illness,  and  a  $2,238 


332 


rOLITICAL  HISTORY. 


almost  liopolcssly  confused.  As  a  coiisequrnco,  tlip 
state  was  left  without  property  or  revenue,  without 

l)ill  for  five  weeks '  attcixloncu  and  care  at  I>r  Stillinairs  lumse  in  S.  F.,  unly 
to  (lie  of  uholeru,  Nov.  'JTth  following,  in  the  Manie  city.  Harding  liigr-lnw  \^m 
liorn  ill  Mans.,  of  tlie  Mell-known  family  of  Bigelow,  renioVL-d  to  N.  Y.  in 
early  chililhootl,  where  he  grew  to  nianhiKNl,  ami  Hiihaeouently  innvt'd  tu 
the  nortli-west  territory.  la  tlie  expliMion  of  the  stoanilMtats  Mofflk  nwl 
WUiiiiiiijtnn  he  siistitiiieil  severe  hMites  and  narrowly  escaped  witii  lii.t  ln;-. 
I  hiring  the  lilack  Hawk  war  in  111.  he  h.id  al.so  Home  liair-lireadtii  um-uih^. 
ile  wont  to  the  West  Imlies,  New  <  iranada,  Peru,  Chili,  and  <  'entral  AiiiL-nca, 
arriving  in  C'al.  by  tlio  first  steamer,  and  entered  at  once  into  the  atiairs  ot 
the  country,  being  much  interested  in  bnilding  up  Siic.,  M'hose  tirst  niay>>r  lie 
w;is.  It  was  greatly  by  his  personal  exertions  that  the  town  M'iis  savcil  ilur- 
i.ig  thutloodof  184'.)-r)0.  Sir.  7'm///wW;><,  April 2(5,  18.")0.  Hi.s  course  with  tlif 
8([uatters  was  marked  wi'.h  charity  and  nuMleration  even  to  a  fault.  .V  /'. 
JWijie  J^'eirs,  Nov.  -0,  18.")0.  Ho  was  interred  Mith  military  honors  at  >ii-- 
ramento.  I  ulitr'H  Sir.  Ci'y  Directory,  74,  TO;  Slnirk,  /'ejirtx.  Men,  i>',U>;  I'lurr 
Tl.iK-M,  April  G,  18.".0;   Winmix'  S/iiu'ment,  MS.,  '21. 

IK'sii'.es  the  mayor,  the  city  a.s.sesHor,  J.  M.  WcMnlland,  was  wounded  mnr- 
tally,  surviving  but  a  few  moment.s.  .Tcsse  Morgan  was  killed  oiitri;;iit.  l»:i 
the  s<iuatti'r  siile,  Maloiu-y  was  killed,  being  shot  by  ]J.  F.  Washington,  i-ity 
recorder;  Itnbinson  M-as  si'verely  wounded,  and  another  man  killed,  iiaiiu'  nut 
mentioned  in  any  of  the  reports  of  the  battle.  J.  II.  Harper,  of  .Mo.,  was 
severely  wounded;  Hale,  of  the  firm  of  CrowtU  &  Hale,  was  sligiuly 
woumleil;  and  a  little  daughter  of  Rogers,  of  the  lirm  of  liiiriiett  &  Hiiucis, 
was  slightly  injured;  totil,  4  killed  and  5  wounded.  The  bolt  hail  I  illin, 
aiicl  notliing  more  Wiis  to  be  seen  than  the  ruins.  Lieut-gov.  Mel>ougal  ikiw 
appeared  upon  the  scene,  'his  face  very  pale,'  ami  ordered  all  the  nun  wuli 
arms  to  assemble  at  TowhTS  hotel,  after  which  he  immediately  left  fur  S.  F. 
by  steuiiier.  Rut  not  many  went  to  the  rendezvous,  where  a  few  men  liad 
niounteil  an  oil  iron  ship's  gun,  on  a  wtMidcn  truck,  which  was  ItKided  \vit!i 
scrap  iron.  That  night  alxmt  00  volunteers  were  enrolled,  under  (apt.  .1. 
Sherwood,  and  remained  at  headquarters,  near  tlie  corner  of  Front  aii'i  L 
streets.  A  giiartl  Wiis  set,  of  regular  and  special  police,  and  men  wiTe  eliil- 
lenged  on  tl.e  streets  as  if  the  city  were  under  martial  law.  Robiiisoii  was 
carried  to  the  prison  ship  on  a  bed.  One  (.'oltieM,  a  8(iuatter,  was  arre>t«il 
and  accused  of  killing  Wooi'land.  County  Attorney  McCune  was  l>n>i..-!.t 
into  court,  but  his  case  postponed  for  the  next  day.  Recorder  Wasliiiutcii 
was  placed  by  the  city  council  at  the  head  of  the  police,  with  authiirity  to 
increase  the  force  to  (KX);  and  the  prest  of  the  council,  Oeiiiiis  Stnmg.  a-;- 
sumed  the  duties  of  mayor.  Sur.  Triiiixrrijit,  Aug.  IJi,  18.">(l.  On  tlie  IhII.im- 
iiig  day,  after  the  burial  of  Womlland,  Sheritf  McKiuney  an<l  a  posx-  of 
about  'J()  men  jirocceded  to  Brighton,  near  Sutter's  Fort,  to  attempt  the  arn-.-t 
of  a  party  of  the  squatters  at  a  place  which  was  kept  by  one  Allen.  The 
house  was  carefr.Uy  approached  after  dark,  the  force  l>eiiig  divided  into  three 
detachments,  under  (len.  Winn,  a  Mr  Robinson,  and  the  sheriff,  m'Ihi  were  to 
approach  so  as  to  surround  the  house.  Mclvinney  entered  lirst,  and  went  to 
the  bar  wiUi  his  sipiail  to  call  for  drinks,  in  doing  which  he  caught  night  of 
8  or  10  armed  men,  whom  he  conniuuuied  to  lay  down  their  arms.  They 
replied  by  a  volley  from  their  guns  and  pistols,  and  were  .-'-.iswered  l)y  >hots 
from  the  sheriU's  party.  All  was  confusion.  McKinney  had  run  out  "l  tlie 
house  after  the  attack,  and  sto<Hl  near  the  door,  when  Allen  delilienitely  shot 
him,  and  he  fell,  ex[iiring  in  a  few  moments.  Briarly  then  fired,  wouii'liag 
the  assassin,  who  however  sent  another  shot  among  the  sheriif's  party,  gr•a/.ill^' 
Crowell's  arm,  who  returned  t!ie  shot.  The  further  immediate  results  ot  t!ie 
battle  were  the  killing  of  two  sipiatters,  M.  Kelly  and  (Jeorge  W.  Heiisliaw, 
the  wounding  of  ('apt.  liadford  severely,  and  the  injury  of  I'apt.  Hanniier  ly 
by  being  tlirowu  from  his  liorse  in  the  melee.     Rceuforccments  being  sent  tor 


REVENUE  SYSTEM. 


tin  nitans  of  payiujL^  tho  liabilities  already  rontnwtod, 
of  tictraying  current  expenses,  or  of  completing  her 

arriviil  during;  the  night — 10  men  uiitler  Luntly  an<t  13  umler  Tracy,  who 
|,l,i.<-.i  thriiiwlvc's  uniler  <Jen.  Winn.  Four  priMttien  w<-rv  taken,  Jolm 
Hii^'Ik'S  •I'tiixix  1^-  Coffiiiiiiii  Witliaiii  H.  Cornngg,  ainl  a  imn  wh<««  iiaiiiv  it 
nut  I'l veil  ill  any  nf  tho  accouiitii  of  tlie  8i|uatter  war.  The  aniral  <.f  the 
tifo>ii<l  i>:>rty  frightuiieil  to  tluath  Alluii's  wifu,  who  wa.-*  lying  ill  in  ti.v  h<>uj«e. 
All'  II  I'^capeil  sorely  wouuiliiil,  aii<l  was  traced  next  <lay  t"  the  riv"  r.  whi-ro 
It  w.n  Kii|<iM>»e<l  he  was  drowned,  .^ii/".  Trniincrnit  Extra,  Aug.  Ifi.  ivVl.  But 
tiv  >iirvivfd,  sutfcring  much,  until,  reaching  a  miniu;;  camp,  lie  reoi-iv.  -i  a«s:.-t- 
aiiif.  Mimi-i'ii  Pioiie)'!'  Ej'jfri'jit,  MS.,  8-10.  (Jreat  griff  an'l  inilis^iati<<a  were 
filtovi-r  the  death  of  Slieritf  McKinncy,  who  was  generally  esU-ciueaL  He 
III!  U<  11  (lilt  a  Hliort  time  married,  and  his  wife  was  di.ttranght  w:tb  ;ain'{. 
v.  V.  F.wiT,  coroner,  aKaunuHl  the  duties  of  sheriff  and  paid  a  ri<it  to 
Hrii'litiMi.  arrextiii^'  a  man  named  Hall,  wlio  was  found  in  billing  near  Alk-n's 
li..ii-i-.  ThreatH  of  lynching  were  made  against  the  pruMtntT*,  l>ut  l<eiur 
eouji'ieli*  jircvailed,  anil  it  was  detcnnined  to  abide  l>y  the  Liwa.  TIh-  sU-aoK-r 
.s./iiii'i-  hid  returned  fnim  S.  F.  on  the  ni^'ht  of  the  10th  with  the  lieut-go%-. 
a:i(l  two  ei>nii>anie»  of  volanteers,  namely,  the  California  <  iuanl,  I  apt.  W. 
I*.  M.  Howard,  and  Protection  Engine  Co.,  of  the  tire  tlepartnient,  Capt. 
.*>)i.iv.  under  arni.s,  and  together  imml)eri:ig  1,'K)  men.  Coiimir,  l>irig  ''</., 
MS.',  tl:  .s'.  /'.  I'h'iiiiHiie,  Aug.  I(i,.185().  There  was  no  longer  any  ne-<l  of 
till  ir  services,  the  H<iuatter  leaders  being  dea<l  and  wounded,  and  tiie  citizeus 
liiviiij,'  re.^olved  to  leave  their  wrongs  to  l«3  adjudicatcil  liy  the  c«>«in». 

At  tliirt  juncture  tlic  ncw!<papcrs  entered  into  a  di.<tcu.>i.sion  of  the  luerits  of 
the  fuuse  on  hotli  sides.  Tile  S('Uler»  nttd  Miiiern'  TrU'Une,  of  Oci.  30,  l*Otl,  in 
au^weriiij;  the  .V.  /'.  I'ii'iiijutie  ol  the  17th,  says  that  it  is  M-r»»rig  t<>  oiodeinn 
Nliiatteri.>ni  as  the  foundation  of  a  party;  for  'Sutterism  in  l'pi>er  C^ilifomj* 
jus  too  long  deHi>oilcd  her  of  her  inlieritiince,  and  self-tlefencfc  r«<i|air«:«  her 
interference'  Immigrants  ex{>ected  to  find  puldic  land,  ami  found  :t;  l>ut 
'Stitterisin  has  sqirittol  all  over  it,  cand  pretends  to  claim  it  umler  a  Mcsii-an 
grant  wliich  does  not  exist.'  The  legislature  was  charged  with  making  Liws 
e\{<r<'ssly  to  protect  Sutter,  with  or  without  !i  title  to  that  part  of  the  i<t.ate. 
This  eliiru'c  was  in  reference  to  an  act  passed  April  '£1,  ISTiO,  which  furltaile 
any  t'oreiMe  entry,  the  itenalty  heing  a  tine  and  restitution,  if  the  juaIicj 
.ih'iiilil  so  order.  No  jiroof  of  title  was  reijuired.  C'll.  Sf'itnt>-*,  LWi,  4i"i.  la 
C.il.,  and  in  the  Cal.  .scn.se,  said  the  Trillion',  legislators  and  jmii^es  w«-reanti- 
i><|uatter  —their  deci.sions  invarialily  anti-squatter;  while  if  the  .s<|iiatt4:ni  dif- 
tiT'd  from  them,  and  dared  to  appeal  to  the  supreme* court,  th.  y  wvrt  fiaid 
t"  have  fnrieited  all  support  from  the  state  govt,  and  even  its  protection.  The 
unrec<>}:iiLzed  courts  of  Cal.  were  not  the  plaves  wln^re  lainl  tttlcs  9hi>idd  I.e 
detcnnined.  Squatteris'.n  was  made  a  party  issue  livcause  the  natcnl  aul 
con.stitutioiial  rights  of  the  people  were  sought  to  lie  wreste«l  from  tli-.-in  by 
men  of  the  .stamp  of  tlie  I'irnyuiic  writers.  Wiicn  anti-s(|uatteris(n  o.-ajtes  to 
jin-v.  then  the  8<]uatter  party  will  cease  to  exi.it.  Such  were  the  Dttc-nnoes 
of  tiie  M-ttlers  alter  the  Sac.  affair,  as  well  as  Itcfore.  But  the  f'ioiifiue  faa^L, 
mxin  aiter  tlie  riot,  urged  a  calm  aud  considerate  review  of  the  atlliir,  aii  1 
jiL-.'ided  many  things  in  extenuation  of  the  course  pursued  by  the  s<|uatt<.'r«,  a^l- 
vising  'tlie  greatest  mo<leration,  mingU'd  with  tirmncss,  which  the  aihiiioLs- 
trati'iu  of  ju.-tice  requires.'  Thi.s,  in  point  of  fact,  was  the  course  into  wbtch 
tlie  ailni'iiistratioil  of  law  resolved  itself.  There  Wiis  a  go^xl  il<:al  to  W  «ai  1 
o:i  tlie  .si.lc  of  the  squatters,  seriou.sly  {is  they  had  blunileretl.  Ilo!>ia.-wpn  and 
the  littler  prisoners,  who  were  indicted  by  the  grand  jury  for  mur>l«-T,  were 
admitted  to  bail  in  Nov.  A  change  of  ve:uie  was  obtiined,  aud  tlie  '<:h>adof 
iii'iictnieiits  melted  away  like  tlie  la.st  cloud-llake  of  our  riiuy  seas«>a,'  as  saym 
Pro!,  .bisiah  Koyce,  who  hiis  ably  presented  the  subject  of  the  .S«..-.  «4|uattc-r 
riiit  in  the  (hirlmid  Monlhlti  for  Sept.  I.S8.">,  ai  au  exam]d..-  how  Mexican 
gnuiit  Mere  ueuU  with  by  Aaiericuu  settlera  i.i  Cal.      Vet  I  think  be  wouU 


33« 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


( 


orj^anization  aiul  puttini^  in  operation  her  Hysteni  of 
local   government.     Her   securities,    dismally  cK'iiro- 

liiivo  found  l>ettcr  illiiatrations  elHuwhere;  for,  aa  he  hitnsolf  alinwH,  tlieri!  wm 
^imhI  ^rniiiiKl — ill  tlie  belief  of  tliu  miiiutterH  tliat  tliu  AlviiraUo  griiiit  iliil  ii<it 
cxtoml  to  iSao.,  and  in  tlie  fact  that  tliu  Michultorena  grant  was  autually  in- 
valiil— for  tliu  fueling  of  tiiu  Bquatturx  that  Sutter  wan  playing  into  tliu  liands 
of  a  8ut  of  goulh^HM  HpuculatorM,  who  UMud  tliu  pretunou  of  a  grant  for  hi'cui'iiil; 
]>ap('r  titlug  to  tliu  huMt  iiortiouH  of  C'al.  Accounts  of  tliu  Htpiattur  trmilili :«  nf 
I.S.")()  arc  eontaiiK-d  in  the  newspapers  of  tho  day,  particularly  in  the  .Si//-. 
TniiiMfrijif,  See  also  tliu  .S'.  A'.  (V(/.  Ciiuricr,  S.  F.  I'nc,  A'l'irn,  S.  h\  Alia,  S. 
/'.  /'idii/iiiif,  anil  S.  F.  IhruUl,  extending  over  a  long  period.  There  is  im 
account  of  the  riot  in  Sm:  /llimtriitfil,  i:{-18;  l/p/uini,  S'otcn,  IWS-.'il;  in  («/. 
irr'ii  Siir.  />inrtt>ri/,  lS-9;  in  Tliomnit  iHirctory  Sue,  1871,  Oti-7r>;  in  //<<<.  .>',•,•. 
i'n.,  T^^)  i\;  and  ri'furencus  in  TntliUl'i  Cni,  3H0-7;  Siir.  lif,  Nov.  1,  ]S'\; 
liitHvrH  Sfiiti-iiii'iif,  MS.,  9;  and  Wiiiiiii'*'  Stiiti'iiieiit,  MS.,  iJO-1.  The  tlnciry 
has  l)een  ndva;iced  that  to  the  riot  of  18r>U  was  duu  tho  great  depression  in 
liiisiiieMS,  and  the  numerous  failures  which  followed.  I  think  the  couchisinn 
erroneous.  Tiie  population  suiMeiily  declined,  hut  certainly  not  liucause  |kii- 
jile  were  frightened  awiiy  liy  an  incident  of  this  kind.  It  was  tho  unceitninty 
of  laiiil  titli's  in  tiie  vicinity  which  the  H(piatter  iiioveinent  exposed.  II  id  tliv 
sipiatters  prevaileil,  tliu  po[iulation  would  have  remained,  and  the  loss  tn  a 
few  iiiiliviilual  lot-owners  Wimlil  have  lu'eii  far  le.ss  than  the  whole  coiiiiimnity 
sustained  liy  their  <lefeat.  .V.  F.  Biiltitin,  Nov.  2,  1877.  1  do  not  wish  to  liu 
uiiilerstood  as  saying  that  tho  8(piatters  weru  right.  As  the  evidence  n'tii-- 
ward  proved,  tliey  were  in  tho  wrong.  But  it  would  have  been  hutte  up 
Sac.  could  they  have  maintained  their  position;  for  how  could  a  city  hope  to 
prosper  surrounded  hy  a  country  to  which  no  one  could  for  a  long  time  olit.iin 
a  clear  title?  The  courts  finally  decided  that  all  the  sales  made  hy  Hnrnett 
as  Sutter's  agent  weru  valid,  t'oiild  tho  founders  of  Sac.  have  foreseen  tho 
contention  to  arise  out  of  the  K>cation  of  their  city,  the  trouhle  might  liavu 
been  avoided. 

S-piaiters  also  gave  trouble  in  S.  F.  in  Jan,  1851,  S.  F.  Altti,  Feb.  .•?,  IS,"i|, 
which  continued  for  more  tliau  a  year.  Nathaniel  I'ago  commenced  the  erto- 
tion  of  a  building  on  a  lot  belo:igiiig  to  tho  Luidestlortf  estate,  and  sold  tu 
Captain  Folsoin.  A  colli.sion  occurred,  in  which  Folsom  shot  at  Page,  wliose 
Wiitch  arrestuil  the  ball,  and  saved  his  life.  Page's  lumber  was  throw  u  inii 
tho  bay.     In  Ajiril  l.S.")3  SiieriL   VV.  W.  Twist  and  posse  of  Santa  Buliar.i 

Were  about  to  take  posse.ssion  of  u  cannon  to  use  in  ejecting  a  stpiattcr  u-  I 

John  Powers  from  tlio  rancho  Arroyo  Burro,  belonging  to  Hill  and  Den.  .\ 
Califoniian,  Alejo  Survis,  stabbed  the  sheriif,  who  turned  ami  shot  him  dearl. 
Firing  then  became  general  between  the  sheriff's  party  and  the  xqiMitcr 
party,  and  ,J.  A.  Vidall,  a  Hquatter,  was  killed.  Hill  and  Den  were  jil  ire. I 
in  possession.  S.  F.  Alt  i,  M.iy  7  and  June  8,  185.*}.  During  this  year  tluru 
ap]icared  to  be  something  like  an  orgiinized  revival  of  squatterism.  All  almnt 
>S.  F.,  at  tlie  presidio  and  the  missi(m,  lots  were  settled  upon  without  litlc. 
One  of  the  public  sipiares  was  treated  as  public  domain.  The  Odd  FiUow.s' 
cemetery  was  seized,  which  two  years  before  had  been  conveyed  by  deed  to  tlio 
society  by  Sam  Brannan.  On  the  '20tli  of  July  a  squatter  named  .MrC.iity, 
who  had  tJiken  posses.sion  of  a  vacant  l'it  on  tho  corner  of  Second  and  .Mis,^i(pn 
streets,  belonging  to  Robert  I'rico,  resisted,  and  shot  the  sheriff  who  m  is  at- 
tempting to  eject  him;  McCarty  was  also  shot,  both  seriously;  but  Price  was 
placed  in  pos.session. 

It  was  b.  lieved  that  an  organization  of  wealthy  men  were  at  the  hottoin 
of  the  sipiatterisin  of  XSTt'A,  who  furnished  means  for  carrying  on  the  sei/nici 
of  lots  with  a  view  to  obtaining  the  lion's  share.  Attempts  weru  iiiaile  ti> 
squat  on  the  Peralta  claim  in  Alameila  the  same  year.  In  June  18.54  a  pitilicd 
b.attle  was  fouijht  lietween  a  pirty  of  squatters  on  Folsom 's  property  on  I'"ir>t 
street,  S.  F.,  a:id  a  party  of  15  placed  to  dcieud  it.     George  D.  Sinitli  «aa 


,  ^.. 


SAN   FRANCISCO  DEFRAUDED.  8S5 

elated,  afforded  sliglit  oompoiiHation  to  those  who  were 
fodcd  to  receive  them  for  services  rendered.  The 
tHVct  on  tlie  cities  and  particularly  o!i  San  Francisco 
was  deplorable.  Heir  to  lands  worth  millions  of  dol- 
lars, she  was  practically  hankru[»t.  Sales  of  lots  were 
ivrrostcd  hythedouht  thr<»wn  upon  her  title;  or  If  any 
one  took  tliein,  it  wiis  experimentally,  at  prices  nmch 
Im'Iow  their  value.  A  commissioner  appointtd  to  in- 
quire into  the  extent  and  value  of  city  pr»>[)crty  was, 
alter  a  lengthy  examination,  unahle  to  tletermine 
if  there  were  any  lands  rightly  belonging  to  the  city, 
unless  by  preemption,  which  right  congress  had  not 
yet  exten«led  to  them.  Had  congress  accordctl  the 
cities  a  relin«juishment  of  the  interests  of  tlie  I'^nited 
States  in  the  lands  within  their  nuinici[tal  juris- 
dictions, it  would  greatly  have  sim|)liHed  matters  for 
tlicui,  and  infinitely  enhanced  their  resources.  An- 
<»tlicr  point  of  interest  with  the  people  was  wliether  or 
not  spc'  'dators  should  be  permitted  to  buy  up  tlie  public 
lands  to  which  no  shadow  of  a  Mexican  grant  attached ; 
and  this,  it  was  insi.sted,  was  legitimate  ground  for  a 

killud  in  this  fight,  and  several  persons  wounileil.  AfttT  this  aUuir  the  prop- 
erty hiihlers  in  S.  F.  organizi'd,  and  4S  policemen  were  aihleil  to  IIjc  foruii. 
il.iiisis  were  fortified  and  hesiegcd.  In  one  honse  on  (Iret'n  street  a  woman 
liiililiii^  avhild  in  her  arms  was  sliot  ami  killed.  The  oeea.'^ion  of  tliis  oiitlireak 
was  tliut  the  title  of  the  city  of  S.  F.  was  umlergoing  examination  liy  commi-- 
sioiiers;  all  kinds  of  niniors  were  afloat,  and  opportunities  suppo.sed  to  ho 
;itlordeil  of  Becnriug  lota.  For  several  years  more  these  trouMt^s  were  reeur- 
liiii,'.  Tiio  li'uc.  Union  of  June  Ul),  IS.V),  HUgi,'ested  as  a  remeily  to  'fee  no 
liwyers' — an  excellent  8up:gestion.  Felice  Argcnti,  sent  hy  Hvowii  IJros, 
liuikersof  Colon,  to  Cal.  as  their  agent,  in  1S41(  ania-ssed  a  furtune  of  several 
iiiilliriris,  but  his  suits  with  S.  F.  for  certain  lands  cost  him  tlio  lar;;er  wliaro 
•  it'  hii  Wealth.  Turiv/i,  I'eriy.,  101-2.  In  1S.')0  was  the  fanuxis  case  of  the 
(irecii  claim,  when  the  vigilants  arrested  the  holder  of  important  documents 
eoiii-eiiiing  the  city's  title  to  the  mission  lan<ls,  on  a  tnimped-up  charge,  in 
order  to  get  JMwseiision  of  those  documents,  which  (irceu  himself  h;id  oli- 
tainod  l>y  trickery  from  Tihurcio  Vii.s(|ucz,  and  wliich  he  sold  to  his  e.iptors 
fur  .'<l'.*,rnK),  though  ho  brought  suit  afterward  for  .S"it>,0..0  damaires,  of  wiiicli 
liuiilitained  !?1.J0.  (•ie<;ng{A.  A.)  Li/ecml  Aili\,  MS.,  I-Sti.  This  manuscript 
lit  tireeu's,  of  alniut  90  pp.,  is  a  most  interesting  contriliutioii  to  the  literature 
of  land  titles,  containing  the  history  iu  detiiil  of  tlie  Santillan  claim.  .S'.  /'. 
Alia,  iww  7  and  21,  18^8.  In  IS-'iS  a  party  of  sipiatters  in  Sonoma  county 
attiirked  and  drove  from  his  land  one  of  the  owner  *  of  the  I'eii  is  raneiio,  eom- 
jioUiiig  him  to  sign  a  relea.se  of  his  property  to  them.  They  almost  eaptund 
tiiftown  of  Uealdsliurg  in  an  attempt  to  take  Dr  Fiteh,  another  owner;  and 
attiieked  the  gnreninient  8ur\'eyor  Mandeville,  destroying  his  pa])ers.  Hut 
BiW'li  nets  as  these  were  performed  by  a  few  nitfians  taking  advantage  of  the 
squ.itter  sentiment.  H.  F.  liulbthi,  Apr.  13,  I8j8. 


li  1 


i  i; 


||,; 

■^i'  ' 

i  1' .  i 

: 

^  1 1  ■! 

!    1'             ( 

i 

1        ; 

886 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


]>arty  in   politics — y^rouiul  which    California  stMiators 
found  themselves  unable  to  ignore.'"^ 

The  legislature  adjourned  April  22d.  Con^qoss 
had  again  disappointed  the  people."'  In  Jamiarv, 
the  California  delegation  had  taken  its  deimrturc  tnr 
Wasliington  to  urge  the  claims  t)f  the  state  to  be  im- 
niediatelv  admitted.  It  was  high  time.  In  1841)  tlic 
citizens  of  San  Francisco  had  banished  the  worst  nf 
its  criminals.  In  1850  a  straw  authority  atteiii|)t((l 
to  hctld  hiAvlessness  in  check,  but  it  had  attained  mk  h 
strength  that  years  were  afterward  reijuired  to  gtt  it 
under  control.  In  spite  of  these  drawbacks  a  gn  at 
deal  had  bi'cn  accomj  dished.  It  was  no  small  acliitvf- 
ment  f<»r  the  American  portion  of  the  |M»pulation  in  mi 
short  a  time  to  have  so  regulated  mining,  the  chiet"  in- 
dustrvof  the  countrv,  that  a  heterogeneous  nuiltitudf 
from  the  four  corners  <tf  the  earth  could  work  togftli.r 
in  peace;  and  to  so  administer  justice  in  the  occupa- 
tion of  the  mines  that  iiulividuals  an<l  companies  wnv 
Milling  to  be  ooverncd  bv^  laws  formed  in  miiiiii'^ 
camps.  The  general  perfi-ctioii  of  the  rubs  adopti  <[ 
was  such  that  neither  conjjress  nor  the  state  K'y:isl;itmc 
ever  attempted  to  imjirove  U[)on  their  essenti  il  !"<  i- 
tures.  Thus  good  and  evil  grew  side  by  side,  while 
men  longingly  waited  to  catch  the  first  whisi)er  ufl!;e 
words  "admitted  to  the  union." 

The  (pjestion  of  the  admission  of  Calif«)rni.i  liiid 
become  the  chief  topic  in  congress;  and  whenever  t!:e 
w<»rd  'California'  was  pronounced  close  after  eaiiie 
the  word  'slavery.'  All  through  1849  the  subjefttf 
ju'oviding  a  government  for  California  was  tliscusx'd. 
jind  at  evirv  point  it  was  met  by  objections  oii'^inat- 
ing  in  a  fear  of  disturbing  the  balance  of  po'ver  ni 

^SfUlfiv  ,111..'  Mhurx'  Tiilmw,  Oct.  30,  1380;  Sik.  Tmnmrijit,  N-  ..  -•'. 
ISoO. 

■^' Sp«uki'r  Hi;^ler  in  his  vale.iictoi-y  .lililress  i.lhiilo<l  to  tluit  'imwt  emlur- 
raitniiiK  i|iiustii>  i  "i  iloiiicMtit  jiolii'V,'  wliicli  ii>  U\■^  ri'jf.-ft  hiul  kept  ('  I  "it  it 
tlie  uiiiou.  S.  /'.  J'ac.  Acwh,  Apr.  27,  ISoO;  J.  F.  Herald,  Oct.  '.'l!,  ISi**. 


E 


ADMissio:;?  AS  a  state. 


337 


the  senate  to  tlie  prejudice  of  slavery.  The  growth 
ot"  i\ni  natit)ii  had  reached  that  critical  point  when  its 
atliiirs  could  no  longer  be  safely  referred  to  a  sectional 
inter] notation  of  the  constitution;  or  the  constitution 
b(  ill''"  faultv,  when  the  nation  could  no  longer  strictly 
al)i(le  by  it;  or  when,  conceding  it  to  be  a  penect  in- 
struiiitiit,  one  portion  of  the  people  refused  to  abide 
by  it  at  the  will  of  the  other  pn-tion.  T)ie  conces- 
sions made  to  the  slave  states  when  the  union  was 
foruifd,  on  account  of  their  weakness  in  population, 
and  wlien  the  growth  of  slavery  by  importation  and 
natural  increa  e  was  not  clearly  foreseen,  had  placed 
the  .vee[)tre  of  }»olitical  power  in  the  hands  of  the 
S(»ut]i,  wliore  for  thirty-eight  years  out  of  fifty  it  had 
remained.  The  profits  derived  fn.ni  cotton-planting 
with  jihive  labor  had  enabled  the  men  of  the  south  to 
abjure  labor  for  theiuselves,  to  einph  y  their  leisure  in 
congenial  pursuits  at  home,  in  foreign  education  and 
travil,  and  in  politics.  Their  senators  in  congress 
were  men  who  assumed  an  air  of  nobility  on  account 
of  their  exemption  from  the  ci-res  of  trade,  whose 
habits  on  tiieir  plantations  rr  we  them  a  dictatorial 
ma*  ner,  even  in  tlie  society  of  their  peers,  that  their 
^'enerous  culture  could  not  always  suiHcicntly  soften; 
anil  it  was  yearly  more  openly  asserted  that  tiio  ruling 
class  in  the  United  States  was  the  planter  class. 
Cotton  was  king;  but  a  cotton  manufacturer  and  a 
cdtton-eloth  seller  were  contemptible  in  the  eyes  of 
this  pampered,  self-ctnistituted  aristt)cracy. 

There  was  a  middle  class  in  the  south,  which  aped 
all  that  was  t>rtcnsive  in  the  manners  of  the  cultivated 
class,  and  were  loud  in  their  praises  of  chivalry,  and 
their  scorn  of  northern  'mud^:ills.*  Even  the  '{MH)r 
white  trash,'  which  constituted  a  class  despised  even 
by  the  slaves,  regarded  the  institution  as  something 
sacred,  and  a  'southern  gentleman'  as  a  being  far 
aixive  anything  in  the  free  states.  So  strong  are  the 
teachings  of  custom  and  jn-ejudicel 

Such  a  condition  of  society  was  not  contemplated  by 

UisT.  cau,  Vol.  VI.    22 


bj 


I 


338 


POLITICAL  HI    ;ORY. 


^i 


'?  ".' 


Ml, 


I  f 


the  fraraers  of  the  constitution.  It  was  opposed  to 
the  nature  of  the  repubHcan  government,  and  soon  or 
late  must  introduce  discord.  In  1846  that  discord 
was  ah-eady  strongly  apparent ;  and  the  southern  press 
did  not  conceal  the  fact  that  the  south  regarded  itself 
as  destined  to  have  the  mastery  on  the  American 
continent.  In  congress,  certainly,  these  boasts  were 
sparingly  alluded  to;  but  they  had  their  influence. 
Congressmen  and  senators  talked  about  the  riglits  of 
the  two  sections  under  the  constitution.  The  ae()uisi- 
tiou  of  New  Mexico  and  California,  which  the  south 
had  plotted  and  fought  for,**  had  brought  with  it  new 
issues  and  a  determined  struggle.  It  was  a  battle 
between  intellectual  giants  for  a  cherished  idea. 

Regarded  from  a  sentimental  stand-point,  the  sudden 
colla^-se  of  great  expectations  appeals  to  our  synipatliy, 
altliough  the  means  resorted  to  in  support  of  them 
may  not  command  our  confidence.  The  gaunt  Caro- 
linian, he  of  the  burning  eyes,  pointing  his  fattful 
finger  toward  his  adversary,  and  giving  utterance  to 
his  fire-brand  resolutions,  is  a  striking  spectacle.  The 
polished  and  fiery  Butler,  pouring  forth  his  reproaches 
against  the  faithless  north,  holds  his  audiences  en- 
chained. Berrien  of  Georgia,  logical  and  impressive, 
commands  breathless  attention  while  he,  too,  arraigns 
the  north  for  injustice.  Foote  of  Mississippi,  correct 
and  impressive,  never  hasty,  sometimes  half  insdloiit, 
but  alway.^  attractive,  sets  forth  the  wrongs  of  the 
south.  Toombs  of  Georgia,  armed  at  every  i)uint 
with  accusations  against  the  north,  and  demands  for 
restitution  of  rights  that  he  declares  have  been  wrested 
from  the  south,  impresses  us  with  his  eloquence,  and 

'■^The  ChnrkMon  Patriot  said,  referring  to  the  Mexican  war:  'Wc  trust 
that  our  southorii  representatives  will  remember  that  thia  ia  a  Hoiitherii  war.' 
And  thus  the  CharlrMon  Courier:  '  Every  l>attle  fought  in  Mexico,  iiiul  tvury 
dollar  pent  there,  hut  inHures  tlie  ncqumition  of  territory  which  must  wiilen 
the  liela  of  southem  enterprise  in  the  future.  And  the  huai  result  will  Ih.'  to 
rea«ljust  the  whole  l>alan'-e  of  power  in  the  confederacy  ho  as  to  give  u»  con- 
trol over  the  operations  <if  tlio  ffovernment  in  all  time  to  come.  If  the  xouth 
l)e  but  true  to  themselves,  the  day  of  our  depreuion  ami  suffering  is  gout-  for- 
ever.' Vontf.  Olohe,  1846-7,  364;  Id.,  184U-50,  256.  Others  called  it  'a»uuth 
em  war  fought  hy  acutheru  meo. ' 


NATIONAL  ISSUES. 


339 


iive  us  co'.i- 


rouses  us  with  the  lash  of  his  denunciation.  These 
and  nore  were  the  men  the  south  sent  to  represent 
licr  i;)  the  national  legislature;  and  against  them  was 
opj)(>jed  the  genius  of  Webster,  Clay,  Seward,  Doug- 
las, Benton,  and  the  cumulative  talent  of  the  nation. 
To  the  fire  of  the  south,  the  great  Massachusetts  sen- 
ator opposed  a  collected  front.  "  Times  have  changed," 
lie  said,  "since  the  constitution  was  formed." 

The  south  complained  tha^  <•  le  had  always  been 
making  concessions,  and  instanced  the  ordinance  of 
17S7,  when  it  was  agreed  by  Virginia  that  the  north- 
west territory  surrendered  by  her  should  be  free  ter- 
1  tory ;  to  which  the  north  replied  that  God  and  nature 
had  uiade  that  free  territory,  and  slavery  could  not 
exist  there,  had  there  been  no  ordinance  against  it.'® 
The  Missouri  compromise  of  1820  was  called  another 
concession  by  the  south ;  but  the  north  contended  that 
it  was  not  an  unfair  division  of  the  Louisiana  purchase, 
and  tliat  the  admission  of  Missouri  as  a  slave  state 
was  allowed  to  balance  the  admission  of  Maine  as  a 
tree  state  at  the  same  time,  and  that  one  was  as  much 
a  concession  as  the  other. 

The  Wilmot  proviso,  the  south  alleged,  was  aggress- 
ive. It  made  the  condition  of  furnishing  money  to 
l>uy  Mexican  territory  this:  that  no  part  of  the  terri- 
tory so  purchased  should  be  open  to  slavery.  The 
north  replied  that  the  Mexican  government  had  abol- 
ished slavery  in  all  its  territory,  and  the  United  States 
would  not  reestablish  it.  The  south  declared  that 
wherever  the  constitution  of  the  United  States  went, 
slavery  went  with  it.  And  on  this  ground,  untenable 
as  it  appears  to  me,*'  the  ship  of  state  seemed  likely 

•For  a  history  of  the  onlinance  of  1787,  see  Comj.  Olofte,  1840-50,  At>p., 

pt  i.  tm. 

'"Scotion  9  of  article  I.  of  the  conititution  gays:  'The  iniaration  or  iin- 
pnrtatuin  of  such  ]>er8on8  aa  any  of  the  states  now  existing  shall  tliink  propter 
ti)  admit,  shall  not  Ito  prohibito«l  by  congrusa  prior  to  the  yoar  I8U8,  hut  a 
tax  or  duty  may  be  iiniKiaed  on  such  importation,  not  exceeifing  flU  for  eavli 
]H'rsiiii.'  That  is,  consress  would  not  interfere  with  slavery  in  the  then  slave 
stiUs  for  that  period  of  time.  Section  2  of  article  IV.  declan^s  that  'no 
iHTiion  liehl  to  service  of  lalnir  in  one  state,  under  the  laws  thereof,  escaping 
mtu  another,  shall,  in  consetjuenco  of  any  law  ur  regulation  thereui,  lie  dia- 


340 


POUnCAL  HISTORY 


■!•§ 


to  be  stranded.  The  Wilniot  proviso  was  not  adoptod, 
and  the  money  was  paid.  In  so  much  the  soutli  tri- 
umphed. But  it  was  a  barren  victory ;  because  tlie 
moment  that  a  government  wa.s  demanded  for  the  now 
territory,  the  conflict  began  concerning  the  nature  of 
it,  and  the  principles  of  the  Wilniot  proviso  wore  re- 
vived, to  be  fought  over  for  a  period  of  nearly  two 
years,  during  which  time  California  had  passed  throuiLrh 
the  events  already  recorded  in  this  and  previous  chap- 
ters. 

The  news  that  California  had  formed  for  herself  a 
free  state  government  was  ill  received  by  southern 
men,  who  called  it  a  northern  measure,  and  felt  them- 
selves wronged.  It  was,  they  said,  a  whig  rnanajuvre, 
and  due  to  the  administration  of  Taylor,  although  in 
fact  Riley,'*  on  whom  the  opprobrium  was  heaped, 
was  intrusted  with  the  manajjement  of  California 
affairs  by  the  previous  administration;  while  Kin*!:, 
the  owner  of  several  hundred  slaves,  was  the  agent  (»f 
the  whig  administration  in  forwarding  the  state  move- 
ment. It  was  true  that  King  called  himself  a  vliiti. 
but  it  was  true  also  that  Taylor  was  a  native  of 
Louisiana.  Nothing  was  said  of  .slavery  in  Kiiii,'^s 
instructif  as;  he  was  merely  t<j  assist  California  to  a 
government,  provided  it  could  be  done  without  danger 
to  the  authority  of  the  United  States. 

charged  from  such  service  or  labor,  imt  sliall  l>e  delivered  up  on  claim  nf  tiiu 
party  to  whom  such  service  or  labor  may  W  <lue.'  A  siiuplo  constrin'tKui  of 
tliis  article  does  not  make  it  the  duty  of  a  free  state  to  i>a»!4  laws  in  tlio  iiitor- 
est  of  slavery,  or  to  compel  its  puluic  olficer/t  to  arrest  and  return  ,1  »h\i: 
If  a  horse  should  l>e  found  in  uosseiision  of  a  citizen  of  a  frue  st-itt;  wliii'li  lio- 
louued  in  a  slave  state,  it  would  have  to  lie  •lelivere<l  up.  80  would  a  Aiiw, 
auilno  more;  but  the  south 's  most  grievous  c«iuiplaint  against  the  uurtli  wm 
that  it  was  not  a  good  slave-catcher;  anil  that  a  few  northern  persuii.s  WL'ri> 
organized  to  make  matters  still  wonw  for  the  Ivarbarism  there.  Conocriiiii^ 
territorial  and  other  proiterty,  the  constitution  said:  'The  congrc.s.s  shall  liavo 
power  to  dispose  of  and  make  all  nce<lful  rules  and  regulations  respecting  tlu' 
territory  or  other  uniuerty  belimging  t»  the  Unit^xl  States;  and  notliiiig  in 
this  constitution  snail  be  so  construtil  as  Ut  prejutUce  any  claims  of  tiie 
United  States,  or  of  any  particular  state.'  But  the  south  denied  the  iwiwcr 
of  congress  to  keep  slavery  out  of  the  territohea;  and  on  that  ground  the  IkU- 
tie  M'as  fought. 

*^Vonif.  aiohe,  1849-M),  Afup.,  pt  i.  pp.  102-4.     The  prest  denied  niitlioi 
izing  any  govt  in  C'al.,  except  to  snggett  to  the  people  to  form  a  oon^tioitmu 
to  l)e  presented  to  congress.     See  nu-sMge  of  Jan.  21,  1850,  in  Comj.  HM^, 
1849-^,  195;  Amer.  (jmr.  Re>j.,  iii.  60a-4;  Fnj*t,  Uitt.  Cai,  427-30;  //.  Ex. 
.  Doc.,  31,  i.  no.  5,  101. 


CALIFORNIA  AT  WASHINGTON. 


341 


It  was  an  affront  to  the  pride  of  the  south  that  the 
outsiile  world  did  not  look  with  approval  upon  her  pot 
institution,  and  it  was  a  wound  to  the  moral  sensibility 
of  tiic  north  that  the  whole  nation  shared  in  the  re- 
proach. The  rebuke  received  frtnu  both  northern  and 
southern  men,  and  foreigners,  in  the  exclusion  of 
slavtry  from  California,  was  extremely  irritating  to 
the  turmer.  To  admit  California  at  all  under  the  cir- 
cumstances would  be  an  humiliation.  But  the  great 
point  was  the  admission  of  two  senators  from  a  free 
state  to  destroy  the  balance  of  power.  Once  gone, 
it  might  never  be  restored.^-  On  the  other  hand,  the 
north  felt  the  perilous  position  it  would  be  in  should 
tliL'  south  in  its  recently  revuaU'd  temper  ever  again 
have  control  of  the  national  councils. 

Early  in  1850  Z\Ir  Clay  attempted  a  compromise  by 
rcstthitions:  that  California,  with  suitable  limits,  be 
a(hiiitted;  that  the  Wilmot  proviso  should  not  be 
insisted  on  for  the  territories;  that  the  boundary  line 
of  Texas  should  be  established  so  as  to  exclude  any 
portion  of  Xew  Mexico;  that  the  United  States 
sht'uld  pay  that  part  of  the  debt  of  Texas  contracted 
htfoiv  Its  annexation,  amounting  to  $10,000,000,  on 
coiuhtion  that  Texas  should  solemnly  renounce  any 
claiiii  to  any  part  of  New  Mexico;  that  slavery  should 
not  hi.'  abolished  in  the  District  of  Columbia  witiiout 
the  consent  of  the  state  of  Maryland,  of  the  peo[)le  of 
tho  district,  and  just  conjpeiisation  to  the  owners 
of  slave  property;  that  the  export  and  import  of 
slaves  fi'om  and  into  the  district,  as  merchandise, 
siiniiM  be  abolished;  that  provision  should  be  made  by 
law  for  the  restitution  of  fugitive  slaves  in  any  state 
or  territory  of  the  union;  antl  tiiat  the  trade  in  slaves 


'-'  ( 'alli<mii  s;iiil  tliat  tn  '  ttave  the  union  thf  north  had  only  to  do  justice  liy 
ciinci'iling  til  tilt;  Houth  an  etjual  ri^tht  in  tho  iuniuirtjil  territory,  and  to  do  her 
ilutv  liy  causing  tliu  titipulatioui)  relative  to  fugitive  ulavi's  to  lie  faitlilully 
tiiiiilL.I;  tdciase  tile  agitation  of  tlie  blave  <iuestion,  and  to  provide  for  the 
iii'i'i'iiciii  of  a  jtrovision  in  the  constitution,  hy  iin  aniendnient,  wliicii  udl 
n>tiiri'  to  the  Houth  in  8ul>stance  the  jxiwer  she  |ioHse.ssed  of  iiroti'etinj;  herself 
liiiiiiv  tlie  eqiiilitiHitni  iM-tween  the  sections  was  destroyed  jjy  tlie  uc'iou  of 
this  g.ivcruiuent.'  Cony.  HIuIk,  18^»".»-.j(>,  .l;^».,  pt  i.  ^70-1. 


ii  }^  ;' 


942 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


between  slave-holding  states  should  be  regulated  by 
the  laws  of  those  states.  The  debates  upon  tlKsy 
resolutions  continued  for  many  months;^  and  by  tlio 
last  of  July  they  had  been  so  altered  and  amended 
that  nothing  remained  of  their  original  feature^. 
Most  of  their  several  provisions  were,  however,  in- 
corporated in  bills  which  were  passed,  and  which  con- 
stituted in  effect  a  compromise. 

In  the  midst  of  this  conflict  the  California  deleua- 
tion  arrived  and  added  to  the  excitement,  their 
presence  being  regarded  by  some  of  both  sections,  hut 
especially  by  the  south,  as  unwarranted,  even  imper- 
tinent. Calhoun,  who  was  dying,  sent  for  Senator 
Gwin,  with  whom  he  held  a  conference,  "  solemn  and 
impressive."  They  differed  upon  the  policy  to  ho 
pursued  by  congress  in  the  admission  of  California, 
Calhoun  insisting  that  it  would  destroy  the  equilibrium 
in  the  senate,  which  was  the  only  safeguard  of  the 
south  against  the  numerical  superiority  of  the  north. 
and  prophesying  civil  war.  He  held  that  in  the  event 
of  the  north  conquering  the  south,  "this  government, 
although  republican  in  name,  would  be  the  most  des- 
potic of  any  in  the  civilized  world."  So  much  bitter- 
ness poisoned  this  great  and  generous  mind!^ 

""Diivia  of  Miss,  repudiated  the  idea  of  concession  from  the  nnrtli. 
•Where  is  the  cuncessiou  to  tlie  south?  Is  it  in  the  admission,  as  a  stuto,  nf 
California,  from  wiiich  wt;  have  been  excluded  by  cougressitmul  agitiitioir;  I.i 
it  in  the  announcement  that  slavery  does  not  and  is  not  to  exist  in  thct  rcinaiii' 
ing  territories  of  New  Mexico  and  California?  Is  it  in  denying  the  titlt'ot 
Texas  to  one  half  of  her  territory?'  He  hehl  that  gold  washing  and  iiiiuiui.' 
Wits  particularly  adapted  to  slave  labor,  as  was  agriculture  that  depeiiilci  mi 
irrigation.  C'o«;/.  (llnlie,  lS4'J-.')0,  A]vp.,  pt  i.  149-57. 

**  'Mr  Calhoun,'  says  (iwin,  'never  appeared  in  the  senate  but  once  after 
this  interview.  It  was  on  the  occasion  of  the  delivery  of  Mr  Webster's  ^.'rt'.tt 
speech  of  the  7th  of  March,  iSoU.  The  senate-chamber  as  well  as  the  galU'ru.'i 
were  crowdeil,  an<l  it  was  known  onlv  to  a  few  that  Mr  Culhoun  was  in  Iih 
seat;  and  when  Mr  Webster,  in  alluding  to  him,  regretted  tlio  cau.stt  of  las 
vacant  seat  in  the  senate,  Mr  Calhoun  rose  up  in  the  presence  of  that  iniiMeiiM- 
au<lience,  as  a  man  rising  from  the  grave,  for  he  looked  like  a  cim'imc,  an  I 
said,  in  a  hollow,  ileep-toiieil  voice,  "lam  here  I  "which  electrilied  the  wlmL' 
audience.  Mr  Webster  turned  to  him  and  said:  "Thank  CJod  tluit  tiie  sena- 
tor is  able  again  to  resume  his  seat  in  tiie  senate,  and  I  pray  to  (lod  he  ni.iy 
long  continue  to  adorn  tliis  chamber  by  his  presence,  and  aid  it  by  hi-*  coun- 
sels." '  Tiie  same  as  rei^rted  in  the  C'omj.  Ololie,  Jj>p.,  i.  271,  is  less  <lraniatic. 
Oioinii  Memoirt,  MS.,  32-5;  CraneaPiul,  Pmtent,  etc.,  10;  Vnwj.  Sjxirhis.w. 
3,  4,  8,  9.  19,  2():  Plater  Time»,  Apr.  22,  May  8,  ISiM);  NUch  Re,,.,  Ixx.  in.l.x 
p.  viii.;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Sept.  9,  1«0*2,  and  1864;  Btnton'a  Thirty  i'e'i/v*.  li.  7(ii>- 


G^VIN'S  PERFORMANCES. 


343 


latud  It}- 
:)n  these 
i  by  the 
amondetl 
feature."*, 
'■ever,  in- 
tiich  cou- 

i  deletja- 
[it,   their 

lioilH,  l)Ut 

n  imper- 
sonator 
[emu  and 
ly  to  bo 
alifornia, 
uiliUrium 
d  ot'  the 
he  north, 
;he  event 
eminent, 
uost  (k'S- 
bitter- 


tlie  north. 

a  st.ito,  ii! 
itiitiiiii'  U 
till!  rt'iimiii- 
tlie  title  III 
antl  iiiiiiiui! 

jpelnlu'l  oil 

it  once  after 
UsUt's  yrcat 
till!  j^alliTu.i 

was  111  Ills 
cau.sc  lit"  liis 
lat  imiiifiiM' 
CoriMC,  an  I 

I  till!  wli.iL' 
at  the  .st'iia- 
Jotl  !it!  Ill  ay 
ly  his  cmiii- 
IS  (Iraiiiatio. 
Sfn'irlii".  iii>. 
,  Ixx.  inili'X 
uirs,  li.  TOD- 


Gwin,  finding  himself  on  the  unpopular  side  with 
liis  party,  "retired  to  New  York  in  order  not  to  be 
considered  a  partisan,"  but  was  recalled  by  Mr  Clay, 
who  imparted  to  him  his  design  of  t)ffering  his  coui- 
proniise  resolutions,  combining  all  the  questions  on  tlie 
subject  of  Hlavery  then  agitating  the  country,  in  order 
to  overcome  the  united  opposition  of  the  south  to  the 
admission  of  California.**  Again  Gwin  retired  to  Xt- w 
York,  and  again  was  he  recalled,  this  time  by  the 
J  (resident,  who  desired  that  the  California  delegation 
!should  make  a  joint  communication  to  congress  upon 
the  necessity  of  admitting  California,  aside  from  other 
considerations,  and  disconnected  with  the  compromise 
nieasurcis.  This  request  was  complit^d  with  early  in 
^March,'^  and  a  concise  history  of  California,  since  tlie 
treaty  of  1848,  laid  before  both  houses.  The  effect  of 
tlie  memorial  was  apparently  to  bring  General  Riley 
into  unjileasant  prominence,  and  the  president  under 
the  di.s[)leasure  of  the  south.*^ 

Tlius  the  struggle  was  maintained  until  August  13th, 
wlien  the  bill  for  the  admission  of  California  j>assed 
the  senate  by  a  vote  of  34  to  18;  the  vote  standing, 
wliiys  ID,  democrats  32,  free-soilers  two.**   On  the  14tli 

73;  Pfihjtwxian,  vii.  34;  Speech  of  J.  M.  Read,  in  Philadelphia,   March  l.S, 
is.'H);  Letter  of  (iilljcrt,  m  S.  F.  AlUi,  June  2o,  18jO;  N.  Am.  lleiurw,  Ixx. 
2l'l  .'"l:  Am.  (^wirl.  AV;/.,  iv.  lG-54,  58-(i4;  U.  S.  II.  Jou,:,  ItiTC,  l(kS3,  ITlW, 
1>«N);  ;n.st  cong.,   lat  sess.;  Santa  Cruz  S.   IV.   Times,  G  to  9,  1871;  L{f'e  of 
Stoi-L/iiii,  .Ijyp.,  (iy-79;  S/ieniuin,  Mem.,  i.  81-3;  Gwiii,  MemoirM,  M.S.,  ."J'i. 

^°  It  i.s  stateil  in  Owins  Memoirs  that  political  differences  had  tlivided  Clay 
and  Hi'utiin  for  years,  though  they  were  connected  by  marriage.  Tlie  qiu-s- 
tidU  (if  the  adinistiion  of  Cal.  brought  theuk  together  in  cordial  relations; 
liiit  <  'lay's  C(>inproini»e  resolutions  again  sundered  them  more  widely  than 
lH.'fori',  ill  which  estrangement  they  ended  their  lives.  Few  men  are  too  great 
to  (iiiari'i'l,  few  minds  too  magnanimous  not  to  stoop  to  beastly  bickernig.s. 

"This  memorial  is  printed  along  with  Ross  Browne  s  Cointtit.  DehiUs,  Ajqi., 
xiv.-xxiii. ;  see  also  I'lacer  Times,  Apr.  i26,  1850;  U.  S.  Misc.  Doc.,  44,  i.  1- 
18,  .'i4-5,  31st  cong.,  1st  sess. 

^'tiwin  dwells  upon  the  obstinacy  of  Prest  Taylor,  and  remarks  that  he 
ha.s  always  believed  that  had  Taylor  lived  a  civil  war  would  have  resulted  at 
that  time.  Taylor,  ho  says,  was  strongly  opposed  to  Clay's  ooiiipromise 
measures.  Thurston  of  Oregon  was  the  only  man  in  congress  from  the  I'a- 
citic  ciia.st,  and  he  defended  Riley's  action,  saying  that  the  govt  in  Cal.  would 
have  lieen  formed  without  his  proclamation.  Cowj.  (Ilolie,  1840-50,  Amt.,  i. 

^  it  was  in  the  livst  days  of  this  memorable  conflict  that  Sewanl  wiid  he 
ghiiiihl  have  'voted  for  the  admission  of  Cal.,  even  if  she  had  come  a.s  a  slave 
state,'  under  the  circumstances  of  her  justifiable   and  necessary  establish- 


M4 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


I    !, 


I 


Hunter  of  Virginia  presented  a  prr)tost  aj^ainst  the 
admission,  and  asked  tliat  it  niiglit  1)0  spread  U[)(tii  the 
journals  of  the  senate;  but  this  was  refusoti  ujioii 
parliamentary  grounds.  This  protest  is  a  signiHcant 
part  of  the  history  of  the  California  bill.  It  dodart  s 
that  the  act  of  admission  gave  the  sanction  of  law,  and 
thus  imparted  validity  to  the  unauthorized  action  of  a 
portion  of  the  inhabitants  of  California,  by  which  an 
odious  discrimination  was  made  against  the  property 
of  the  slave-holding  states,  which  were  thus  deprived 
of  that  position  of  equality  which  the  constitution  so 
manifestly  designed.  It  defeated  the  rights  of  the 
slave-holding  states  to  a  common  and  equal  enjoyment 
of  the  territory  of  the  union.  To  vote  for  such  a  hill 
was  to  agree  to  a  principle  which  would  forever  exclude 
the  slave  states  from  all  enjoyment  of  the  coninidn 
territory  of  the  union,  and  thereby  rob  them  of  their 
rights  of  equality.  Every  effort  to  obtain  a  fair  divis- 
ion of  California  between  the  slave  and  free  states 
had  failed.  And  lastly,  the  bill  was  contrary  to  prece- 
dent, obvious  policy,  and  the  spirit  and  intention  of 
the  constitution  of  the  United  States,  and  therefore 
dangerous  to  libtjrty  and  equality.** 

Such  was  tiie  fateful  character  imputed  to  the  m^tru- 
ment  draughted  at  Monterey  by  men  of  all  seeti(tns, 
who  intended  primarily  to  escape  the  strife  and  pas- 
sion of  the  slavery  question  by  excluding  slaviry  iVoni 
the  state;  and  who  st^condly  had  some  fastidious  oh- 
jections  to  working  in  the  mines  side  by  side  with  tlie 
'niggers'  of  cjiivalry  masters.  The  trutii  will  have 
to  be  acknowledged  that  the  admission  of  California 
as  a  free  state  led  to  the  war  of  the  rebellion.  The 
spirit  of  the  south  protested  angrily  against  it;  the 

-  --       -  Tluy 


more  so  that  it  was  a  land  of  gold  and  sunshine. 


nieiit  of  a  constitution,  '  anil  the  inevitable  iliamenil>vrnient  of  tho  ciiiinre 
conHuquuut  m)oii  luT  rejection.' 

•'"This  protest  Wiw  Higneil  by  Mason  and  Hunter  of  Va;  Butler  and  liirn- 
WoU  of  S.  v.;  Soule  of  La;  Turnoy  of  Tenii.;  .Jeff.  l>iivis  of  Misi. ;  I'.  K. 
Atchison  of  Mo.;  MoKonand  Yuleo  of  Vln.  MrCliiAei/,  /•«>/.  7V,i<  li'-^k;  <i  ■'>  r>i 
Jii-ntnn,  Thh-tij  Yearn,  ii.  7C9-71;  Comj.  Glolte,  1849-50,  l.")78;  S.  F.  Bull' tin, 
Sept.  9,  1802. 


CALIFORNIA  BILL  PASSED. 


845 


road  ill  it  the  doom  of  slavery  and  loss  of  power. 
For  their  disappointment  every  generous  heart  must 
feci  a  sympathetic  pang.  We  experience  the  same 
jiuiii  when  we  see  the  surgeon  maiming  a  brother  to 
save  liis  life — protesting  and  consenting  in  the  same 

tliollixllt. 

Oil  tlie  7th  of  September  the  house  of  representa- 
tives passed  the  California  bill  by  a  vote  of  150  to  5G. 
All  the  votes  against  it  were  of  southern  men.  The 
act  was  approved  September  9th,*"  and  the  California 
del*  ligation  presented  themselves  on  the  11th.  Objec- 
tions were  made  by  southern  senators  to  their  being 
sworn  in,  Davis  of  Mississippi  leading  the  opi)osition, 
sui»|><ii-ted  by  Butler  of  South  Carolina,  Mason  of 
A'ir-'inia,  and  Berrien  of  Georgia.  It  was  the  last 
kick  at  their  dead  lion,  and  ineffectual.  Congress  had 
inon  in  session  for  nine  months,  and  now  made  haste 
t(»  (Icsjiatch  neglected  business.  Gwin,  who  had  drawn 
the  long  term,  busied  himself  during  the  time  before 
adjonnnncnt  in  draughting  bills ;  no  less  than  eighteen" 

*'' C  S.  Piih.  /^aiM,  452-3,  Slat  Cong.,  IstsesH.  ;C'fr;'ron,  i*)!;  Actmiiiil  /{esoVrm, 
31st  ciiiiL,'.,  1st  Bess.,  51-2;  Anier.  Quart.  /(>'[/.,  ii.  2i)o-0. 

•'Siiiiic  of  these  bills  were  l)eforo  eoncress  foraloiiff  time.  They  are  iium- 
hjreil  ill  (I'li'iii'n  Afemoirs  as  follows:  I.  A  bill  to  jtrovide  for  the  aitpoiiitnient 
of  a  reconler  of  land  titles  in  Cal.  II.  To  provide  for  the  ai>poiiitnieut  of  8ur.- 
);rii.  in  Cal.,  ami  for  the  survey  of  tlie  public  lauds.  III.  To  provide  for  the 
tnctiDii  of  laud-oiKces  in  Cal.  IV.  To  provide  for  the  a.>icertainuicnt  of 
in'iviiti'  laud  titles,  aud  for  the  adjudication  and  settlement  of  tlio  same.  V. 
Til  grant  doiiations  of  laml  to  settlers  iu  Cal.,  before  the  eessiou  of  tliat  coun- 
try to  the  I'.  S.,  and  to  allow  preemption  ri.i^hts  to  suliKetpieut  and  all  future 
81'ttli'rs.  VI.  To  regulate  the  working  of  tlie  placers  and  gold  mines,  and  to 
IirosiTvu  order  by  unanting  temporary  permits  to  actual  opiTators  to  work 
tile  sanii'  in  limited  quiintitics.  VII.  For  extending  the  laws  and  judicial 
system  of  tiie  U.  S.  to  Cal.  VIII.  To  refuntl  to  tlie  state  of  (.'al.  the  amount 
of  inoni'ys  collected  for  duties  on  importc<l  goods  at  S.  F.  and  the  other 
jiirts,  licfore  the  custom-house  laws  of  the  U.  S.  were  extended  to  Cal. 
IX.  To  grant  to  the  state  of  Cal.  certain  quautitie-s  of  imblic  land  for  the  pur- 
iMisfs  of  education.  X.  To  grant  6  townslii]>s  of  lamf  for  a  university.  XI. 
I'd  grant  4  sections  of  lan<l  to  aid  in  constructing  ]iulilic  buihiings  at  the  seat 
of  govt.  XII.  To  grant  two  townshi[>8  of  land  for  establishing  an  a.sylum  for 
tlie  deaf  and  dumb,  and  for  the  blind  and  insane.  XITI.  lo  relinquish  to 
tiie  city  of  S.  F.  all  the  groands  reserved  for  military  or  other  jiurposes  in 
sail!  city  M'luch  are  no  longer  wanted  for  sucii  pnritoscH.  XIV.  To  grant  to 
tlie  state  of  CiU.  12  sivlt  springs,  with  a  section  of  land  around  each.  XV. 
Ti)  grant  to  the  city  of  Monterey  the  old  government  house  in  that  city,  and 
the  griiiinil  upon  which  it  stands.  XVI.  To  provide  for  opening  a  road  across 
tlif  Surra  Nevada,  on  the  lino  of  tlie  Kio  do  los  Americanos  and  Carson 
Kivir.  and  thejiassat  their  heads,  as  the  commencement  of  o])ening  a  common 
travi'lliiig  road  between  the  present  western  settlements  of  tlie  C  .S.  and  the 


sMr? 


'■■  I 


iii. 


] 


346 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


were  presented  by  Fremont,  who  thought  three  weeks 
of*  beimtorial  life  hardly  long  enough  to  whi  a  reelec- 
tion, and  was,  by  consent  of  his  colleague,  put  forward 
on  the  subject  of  Mexican  and  Spanish  land  gruiit>, 
and  came  to  blows  with  Foote  of  Mississippi  on  thut 
iijsue. 

The  condition  of  California  during  the  perio i  occu- 
pied by  congressional  discussion,  politically,  nus  one 
of  indifference.  Some  efl'ort  there  was  by  Wduld-be 
party  leaders  to  divide  the  population  into  whigs  and 
democrats;  and  so  far  as  the  districts  containing  prin- 
cipal towns  were  concerned,  they  were  partialis  fur- 
cessful,  San  Francisco  being  governed  oy  clomoiiat.s 
and  independents,  and  Sacramento  by  whigs.*"'  The 
second  general  r'.ection  under  the  state  constitution 
took  place  on  the  7th  of  October,  when  senators  and 
assemblymen,  with  a  number  of  state  officers,  weie 
elected.**  Although  little  interest  was  manif«.!sted  by 
the  mining  population  in  the  results  of  election,  tlie 
canvass  sliowed  the  great  numerical  superit)rity  <»f  the 
northern  counties,  which  were  able  to  exercise  a  |)u\v- 
erful  influence  in  determining  the  future  pt>liti(ai 
action  of  the  state,**  and  to  carry  their  measures  in 
the  legislature.  The  miners  were,  in  truth,  niikh 
more  interested  in  legislatit^n  concerning  mining,  l^otli 

state  of  Cal.  XVII.  To  grant  the  state  of  Cal.  1,600,000  acres  of  laud  f.pr 
piiri>o8e8  of  internal  iniiirovemunt,  in  addition  to  the  500,0(N)  acres  grantnl 
for  such  purposes  to  each  new  state  by  a  general  law.  XVIII.  To  presiTve 
peace  among  the  Indian  trities  in  Cal.  by  providing  for  the  extinction  ot  tljtir 
territorial  claims  in  tiie  gold-mining  district*,  and  a  resolution  estahli^thiiig 
numerous  post-routes  in  C'al. 

"Axliln/,  Dor.,  53."^70:  PeeUmm,  Bitxj.,  in  San  Joni  Pioneer,  July  28.  isTT; 
S.  F.  /'i<iii/Hne,  Sept.  4,  ISJO;  Plnrer  Timen,  March  30,  1850;  Sm:  rnii,siTi]<t, 
Aug.  3(>,  Sept.  .30,  Oct.  14,  and  Nov.  29,  1850;  S.  F.  AU-i,  May  20  and  Die. 
17,  1808. 

**  E.  J.  C.  Kewcu  having  resigned,  James  A.  McDougall  waa  cho.sen  t^  till 
the  vacancy  in  the  otKce  of  attorney •giMu-ral.  John  (r.  .Marvin  wax  iii.nle 
aupt  of  public  instruction.  K.  H.  Sharp  was  chosen  clerk  of  the  sup.  ct. 
Dist  attys  were  electetl  in  the  9  districts. 

"  MiHjre,  Pian.  Euyer.,  MS.,  10;  liuri^t,  RecolL,  MS.,  ii.  266-7.  The  v.. tea 
iKiUed  in  Sac.  co.  were  3,000;  El  Dorado,  2,900;  Yuba,  4,16.3;  Sutt»r,  l..>v.t; 
Yolo,  107;  Rutte,  900;  Colusa,  20;  Shasta,  150;  aggregating  12,1)2!).  The 
wliole  vote  of  tlie  San  Joa<|uin  country  was  not  more  than  6,8.'>0,  and  <>t  S.  Y. 
3,450.  Sue.  Tninacriyt,  Nov.  29,  1850 


RECEPTION  OF  THE  NEWS. 


M7 


8tatt-  and  national,  than  in  party  questions,  and  more 
liki-iy  t«)  make  this  a  part^  issue  at  that  time  than 
slavery  or  anti-slavery,  much  as  they  had  done  to 
bring  on  the  agitation.  There  were  men  in  the  mines 
whose  journey  to  California,  whose  dij^j,nni(  and  delv- 
ing,', whose  gambling  and  whiskey -drinking,  wiiusepros- 
|X'«ting,  Indian-shooting,  and  clubbing  of  fiireigners, 
vere  all  as  lenses  that  enabled  them  to  see  how  nmeh 
of  self  and  how  little  of  public  weal  (K*cupi«J  the  |>on- 
(It-nms  brains  of  the  eight-dollars-a-day  law-makers  ut 
Washington! 

The  defeat  of  the  compromise  bill,  and  consequent 
probability  that  no  definite  action  wouM  Ije  taken  by 
coii'^ress  for  the  admission  of  California  for  some  time 
to  ((une,  was  engendering  angry  feelings  in  the  wait- 
iiii,'  state,  where  rebellious  utterances  were  Ijeginning 
to  be  heard.  Judge  Thomas,  of  the  district  court  of 
Sarraniento,  openly  reproached  the  government  for 
ne<,'lect,  and  Bear-Flag  sentiments  were  voiced  in  the 
streets.  Some  there  were  who,  in  the  event  of  dis- 
couraging news  by  the  next  two  or  three  steamers, 
were  in  favor  of  a  separation  from  the  United  States, 
if  separation  it  could  be  called  where  there  was  no 
union,  and  setting  up  an  inde|)endent  '^ovemment. 
Anarchy  and  confusion  would  have  result,  d  {mm  such 
a  intivenient.  The  public  journals  genr-rally  discoun- 
tenanced the  expression  of  bitter  feeling,  but  admitted 
that  California  would  not  submit  to  be  dismeinljered, 
and  acknowled<^ed  the  critical  nature  of  the  situation.*^ 
But  the  heavily  burdened  people  were  to  be  s|iared 
tlit^  last  straw.  Intelligence  of  the  admission  of  Cali- 
fornia reached  San  Francisco  on  the  momin«;  of  Octo- 
i>er  18th,  when  the  mail  steamer  Oritjon  entered  the 
harbor  flying  all  her  bunting,*^  and  signalling  the  good 

*^M.,  Apr.  26  and  Aug.  30,  1830;  Placer  Time^,  May  8.  1830;  S.  F.  Pirn- 

jmw*.  St'iit.  14,  1850;  Ci-onltif,  Enrlji  EvthIm,  M.S..  .Vi-.3. 

"  A  n;i^'  hail  licen  iiia«le  in  New  York  ainl  lorwanletl  J>_v  t!k«  t%frritt*  in  l»e 
tiv.-ii  t<i  rapt.  Patterson  of  the  Orfi/nii  on  tliis  »iili\  au-l  ^inotiirr  va.*  niaxle  "n 
ImximI  tlic  UnyoH,  uu  which  wait  iuitcnlicd,  '  Caliturma  i^  a  atate.'    Tbe  ywaetir 


POUTICAL  HISTORY 

news.  The  revulsion  of  feeling  was  instant  and 
extrei.:e.  J-Jusiness  was  suspended ;  eourts  were  ad- 
jouriu'd;  and  tlie  whole  population,  frenzied  with 
deli«rht,  eouLjregated  on  l\>rtsniouth  square  to  <(>ii- 
gratulutc  eaeh  other.  News|)apers  eontaining  tin; 
intelli^enee  from  Washinp^ton  sold  for  five  dollars  each. 
The  hsliipping  in  the  harhor  was  gayly  dressed  in  tlaiL^s; 
guns  boomed  from  the  heijjfht;  bonfires  blazed  at 
night;  processions  were  formed;  bands  played;  and 
the  people  in  every  way  expressed  their  joy.  Mount- 
ing his  i)ox  behind  six  fiery  nmstangs  lashed  to  high- 
est speed,  the  driver  of  Crandall's  stai'e  cried  the  glad 
tidings  all  the  way  to  San  Jose,  "  California  is  admit- 
ted!" while  a  ringing  cheer  was  returned  by  the  jho- 
ple  as  the  mail  fiew  by.  On  the  2Uth  there  was  a 
formal  celebration  of  the  event,  when  a  n(!W  star  was 
added  to  the  Hag  which  fioated  from  the  mast  in  tlio 
centre  of  the  plaza,  and  every  species  of  anmHcm»nt 
and  parade  was  made  to  attest  the  satisfaction  of  th(^ 
citizens  of  the  first  American  state  on  the  Pacitic 
coast.*''     As  it  is  good  to  be  young  once  in  our  lives, 

society  is  now  in  possession  of  these  Hags,  presented  1>y  capts  Piieli>s  an>l  ( \>\. 
S.  F.  BnlleUn,  Feb.  5,  18tJ9;  Cal.  Coiirifr,  Oct.  19,  18.50;  S.  F.  AUn,  I'YI..  .-), 
ISbvf;  s'li/i  JoKi  Pioneer,  Sept  15,  1877. 

*^  The  pchliu  procession  was,  considering  the  youth  of  tlio  city,  (iiiite  a  rv- 
markahle  para<!e.  It  was  divided  into  7  parts,  in  charge  of  4  niarsnuls  isicli, 
wearing  crimson  ecarfs  witli  gohl  trimmings.  The  several  societies  and  u.s.so- 
ciations  had  their  ni:<Tshals  iu  variously  colored  scarfs,  all  niounted  on  iMjiiri- 
soued  horses.  After  the  grand  marshal  were  4  buglers,  theu  'A  ni:(r'sli;ils, 
followed  by  mounted  native  (.'alifomiaus  bearing  a  banner  with  .'il  st.irs  oii  n 
blue  satin  gr<iund,  with  the  inscription  in  gold  letters,  'California.  K  riiiijliui 
Unuin.'  Next  came  the  California  pioneers  with  a  banner  on  wliidi  wm 
represented  a  New  Knglaiider  in  the  act  of  stepping  ashore  aii'l  fiuiii^'  a 
native  C'alifornian  witii  lasso  and  serapc.  In  the  centre,  tiie  state  seal  :nu\ 
tlie  inscripti(m,  '  Far  West,  Kureka,  I84(!.  California  Pioneers,  org;iiii/,o'l 
August  18>'>0.'  Then  came  the  army  ofiicers  and  soldiers,  the  navy  i>ili(  < ts 
and  marines,  tlie  veterans  of  the  Mexican  war,  and  the  consuls  anil  riprc- 
sentatives  of  foreign  governments,  lieliind  these  was  a  company  of  C'liiip  sc 
in  rich  native  costumes  under  their  own  marshal,  carrying  a  nhie  siliv  iKiiunr 
inscril>eil,  '  The  China  Boys. '  In  the  triumphal  car  wiiicli  foUo wed  were  ."W 
boys  in  black  trousers  and  white  shirts,  representing  the  80  states,  ami  laih 
BupiMirting  tiie  national  b'.e.\st- plate  witli  the  name  of  his  state  insciilMil 
thereon.  In  the  centre  of  the  group  was  a  young  girl  robed  in  whitr,  nmiIi 
gold  and  silver  gauze  ttoiiting  about  her,  an(l  supitorting  a  breast-plate  ii|Mia 
wliieh  was  iaseriited,  'California,  The  Union,  it  must  and  shall  be  preservr.l.' 
After  these  came  the  muiiicipul  ofhcers  aatl  fire  department,  foUoweil  I'Va 
company  of  watermen  with  a  boai  on  wheels;  and  iiiially  the  several  Mint 
aud  benevolent  societies.     At  tlie  plaza  the  ceremonies  consisted  of  pniyer. 


ADMISSION  DAY. 


B<>  it  is  pleaHant  to  remember  occasions  when  our  local 
world  siM'iiu'd  revolving  in  an  intoxicating  atnioHpliere 
ol"  stlt-praise  aiul  mutual  admiration.  For  tlie  encour- 
nu'i  ixcnt  of  these  agreeable  sentiments,  adniisHion  diiy 
ooiitiiiues  to  be  celebrated  in  California,  and  is  by 
statute  a  legal  holiday. 

Thi"  SpnniHli-sired  young  state,  like  a  Sabine  maiden, 
liad  lit'iii  wrested  from  her  kindred,  and  forcibly  wed- 
(li'd  with  a  greater  people.  She  had  protested**  in 
vain,  and  consented  with  reluctance;  yet  she  had  con- 


niusif,  ail  oration  by  Judge  Bennett,  and  an  original  o<lu  )>y  Mm  VVills  of 
LniiiMaii.i.  Soe  S.  F.  I'irajfHM,  Oct.  1»,  .W,  and  31,  I8.")();  S.  F.  /'<ir.  A>,/w, 
Oct.  Jl,  •-'«,  '.•«.»,  and  .30,  1850;  H.  F.  IhrnUl,  Oct.  19,  'Jo,  'JS,  and  31,  183«;  .V. 
/".  Cniinn;  Oct.  31,  1850;  8.  F.  HuUetm,  Sept.  8,  1875;  Sonoma  DnnornU, 
Sq.t  14.  1878:  A'.»j«  /fft/Arfw,  Sept.  21,  1878;  A\  /'.  Aw<,  Sept.  »,  1878;  /Vfci- 
biiwi  Aiyiiy-,  Oct.  5,  1877;  S.  F.  Call,  Stipt  9  and  10,  1870;  Snr.  Unum,  Sept. 
i:<,  I  ST  I;  l'„r.  Jtunil  Press,  Sept.  20,  1879;  Onklaml  Trttiuirrifit,  .Siot.  'J,  1877; 
Vistilii  Ikltn,  S<^pt.  11,  1875.  Jauks,  of  S.  F.,  niainjifactured  a  medal 
wliicli  w.'is  dt'si^ifd  to  commemorate  the  atlmission  of  the  st^ito,  ami  to  com- 
pliriii'iit  her  friend,  the  atatesnian  of  Ky.  It  wait  2.^  inches  in  diameter, 
wrJLiliiiiK  "ver  2  ounces.  On  the  up|>er  ed^e  was  engraved,  'Califurnia,  ad- 
iriittvil  Sei»t.  9,  1850;'  on  the  lower  ed«e,  'City  of  San  FranciHco,  Oitolier  29, 
iS'iO.'  Within  the  circle  was  in8cril>ed,  'Presented  to  Henry  Clay  liy  Jacks 
ami  linitlion.'  On  the  reverse  was  a  raised  rim  like  a  M-reath,  coiiipoiied  of 
mnall  ).'iild  Hpeciniens  from  Bear,  Vul>a,  and  Feather  riverit,  and  frniii  the  l^is 
Aii):>'li'!4  MiuiiiK  Co. 's  veins.  Inside  the  wreath  were  30  small  stairs,  with  a 
htiiv  sUtr  in  the  centre,  on  which  sto^Ml  a  piece  of  wliiti;  gold  ({uartx  of  the 
HJzi'  aiiil  nliaiMi  of  an  acorn.  S.  F.  Cal.  Courier,  Jan.  25,  18.'il;  Sue.  Trnnfrij>t, 
Fet).  I,  |8.'.l. 

*'  111  Vr\t.  1850,  the  people  of  Los  Angeles,  alarmed  at  the  action  oi  the 
U'ginlature  in  taxing  land,  held  a  moss  meeting  to  pr<)iK).se  Home  method  uf 
eMcupe  from  the  imiiending  evil.  They  wished  not  to  have  to  imy  tlie  '  cnor- 
iiiiius  t'xpi-n.te  '  of  a  ntate  govt;  and  complained  that  the  legiHlaturo  favored 
till'  more  thickly  luipulated  north,  disregarding  the  interests  of  the  tliiidy 
I><<|iul;tt<-d  south.  This  was  unavoidahle,  as  the  pulilic  domain  could  not  lie 
t.'ixi'il,  and  the  lands  covered  by  Spanish  grants  only  coulil.  The  Lo.i  An- 
Ci'lti  people  said  they  feared  ruin;  and  proposed  to  ]K;tition  congress  to 
foriii  a  tiTritory  to  be  called  Central  Califoniia,  ombraciiig  the  country  from 
S;iu  Luis  Oliiitiio  to  .San  Diego.  An  address  to  congress  wa.s  liiinlly  adopted, 
(k'l'liiring  that  they  had  not  ha<l  time  to  liecome  ac(iuaiiited  witli  American 
iiistitiitioiiM  when  they  joined  in  forming  a  stjite  constitution.  They  believed 
a  territorial  govt  the  most  suitable.  Ruinous  taxes  would  have  to  be  levied 
to  siijiport  the  state.  Tliey  could  not  believe  congress  would  admit  Cal.  as  a 
stite.  It  was  too  large,  and  the  interest  too  diverse.  They  would  have  a 
si'lKiratioii  ami  a  territorial  govt.  It  was  signeil  by  Manuel  ko(|ueiia,  iirest, 
Eiiriijue  Dulton  and  Agustin  Olvera,  sees.  I'lii,  hoc.,  M.S.,  xiii.  3<.»;  //iiye«' 
.Vo-/;«,  Ati,,flfH,  i.  5,  12,  29-30;  Sla  BdrfHtni  Arrh.,  MS.,  viii.  229-30,  'S.^; 
('"M  <«.//.,  '-'5-30.  On  the  9th  of  May,  1850,  Foote  produced  in  the  U.  S. 
Bttiiute  a  letter  aildressed  to  him  by  Agostin  Harazthy,  of  .San  Diego,  enclos- 
ing' the  address  of  the  Los  Angeles  meeting.  Tlie  Santa  Biirliara  ami  San 
I.iiis  Obispo  people  were  opposeil  to  the  memorial.  Foote  moved  to  liave  the 
(Imuiiients  printed,  but  objections  being  made,  they  were  uut  received.  Cony. 
Giobt,  1849-50,  907. 


!| 


800 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


scnted,  and  now  joined  in  the  rejoicings.**  Henceforth 
her  destiny  was  one  with  the  superior  race.  At  the 
union  the  world  looked  on  amazed."  The  house  she 
entered  was  divided  against  itself  on  her  account.  But 
under  all  these  embarrassments  she  conducted  herself 
with  dignity,  doing  her  best  to  preserve  the  honor  a:i<l 
unity  of  the  nation,  and  contributing  of  her  treasuits' 
as  required  of  her  with  a  liberal  hand.  Thrice  bk-sscd 
California!  Blessed  in  giving  rather  than  in  receiv- 
ing; for  of  all  the  many  mighty  states  of  this  Auuritan 
confederation,  she  has  given  more  and  received  pro- 
portionately less  than  any  one  of  them. 

**  An  aililrew  'a  1(«  Califomiaa,'  urging  them  to  celebrato,  waa  printeil  in 
Spanish,  and  circulattsil  among  the  native  population. 

^The  liondou  Tinie/t,  commenting  on  tne  admistiion  celebritioti  at  S.  V., 
■aid:  '  Forgetting  for  a  moment  the  decorative  features  of  tliia  exhibition,  K  t 
the  reailer  consider  the  extraordinary  character  of  the  facta  it  syinlMih/iil. 
Here  was  a  community  of  some  hnndretUi  of  thousands  of  ■onls  collected  rrmii 
all  quarters  of  the  knoMm  world — Polynesians  and  Peruviana,  EiigliHhtucii 
and  Mexicans,  Oerinanri  and  New  Englauders,  Si>aniards  and  CliintH*-  ,il! 
organized  under  old  Haxon  institutions,  and  actually  marching  umUr  tliv 
coinuiand  of  a  mayor  and  aide. man.  Nor  was  this  all,  for  the  extuiiiii«ri/o<l 
state  hud  <lemai>ded  and  obtained  its  admission  into  the  most  powurfiil  t('i!i  r- 
ation  in  the  v;orhl,  and  was  recognized  as  a  i>art  of  the  American  uiiinn.  A 
third  of  the  time  which  has  Iteen  couHUined  in  erecting  our  h'mm  of  parlia- 
nient  has  here  sufficed  to  create  a  !<tiito  with  a  territory  as  large  ax  tintat 
Britain,  a  population  difficult  to  number,  and  destinies  which  none  cwU  tuf.- 
see.' 


CHAPTER   XIV. 


UNFOLUINO  OP  MINERAL  WEALTH. 
1848-1856. 
KxTKST  OF  Gold  Region  is  1848-9 — Amkrican  Rivkr  niK  Centre— El 

|K)KAI>0   ("OITNTY — iSoiTTH    FoRK    AND   SoUT/IWAKI»— MlllllLE    UUANl'II — 

I'lackk,  Nevada,  Yuba,  Sierra,  Pi.c mas,  iJrvrE,  and  Shasta  CoiNTiEa 
— Trinitv  and  Klamath — Oold  Bluff  Kxcitement,    1850-1 — Del 

NoRTK,  HrMBOLDl',  AND  SiHKIYOU— In  THE  SoUTH— AmADOR,  CaLA- 
VKHAS,  \ND  TrOLUMNE — TaBLB  MOUNTAIN — MaRIPOSA,  KkKN,  SaN  BER- 
NARDINO— LoH  Anqeles  and  San  Diecicv— Alono  the  Ocean. 


DuRiNO  the  year  1848  the  gold  region  of  California 
was  exi)lore(i  and  worked  from  Coloma  to  the  Tuol- 
umne in  the  south,  and  to  Feather  River  in  the  north, 
witli  a  nlight  inroad  upon  the  country  beyond  and 
westward  to  the  Trinity.  It  might  have  been  ex- 
petted  tliat  observations  would  have  extended  farther 
ill  the  south,  since  this  was  in  a  measure  the  patliway 
from  Sonora  and  southern  California;  but  hostile 
liuliaiis,  and  the  distribution  of  gold  in  patches  and 
less  leLTuhir  streaks  in  dry  ground,  tended  to  discour- 
age tiU)  cusual  prospector.  In  the  north,  on  tlui  other 
hand,  every  bar  ould  be  counted  upon  to  contain  suf- 
ficient color  tor  rehiuneration  or  guidance,  with  greater 
iiidieatiop  of  finding  in  this  quarter  the  supposed 
niotlier  l)eds.  The  inflowing  hordes  of  1849*  arui  sub 
,se(juent  years  followed  the  paths  so  far  opened,  pvi 
|)as»ed   onward   to  the  ptwrer  districts   beyond   the 

'  Them  muiit  hkve  been  10,000  or  12,000  people  waiting  iik  Augiiat  for  pM- 
Mgf  from  S,  F.  to  tlie  ininea,  for  small  vussuU  wurv  Hcarcu.  (.'iiiiuur'/i  Slat., 
Ms,,  '2;  ('roKltif'*  EivnU  in  t'ai.,  MS,,  14,  It  wua  a  ri;[)etitiou  of  tlio  mucuuh  uu 
routo  given  iit  the  chapters  for  1848. 

(801) 


352 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH 


Meroed,  and  into  tho  more  attractivo  nortli-wust,  be- 
yond tlie  borders  of  Orej^on  and  into  Nevada. 

Tbe  attention  of  new-coiuers  continueil  throutj^lioiit 
these  early  years  to  be  directed  toward  tlie  Auui icaii 
Iviver,  as  the  chief  centre  and  distributing;  jxtiiit  tor 
niinin«(  movements.  It  was  famed  moreover  for  ^[ar- 
sliall's  discovery,  and  for  a  well-sustainofl  |»rodu(ti(tii, 
not  merely  from  placers  along  the  crowdL-d  river-luils 
and  intermediate  uplands,  but  from  the  auriferous 
rock  belt  some  thirty  miles  in  breadth,  which  opiiKxl 
prospects  for  even  greater  operations.  Coloma,  Iho 
starting-point  for  the  world-wide  excitement,  rra[)((l 
benefit  in  becoming  for  a  time  a  fiourishing  county 
seat,^  the  head  in  1848  of  numerous  mining  ('ain|is, 
especially  along  the  line  to  Mormon  Island,^  wliich 
multiplied  furtlier  in  the  following  years,  with  Miclii- 
gan  ilat  and  Salmon  Falls  as  the  most  ])romiii(>iit/ 
Improved  methods,  and  such  enterprises  as  fluiiiiiiLj 
the  river,  in  tiie  summer  i/f  1841),  increased  the  yit-M 
and  sustained  the  mining  interest  for  years.''  On 
the  divide  southward  a  still  greater  developnu  nt 
took  place,  along  Webber  Creek,"  notably  at  tlie  old 

'Cdloiiia  elaiiiicd  thu  tint  ilitcli,  in  thin  rouioii,  tliu  KI  Ihtriulo,  six  iiuUit 
Inn^',  fur  liriiifjinj;  watiT  ti>  her  placur  Holil.  Ht'ro  was  {iliicuil  tlu-  lir-it  ti-riy 
on  thu  Soiitli  Fork,  aii<t  tlie  first  liriiljje  in  tiie  county,  to  nttost  tho  (inpu- 
larity  of  the  H])<>t.     loiter,  fruil-raiHiiig  arreMtu<l  totiil  ili-oliiie. 

^Ihitch  Bar,  Katiaiia,  Red,  Stony,  I^tilire,  MiitMouri,  Micliif^an,  iiikI  hiIkt 
iNirs.  Ne;{ro  Hill,  o[>iMmitu  Mormon  Inland,  bo  named  alter  Nuiis('i|iii'i.t  uiL'm 
miner!*  of  J.SI'.t,  had  in  1S.'»;{  over  1,(K)0  iniiahitants.  Uniontuwu,  lii-^t  iillnl 
Marsliall,  w.'m  the  eentru  for  the  minera  on  Oranitu  and  Shin>;lu  urueliH,  witii 
Poagne'x  hrid^e  and  tliu  seuund  Haw-mill  in  thu  county. 

^Tiie  former  eonipomtd  of  Red  Hill,  Coyote  DiggingH,  and  Rich  (iidcii:  the 
latter,  lieginning  wiiii  Hi,^').'iim'  I'oint,  waM  laiil  ont  ua  a  town  in  \x'<>.  aii'l 
attained  at  one  time  a  iiopidalion  of  !t,(JU>),  Huntained  Ity  trihiitary  <',iiii|i<  hk<' 
I'iiiehenitight,  .layliawk,  (ireen  Siiriiigii,  ami  MeHowell  Hill.  In  tlie  kuim 
niur  of  1H4<.>  tliu  Slormon  I.^land  .Mining  Ahmoc.  undert<H)k  to  turn  tlie  eniirw 
of  tlie  South  Fork,  for  thu  imriHuiu  of  mining  in  itn  IhmI  Farther  duuii  an- 
other eompany  wim  prepared  for  a  itiniilar  tiMk.  Shares  Hold  at  ^'),()<M).  Mtn 
VnL,  .Vii..'.  'J,  !*Hl'.»;  /'>.!.-( r  TUr«,  Ai-l'-'S,  .Iuuo  IS),  liupi.  '22,  iS47;  iln.ok.i,  /•'..«<• 
J/o.,  .'i|,  was  there  in  June.  In  1S,V)  a  'green  '  hand  tiMik  out  t^l*.>,(NK)  m  tlini' 
days,  and  three  pounds  of  dust  one  afternoon,  Sur.  Truiuirrnif,  All^.'.  .'td,  l'S."o. 
I;i  Oct.  IS.'it)  theru  were  1,5(J0  iiiinerH  at  .Mormon  Ijlaml  niakiiiK  iiinn  niKiuy 
than  ever.  /./.,  Oet.  U,  IH'it);  Jan.  14,  1S51;  P(tc.  A'cii'm,  .May 'JT,  el,  ,  1H.-K); 
(.'aiv/i//'.'!  bWiiU,  .MS.,  lii  17. 

"  'The  mines  wero  never  yielding  hotter,'  writeH  one  to  thu  S.  /'.  llnlklin, 
Dec.  I.),  ]H.'m,  of  the  ( 'olonia  region, 

".'>«<(  previous  chapter  on  mines  of  1848,  lowaville  and  Dogfown,  IdiT 
Newtuwu,  wurti  uuioug  thucauipn  uf  184U.  Sac,  'J'niiuu-ripl,  Apr.  '26,  l^M,  etc. 


AMERICAN   RIVER. 


353 


SIX   lllllt'A 

list  tiTiy 
In:  i>(Hm- 


iitlirr 

■it    III  LTIl 
INt  f  llTl  >l 

.:kn,  with 

ulcli;  tlif 
Vi  I,  aiiil 
iii|i<  liki' 

thr  SIIIU' 
11-  I'cilirxt' 

\i<\\  M  all- 
(I.K».   MI'I 

Kiks,  /'•"'"■ 
H)  111  tlinf 

:«i,  ih;i(i. 

II  Miiimy 
t,  ,  l.S.")«; 


',  III  III  till, 

iwii,  1  'tir 
Is.'iO,  lie. 


(liv  <rin'"4ln!jfs,  wliicli  after  1848  ucquirod  tlu>  luune 
(it'  I  l;m;.;l<i\vii,  sul)so(|Ufntly  IMacei'viilo,  tlic  <-nunty 
sent.'  l)cl<)W  sprauij^  up  Diaiiioiid  Sj)fiii,i;s  jiikI  ^[ud 
Siiiiirjf.'^,  cacli  in  a  rich  district,^  and  aloii^'  tlu;  noi-tli- 
( 111  line  of  tlu!  Cosuiniu's  rose  a  .series  of  Ic^h  iin- 
iMirtafit  burs,  surjias.sed  in  wealth  hy  .several  (h^j^ininiLjs 
oil  the  divides  hetweeu  the  forks."  The  adjoiniiijL^  Sac- 
r.uiuiito  eonnty  came  in  for  a  minor  share  in  the  ;;<)ld 
siikI  ot"  hoth  the  American  and  Cosnmnes,  which  was 

illected  at  a  number  of  camps;"'  and  aloni;  the  upj>er 
)•  ran  a  (juartz  In'lt  luilf  a  <lozen  miles  in  width, 
1    was    sl(»wly    opening;.      I']astward     I'l     Dorado 

incis  ]ia<l  peiieti'ated  as  earl  V  as    IHJO   into  (arson 

Vililry." 

Nditli  of  the  American  South  Fork.  Kelscy  and 
rilnt  Hill  foi-med  the  ri\al  ct-ntres  of  two  important 
<4i(>u]>s  of  mines,'"  and  above  them  (Jreeiiwood   and 

'  III  IH.'i4  it  ii<>ll(!<1  tliu  tliinl  liirgtiHt  vntu  in  tint  HtJitu.  Tlic  ili^^iii^s  I'nii- 
tiiiiiiil  ri(  li  nil  iinuiii'l  for  yiars,  ami  worn  si'Vi'ial  tiiin'.s  riwa.slicil.  '  ■(/. 
i.iiinn;  Oct.  IN,  Ih.'M);  i'lir,  A'ci/'i,  iil.;  Sur.  '/'/•.(/(.•"•/v';i/,  Ajir.  "JCi,  Oct.  14, 
|S,-);>,  ctf. 

''I'lii'  latter  ronain(Ml  El  Dorailn.  I>iaiii(iiiil  .Si.riii;,'s  rdiniicti'cl  in  \H'A  fdp 
iiiiitv  Meat.     Ci'M  .Siiriiij^s,  aluiM-   I'laccrvillc,  attaiuutl  at  oiio  tiiiio  to 


linrde 

wlilcli 

III 


till'   cull 


;,(I.KI  lulial).     Sliiiigic  susl.iiiicil  il  elf. 

'■•  .\s  ( i ri/./l y  I'l.tl  airl   lin'.iaii   I 'i^'yiiigs  of   IS.'il),  tlic  laftcf,  iic.ir   Mciiiloii, 
ii'4  ii>r  a  tiiiic,  ill  JS.V),  a  )io|iulatioii  of  |,,'i(HI.     Anion;,'  tlic  l>ai' 


Uncles,  I'lttsKiii 

I'liill  ,lt   t!ic  cinic  o 


.1  N:. 
if  I  .-.().  /'i 


,'illr 


t/iiarl/.  cxcilciiiciits  Wire  rife  in  tliis  re 


Oct.    IS.    l.S.-.t»;   Siir.    Tiki. 


>l,  Nov.  'JH, 


iS.VI;  I'l  irirrilli-  /,'<;)///«.,  .June  '-'7,  I.s7<i.  j;ivi  s  a  liistory  of  (lii/.zly  Elat,  aiiil 
I'liiiti  iliiiii  4  in  otiicr  nunilicis  to  ilillcrcnt  local  rciiiini.scciiccs. 

'"  II  low  till'  \\ilili:iowii  Mormon  Isl  iml  I  ly  Xcijro  J'hir  Nvi.li  7"<>  |ico[ilc  in 
ls.'il;  .Mili.iiiia  IVir,  Hi;,'  (iiildi,  lit,r  AIiIiihI;  I'i  lirio  City,  tlic  ciitic  f.ir 
wvcral  interior ili.'i^iiiys,  MJ.li  a  tri'iiitaiy  Imiju.I.  in  l.'i.")4iif  l,(Ki:i  (|iiai't/  iiiill.i 
lUMf  liy  in  l.S  ..•!;  T.  xn  Hill;  tlio  rich  Ui'ain  IJar  nf  ISJ'.l.  'liic  I.imiicIh'h  aiul 
ixtciisiiiiiHof  M-vcr.il  ilitclics  readied  tlii.s  rc;.:ioii  in  |.S,"iI  ,"i,  a.^ili<l  otlii'r,*  alonj{ 
till' ('n-iiiiiiics,  incliiilin;;  Kniglit  (ii.ufr'.H  tlitcli,  po.sHes.<inj;  niiice  |H."|  tlic  olil- 
I'ft  water  riulit  on  tlii.<  river.      In  IS.".'>  llieru  were  4  ilili  lies  ia  the  connt\.  'JO 


mill  s  i.'i 


I. 


iirti 


W  llll 


Il  I",'  l.s;i:i  iiicrea.cil  to  II  ilitclies  of  I ;'..*)  niili'H.     Alnni 


tlic  liuM  r  ('iHiinincH  l,iy   Michigan  ami  Cook   li:ir.<  of   |s|'.l,  ilic  for:iier  w  uh 
ivir  I  'i.KI  inlia'i.  ut  one  time.      Katcsvillc  ami  Sd taw lii|iol   i<i-.c   later.      For 


ntl 


itail.s,  «(•( 


/', 


;//•/.  ,v. 


'ill)  < 


;i4 


'.I,  ami  rcfcri  iicis  i 


if  1  It 


el    notes. 


Ai 


•Jl.   Oct.    10.   IS.'itl;  (•(/.    < 


Ui.il.  Xiiiii/ii,  tlii.s  Hciiu.i. 


-/•,   .Inly    I,'),    |N">.».      .See 


'^Tlief 
Vill,..  C.lii 


iiriiier  lit  olio  tiino 


liavi 


ii;;  extcllMiVf   liiisilii'SH 


trilnit 


iri<  s  ill  Loiiia 


la,   Jiili  ('ruck,  American   I'lat,    I'leatowii,    Ml /i\i 


Cliicloii,  Sl.i^i,  It.irley,  ami  I'liioii  llat-.  .SpaiiiNli  I'lat  ua.s  naniol  .liur 
S|lalll^ll  ili;;gerM  ot  \S\'.\,  when  Miis(|iiito  X'all.y  also  claiiiieil  jtroiniiieiice  with 
twi.  1  iiM|is.      At    I'lliil    11.11,   liter    rcntivv.U"'.   ili.scovere.l    Into   in    IM'.I,  .'J'i 


iiiiiicr  1  wiiitcrtii 


.\lir.  ■.'('(, 


\u 


I  I   .-H  to  S''(» 


il. 


1S.V.>;  .V.   /•.   /' 


liill/U.ir 


De. 


I' 


man;  inaiiv  x'w.in   iiii 


M,  1.^5!);  r 


■-■««'t-- 


/i/., 


,V^(^,  .MS.,  '.'. 


lIlsT.  Cai...  Vol..  VI.    Z\ 


354 


UNFOLDINO  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH. 


Georgetown,  both  dating  from  1848,"  as  did  Spanish 
Dry  Diggings."  On  the  Middle  Fork  the  dovcldp- 
mcnts  made  in  1848'^  led  to  a  series  of  camps  alon;^  its 
entire  length,  from  Beal  Bar  to  the  headwaters.'^  It 
was  esteemed  the  richest  river  for  a  regular  yield  in 
California,  with  more  Ijars  than  any  other,  several  of 
whicli  were  said  to  have  produced  from  one  to  three 
millions  each,  and  to  have  su.stalned  themselves  to 
some  extent  until  recent  times. "^     Meanwhile  hydniu- 

"Tlio  latter  coini)cting  in  I8."»4  for  the  county  neat;  a  pretty  spot;  it  (nn- 
tinued  to  tlirivo  though  ravagtnl  more  than  once  l>y  Kre.  (ireuiiwood,  lirst 
crillud  Long  Valley,  then  (ireea  Valley,  ami  Lewi.sville,  also  aH]iiruil  tn  tliu 
co.;nty  m-at.  Near  l>y  were  Hoggs  <liggingH,  Oregon  caflon,  Hudson  gulch, 
and  iieorgi.'i  slitlu  or  tiat. 

'*  Called  in  1849  Dutchtnwn,  where  <|Uartz  w.im  found.  Near  liy  w,w 
•I ones  Hill.  Little,  Stnt.,  MS.,  H,  iia\»  that  from  one  U>  four  ouneeti  a  duy 
could  readily  lie  niatlo  here. 

'■' Notably  at  .Miohigan  Bluff,  which  expiTience<l  its  n^al  'rusli'irv  I8,V), 
and  develoi)ed  Inist  under  hydraulic  oiK-rstionH  after  hSJi'J.  Rectur  Ikir, 
Sailor's  Claim,  and  Horst^shrM'  Bar  were  long  a^-tive. 

"'Including  Massachusetts  Flat,  ('on<]cnmed  Bar,  Long,  T)oton,  HurscHhiK', 
Whiskey  where  tiie  pioneer  wire  hri-lge  o^iened  in  lN."»4,  llattU'.-iuakc  « liali 
in  18.53  took  tlie  lead,  Lacey,  Milkpunch,  I)ea4lnian'H,  (iraiiite,  M.tnli.ittaii, 
and  ((ther  har.s,  up  to  the  junction  »{  .S«>ulh  Fork.  Tlien  the  Imrs  i.t  On-Mni, 
Ijouisiana,  N<'w\ork,  .Murderer's,  Wildcat,  Willow,  lliMisier,  I irt^cii  .Moun- 
tain, Maine,  Poverty,  SiKinish,  FonI,  at  Otter  Creek,  Volcano,  Sanily.  'iny 
Kagle,  Vankec  Slide,  Eureka,  B*Mt<m,  Horseshoe,  .lunetioii.  Alali;inia  all 
on  the  south  side  of  the  midillc  fork.  Along  the  north  hank  lay  VcruKiiit, 
Buckner,  opposite  .Murderer's,  Kucky  Point,  NIannnoth,  Texas,  (^iiail.  Itnivvn, 
Konnehec,  Buckeye,  American,  .S.irdi:ie,  l>ut<h,  African,  DruMkanl's,  I'lia.s- 
ant,  anil  yet  farther  <Jr>-enljorn,  Fi»her,  Menken  Cut,  Mud  Caflon,  Nlg'.'rrs' 
Bluff,  Missouri  Canon,  an<l<irizzly  Cafion.  In  the  suiunier  of  IH,")Ofidly  l,.')(H) 
men  from  Oregon  were  at  work  up  the  stream.  Murderer's  Bar,  so  naiieil 
from  the  murder  hy  Luliana  of  tive  men  in  Boss' party,  IfnuM,  Xiirr.,  MS,, 
1,'{  - 10,  Wfw  remarkalile  for  a  verj-  rich  crevic-e,  hut  so  deep  uiid  daii;,'i'i'ciu,s  to 
Work  that  it  hint  not  yet  Iteen  thoroughly  exploited.  In  l>s.'>.'{  one  ni'  tiiu 
largest  and  liest  river  Itann  in  the  county  was  constructi^d  hen;,  altliHiigli 
tluniitig  had  Iteen  done  in  l>M9.  It  wan  a  lively  place  during  tli>'  I'ntire 
dticado.  Pldirr  Timet,  Apr.  '211,  Mav  I'J,  June  '2,  .luly  2»,  Oct.  l.'t,  '21,  Nov. 
S4,  Die.  15,  IK,  1849;  .March  9,  May  .*»,  8,  '-'4,  ISM;  S<ic  Tr<ii>.^<-rq>l.  .\|.r. 
2(1,  May  29,  Aug.  :«,  .S  pt.  30,  Nov.  '29.  185t):  Jan.  14,  Fel..  1,  14,  .May 
l.*),  IS.'ii;  WomlimnlH  Stnt.,  -M.S.,  .5;  Fotrirr'n  Din.,  M.S.,  14  et  scij  ;  S.  F. 
Pidii/Hiii;  Sept.  11,  I8.'>();  ('<iL  trmrirr,  July  18,  Aug.  6,  1S.')0,  with  alliisidii 
to  lull  tunnel;  /Vr.  AVirn,  Jan.  10,  Oct.  25,  I8.'iO.  A  rise  in  tlie  river  .\\\j..- 
Kept.  I8."»0  caused  great  \"*»  and  delay.  I't'trrr  TimrM  anil  Trmi*.,  IS.'il  '.', 
p:i;wiin;  linrntrntfitSOit.,  MS.,  6-7,  14;  Moorr't  Krprr.,  MS.,  (»-7;  -A Itn  <  '<ii,  Xng. 
2,  1849,  etc. 

■'  Mud  Caflon  and  American  Harare  cre<lite<I  with  $.S,  000, 000  each;  Horse- 
Bhoe  llend,  Volcano  Bar,  (rreenliorn  Slide,  and  Yankee  Slide,  witli  .suiii.i 
ranging  down  to  $1,000,000.  ami  a  numlier  of  others  with  several  liunlrtil 
thousand  each.  In  AV  Pormloi,,.  HiM.,  76,  85,  the  yicM  of  the  enuiity  is 
ulaetid  at  $l(NI,(MX),00O.  S>n:  Union,  Nov.  9,  18,  18.'>4;  Jan.  Ill,  Koli.  It).  .'(>, 
Mar.  23,  Apr.  0.  12,  23,  .Tune  10.  2«».  2l5.  0.t  23.  IS.'Wi;  iHe.  22,  IS.'rfi;  .Ml'ifd., 
July  .■»,  Dec.  5,  18.'>2;  Nov.  2.1.  IH.V.:  Apr.  29.  0<-t.  14.  Nov.  29,  IH.Vi:  .s'  /'. 
Bulletin,  Dec.  .%  21,  1835;  Mar.  3,  A|>r.  29,  IS.'iG,  with  allusions  aUo  to  ditcli«)>). 


BEAR  RIVER. 


355 


lie  and  quartz  mining  stepped  in  to  supply  the  defi- 
cinicy,  assisted  by  numerous  ditfh  enterprises,  which 
bv  the  end  of  1855  covered  in  El  Dorado  more  than 
COO  miles,  at  a  cost  of  $1,000,000.'^ 

Tlie  narrow  divide  between  the  Middle  and  North 
forks  was  exceedinj^ly  ricli,  as  shown  by  the  number 
(tt'  important  camps  which  sprang  up,  notably  Yankee 
Jiiiis,  To<ld  Valley,  Wisconsin  Hill,  and  Iowa  Hill;" 
aiirl  «>f  this  wealth  the  North  Fork  had  an  ample 
sliare,  distributed  along  numerous  bars,**  with  many 
Htm  nuggets."'  One  of  the  most  famoiis  diggings 
litre;  was  opened  in  1848  round  Auburn,"  which  throve 
so  well  as  to  secure  in  due  time  the  county  scat.  On 
the  a<ljoining  Bear  River,  Dutch  Flat  became  the 


'*In  Cat.  J<mr.  Am.,  1S56,  2fi,  are  jfiven  20  ditclips  of  610  miles,  vnluc.l 
at  ?!tX'),00().  A  lat«;r  version  iiu-rua8U8  tlie  inilod^je  to  800  iiiul  the  value  tn 
.x|.4iN),(M)<),  pertiiiiiiiig  to  l(i  leailing  esviiiiU,  the  iiiam  trunk  of  which  luuitMircil 
47')  iiiilen.  Of  iiuartz-iiiills,  to  Ik)  treated  iu  \ol.  vii.,  there  were  then  7 
iTU.^Iiirij^  .*><>  toii8  ilaily.  The  liistory  of  the  cliief  cii.naU  ig  given  in  El  Doitu/o 
Vo.tli'l.,  I04et«e<|.  Near  I'hioerville  wii.s  a  riilgo  of  quartz.  Suv.  Uni<m,  Mar. 
13,  1V».'>;  S.  F.  JiiiHrtiii,  .Jan.  IS>,  18.'>(>;  iiistanio  roek  yielding  §2*25  jxr  ton. 

'^Tlu'  first  two  dating  from  1H4!>.  Near  Y.mkee  Jinrj*,  long  a  leading 
tiiwn  of  I'lieer  county,  r<<»e  Kcorgia  Hill,  which  proved  one  of  the  rirheht 
Hiirtace  diggiiigM.  Here  almtted  aUo  Shi't-tail,  Krudiy,  anil  Devil's  caAonx. 
Hiril  :*  Htore,  HI  Dorado,  and  Antoine  caAoii.s  altove  Michigan  BlutfH,  worked 
MAW  IH.'K>,  wiien  Bath,  of  many  other  names,  cauiu  into  pnxninenee,  to  Ihs 
nli|istM|  siMin  after  l»y  the  contemporary  Forest  Hill.  Not  far  otf  lay  Kogiis 
Tliiiii<lir,  I  tainascus  or  Strong  Diggings,  Deadwotid,  which  lielied  it8na?ne  oidy 
liutwci'M  \H.'t'2  o,  Huud>ug  (.'aAon,  Kuchre  Uiir,  the  rich  ( irizzly  Flat.  Iowa  Hill 
yu'l  li-ij  ;<Mkl,OIM)  weekly  iu  )HM  froin  its  hydraulic  mines,  and  nutinued  to 
pripsiHT.     Its  yield  for  tiiirty  years  was  placed  at  :?20,(MK),(KM). 

■  ."<\icli  a<  Kelly,  Barnes — ilisooveretl  liy  Barnes,  Or.  lunl  Cnl.,  MS  ,  14-18, 
I'arly  iu  l!»4".> — .Smith,  S|Ninish,  and  Oregun  (iulch,  the  last  siinkeri  of  hy 
Tliom|.»on,  Snt.,  M.S.,  21  «:  Cmxhif,  Stut.,  MS.,  I'.J  20;  Mn>,re,  K.rpir.,  .MS., 
7  N;  I'l'inr  T,m,A,  .May  2(i,  July  2.'>,  Dec.  I.'),  I.S40;  S.  F.  rhii/it,,,,  Sei)t.  II, 
I8.")(l;  .ittAt  C.il.,  .\ug.  2.  I84il;"/>"'''<«''.V  /V'«vc  To.,  |.S(1|,  13.  etc.  .\mong 
i>tiii'r  luirs  were  Calf,  Rich,  Jones,  Mineral,  Pickering,  and  the  noteil  Mornu>u 
Biir. 

-' In  lH4'.t  two  nuggets  of  40  ounces  and  '2!*  ]Miun<lM  respectivjdy  were  re- 
I'ortiMJ.  I'iiu-fr  'J'iiiitM,  .lune  23,  IH4'.>.  Two  weighing  25  ll>s.  and  IU  ll>s.  .S'l"*. 
Tr'i,<.-'rn}>t.  Apr.  20,  1850. 

■MJy  Claude  <  hamav  an«l  jiarty  near  Ophir.  It  was  tirst  eallid  North 
Fork  Dry  Diggings,  ainf  in  IH4*.>  .\u)mrii.  Opiiir,  first  called  Spaiusii  Corral, 
w.i.-i  III  1,S.'(2  the  largest  pLtce  in  I'lacer  county,  tjiiartz  veins  and  fruit-growing 
ti'iiluig  to  avert  any  serious  decline,  and  to  keep  it  .-iliove  its  former  rival, 
Frytnwii.  which  died  after  contrilmting  to  raise  Auliuni  to  the  nuininit.  The 
Ktory  is  told  that  s<mie  of  the  richest  ground  was  lomid  hcneath  House's 
li<itt'l,  and  so  enahling  him  t.i  devote  his  leisure  moments  to  digiiing  under 
ciivir,  ainl  earuiiii' aluHit  *I00  a  dav.  .V  .*4,(MX)  nugget  w.is  reiiorted.  .lAf- 
>nr.l;  c,,.  0,n  .  Apr.  n»,  187.1;  .June  19,  187.');  i'.«.;.  framnripl,  .May  -.■0,  1850; 
.iri,ntn>inj'<<  Ej-jier.,  MS.,  13-14. 


si 


;»:.(j 


UNFOLDING   OF   MINERAL  WEALTH. 


luadinuf  Itlact;.'-'^  Tin-  several  streams  runnliiiL^  in  closo 
proximity  were  a  wrlcomo  source  lor  the  many  ditch 
enti'r[»risos  ncjuired  for  liydraidic  and  tunnel  niininn, 
whicli  her(!  |>red(nninated,  jj^ravel  beds  of  100  fe(  t  in 
de]»tli  beinj^  abundant  from  Todd  Valley  north-wot- 
ward.^' 


! 


icr 


Xevada  stands  forward  j)ret3min«>ntly  a  milliner 
e(»unty,  "vvith  jdacers  as  rieh  as  any  aloni;'  iIi 
!>ranche8  of  the  Yuba,  followed  by  extensive  nrnvi  ] 
deposits  tiirough  the  eeiitial  an<l  eastern  parts,  win  iv 
runs  the  famous  ]^lue  Le.ul,  and  finally  by  wide  «|iiaifz 
l»elts.  Tlio  lodes  dl<l  not  prove  very  heavv,  and  tlic 
Vt'ins  av(;raijed  oidv  two  feet  in  width,  but  the  nic 
was  of  a  hi<:h  »xrade,  very  traetable,  and  mostiv  assu. 
elated  with  sulphurcts.-'  The  first  r«'er><4nized  dlNnv- 
ery  of  auriferous  ore  was  nuide  in  June  IHjO  at  (iiass 
Valley,  whi<  h,  by  opi-nint''  the  first  mill,  became  tl.t; 
initial  point  in  (California  for  a  new  era  in  niiiiin;^-. 
An  cxciti'ment  soon  set  in,  and  machinery  was  iiitii 
duciMl  by  diH'ereiit  ]iarties;  but  owin}>' tt>  inexperit  i 
and  imperfe<-t  methods,  the  cost  of  reduction  raii'^vd 
S(»  high  as  Ut  abstirb  rieli  yields,  and  sprea«l  uniciiil 
discoura;4'em(-nt.  A  few  I'it  h  mines  alone  managed  lo 
sustain  themselves,  and  tlieir  improvements,  by  w  liich 

'^  Milling;  WOM  tloiio  ill  .Tuiio  1848  at  Stefp  Hnllow.  lii  l.S4y  a  iuimiImi- uf 
liiu-i  wiTiM  jK'iifil,  ami  Alilcr  ( Jrovu  or  Ujipff  *  'cirril,  iirar  <  'nlfax,  ami  llliiioi-- 
towii  attractiil  a  larj,'o  iiiliux.  I'linr  Ti:r'%  Miy  17,  JS.'jO,  dilates  ii|hHi  tu 
yiijil  of  iioM  Ivuii. 

■■'  In  IS.").")  tliiM'u  Mcro  "'.I  r.mal.s  \H)  iiiiKs  long  in  I'Iiiclt  t'DUiity,  v:ilii'  il  U 
!?<U!t,(H)a,  J  .  I  tostiiij;  iiim  li  iiiDrc.  r?/.  A. s^.  Join:,  lN")l),  'Jtl.  'J'lie  tuiim  U  at 
.Mii'liigaii  Flit  W(  ro  rstimati  il  to  liu 'JS  iihlcs  in  IcTintli,  cotttili^'  .*l,.'i:iii.(HNI 
Then'  Mrri!  in  18."(»<)iily  loiii  (|uart/-uiills  in  tin;  I'Dunly.  Tliu  totil  ]i'')iluc- 
tion  iiir  1  ;>."()  \\a.s  plaw'il  at  .*■■'),<•  K),(i;)0.  (.'ouuty  (^iirviyor's  rtiniirt.  .V.  /'.  /<"/• 
I' tin,  J)ii'.  )(),  Ks.'.<);  Aui,'.  .S,  ls.')7.  Tim  lar'est  canal  liulongcil  ti)  tiu'  Aulmm 
ami  IViar  Uivcr  W.  i'o.,  with  main  line  of  .')0  iiiilus  ami  !.".()  niilcM  ot'  lprainlu<. 
A  Nlmit  railroad  wa.i  liuilt  iu  KS.".:!  from  ,\ulmrii  to  N'ivyinia  Hill,  Imt  a  .iiiili 
Hiion  n  ptacoil  it.  I  lu'-rr  Co.  Ili4., 'I'A, '11\,  For  early  nii;iing  oinTat.n.i.s  i:i 
t'.iis  eounty,  m>u,  lurtl.iT,  /*/"•.•»•  Tiin,.<,  .May  II.'.  .Funo':i(),  )S4<»;  .In..'.;;.  IS.Mt; 
Nov.  15,  1S.")|;  .S'.  /'.  I'iiiii/iDir,  .Sei)t.  II,  '21,  IS").);  ,Siir.  Tnniirr,])/,  .\iii-.  "Jis 
.1  lino 'JO,  Aug.  ;«>,  Oi-t.  1*5,  18.")();  .luiio  I,  1."),  I>s.")l ;  r.//.  rowW.,,  .Inly  l\ 
Sept.  27,  MCA};  l',u:  .Ww.h,  May  17,  I >.■>■.  'J*-',  18,")<);  Fni/'.H  St,,/.,  MS.,  II-IH. 
t'olicerniiiK  later progruHB  anil  excitfinenta,  Hi'c  Siu:  I'liioii,  ISivt  (i;  .1/'"  ''■"  . 
IS.V2  (J,  iiaNMim. 

•'The  aiirifernuH  Itelt  turns  liero  am',  runs  more  (Urectly  nortii  aii'i  soiitli. 
In  the  noutli-westerii  part  of  the  iount\  the  liuiuatolie  bolt  u  eonspicuoiis 


Hi 


i?p  i ' 


YUBA  UIVEU. 


357 


tin  cost  of  o.\tractln<r  and  roduciii;^  was  IowctchI, 
(riii(iiially  ri'<J!"aiiRMl  coiiHdoiH'c,  so  that  by  IHji]  tlino 
(iinti  IS  of  a  million  of  dollars  had  licoii  invc-stiMl  in 
\].U  liiatich,  oniployint^  500  int-n,  with  the  prospect  of 
r;|iiil  increase.  Nevada  City  was  theehicf  participant 
with  (irass  A'alley  in  the  threefold  development  of 
jiliK M  I'.  t;iavel,  and  quartz  resources,  which  secured  for 
(  r  the  diunitv  of  countv  seat.  Few  places  were  so 
t-ivoird,  and  the  most  of  tliese  had  hut  a  tcmpoiary 
success  as  camps,  a  few  ahme  surviviiijir  till  late  <lays, 
( liictly  as  airricultural  centres.  Tliey  spranuf  uj>  aloui,' 
the  s;iuth  and  inid<lle  Yul»a,  the  ui>pcr  ]>art  of  Bear 
IJ'iM  r,  and  in  the  ravines  and  Hats  of  the  intervenin;j; 
(li\iiie.s.  some  yielding;'  lai'jj^e  sums.  Hush  Creek  heini^ 
(■ietlir<'d  with  three  millions,  INtorman's  Creek  with 
line  iniHion,  and  Crass  A^alley  four  milli(»ns  within  six 
y  ;iis  lV()ni  her  placers,  lier  total  ])roduction  for  four- 
teen years  heinef-  ahout  twenty-four  millions.  The 
hiMiid  t^i'avel  belts  of  th(M-eiitral  and  nortliern  |>artsof 
thf  county  helped,  not  alone  in  swejiine-  the  an- 
imal total,  but  in  jiromotinj^  the  construction  of  a 
va>t  water  system,  which  in  l8a(»  embraced  lOOditcIu'S 
;iii(l  canals,  800  miles  in  length,  one  of  I  (J  miles  costing- 
s;;,')(i.o()(),  while  others,  in  favorable  ground,  had  in- 
Vfijved  an  expense  as  low  as  SiiOO.  These  belts  tlius 
(!cvi  lojH'd  likewise  oave  to  Xevada  the  cri'ilit  «»f  pei- 
f.  ctihL;-  and  introducinLT  such  mininiLr  ap[)lianees  as  the 
t'lni.  >-hiiee,  and  hvdranlie  methods.-" 


■"'Thu  luiiiurs  wlio  wiiiturcil  ou  'ho  Yuha  in  184iS-9  made  several  new  «1<'- 
vi  lii|i;in'iits  wliitli  ■win^  iilii]iliHfil  1>y  tli«-  t'iwt  inllowiug  gold-si'ikcr-i.  l{iiu>.'h 
ii.i  1  li<a>ly  ^|lr;ul^  i;[i  i;ii>iiilv  as  a  ihiiii.ig  ceiitn^,  castiiij^  in  ls."i()  ni'arly  I,0;K) 
v^.t  >;  Imt  aitir  this  duia  li'  it  <1ii1iiiimI.  Ni' ir  l>y  wi'i-i;  Rainlnliili,  Huttc, 
Kill,  ail  I  T.xas  ll.its,  aiicl  Squii-nl  ( 'rt'ek.  In  lsr»l  tlu^  Kiiitiii'l.y  Ki.lgo 
iiM;i/  1  ilgu  \va.i  (i[niiio<l.  In  tlie  fullaw  i:ig  doiMiU'  a  luicf  exiitfimiit  i.i  coji- 
]  •:  1111111.H  j^avo  risi!  to  Nfvei\;l  wrt tlr;iii  ut-i,  ot'  wliivli  S|ii;iR'evill((  aloiu'  |iriiviil 
.1  '  1(!  .survival,  ll.u-itwuril,  pa^t  Newtown,  or  Su^l.ir  Klit,  and  al-uj^  Wolf 
e.<c;k,  iniiurs  d:-iftfd  into  tin;  n'liowntd  <  !ru  s  \'alKy,  ■w'.cri;  1  >.  Stnniitanil 
tuu  i,;iu'r  Orupinians  !iad  found  gold  in  l.s-t>,  Boston  liavinc  l>i'i:aniu  tlio 
>t  irti.i^lMiiiit  !"or  the  several  jiiai  i  -s  h' re,  wliicli,  wi.liin  six  years,  yielded 
n  .1!;,  .'•»,i),i,),(lll(),  an.l  1.  d  to  tliech,,  .viry  of  udd  .(iiart/,  at<  ;old  I  Ml,  in  dune 
1  '•'!'  Little  attention  M.i.s  Jiaid  to  it  till  Oetolier,  win  n  o:ie  Mel\.ni;;lit  oim  iie<l 
a  luii  Vein  two  feet  wi.K',  ami  ereated  a  furore  for  all  elaini.s  in  every  illree- 
ti'ii'.  Koiind  (ira.ss  \'ali"y  were  hieated,  M'itliiiv  a  fi'W  months,  a  nninl»  r  of 
otlii  r  lulh,  as  MaMcuioiiUiietts,  the  .--  ooiul  ill  order  of  disoovwy,  Ophir,  Oshurii, 


358 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH. 


!  H 


l>  *• 


Mining  in  Yuba  county  lias  boon  restricted  to  the 
north-eastern  jmrt,  and  to  bar  and  gravel  claims;  for 

I^fiiycttc,  aiul  Eureka,  which  latter  failetl  to  pay  for  sevoral  years,  till  a  rich 
lml){u  wiM  struck;  the  AUmoii,  ciiie  of  the  richest  in  the  worlil,  ojioueil  in  |>),j;{ 
hy  following  a  iilaccr  vein;  but  owing  to  tho  tlisruputo  then  ciiHt  upon  i|iiiirtz 
niininu  from  tfiu  ill  succesH  of  inux]>vrienueil  men,  tho  lutl^'e  was  lim;;  ne- 
gha-tiMl,  A  ft'W  mi. IDS  (lid  wi'll,  however,  and  the  occasional  liiui.i  ot  riih 
•piaitz  eliunks  1»y  dijigers,  w\  at  Coyote,  Stir.  Trmuirrijit,  Sept.  Ift),  I  '0, 
teuiUil  to  revive  eonrulen(;e.  Similar  were  tho  exiHsriencu  and  conilitiim  nf 
Nevada  City,  whic'h  had  an  earlier  start,  and  was  m  March  ISTK)  or^ani/cil 
OS  a  town,  and  Hulmetiuently  as  a  city,  with  the  dijpiity  of  county  scut.  All 
around  ruse  Hourishing  canip.i,  cs}(eeially  ahtng  Deer  and  Brush  creeks.  tlii> 
l.itti  r  yi  1  ling  within  a  few  yL-ars  soiiio  lf,1,0!)  ),();)0.  There  were  the  liiljs  of 
Selliy,  Phelps,  Oretjon,  f"oyo:^e.  Lost,  Wet,  ami  American,  tiie  latter  fiiiMniis 
a.s  tlie  scene  of  Matteson's  tir.<t  hvdraulic  venture;  tho  flats  known  as  iiolil, 
Thomas,  ami  Selliy;  tho  rioh  (ioM  Hun  where  cl  dms  B<d«l  in  April  |s,'i(»  ut 
from  $.~>,(MN)  to  $lS,00t);  <rol  I  Tunnel  sold  in  March  1  Hoi  for  ^i:U),(N)()  M>„ 
('(/.,  March  2S,  18al;  S<ic,  TrtinMrriyt,  Apr.  20,  18.h);  S.  /'.  /'ie(ii/iiii>;  S,|,t. 
14,  )iS.')'> — Ik'clivillo,  ami  royoteville,  so  named  from  its  pecnliar  coyote  iiiiii- 
ing.  Its  lead  is  said  ti>  have  yicMed  S8,(K);),aX).  I;i  O.t.  1S.')0  the  ouaitz 
cxuitement  led  al.<o  here  to  lliu  opening  of  several  promising  lelges.  I'liri'i! 
men  liought  ipiartz  claims  for  a  triHc,  and  liy  employing  men  to  lircak  thu 
rock  with  hainmcrs,  and  picking  out  f'.e  gold,  they  netted  $2J,0(I0  in  tin 
days.  Onepi.'ceof  l.'.")ll..s.  yiel.ledJ'iOO.  Sir.  7V/;wW;./,  Feh.  20,  IS.'I.  Time 
M'l're  tlien  thrive  companies  at  NevniLi  operating  quart/  machinery;  omi' .six- 
hor.se  machine  crnslieil  ten  tons  daily.  At  iJrass  Valley  tlie  pound  cif  rmk 
produce.l  from  10  to  30  cents.  /./.,  Fell.  1,  li,  28,  March  It,  IS.-.1;  /'/.-,.,■ 
Tliiiis,  Oct.  'Jt>,  IS.'il,  contains  a  li;4t  of  quartz-mills;  Sinonin,  \'ir  Sniitn\,4\'X 
According  to  llie  A' n/'/ <  Driiiiir.,  the  aipital  invested  in  <piart/,  mines  and 
machinery  in  tlie  county  in  ]HM  exceeded  tlireo  quarters  of  a  million,  uivin;' 
employ;ii('nt  to  ,■«)!)  men.  Tliecoitof  crusliing  was  ahout  %il2  per  ton.  'Y]^ 
Orn.ss  I'lil.  liililli)i<iiriT  reduced  this  to  1^10  per  ton  fur  many  mills,  or  nearly 
doiilile  when  custom  mill*  were  ti  icd,  raising  and  hauling  includeil.  S.  I-'. 
Jiiilli/ln,  Nov.  20,  1H."(J.  Of  tlie  <Jni.ss  Valli-y  mills  live  M-ero  redueini'  ere 
yielding  not  less  than  ^K)  iicr  ton,  sonut  c.\<' '  'di:ig  $l(M  per  ton,  and  .MIImih 
reaching  ftiJMK).  Ilti  ("•/.,  Dec.  fi,  ];'.".(>,  ct  ski.  Ri  it  of  Nevada  City  la>  .i 
liroail  helt  of  gravel  which  t'xte;i  1,m1  from  tlio  MiiMle  Yulia  to  lie  ir  Kiscr 
anil  li.'yiind,  expainlin;,'  in  l.itlle  York  townsh:|i  intosevendcast -rn  lirain  lies. 
Placer  mining  had  hero  spri'ad  from  Scott  11  ivine — thoujjh  Uriimi  I'.ar  ami 
Nif^ger  Kavinc  were  the  initial  mining  poi.ils — to  Little  York,  vlnili,  in 
1S,"'_',  rose  to  a  stanch  town  on  tlio  streu'lli  of  tlio  gravel  discoveries;  .sn  ili4 
l{ed  Dog,  which  after  l'..Hi  moved  almo;t  entirely  to  You  B«(t,  dating  froin 
lo.'T.  It  also  alMoi'lied  \\'alloi:pa  wii.hout  gaining  any  permanent  stren^tli. 
In  the  adjoining  ^Vashingtou  township,  AljiTui  and  Oincja  marked  two  inin- 
i.ig  centres,  datin;,'  o.io  year  suli.sequc:it  to  Iniliana  <'ainp,  or  Wasliin;,'ton,  nt 
i;>l'.l,  on  tlic  Houtli  Yuha,  which  i:i  J;,",(H  had  3,(!!K)  miners  in  the  vicinily 
Along  the  South  Yuha,  in  tlii*  rcion,  wcro  the  kirs.  Canal,  I.oni;,  Keim, 
Jimmy  IJrown,  IJoul  !er,  later  llocl.;-,  (iris.sell,  and  llrass  Wire;  tlie  flati, 

Whiskey,  Ihaiidy,  .lai  '..iss,  Li%ar<l,  uiil  Vi:'^'i;i.     Jc'."crso.i,  orOreenw 1,  m.h 

a  lively  place;  likewise  (iold  Dill.  Poormau's  Creek  is  supposed  to  have 
yielleil  a  million.  Cri>,slty'ii  S/iiL,  MS.,  21-2.  Ou  the  divide  toward  tin'  .Mi'l- 
die  Vulio,  Eureka  South  watt  op(Mied  i.i  I'i'K)  to  bccouio  a  hustling  town  tnr 
half  a  dozen  years;  in  lSi;t»  quart/,  d;  aiovery  revived  it  in  a  certain  ineaMirc 
Lower  were  Orleaii.s,  Woolsey,  and  Moore  tlats,  which  rose  iu  close  rnalr) 
in  IS."il,  the  tirst  leading  a  while,  hut  declinin}r  with  tho  second,  nrel  1.  iviiy 
Moore's  ah>ne  a  thriving  town.  Like  them.  North  lll<Mnnlielil,  Like  City 
Colniiihia  Hill,  oiT  North  Coin  ml  lia,  iiinl  l{<dief,  or  <iri//ly  Hill,  owid  llieir 
existence  from  1^51-3  to  tlie  gravel  hclta,  of  whicli  •  hruuch  entered  Urnlgi- 


THE  GRAVKL  BELTS. 


quartz,  while  freely  scattered,  has  proved  unprofitahlo 
iii  ahiioHt  every  instance.  Among  river  bars  the  rich- 
ist  well'  found  on  the  main  Yuha,  near  the  end  of  the 
aui  iltTous  line,  as  at  Long,  Iios«*,  and  not{d)ly  l^arks, 
tilt'  first  of  long  duration  and  the  last  productive  of 
several  rapidly  acquired  fortunes.  Thes«3  deposits 
wire  drawn  by  the  river  from  the  ancient  blue  lead  a 
shoi  t  distance  above.  The  gravel  belts  here,  although 
ot"  comparatively  small  extent,  have  been  very  remu- 
nerative, particularly  at  Sicard  Flat,  betwit^n  Timbuc- 
t((()  and  M<»oney  Flat,  and  between  Camptcuiville  and 
Oak  Vallev,  their  wealth  causintx  the  construction  bv 
IS.');')  of  a  score  of  ditches  about  3G0  miles  in  length. 

|iiirt  township  to  RUHttiiii  ( 'heroktic,  of  18'>0,  Ncirth  San  Junn,  wliicli  Ixjcuiiio 
(i.-.tniim  town,  Hirclivillc,  Swcutlaml,  and  Krt.'iicli  Corral,  tlic  luttiT  ilutinj/ 
H.iioi-  IH4!>.  Westward  lay  tlm  w<  li-known  C'oiKluninuil,  t'ri-ncliiuuii,  ami 
ItK'i^  li.ir'M,  and  alon^  tin;  South  ViiIni,  liridgi'iiort  and  Joiius.  Nevatla  ranks 
fiit'L'iiiost,  in  mining  (Miturprisu,  for  invi-iiting  and  applying  niachini'ry,  and  iit 
('(>:i  liK'tiiiiL;  w.itur  for  w-orking  it.  In  \HM  lour  tlitchim  wito  undi-rtal;t'n, 
I)  ^(iiiiiiMi;  in  Maroli,  it  is  olaimed,  witli  a  cliannol  about  \\  miles  long  frnni 
.M.K.|iiito  Creek  to  Coyotu  Hill.  In  May  water  was  brought  from  Little 
Itrer  Creek  to  I'lieliis  lldl,  at  tiio  rate  of  s4  per  dny  per  'ton.  .Monre  Ite^^au 
ill  Aii^just  tlie  «liti'li  fmin  l»cer  <'ret'k  to  Hough  and  Ready,  whii'b  was  coni- 
iili't.  .1  in  IK.')1  by  A.  L.  k  It.  ().  Williams,  for  15  miles.  In  l>eu.  a  canal  from 
liiirk  Creek  to  Coyoto  Hill,  U  niili^s,  was  finished,  at  a  cost  of  [r<IO,(NN).  Sn'-, 
'l'i;i,ixi-riyi,  May  I."),  IH,")!,  ealls  the  lioek  ( 'reek  Canal  tho  first  of  the  kind, 
ftillowecl  by  two  from  l»eer  Creek.  ilr<i'<H  Vol.  IHirrlorii,  iS.'id,  IH- III,  elaiiim 
tlie  lirst  in  Aug.,  for  Moore;  in  IKol  was  be>;un  tho  I't-mile  <'anal  from  Oeer 
CreeU  til  Cull  Fhtt;  the  Newton  diteh  of  5  niile.s,  and  the  Triunion  to 
.Sicker  l''lat,  l.'i  miles.  By  tiio  close  of  IS.'m  thero  were  44  ditches,  (iS'J  mib-H 
liiu,  >.i,\ -I  I'ni  Ain,  Jinir.,  \HM,  p.  '2t>.  The  assessor's  report  tor  I.Sati  has 
over  KM)  dilelies,  with  a  tot.il  length  of  N<M)  miles.  Tiie  Soutli  Vidia  can.il 
el'  hi  miles  co.st  jsk'iO.INM),  owing  to  its  durability  of  eonstruetmn  and  dillieiilt 
relit.,  ineliidin;,'  a  tunnel  of  .H.'JtN)  feet.  S.  /•'.  liiilUlin,  Nov.  iKt.  IS.'>(i.  'riio 
lie\t  in  eost  was  the  Middle  Yuba  of  'JC)  miles,  ;(!|()0,(MM);  the  Miner's  finin 
tile  Kline  souree,  "M  miles,  %^),))(N);  the  I'oorman's,  '2(1  iiides,  und  (iri/./ly, 
4.'i  miles,  eost  .^lO.tHH)  each,  and  ueveral  ran^eil  above  *;•_'(), (HK);  Simpson  of 
II  miles,  from  Shady  Creek,  in  rated  at  only  $'J,(H)<>;  and  the  W'iscon.^iii, 
fiiiin  Steep  Hollow,  4  miles,  at  !:^H(H),  owing  to  aid  from  Helt-slnieing,  no 
ilimbt.  yi  itiita  Co.  Ilixt.,  17l-*2.  Tho  charge  in  IS.')I  rangeil  from  }i\\>  for 
till'  tirst  use  to  $1  for  the  muildy  residue  of  the  last  claim.  In  IK.Vi  a  stormy 
t'liiiveiition  niet  t<i  obtain  a  reduction  to  'J.')  cents  j)er  inch  of  water.  A'l*'. 
./»(/•,,  Nov.  'SA,  ;M),  18.V»j  Jan.  IS,  IHoti.  Further  details  of  Nevada  mining 
ill  M'tiyi'mi-  I >i, ■<;•(' till,  18."iH,  '2(i,  1)4,  etc.;  Ynhi  r,,.  Ili.tf.,  \'M\,  etc.;  '.'/■■  .>w 
\'iil.  I>ii;,t,„ii,  18«>."), '(■><.»  ^S;  Air.  DimiH-.,  Nov.  "i".),  |S."t4;  Uni^'it  I'nl.  'I'lb .1-, 
i'ei'.  I'J,  |,S,')4,  etc.;  A/.,  Union,  Nov.  I."i,  lh(»7,  etc.;  Sof.  'J'ruiiiirijit,  |K,"i((  I, 
jiLssim;  /'liiicr  TiiniM,  |.S4i»  .V),  passim;  /'ne.  X //•<,  Oct.  '2,  Nov.  l;l,  I.S.M); 
C-il.  r.mri,,;  July  IH,  Sept.  '.'7,  I8."><>;  Alio  ('<il.,  Aug.  'i,  1H47;  F«  b.  ;"»,  IK50; 
.liin.  ;«).  l8.'iU,  and  1849- W,  passim;  .V.  /'.  Butlitiii,  18.V>  t>,  passim;  Sur. 
Uliinii,  III, 

•Tlie  Yuba  reveal<i(l  gold  as  far  down  an  Marysvillo,  in  Aug.  IS.'il,  but 
liiMe  iMinmg  wiia  forbidden.     The  lirst  bar  alxivo  of  any  uoto  was  Swiss,  dat* 


liij' ■ 


no 


UXKOLDIN*;  OF  MINKUAL  WKALTH 


The  sniiM'  famous  Hliio  I^'inl  striti'lus  witji  a  «4r«  at 

IU'ol'iision  «>r  iL,'rav»'l  (l('|»<ihits  into  Sinia,  Huttr.  .itnl 
Mumas  counties,  marked  l»v  a  Ion;;;  liiu"  of  tmiin  U 
ami  eamps.  The  aunleroUH  sliite  is  L,'eiie rally  eovt  r,  ,| 
l)V  l)etls  of  volcaiiif"  oritfiii  wlii«li  form  tlio  crest  of 
the  Sierra,  l»ut  riv«'rs  have  fiirrowi'd  de»|>  t-hauiit  Is 
throuj^h  them,  especially  aloii«»'  the  western  rims, 
leaviuiLj  numerous  ri<'h  l)ftrs  ami  flats  to  th  rn,'lit  tli.- 
early  surfaee  di^iifers.  llieli  was  imlet'd  n  <onimtiii 
uppellatioii  for  hars  in  this  re«j^ion,  as  well  it  mi^ht  !••. 
with  prosjK'cts  of  several  hundred  «lollais  to  tin-  pan 

inn  xiin'f  |Mr><),  wliicli  lik<-  Hfvcr.il  <itlii-rM  wii.-i  hcmhi  Imrifil  lii-iicatli  tlir  ilrlirn 

from  till!  ii|i|ii  r  iiiiiii'H.      Almvi'  l.iy  tlir  luir-t  known  as  .s.iinl,  I ^,  \itv  r.rh 

iinil  liiHtin^,  Oiisli'v,  Ki'tiiittlH'c,  S.iw-iiiill,  rordii.i,  all  of  jsui;  ,S|M'it.  oi  l>«ts. 
ii.knu'ii  alter  tlic  lirst  ^oM  ilJHi'ovi-ri'r  on  tin-  ^'nll.l,  \\  lio  al->o  ojh'ikiI  tin  m  lit  r 
and  cmliirin^  Kote  Itir.  |{<-l'>w  tliiit  lay  I'ark^,  alio  of  IMS,  iiitImih  tlic 
most  valnalili-oii  tin-  river,  wliii'li  polli-il  tMN)  votes  in  1S.V_',  anil  tliri'at>'iir<l  to 
rival  Mar\sviili>.  Hire  5  nnii  took  out  '•'.'•'>  Urn.  of  ^ol  I  witlnn  a  few  il.i^s 
ii'iil  retnrin'il  home.  S'lr.  'J'ritiixrrijif,  Sept.  :i(»,  Is.'iit.  .Vlmve  lay  Sic.inl  Itir 
of  IS4'.I,  wliii'li  ill  JS.'iU  led  up  to  Sieard  Flat,  a  rieli  nnd  la>tin;:  li.vdraiil.c 
point,  winise  ^ravi  I  lielt  extend.-*  in  tint  liill.s  toward  1.)<iiil.'  I>^ir  to  Clniiiiii) 
Hilt,  and  Noutliward  to  IJate.sville  or  .Sinker  Fl.it  and  Suid  lldl,  ol  Iv'iti. 
Tin-  adjoining  I  iinlnu-toii,  .MfM)ney'H  Flat,  ami  .Sniart.sville  ro^e  to  proniiin-iiie 
ill  IS.'i')  <t.  Continnin^'  alon;^  tliu  river  wr  find  Unrtoii  llir,  M.d.iy  e.in.p, 
J^aiider,  I'nion,  linliiMtry,  National,  Money,  PoM-rty,  K.iuaki,  Kii.:li>li.  Wiii-i- 
low,  the  latter  ii. lined  aftera  eaptain  who  introdn.e  I  ( "niiiese  lal>oier-..  \e.:rii, 
.Missouri,  and  Hnr-e.^hiKt  hart,  l^msey  Ix-'vel,  or  Rii-e  eiossim;,  I'reii' Inn  ni. 
and  Coiideiniied  liars,  (  liiiv'niaii'H  Point.  At  the  month  of  MiiMle  Viilnw n- 
many  miners,  and  almve  lay  Freeman  Ilir.  Aloiij;  the  North  N'nln  wenr  |>  I 
lard.  Ferry,  and  Fo-,ter  liars,  of  IS4;»,  the  latter  having  in  |.s.">()  aUmt  I. "to 
people;  at  Kiillard  .<d<),tNM)  wai4  H|K.-nt  to  turn  ii  worthle.sH  river  lie<l.  .VI»>m- 
Vere  the  minor  Loiii{  No.  •_',  Ore^'oii,  I'ltlslnirj,',  Uoik  Isl.md,  lllliow.  ail 
MisNoiiri  No.  'J  h.irs.  In  IH.VJ  m-veral  li.irs  apjieared  hi)^her  up  ti-w.ir  1  tin- 
Sl.ite  l^ln^e  liiirof  1S4'.».  Witiilll  the  an^le  ol  the  river  heiid  extended  the 
('amptoiiville  di>ti'iet.  wliieli  lieeaine  prominent  alter  iS.'iO,  ,'iiid  ^a\ <- ri<<e  t>> 
a  niimlier  of  rieh  eainps  .-iIom);  the  ^r.tvel  U-lt  from  Oak  N'alh-y,  to  ( '.iMipto.i- 
ville,  aloiii;  Vount;,  ti.ileua,  and  Itailroad  hills,  the  latter  ho  named  troni  ti.i- 
first  Use  of  ii'oii  r.iils  in  tnniiel  operationH.  The  north-east  distriet  einliratiil 
Slrawlx-rry  N'alley  and  l-^i;ileville.  In  npiier  Foster  distriit  wen-  Oiei;iiit 
Hill,  or  (ireenville,  and  Iinliatia  llaneho,  the  latter  with  .VK)  miners  in  IVd-'J. 
\\'«-^tward,  ill  N' w  York  distriet,  Natehe/.  lieeaine  after  Is."i0  the  i-eiitnui 
heveral  rieh  ravine.s,  whieli  extended  at  iiitervalH  through  Ohio  Flat  to  Mt 
Hope,  and  all'oriied  Liter  ii  liltlt^  ijiiart/.  mining,  liower,  aloiij.;  Pry  Creek, 
rose  Freiiehtown  and  Hrown's  Valley,  the  l.itter  remarkahh-  for  ihe  nio«t  e\- 
ten.sive  tlion;;h  not  very  pi-olitalile  <|uart/  miniiij,'  in  tlm  eoiinty.  To  tln- 
j^ravel  di-jiosits  are  due  nearly  all  the  diteli  enterprise.s,  which,  heiiun  in  If*-''*', 
iiumhered  ei:,dit  vears  later '/I,  with  a  length  of  *J|,S  miles,  of  whieh  M  iiiile« 
lieliin>,'ed  to  the  rrinnioii,  from  l>i-er  to  .Sucker  Flat  distrnt,  'A'2  miles  to  tlie 
Kxeelsior  to  the  Maine  ]>oint,  from  .Middle  Vnli.i  .iiid  I>eer  Creek.  .\  iiiiiii'i^r 
oi  ditelieH,  Iti  miles  and  less  in  length.  KUpplied  the  I 'amiiloiivilU!  Iielt,  a:id 
Mrown   Valley  had  also  its  eondnit.s,  one  of   l((  miles  fi-om  HryCreik.     K-r 

aillhorities,  see  preeedmg  note,  an-l  //int.  Yli'fi  < 'n,  l>a--iilii:  Murii-rill'  l*i<- 
titni,  I.S.VS,  !.>•.»  et  .sei,  ;  (a/.  Ahm.  Ji.ui:,  IS.'RJ,  p.  M,  li-w  IS  ilitclic-a  ot  :ttJO 
niiiuM,  vuluu  ^'iiMi.iMK). 


QUAUTZ   MIMXiJ. 


(if  dirt,  and  witli  mi^'^rts  raiij^iu'^r  fnHii  tlif  Monu- 
iii.iit;il  of  Sicnii  ( 'ity,  I  4  I  piuiids  in  wii-^lit.  t^»  wn  rial 
(it" -"ami  .)••  |M>iiiuls.  On  tlio  north  YuU-i,  Oowiiicvillt! 
ImMiiH-  tlic  ««'ntiHj  of  a  widi!  cinlf  *>t'  ruui\tT<  S«»ntli 
(if  it  tiiiiiicHinj;;  rally  di'V»'lo[M  <|  at   Fom*t  City,  und 

ill    tl |)|M)sit(,>    dirrctions    Slatt;  ami    Canon  ncck.s 

l,Mtiii.il  into  |M-oniin(>nro,  v/itli  many  dry  di;4«4ini;s, 
I'di' tin-  Vt  ar  IHjI-II  tlio  as.S(S.s«)r  L?stiniat«  •!  tin*  vi«ld 
(it'Sit  rra  rounty  at  ijis.'JjOOOjOOO,  .'i  ti^un'  wi-H  sustained 
liv  tlic  (Xjiansion  (»t'  drift  and  iiydr.iulir  ininin<^.  aided 
l)V  altoiit  .100  niil«s  of  «lit«'liin«^  prior  to  l-.j*;,  and  l»y 
tin-  '^roNVtli  of  (juartz  crusliini;,  for  wliirli  Jialf a  doztn 


mil 


\v« 


TV  ilTcttil.       I'ilis  I 


•ram 


li  was  in-re  !•  d   l»v  tlu 


Sit  iia  Hutti!  niiiK',  which  rankrd  with  thf  U-st  of 
Xcvada.  In  Huttt!  and  Phnnas  d«  •  p  and  »xt«-nsivc' 
(i|Mi;itioMs  wcri"  inor(5  rcstrictrd,  partly  fmni  tlu*  ol>- 
ftlatli  s  to  till!  hydraulic  niutlM»d  in  II;ift«>, owin;;  to  tin- 
I-  Nil  sinfacc  which  ollcrcd  an  in-ntHcit  nt  tall,  and  in 
IMuin.is  owinuf   largely  to   the  ditlicnlty  and   <*ost  of 


conveying  water.      HylS-jd    the  latter  | 


N  » ■^.S<.•>'^«  * 


1  only 


<;.'(  mil'  s  of  ditches.  (Quartz  mining  had  in  l»oth  re- 
(•(  ivt  t|  a  dlscoiiraging  check  from  early  r«-<kl<->.s  exper- 
iiin  Ills,  hut  was  '^raduallv  resumed  to  rountonut  the 
(I. (line  ill  shallow  placers.  Along  the  li»w«  r  Feather 
Hi\<i-.  Ilidwell  I Ja I',  Long  IJar,  Ff»rl»estt»wn.  all  hmiu 
<(li|i>ed  jiy  ( )roville,  contrihiited  lar-^t  ly  t.i  the  pro- 
(liutiou  (if  Ihitte,  which  was  noted  for  th*-  >ur|>assing 
liiit  ne>s  of  its  gold.-^  In  JMuma.s  the  kirs  unfoldi-d 
ill  such  profusion  and  wi'alth  a.s  to  siiti>fy  «-v«n  the 
txpect^itions  of  the  stragglers,  who  in  l-'.'iU  had  l»eon 
liiird  hy  the  (iold  Lake  fiction  to  this  n-^i'iu.  The 
North  |<\tik  hoasted  seveial  places  wliieh  had  yielded 
f"iiiiiics  in  rapid  succi'ssion,  and  Nt  Is^mi  Crtx-k.  wjis 
lit'ially  speckled  with  nuggets  and  du.^t.^ 

*R.iiigiii«  iiH  Jiigli  lis  ^J().4()  per  ounco. 

"Aliiii^'  till'  iiiirili  Yiili.i,  «'iit  Kv.'.  Kiwtor,  ami  fitv»\\t<ir  iw*r*  haul  lieen 
oix'iif  I  III  jVl'.l,  llii'li>t  |>iilliiig  III  l!S."r.' ,1  Vdl.'  lit  III  arly  IWM.  InUriiKiiiaU- 
r«»-  ill  l(i.".<»  St  .!..•,  Ni-mr  Sjtil.',  Unity  l».Hl,il,  r.  H..»l.io.  I'd  Tlirnat 
or  \\  iiwh  illi-,  Mini  Sl:iiiulit<  r  liars.      Oii  ti ivi- ir  Cri-t-k.  K>ir»:k-»  tt-win'-Jn-'l  iu 


IVk; 


.  I. sill 


isii|iiiiitl V  prill 


iiiiiii'iit  iii'.ir  li\  1 IV  Kxi-'-UnT  W'.-e'n.**.     Tli  ■  h'-ail- 


I'i  II  <;  »ii«  i)iiwiiicvil|i.-,   lirxt  [iriwpcctLil  liy  tfiHMlyear  «*  .\tuM:r-*iu,  l»ut 


va 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-S) 


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23  WEST  MAINS  rUEET 

WEBSTER,  NY.  1-4S00 

(716)  872-4503 


I 


o 


C/u 


fi7 


362 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH. 


,,,  |,...,.. 


Northward  placer  mining,  especially  of  the  surface 
character,  remained  preeminent,  hydraulic  and  quartz 

opened  in  the  autumn  of  1849  by  Downie  and  others,  and  proving  very  rich, 
a  population  of  5,000  had  gatliered  by  April  1850.  A  year  later  over  1,10J 
votea  were  polled.  Near  by  lay  Snake,  Cox,  Steamboat,  Big  Rich,  and  Little 
Rich  bars,  Durgan  Flat  or  Washingtonville,  Jersey  Flat  or  Murraysvillo, 
Zumwalt,  O'Donnell,  C'harcoJil,  and  Kanaka  flats,  and  Sierra  City,  which 
became  prominent  in  18r)8.  The  divide  southwanl  was  marked  by  the  exten- 
sive tunnel  operations  at  Forest  City,  first  known  as  Brownsville  and  Kliza- 
ville,  and  at  Smith  Flat  an<l  Alleghany,  the  latter  unfolding  rioh  quarts-  vtiiia 
in  due  time.  On  the  north  side  of  North  Yuba  ran  Caflon  Creek,  with  I'okcr 
and  Craig's  flats,  and  Slate  Creek,  with  a  number  of  tributary  diggings,  as 
Port  Wine,  Sears,  which  in  1856  had  a  vote  of  398,  Rowland  Flat,  which  long 
prospered,  Pine  Grove,  Gibaonville,  Whiskey  Diggings  or  Newark,  Hepsidam 
Chandlerville,  Spanish  Flat,  and  Minnesota.  Several  were  dry  digi,rings, 
which  yielded  their  share  of  nuggets,  and  of  these  Sierra  county  boasted 
many,  including  the  Monumental,  elsewhere  mentioned,  from  Sierra  City, 
weighing  148  lt>s.  4  oz.  The  second  largest  of  California  was  a  chunk  of  51 
lbs.  from  French  Ravine  in  1853,  and  one  from  above  Downieville  in  1851 
which  netted  about  $8,000.  Fluming  added  greatly  to  the  gold  production, 
which  the  assessor  for  the  year  1851-2  estimated  at  $3,000,000.  Cal.  Jour, 
Sen.,  1853,  app.  3,  pp.  55-6.  Instances  of  rich  finds  in  Siic.  Tranicriyt,  Aug. 
30,  Nov.  29,  1850,  Feb.  14,  1851,  which  speaks  of  strata  yieliling  as  high  as 
^00  to  the  pan,  and  a  score  of  i)ounds  of  gold  in  a  day.  Vowcll's  Miuii.ij,  MS., 
23^.  Drift  and  hydraidic  mining  acquired  their  real  development  only  in 
later  years,  together  with  quartz.  Nevertheless,  several  good  ledges  vcre 
worked  in  early  days,  notably  Sierra  Buttes,  opened  in  18o0,  which  raulvLcl 
second  only  to  the  Nevada  lodes,  and  is  supposed  to  have  proiluced  no  le.is 
than  $7,000,000  in  30  years.  Gold  Bluff,  near  Downieville,  promised  M'ell. 
By  1858  seven  mills  had  been  erected  in  the  county,  valued  at  $56,0;K)  and 
crushing  12,500  tons  of  ore.  The  length  of  mining  ditches  was  then  183 
m.iles,  carrying  22,000  inches  of  water,  the  earliest,  between  1850-:?,  being 
Haven's  flume,  which  supi)lied  Downieville,  the  Goodyear  Bar  ditcli  from 
Rock  Creek,  and  Sears'  Union,  1 1  nules  from  Slate  Creek.  Feather  River, 
which  for  a  time  claimed  to  be  the  richest  of  the  streams,  was  opened  by  IJid- 
well,  w'lo  as  a  land-oM'ner  upon  it  jirospected  in  1848  and  found  gold  near  Hiiin- 
ilton,  for  a  time  cf)unty  seat,  and  at  Bidwell  Bar,  the  leading  place  in  Bntte 
county  till  1856;  in  1853  it  had  a  tributar'  .ation  of  2,000.     The  main 

Feather  River,  round  Thompson  Flat,  Ail  ir,  and  Long  Bar,  were  id<o 

mined  in  1848,  the  last  turning  cut  very  ri.  ud  counting  at  one  time  4,0.l0 
diggers.  Thompson  Flat,  or  Rich  Gulch,  attained  by  1854  at  least  500  inliah- 
itants.  All  these  were  eclipsed  by  Oroville,  called  Opliir  from  1849  to  1853, 
which  in  the  following  year  claimed  a  population  of  fully  4,000,  and  attained 
the  dignity  of  county  seat.  The  adjoining  Lynchburg  became  in  18.")5  a  jiow- 
erful  rival,  but  collapsed.  Above  lay  the  rich  Oregon  City  and  CMu  ro!;ee 
Flat,  the  latter  sustained  by  heavy  hydraulic  operations.  Alountain  \'iew, 
Dogtown,  or  Magalia,  was  in  1855-6  a  prominent  mining  place.  Ea.stwanl, 
above  Honcut  Creek,  Evansville,  Wyandotte,  Honcut,  Dicksburg,  and  Forhes- 
town  rose  in  1850,  the  latter  becoming  in  1853  second  only  to  Biilwell  Bar, 
with  a  population  of  1,000,  In  1855  Clipper  Mills  and  Bangor  unfolded,  tlie 
latter  with  large  gravel  deposits.  Along  the  south  fork  of  Feather  Kiver 
wore  Stringtown,  dating  since  1849,  and  subsequently  Enterprise,  the  latter 
revived  in  later  years  by  quartz  nnning.  On  the  north  fork  were  Potter  Bar, 
opened  in  1848,  and  Yankee  Hill  in  1850.  Concow  township  eml>raceil  a 
number  of  extinct  camps,  as  Rich,  Chub,  and  Spring  gulches.  Berry  Creek, 
Huff  and  Bartees  bars.  Among  imggets  Butte  county  obtained  from  I'og- 
town  a  chunk  of  54  lbs,  and  elsewhere  a  large  number  worth  over  Sl.'HH), 
W^ith  the  increase  of  fluming  and  hydraulic  operations,  1855  and  subsei^ueut 


IN  THE  NORTH. 


363 


0;)0  and 

tlieii  183 

\  being 

itch  fmm 

cr  River, 

I  hy  Bill. 

■ir  Ham- 

ill  Butte 

riie  uiuiii 

rtcro  al'io 

iiiu;  4,0,.K) 

00  iiihab- 

to  18.13, 

jittaineil 

i")  a  i)o\v- 

lei'okee 

ill  View, 

astvaril, 

|l  Forbes- 

tell  Bar, 

leil,  the 

T  River 

lie  latter 

ter  Biir, 

)raceil  a 

( 'reek, 
1)111    I'lig- 

Sl.(KH). 
>se(iueut 


fiiulinfj  fewer  devotees,  partly  from  the  capricious 
nature  of  the  deposits,  and  partly,  as  in  Trinity,  from 

years  saw  a  steady  maintenance  in  the  yield.  Even  in  1S73  this  amounted  to 
over  a  million  for  four  months.  Quartz  lodes  were  disnovered  in  1850,  and 
i)i(ive(l  .so  promising  that  two  years  later  the  county  joined  the  excitement, 
a-.id  expended  much  time  and  money  in  fruitless  experiments,  as  with  the 
Sutter  Quartz  Co.  of  Forbestown,  whose  mill  cost  $200,000.  The  result  was 
that  most  of  the  13  companies  existing  in  1854  retired,  a  few  alone,  li!ce  the 
'49  and  50,'  Trojan,  and  Biinncr,  proving  remunerative.  The  excitement 
as.iistoil  in  promoting  the  construction  of  ditches,  which  sen'eil  to  develop 
otlier  liranchos.  The  first  three,  of  1852,  supplied  Long  Bar,  Thompson  Flat, 
a:  id  the  Oroville-Wyandotte  region,  the  last,  from  Forbestown,  being  30 
miles  long.     In  185i>-(5  Oroville  obtained  a  special  ditch. 

T!ie  clioice  part  of  Feather  River  deposits  fell  within  the  limits  of  Plumaa 
county,  Mliich  was  practically  opened  only  in  1850  by  stragglers  fro.n  tlie 
(iol.l  Lake  rush.  Bolow  the  Middle  Fork,  Onion  and  Little  Grass  valleys 
sjrved  as  wintering  ground,  whence  were  explored  Sawpit  Flat,  Richmond 
Hdl,  Rabbit  Creek,  and  other  diggings.  The  adjoining  Nelson  Creek  proved 
exceedingly  rich,  nuggets  lying  strewn  on  the  ground,  and  rockers  yiel.ling 
i.')0()  a  day.  AltaCiiL,  July  14,  1851.  A  host  of  bar,  flat,  and  creek  camps 
sjiraiig  up,  as  (iraveyanl,  Henpock,  Poorman's,  etc.  On  the  Middle  Fork, 
Kureka  quartz  lodge  was  discovered  in  1851,  and  gave  rise  to  the  ephemeral 
(.'ity  of  7(3.  Near  by  grew  up  Jamieson  City.  Among  noted  bars  were  Rich, 
Well  deserving  the  name,  Butte,  Sailor,  Poplar,  Nigger,  and  Bingham;  here 
vere  also  Poverty  and  Columbia  flats.  Toward  the  North  Fork  lay  Elizabelli- 
town,  or  Betsyburg,  which  became  the  largest  camp  in  the  county,  and 
rivalled  the  adjoining  Quincy  for  the  county  seat,  but  declined  a/ter  18"5. 
On  the  river  itaelf  a  number  of  bars  were  opened,  as  Junction,  Twelve-mile, 
.So  la,  Indian,  French,  Smith,  etc.,  and  not  least  Rich  Bar,  so  named  from  a 
jirospect  of  §2,900  from  two  pans  of  dirt.  Several  spots  paid  equally  well. 
Four  men  took  out  $50,000  within  a  short  time,  and  three  others  §0(5,000  in 
fiiiir  days.  In  <lue  time  gravel  beds  and  quartz  attracted  the  main  effort  of 
miners;  by  1850  only  05  miles  of  ditches  had  Ijeen  constructed.  C'<il.  Jour. 
,-(.«.,  lS5(i,  p.  20,  45  miles  at  a  cost  of  §170,000,  says  the  assessor's  report  of 
IS.".  Thomas,  Miiiiii-j  liemin.,  MS.,  3  et  seq.,  Tyler,  Bhltn-Ws  Bar,  MS.,  4 
ct  .seq.,  Armstrong,  '^9  Eu-jter,,  MS.,  13,  etc.,  give  interesting  personal  ex- 
jierieiices  in  this  region.  Sac.  Trniwcriyt,  Aug.  14,  18.")0,  and  18."1,  passi:;i; 
J'lari'r  Tillies,  Jan.  5,  March  23,  1850  et  seq.;  Pac.  A'cicf,  Ja;i.  10,  !May  15, 
'2;{,  Aug.  21-3,  Nov.  6,  1850,  refer  to  big  flads,  of  7  lbs  at  a  tl  ne,  50  cents  to 
the  pail,  etc.,  of  consequent  fresh  rush  to  Feather  River  early  in  1S51.  Tiien 
came  notices  of  men  ta'.iing  out  nuggets,  and  over  §2,000  a  <l:iy.  In  Aug. 
iS'iO,  1,000  men  were  said  to  be  working  on  the  North  Fork  of  Feather  River, 
where  claims  of  15  feet  square  sold  from  §100  to  i^OO,  and  on  Nc  Ison  Creek  at 
^■J.'iO  a  toot.  It  was  supposed  that  Feather  River  would  for  IS.IO  yield  more 
than  the  rest  of  the  gold-fields.  Rich  quartz  specimens  were  shown  from  the 
Yubad'"eather  region  in  May  1850.  For  developments  till  185(5,  see  notices  in 
Alfa  CiiL,  1849-50,  passim;  S.  F.  Herald,  1851-6,  passim;  Sac.  Uninn,  18.")4- 
0,  piissim;  Sierra  Citizen,  Nov.  11,  Dec.  9,  1854;  Mount.  Mcusenjer,  l)ec.  2, 
1S.')4,  etc.;  Meadow  Lake  W.  Sun,  Nov.  24,  18v)G;  Quincy  Union,  ])ec.  9,  Iti,  23, 
30,  1S(),'),  etc.;  »S'.  /'.  Sun,  June  8,  1853,  refers  to  Onion  Valley  yiehliiig  the 
'liausomest  gold, '  though  worked  for  the  third  time;  Pioneer  Mmj.,  iv.  345, 
etc.;  Miner's  -1  (/i'oc<«/e,  Nov.  25,  1854,  etc.;  S.  F.  BuUeti.i,  1855-0,  passim; 
Mar.  23,  July  3,  7,  etc.,  1857;  May  26,  1800.  At  Rich  liir  a  man  took  out 
aiiparently  §15,000  in  two  days.  A  mmtrom/s  Ejcper.,  MS.,  13.  Rites  obtained 
W,5(K)  from  one  panful  and  sold  the  lead  for  §5,000.  At  Downieville  the  aver- 
a.'e  yield  is  reputed  at  2  lbs  a  day  per  man.  Cal.  Courier,  Aug.  9,  14,  23,  30-1, 
8'Iit.  2,  1850.  At  Foster  and  (roodyear  bars,  average  .?()0  a  day;  near  Nol- 
tiuii  (.'reek  §300  to  $400  a  day  per  man;  a  btreak  at  South  Bur  yielded  $5,(X)0  a 


364 


rXFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH 


ii 


unfavorable  environment,  and  the  difficulties  and  cDit 
of  acce!?s.  Tehama  has  been  practically  excluded  from 
metallic  distribution,  situated  as  it  is  almost  ^vll()lly  in 
tlie  valley,  so  that  only  a  few  mining  camps  of  minor 
note  fell  at  one  time  within  its  limits.  In  Shasta  tlie 
industry  reasserts  itself  and  shares  in  the  eastern  ])ait 
in  the  silver  lodes  which  form  a  leading  feature  of 
trans-mountain  Lassen,  to  be  developed  in  later  yiai.s. 
The  main  fields  of  Shasta  lie  between  Clear  Cret'k  and 
Soda  Springs,  tributary  properly  to  the  hitherto  li;ir- 
rcn  Coast  lianije,  which,  however,  is  liere  commiiiLili  d 
with  the  westward  turning  Sierra  Xevada,  forinin;;' 
throughout  the  north-west  an  intricate  netwoik  of 
spurs  and  narrow  ravines,  relieved  by  a  few  small  val- 
leys and  fiats.  Reading,  of  Trinity  lliver  fame,  gave 
his  name  to  the  di:-;trict  which  sprang  up  in  1S4'J  round 
Clear  Creek  and  lifted  Shasta  City  to  prosperity,  Tlie 
main  headwaters  of  the  Sacramento  and  ^IcLi(»d 
fork  rose  to  prominence  in  the  following  year,  the 
former  proving  enduring  and  sharing  with  the  lower 
diggings  in  subsequent  revivals  which  gave  sucli  ac- 
tivity in  1855  to  ditch  enterprises  and  operations  on  a 
large  scale. 

The  fields  north  and  westward  had  been  made 
known  by  passing  Orcgonians,  and  particularly  by 
Heading,  who  in  1848  penetrated  to  the  Trinity,  and 
was  so  encouraged  as  to  return  the  following  st'asoii. 
He  was  followed  by  a  large  train,  a  section  of  Avhieli 
started  by  sea  from  San  Francisco  to  seek  an  entrance 
from  the  coast,  and  there  plant  supply  stations. 
AmouLj  the  results  were  the  settlement  of  Humboldt 
Bay  and  Crescent  City,  and  the  vapid  Gold  Bluff  ex- 
citement, during  the  winter  1850-1,  with  the  expec- 
tation to  reap  an  easy  harvest  from  the  aurifior.s 
shore  sand  already  washed  by  the  sea  waves.^'     ]M(  an- 

day  in  quarter  and  half  pound  lumps;  two  men  eot  50  lbs  in  one  day;  Mont- 
gomery and  McCabes  claim  yiuldod  fcd.OOJ  a  day  lor  wecki;  .S.iiii,li  U;ir  j  !>  l.-il 
.M.IMW  per  hour.  Par.  Xewx,  July  17,  Auq.  21-3,  Oct.  2,  22,  Doc.  II,  1^02. 
Two  ( iermaus  ma<l(! .'{")  lbs  in  one  day  at  Rich  Rir.  S.  F.  i'icin/uiie,  Aug.  '-'I-.', 
31,  Oct.  :i,  Nov.  2:{,  1850. 

'^''  The  Gold  Bluffs  proper,  below  Klamath  River,  were  discovered  in  May 


THE  SHASTA  REGION 


363 


while  jtrospcctors  poured  from  the  Trinity  to  other 
liramlit'S  of  the  Kiainatli,  finding  rich  bars  on  the 
Salmon,  and  meeting  on  Shasta  River  with  gold- 
huiitcrs  from  Oregon.  The  discovery  of  Scott  Bar 
and  similar  ghttering  spots  cliained  them  to  this  re- 
gion, and  brought  quickly  hxrge  re(3nfi)reements  from 
the  south.  Bars  and  gulches  were  opened  throughout 
Seott  Valley,  on  Thompson  Creek  and  other  tribu- 
taries, as  well  as  upon  the  main  Klamath.  The  open- 
iiio-  of  Cottonwood  Creek  and  the  hitherto  misunder- 
stood Yr(l;a  flat,  Greenhorn  and  Humbug  creeks, 
whoso  coarse  grains  and  nuggets  yielded  fortunes  in 
rapid  succession,  assisted  in  pointing  out  the  true 
cxtout  and  nature  of  these  strata,  and  in  promoting 
the  extinsive  operations  marked  by  such  ditch  con- 
structions as  the  Shasta  canal  of  185G  runuin''-  for  80 
miles. 

The  bars  and  tributaries  of  the  lower  Klamath, 
cspocially  Salmon  Iliver,  added  to  the  wealth  of 
Klamath  and  Del  Xorte  counties,  the  latter  possess- 
iiiij;,  moreover,  renmnerative  diggings  close  to  the 
coast,  round  Crescent  City  and  upon  Smith  ]livcr. 
llumboklt's  share  was  practically  limited  to  the  scanty 
]tro(luction  of  the  ocean  gold  blufls,  for  the  interior 
Trinity  county  tapped  the  main  sources  on  the  head- 
waters of  the  Trinity,  with  numerous  bars,  and  with 
hraiich  streams  like  Stewart,  the  site  of  Kidgeville, 

ISdO,  ami  to  thorn  was  directed,  undur  hiyldy  colored  caccouiits  by  interested 
liirtioH,  the  senseless  rush  of  Doc.  LJ."',),  a:id  sr.bsoqiieut  moiitlis.  The  aurif- 
i-nms  s:ui(l  Mas  estimated  to  yield  from  10  cents  to  tlO  a  11>.,  and  the  patch 
ciii'respimding  to  one  ineud)or  of  tlie  formed  company  was  valued  at  ;.4;?,00.'),- 
():):),  as  nil:.:;. g  it  to  ho  one  tenth  as  rieh  as  snpposc<l.  I'or  reports  on  the 
ti  1:1  and  the  ru.li,  see  I'h  Di/b'ii  Sfal.,  MS.,  4  etscq. ;  Sur.  Ti>tiiMrrijif,,Jan.- 
Fjh.  18.")1,  and  olher  journals.  Willi  the  return  of  one  nnsiieeessfiil  party 
I' u'ly  in  Feb.  IL'il,  the  journala  bej/an  to  discredit  the  reports,  observing  sa- 
^  uiouslj'  that  the  ea;^ernej8  of  stocldiollers  to  sell  shares  liio'x'd  suspicious. 
I  >vef  2.0<)0  niiiiera  "were  lured  from  ILl  Dorado  and  Calaveras  alone,  it  was  said. 
\^t  t'.M  J'l'iri'r  Times,  Nov.  15,  1851,  stdl  speaks  of  successful  operations  l)y 
i'.vi  chief  company,  altliou;;h  most  trials  had  proved  tlio  gold  specks  to  be  too 
li:ie  fur  renmnerative  separation  from  the  heavy  black  sand  in  wlaeh  they  lay. 
The  deposits  extenilc<l  nearly  from  Crescc!it  City  to  Humlxildt  lliy.  ]Jy 
vatehiiig  for  the  richer  patches  left  by  the  retreating  ti  le,  a  considerable 
a:ii(piint  of  sand  could  bo  secured,  and  wi^h  the  ai  1  of  sluicing  at  some  adjoin- 
ing ereck,  as  the,  readiest  procci5s,  a  sufficient  proportion  of  specks  could  be 
eaved  to  repay  the  labor  of  a  small  number  of  uiua. 


3G6 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH, 


'     C: 


i  '■: 


Rush  Canon,  the  site  of  Canon  City,  and  Weaver 
Creek,  the  site  of  thriving  Weaverville.  The  county 
claimed  in  1856  over  2,500  miners,  whose  avtiaire 
income  amounted  to  $1,000  each  for  tlie  year.  Fhi til- 
ing and  hydrauhc  undertakings  were  in  the  north-wcst 
restricted  to  a  small  area,  owing  to  unfavorable  sur- 
roundings. This  interfered  also  with  the  reduction  of 
quartz.  Ledges  had  been  discovered  in  1851,  and  the 
excitement  which  seized  upon  the  branch  throuj^liout 
California  found  its  due  response  also  here,  but  dis- 
tance from  the  base  of  supply  for  machinery  and  pro- 
visions so  increased  the  obstacles  presented  by  nature, 
inexperience,  and  costlier  labor,  as  to  cast  a  long  suell 
upon  the  industry.^^ 

"  In  the  Reading  district,  centring  round  Shasta,  or  The  Springs,  a  num- 
ber of  camps  sprang  up  in  1849,  along  and  near  Clear  Creek,  among  which 
Bi'iggsville  and  Horsetown  became  the  most  prominent  and  enduring.  y/i(//<4' 
Jliniii;/,  iv.  49  et  seq.  The  bed  of  the  creek  proved  rich,  and  by  the  autiiimi 
of  1850  some  20  dams  were  placed  to  turn  the  current.  S'ic.  Tmiicrijit,  Aug. 
3J,  1850.  Northward  rose  the  noted  Grizzly  Gulch,  Flat  Creek,  (iolil  Run, 
Mulotown,  Churn  Creek,  Buckeye,  Mad  Mule,  Hardscrabble,  and  other 
gulches.  The  main  Sacramento  toward  Soda  Springs  acquired  fame,  cliieily 
i:i  185'J,  when  Dog  Creek  and  other  tributaries  lured  the  prospector.  Tlie 
mystic  Lost  Cabin,  which  so  long  formed  one  of  their  ignes  fatui,  was  said  to 
have  been  rediscovered  after  14  years.  Yrekn  Union,  Foh.  20,  18ti4.  MoL.ol 
River  also  proved  remunerative,  and  new  fields  continued  to  be  unfoldt'd,  as 
shown  by  the  scattered  notices  in  Alhi  C<d.  for  1850  et  seq.,  and  SluiJiti  <  nur- 
fc",  1852-4,  passim.  Early  in  1855,  the  Kiain  Sacramento  created  a  (koideil 
excitement,  the  bars  at  different  points  yielding  readily  35  per  day  and  up- 
ward. Sic.  Union,  Apr.  13,  19,  1855.  In  the  following  year  the  yicll  was 
declared  to  be  greater  than  ever.  S.  F.  Bulklin,  Jan.  29,  Feb.  19,  IS.'li;  and 
Shasta  flourished  till  it  acquired  a  population  of  some  0,000.  The  iucreaso  was 
greatly  due  to  flumes,  tunnels,  and  otlier  extensive  operations,  which  niorc- 
over  increased  the  construction  of  ditclies,  particularly  in  1855.  The  i[iii.-it 
notable  enterprises  were  the  Clear  Lake  ditch,  35  miles  in  length.  Brig  ;s- 
vllle  was  supplied  by  a  special  ditch  from  Cottonwood,  and  shared  in  the  co.i- 
duit  to  Lower  Texas  Sprmgs.  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  15,  Apr.  10,  May  29,  June  12, 
Oct.  30,  1855,  etc.  Yet  during  1856  water  became  scarce,  which  inturforutl 
with  sluicing.  Beyond  Mount  Shasta,  whose  volcanic  flows  had  covcrt'd 
many  ancient  deposits,  Siskiyou  revelled  in  a  series  of  rich  districts  tributary 
to  the  upper  Klamath.  Oregonians  on  the  way  to  and  from  tlie  Sacramento 
had  prospected  them  with  moderate  results;  their  unfoldment  was  due  ehiitly 
to  the  attention  created  by  Reading's  venture  on  the  Trinity,  to  which 
stream  he  penetrated  in  1848  by  crossmg  from  Cottonwood  Creek  with  a  hand 
of  Indians,  and  finding  sufficient  inducement  to  return  in  1849  to  work  the 
bar  bearing  his  name.  He  was  joined  by  Kelsey  and  others,  who  reported  a 
yield  of  from  $100  to  $300  per  day.  Placer  Times,  Seft.  29,  1849,  etc.;  .l'/<i 
Cal,  Aug.  2,  1849;  S.  F.  Herald,  June  8,  1850;  Sac.  Tramcript,  Oct.  14, 
1850.  R.  G.  Shaw  and  his  unfortunate  companions  were  among  the  few  who 
dared  to  winter  here.  The  glowing  accounts  transmitted  roused  a  lively  in- 
terest in  the  south,  and  as  the  Trinity  was  supposed  to  abut  at  Trinidad  l^iy, 
this  point  waj  regarded  as  the  best  entrance  to  it.     Expeditions  accordingly 


VARYING  DISTRIBUTION 


367 


The  southern  gold  region,  below  El  Dorado,  as  I 
have  said  before,  is  marked  by  a  less  regular  distribu- 

get  out  liy  sea  in  Dec.  1849,  and  lound  the  bay  after  much  search.  P(ic.  Xeios, 
Apr.  2ti,  ISdO,  etc.  Disappointment  in  the  course  of  the  Trinity  teaded 
to  (lisptTse  the  gohl-seekers,  and  to  promote  the  opening  of  other  districts, 
gwilluil  1>y  the  inpourine  mass  from  the  Sacrame:ito  Valley.  Cros.sing  frojn  the 
Trinity,  prospectors,  led  by  Rufus  Johnson,  found  in  June  1850  rich  bars  on 
S:diiioii  River,  especially  at  the  forks  and  up  the  north  brancli.  Thence  tliey 
crits-iil  to  tlie  Klamath  and  followed  it  up  to  Sliasta  River,  where  (lov.  Lane 
hail  j\i.st  been  making  a  fairly  successful  test  in  July-August.  Inexperience 
with  tlie  ground  and  with  mine  indications  stamped  most  efforts  in  this  sec- 
tion iliiriug  tlie  year,  and  Yreka  Flat  and  other  rich  places  were  then  de- 
clireil  Morthless.  Neverthelesa  several  precious  spots  were  found,  such  as 
Scott  Rir,  from  which  Scott  was  driven  by  Indians,  in  August,  altliough  others 
followril  and  sustained  themselves.  Pac.  News,  Aug.  22,  1800,  has  contradic- 
tory re[)orts,  with  best  yield  at  10-15  cents  per  pan,  but  later  accounts — Id., 
Oct.  IS,  Nov.  1,  S(K.  Tramcript,  Oct.  14,  Nov.  10,  1850,  (Jul.  Courier,  July  1, 
1S50,  and  Alta  Ciil,  June  7,  1850,  etc. — gave  such  glowing  accounts  that  a 
riisli  .set  in  during  the  winter.  The  smallest  average  was  an  ounce,  while 
many  took  out  §100  daily.  Early  in  Feb.  1851  a  thousand  miners  passed 
throiigli  S.icramento  for  the  north.  Sac.  Tniiieicript,  Feb.  14,  28,  1851;  Pub. 
B'll  imr,  Jiin.  25,  1851;  Ciil.  Courier,  etc.  The  chief  allurement  waa  Yreka 
ti.it  with  its  coarse  gold,  opened  in  the  .spring  of  1851,  which  lured  2,000  men 
within  a  few  weeks  to  build  Yreka,  first  called  Thompson  Dry  Diggings,  then 
S!ia.sta  Butte  City.  Frogtown,  or  Hawkinsville,  near  by,  became  tlie  centre 
for  LouL',  Rich,  Canal,  and  Rocky  gulches.  Humbug  Creek,  iO  miles  below, 
helicd  its  name  by  a  profuse  yield,  which  in  1853  occupied  1,000  men,  and 

five  rise  to  Freetown,  which  died  in  1854,  Riderville  M-hich  revived  in  1859  as 
lugtown,  Mowry  Flat,  or  Frenchtown.  McBride  Gulch  was  well  known, 
anil  heyoud  Joe  Lane  Bar,  near  the  mouth  of  Yreka  Creek,  Greenhorn  Creek 
g  ive  many  a  fortune  after  1850.  Still  more  renowned  waa  Cottonwood,  on  the 
creek  of  that  name,  later  Henly,  with  a  number  of  tributary  channels,  gulches, 
and  rtats.  Soutliwartl,  below  Shasta  River,  were  Hamburg  and  Oak  bars  of 
1350,  and  Virginia.  On  Scott  River,  famed  for  its  coarse  gold  and  nuggets, 
Scott  Biirlong  sustained  itself,  closely  rivalled  by  Junction,  Slapjack,  Lytte, 
Poorman,  French,  and  Johnson  bars.  Near  the  latter  rose  in  1854  Simonville. 
Tlie  three-year-old  Deadwood  on  McAilam's  Creek  then  received  a  decided 
aiivance,  but  declined  after  1858.  Hardscrabble  and  Oro  Fino  were  minor 
neighbors.  Mugginsvillo,  or  Quartz  Valley,  experienced  a  quartz  excitement 
in  1852,  which  later  bore  fruit  in  two  mills.  Rough  and  Ready  unfoh'ed  into 
Etna,  and  Thompson  Creek  added  its  quota.  BjIow  Scott  River  rose  a  num- 
ber of  bars,  as  Mead,  China,  Masonic,  au:l  Fort  Goff.  Gea.  Lane  gives  his 
exjieriences  herein  1850-1.  S'arr.,  MS.,  108-12;  also,  Anllinnya licin.  H'tukiymi, 
M.S.,  G-14;  Siskiyou  Affairs,  MS.,  10;  Yreka  Union,  June  5,  1809,  etc.;  AMind 
Tliiiuijs,  Aug.  9,  1878.  Barry,  Up  aiid  Down,  125-30,  mentions  some  rich 
throves;  Ifenrn's  CuL  Sketches,  MS.,  3.  Steele  refers  to  the  Yreka  discovery 
in  Or.  Jour.  Council,  1857-8,  ap.  42-3;  PUicer  Times,  Nov.  15,  1851,  etc. 

At  first,  miners  on  Scott  River  were  restricted  to  pan  and  knife  working, 
an<l  the  usual  pickings  returneil  nothing  less  than  pieces  varying  from  $>2.50 
to  .^'J.K).  Sue.  Tramcript,  Jan.  13,  Feb.  1,  14,  28,  1851.  Some  accounts  are 
central  lictory,  yet  the  yield  continued  large,  with  new  developinents  reported 
every  now  and  then  till  1855,  at  Pinery,  which  were  the  last  important  dig- 
gings of  Siskiyou,  says  Yreka  Union,  June  5,  1809,  although  the  old  points 
widely  sustained  themselves,  aided  by  quartz  and  a  little  hydraulic  work. 
Inilian  Creek  was  famed  in  1855^.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Mar.  3,  1850.  Poverty 
Gulch  gave  $4  per  bucket,  etc.  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  10,  1854;  June  15,  July  19, 
I8.55;  Alta  Cat.,  1851-6,  passim;  Hist.  SidHyou  Co.,  29,  59,  210  et  seq.  Quartz 
leads  were  found  on  Humbug  Creek  and  in  Scott  Valley  aa  early  as  1851,  and 


<  I 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINEllAL  WEALTH. 


]|I:'!K( 


NoKTUKUN  Mi>Es,  1849-50. 


m  THE  SOUTH. 


809 


^ 


(.tMiritrtuwi 

[.....ill," 

lirU(l<  I'!  ■' 


,,J 


Southern'  Mines,  1849-50 
Hist.  Cai,..  Vol.  VI.    24 


370 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH. 


tion  of  placer  deposits,  whicli  occur  chiefly  in  patclios 
and  pockets  in  coarse  form,  rendering  the  searcli  nioro 

several  companies  formed  in  1852,  Sinkiyott  Affiiirx,  M.S.,  22--3;  but  high  jinctg 
and  wages,  and  dit&culty  of  intrcnlucinx  inachinerv,  added  liuro  to  tlio  gem  imI 
obstacles  in  tliis  branch  in  early  day.s,  and  it  received  a  loni^-ondurin^  chik, 
till  1802,  when  Humbug  rose  into  prominence.     The  (irst  ditch,  tiic  gms.-*  'J', 
miles,  Wiis  constructed  in  18.')2  from  liiincheria  Creek  in  Cottonwood,  ainl 
several  otliers  were  added  by  ISotJ,  notably  the  Sliasta  River  caual,  80  iiiili,s, 
completed  in  the  spring  of  18.')(>,  at  a  co<it  of  §'-00,000.  S'u:  Uiiimi,  I)(c.  1), 
1854;  Fcl).  2,  Apr.  14,  May  11,  July  G,  1S55;  AltaCul.,  Feb.  5,  July  I'.l,  \KAk 
S.  F  linlli'tin,  Bob.  11,  1856.     Below,  on  tlio  Klamath,  were  seveTal  b:ir.s  aii'l 
creeks  of  note,  which  added  to  the  wealth  of  l>ol  Norte  county,  as  Imliiui 
Creek,  and  the  adjoining  well-sustained  Happy  Camp,  with  8ubse(pient  liy- 
draulic  works.     Wood  and  Wiugate  were  among  tlie  main  river  bars  liel(pw. 
Elk  Creek  yielded  well,  and  around  Crescent  City  sprang  up  a  Hiuirisliin^f 
ilistrict,  with  Bald  Hills,  which  gave  rise  to  the  ephenuTal  Vallardville,  ami 
to  more  enduring  hydraulic  claims,  and  with  tiie  Smith  River  mines,  uutalily 
Myrtle  Creek,  which  paid  from  §5  to  1^5  per  day.    V<ih  Difhr^  lit  it.,  Ms.,  8; 
Sac.  Tritiiyrript,  Jan.  14,  1851.     There  were  also  French  llill,   lluyuo  Flat, 
and  Big  Flat,  the  latter  with  extensive  gravel  beds.  Blcdfiw's  Dd  Xnrii,  Id, 
21,  30  et  sen.;  C're.ireiit  City  J/enil</,  Nov.  20,  1854;  JH-4.  JIumhoUlt  I'n..  I'JI, 
etc.;  Siic.  Union,  Dec.  14,  1854;  June  15,  1855;  and  references  above.     Klaiii- 
ath  county  shared  also  in  the  gold  tribute  of  Klamath  River,  and  Orleans  liar, 
which  became  the  county  seat  in  185(5,  dates  since  1S50  as  her  fir.st  placer 
field.     Her  largest  yield  came,  however,  from  the  Salmon  Uiver  fork,  with 
(jSuUiou  Bar,  Negro  Flat,  Bestville,  ami  Sawj'er  Bar  as  leading  idacis.    On 
Frost  Bar,  a  large  party  made  from  §2,000  to  §0,000  each  within  two  montlis. 
Sac.  TntMrript,  Oct.  14,  Nov.  14,  1850;  Feb.  1,  14,  28,  1851.     Eiiily  in  is:.!, 
about  1 ,001)  persons  left  Trinidad  for  that  river,  paying  from  §1  to  .S'-J.'>  a 
pound  for  packing  food.     Two  men  !iad  come  down  from  Salmon  River  vitli 
!>!K),000,  tiie  result  of  three  weeks'  work.     The  stream  continued  to  yiel.l  \m  11, 
and  in  1855  the  miners  were  making  from  §6  to  §50  per  day  between  lic^t- 
ville  and  Sawyer.     At  Sawyer  it  was  proposed  to  exclude  l.'hiiicse.  .\lt'i 
CiL,  Apr.  2,  Aug.  7,  1854;  Apr.  21,  May  25,  1855;  July  20,  1857;  ii.  /'.  Bid- 
U'lin,  Mar.  11,  1857;  Aug.  4,  1850;  S<w.  Union,  Feb.  15,  Apr.  2,  May  10,  Aug. 
17-18,  1855.     Humboldt  county  could  show  little  of  mineral  resources  Ix  yuiiil 
her  share;  in  the  scanty  Gold  Bluff  production.     The  interior  of  Trinity  cimiity 
absorbed  the  main  sources  from  this  co;ist  region  by  occupying  the  heaiU  atcis 
of  Trinity  River.     Reading's  Bar  of  1S4S — which  worked  in  1840-51,  re\  ivid 
in  1852 — luid  been  followed  in  ([uiek  succession  by  a  series  of  digginj;s,  as 
Evans',  dating  since  1849,  with  the  tirit  log  cabin,  and  with  a  ditch  in  IJS.'d. 
In  1850  the  immber  of  camps  multiplied,  including  Red,  Whetstone,  Slate, 
Pike  County,  and  other  bars.     Steiner  llat,  or  ville,  lasted  many  years.    In 
1851  rose  Trinity  Center,  long  prosperous,  Eastman,  Bolt,  and  Deadwdoil 
diggings,  Arkansas  Dam,  twice  dammed  in  1854  at  a  cost  of  §45,000.     I'oint, 
I'olka,  and  Poverty  bar!4,  and  Miners,  or  Diggers,  ville  followed,  the  latti  r  on 
Stewart   Fork,  where  in  1855  rose   Ridgeville,  or  Golden  City,  with  TOO 
inhab.  in  1850,  though  it  soon  declined.     One  of  the  most  prosperous  placLS 
was  Weaverville  of  1850.  which  became  the  county  seat  in  1851,  and  claiineil 
at  one  time  4,000  inhabitants.     It  lay  on  Weaver  Creek,  which  wa.s  pros- 
pected in  1849.     Caflon  Creek  had  two  prominent  camps  in  Mill  Tow  ii  ami 
Canon  City,  the  latter  dating  since  1851,  and  having  in  1855  fully  400  ii.liab- 
itants.     It  revived  in  1858.     Below  Cooper,  Big  Bar,  with  first  female  si  ttlcr, 
Mrs  Walton,  and  Manzanita,  were  among  the  bars  opened  in  lS4'.t,  UA- 
lowe<l  in  1S50  and  later  by  Big  Flat,  which  counted  250  persons  in  185'), 
Vance   Biir,  North   Fork,    important  in   1852,   and  Taylor  Flat.     On  the 
lower  Trinity  were  Cedar  Flat  and  Burnt   Ranch.     The   Sor.    'rr"ii-«-ri]'t, 
Apr.   20,   Oct.    14,    1850,  Feb,    14,   June    15,  1851,    reporU  that  one  niou 


CALAVERAS  AND  TUOLUMNE. 


871 


prrcarious,  but  also  more  fascinating  by  tho  larjjfcr 
n-wanls  for  tho  fortunate  miner.  This  applies  like- 
wise to  gravel  beds.  Quartz  on  the  other  hand  pre- 
sents itself  in  more  defined  outline.  An  aurifert)us 
ltd t  of  earth  and  rock  extends  along  the  foot  of  the 
Sierra  Nevada,  from  Sacramento  county  where  it  lies, 
only  six  to  eight  miles  in  width,  upon  the  eastern 
holder,  through  Amador  and  Calaveras,  gradually 
ix|)aiiding  till  in  Tuolumne  it  reaches  a  width  of  25 
miles.  In  Mariposa  it  again  tapers,  dropping  away 
in  the  districts  southward.  The  western  edg*^  con- 
tains the  productive  veta  nuidre,  with  its  line  of 
icpresentative  quartz  mines,  which  in  j\rarii>osa  splits 
into  two  branches.^"  Its  eastern  line  is  bordered  by  a 
luavy  limestone  belt,  m(^t  in  Amador  by  the  granite 
foiination  from  the  nortli,  and  covered  by  volcanic 
masses. 

This  county  received  its  share  of  alluvial  wealth 
from  the  Cosumnes  and  Mokelumne  twin  rivers;  and 
although  ranking  rather  as  a  halting-j)lace  for  the  mi- 
uration  to  and  from  the  southern  field,  a  series  of  bars 
and  camps  sprang  up,  which  were  especially  numerous 
along  the  tributaries  of  the  latter  stream.  Most 
jtioniinent  was  Dry  Creek,  with  the  brancn  creeks, 
Sutter  and  Jackson,  the  latter  with  the  county  seat. 
On  the  headwaters  lay  Volcano,  famed  for  its  rich 

iiiaile  $11,000  iu  eleven  days;  on  Campbell  Creek  miners  averaged  JIO 
;i  <hiy.  Placer  Time.^,  Fel).  2,  Apr.  21.',  May  3,  22,  27,  1850,  adds  tluit 
Bo\vle.s'  party  averaged  $50  daily  per  man  in  I84'.t.  Below  Big  Canon,  a 
man  took  out  2i  ll>s  a  day  for  si  'le  time.  Big  Bar  had  (KK)  miners  in  the 
spring  of  1850,  average  .*>'25  to  $5L  „ach  daily.  One  man  had  200  Itia  of  gold, 
hut  ti'w  had  grejit  success.  l)iarrluea,  etc.,  frit;iiteued away  many.  Pac.  A'(  »••■••, 
Apr.  27,  May  2,  9,  18-23,  Aug.  22,  24,  Sept.'  7,  1850;  dil.  Cnumr,  Sept.  28, 
lsr»,»;  Pnlyne-iiiin,  vii.  34;  Vitn  Di/keK  Slat.,  MS.,  3;  S.  F.  Pinii/Hiie,  Dec.  IS, 
ISr».).  By  1854  Caflon  Creek  Water  Co.  and  two  other  parties  were  iloiiig 
riiiiiiing  on  a  large  scale,  and  others  followed  the  example  elsewliere.  Ridge- 
viHi!  occupied  1,000  men  in  1855.  At  Oregon  <  Julch  three  men  made  §JJOO  jier 
ilay  for  .some  time.  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  28,  1854,  Apr.  19,  June  7,  2tj,  1855.  \\'e:<t 
Weaver  paid  §10  to  ^0  to  t)»e  hand.  S.  F.  JiiiUeti,,,  Feb.  2,  185G.  Tiie  yield 
for  the  year  to  2,000  miners  Wiw  §2,500,000.  Alta  C'aL,  Oct.  26,  1850;  'Bar- 
^toirn  Stat.,  MS.,  4-5,  and  aljove  general  references. 

^■^  .\t  Volcano  a  recent  formation  of  quartz  veins  is  revealed  in  the  gravel. 

^^  In  Calaveras  the  limestone  has  been  worked,  near  Murphy's,  for  placer 
gold.  It  has  also  here  and  in  Amador  imbedded  quartz  veins,  with  a  little 
ciimabar. 


i 


11 IM 


372 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WE.VLTH. 


deposits  and  it.s  gravel  beds,  the  latter  in  due  time 
inviting  the  hytlraulic  proeess,  whieh  also  found  an 
ample  field  in  Jackson,  French  (^anip,  and  other  dis- 
tricts. Quartz  veins  were  unfoldtul  early  in  1851  (ni 
Amador  Creek,  with  several  points  rich  enough  to 
sustain  themselves  under  early  adverse  circumstancts, 
till  improved  methods  brought  forward  a  long  liiu-  of 
])ermanent  mines  on  both  sides  of  the  veta  madrc, 
amon*;  which  Jackson  marked  the  western  and  Volcano 
the  upper  edge.^ 

"Amador  ahared  in  the  wealth  of  the  Coaamncs  at  a  numl)er  of  'i.irs 
along  its  main  ami  south  fork,  wla-reof  Yeomi't,  or  Saratoga,  atthuir  junction, 
long  maintained  itself  a  promising  town.  Below,  on  tlie  diviile,  rose  I'lj- 
uuiuth,  onu  of  the  eiirlicst  ({iiart/.  mining  places,  which  absorbed  the  intcrestii 
of  the  adjoining  Pokervillo  Camp,  and  grailually  overshadowinu  FidiUctowii 
of  184'.>,  which  had  receivctl  a  decided  impulse  in  1852.  The  richer  section  df 
the  county  bordered  upon  Mokelumnc  River  and  its  tributaries,  notaMy 
Dry  Creek,  where  Drytown  sprang  up  in  1848,  and  flourished  till  ISriT.  .At 
Amador,  oi<.  the  creek  of  that  name,  the  placer  mining  of  1848  early  g.tve 
way  to  (jiiartz.  Its  branch,  Rancheria  Creek,  stood  since  1848  in  good  ri'imte 
with  its  deep  and  slate  gulches,  which  brought  the  tributary  population  of 
Lower  Riincneria  at  one  time  to  600.  Irish  Hill  has  sustaineu  itself  till 
recent  times.  Muletown,  on  Mule  Creek,  was  famed  for  its  prodnctive 
ravines,  to  which  hydraulic  methods  M-ere  applied  in  1854  M'ith  eontiniu'il 
success.  Fort  John,  ou  the  north  fork  of  Dry  Creek,  promised  in  184y-r)<)to 
become  a  leading  tow),  but  declined  rapidly;  yielding  the  honors  to  Volciiiio, 
which  opened  in  1848.  Here  were  some  remarkalny  rich  deposits,  one  in 
gravel,  which  must  have  yielded  $1,000,000  in  the  course  of  30  years.  At 
Indian  and  Soldier  gulches,  a  pan  of  dirt  could  frequently  give  several  hun- 
dred dollars,  many  readily  obtained  $1,000  a  day.  In  1853  ditches  were  ron- 
structed  for  working  less  rich  deposits,  and  quartz  mining  was  added  to 
susbiin  the  production.  Russell  Hill  and  Aqueduct  City  proved  epheiiieral. 
Other  noted  points  on  Sutter  Creek  were  Asldand,  Grizzly  Hill,  Wlieilcr 
Diggings,  and  several  gulches  and  flats  toward  the  headwater.  Tlie  lone 
City  of  1850  developed  into  a  permanent  settlement,  and  Sutter  Creek,  opened 
in  1848  by  the  historic  Swiss,  de--eloped  after  1851,  with  quartz  niinin<.', 
into  one  of  Amador's  leading  tow.  Anotlier  prominent  tributary  of  Dry 
Creek  was  Jackson  Creek,  with  Jat..cson,  the  county  seat,  founded  in  184S  liy 
Mexicans  as  Botellas,  and  sustained  by  a  wide  gold-field,  embracing  The 
Gate  of  1849,  Ohio  Hill,  Squaw  Oulch,  and  Tunnel  Hill,  with  rich  gravel, 
tunnelled  in  1852,  and  with  hydraulic  works  in  1858.  The  more  distant  Slab- 
town  and  Clinton  proveil  less  valuable.  Encounters  with  Indians  and  native 
Californians  gave  rise  to  such  names  on  Dry  Creek  as  Murderer's  (Juleli  of 
1849,  and  Bloml  Gulch.  There  were  also  Rattlesnake  gulch  and  flat.  The 
Mokelmnne  w;is  found  very  productive,  especially  at  James  Bar,  in  1840,  and 
the  gulches  known  as  Rich,  Murpliy's,  Black,  and  Hunt.  Butte  City  was 
once  a  rival  of  Jackson.  Lancha  Plana,  opened  by  Mexicans  in  1848,  flour- 
ished in  1850,  and  received  in  185G  fresh  impulse  from  blufif  mining,  particu- 
larly on  Chaparral  Hill,  which  rapidly  raised  the  population  to  1,000;  but 
after  a  decade  it  declined.  The  adjoining  Puts  Bar,  while  not  rich,  had  after 
1855  several  hundred  miners,  mostly  Chinese;  and  so  with  Camp  Opera, 
which  flourished  between  185^7.  French  Camp  was  marked  by  heavy  tun 
nel  operations  in  the  gravel  range  for  some  time  after  1856.  Contreras  ^^as 
a  favorite  place  for  Mexicaua.     The  first  quartz  vein  discovery  is  here  attrib- 


TABLE  MOUNTAIN. 


373 


South  of  Mokclumnc  Rivor  the  rich  patclics  mul- 
tinlv,  first  at  Mokiiluinno  Hill,  a  veritable  gold  moun- 
taiii.  which  from  slopes  and  rjulchesand  adjoining  flats 
vitlded  fortunes  in  rapid  succession  for  many  years. 
Kven  more  extensive  wiTC  the  glittering  deposits  on 
the  Stiinislaus,  especially  round  the  celebrate<l  dry 
diijgii'gs  of  Sonora,  with  their  pockets  and  streaks  of 
coarse  gold  and  nuggets,  caught  by  the  rifHe  crevices 
of  tlie  limestone  bed.  Woods  Creek  which  traverses 
this  district  may  be  classed  as  probably  the  richest 
.stream  of  its  size.  The  more  regular  strata  of  the 
iioith  afforded  no  doul)t  greater  satisfaction  to  the 
t(»iler  with  their  fairer  average  returns,  but  lucky  find- 
ings and  sudden  fortunes  caught  the  visionary  and 
the  s[K'culator,  and  procured  a  glowing  reco/J  for  the 
south,  which  brought  to  it  an  early  populatit)n  par- 
taking of  the  capricious  mining  feature  i'^  its  striking 
propensity  for  gambling  and  excesses. 

The  Stanislaus  formed  the  boundary  between  Cala- 
veras and  Tuolumne  counties,  which  stoo»^  linked  as 
'-aders  of  the  southern  field  by  the  remarkable  Table 
.Mountain,  once  the  lava  filling  of  an  ancient  river-bed, 

Hteii  to  Paviilson,  a  Baptist  preacher,  in  Feb.  1851,  pn  the  south  sulc  of 
Amiulor  Creek.  The  original  Amador  mine,  on  the  north  .liile,  was  located 
aUdiit  the  .same  time.  After  eiumsy  attempt))  at  crusliiag  with  crude  eiigiue.-t,  a 
(nrinau  from  Peru  introduced  tlie  arastra,  and  with  thi.s  im{)rovemi'nt  a  niim- 
Ipit  of  {Kirties  were  encouraged  to  o^jeii  veins,  only  to  receive,  as  ol.sewlicre, 
the  clieok  from  inexijerience  which  only  a  few  managed  for  the  time  to 
overcome.  An  instance  of  the  hazanlous  nature  of  quartz  mining  is  afforded 
hy  the  Eureka  or  Hayward  mine,  which,  opened  in  185'J,  paid  well  for  a  year, 
and  tlien  declined;  yet  the  energetic  owner  kept  sturdily  on  though  losing 
lUDiiey  for  four  years.  After  this  a  vein  was  struck  which  raised  tlio  mine  to 
oiie  of  the  richest.  The  cast  side  of  the  holt  was  also  lined  hy  a  nundier  of 
mines  which  yielded  well,  especially  at  Volcano.  In  Calaveras  the  line  grew 
It's.s  regidar.  By  1800  there  were  32  mills  cruslnng  over  60,(XK)  tuns  a  year, 
ainl  (kX)  miles  of  main  ditches,  the  first  conduit,  atThtsCtatf^  being  I'lscrihed  to 
Joliusoii  early  in  1851.  Several  were  begun  by  1852,  and  by  1801  tliero  were 
lu'arly  30  in  oiKJration,  one  titi  miles  long.  AlUi  I'al.,  Doc.  18,  1850,  diL  Courier, 
Oct.  21,  1850,  etc.,  allude  to  the  wealth  of  different  camps.  Scattered  de- 
tails in  Altn  C<iL,  1851-C;  Sac.  Union,  1854-0;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  1855-0;  Woods' 
I'ioiifer,  MS.,  98-9;  Hid.  Amador  Co.,  90  et  seij. ;  Friwk's  Geol.,  23-4.  Sac. 
Tniinrript,  Feb.  14,  1851,  iiUudes  to  a  quartz  blast  producing  §.30,000. 
I'lii-irville  Democ.,  Aug.  19,  1870.  In  the  east  part  of  Amador  were  found 
inilications  of  silver  which  in  later  years  became  the  main  wealth  of  Alpine 
cnunty.  The  gold-bearing  veins  here  were  little  worked,  owing  to  need  for 
(li'eper  development,  yet  short  adit  levels  would  have  sufficed  and  wood  and 
Water  abounded. 


I 


'HI 


'I  'I  .< 


374 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH. 


m 


and  now  presenting  in  its  raised  isolation  a  conspicuous 
instance  of  surface  remodelling  by  water  currents. 
Ousted  froui  their  original  channel,  they  here  avenged 
themselves  by  washing  away  the  lofty  banks  which 
formed  the  serpentine  mould  of  the  lava.  The  rich 
deposits  in  this  subterranean  bed,  which  raised  such 
excitement  in  1855,  and  led  to  a  close  line  of  tunnels 
under  Table  Mountain,  explain  in  a  measure  the  source 
for  the  surrounding  wealth.  The  bars  of  the  living 
streams  also  produced  much  gold,  and  camps  were 
numerous  along  the  banks,  particularly  near  the  trans- 
verse auriferi'Us  belt,  and  extending  into  the  valley 
counties  of  San  Joaquin  and  Stanislaus.  San  Andreas, 
Vallecito,  and  Angel  Camp  were  centres  of  rich  dis- 
tricts which  in  time  revealed  quartz  to  sustain  their 
prospects.  Carson  Hill  proved  a  minor  Mokelunuie. 
Sonora,  the  chief  camp  of  the  south,  was  surrounded 
in  close  proximity  by  a  larger  number  of  important 
towns  and  settlements  than  could  be  found  elsewhere 
within  the  same  area.  Among  them  Jackass  Gulch 
bore  the  palm  for  yield,  and  Yankee  Hill  for  nuggets. 
Chinese  Camp,  started  by  an  importer  of  mongol  la- 
borers, was  long  the  headquarters  for  this  race.  In 
both  counties  were  stretches  of  gravel  and  cognate 
strata,  which  about  1855  began  to  attract  attention 
for  hydraulic  operations,  with  ditches  measuring  GOO 
miles  in  length.  The  line  of  quartz  veins,  which  soon 
became  the  main  feature  of  mining,  was  bordered  on 
the  lower  side  by  the  towns  of  Angel,  Carson,  and 
Jamestown,  and  on  the  east  by  Soulsby,  whose  ledges 
are  among  the  richest  in  the  country.^ 

**  Even  richer  than  the  Amador  section  of  Mokelumne  River  was  that  em- 
braced by  Calaveras  county,  with  the  county  seat  for  a  time  at  Mokehinme 
Hill,  which  was  discovered  in  1850,  and  yielded  fortunes  for  many  years. 
AU,i  Cai,  Feb.  13,  1851.  Big  Bar  and  Murphy  Camp,  of  1849,  liail  a  wi.le 
reputation,  the  latter  with  a  population  of  1,000  in  1855.  Stiff'ord'^  A'lirr., 
MS.,  21-2;  Prtc.  Nem,  May  10,  1850.  Poverty  and  Winter  bars  lay  near 
Lancha  Plana.  At  Douglas  Flat  Table  Mountain  was  first  tapped.  Vallocito 
formed  the  centre  of  a  wide  circle  of  places,  such  as  French  Camp.  Angel 
Camp  had  fine  placers,  which  soon  led  to  equally  promising  quartz  voitis  ex- 
tending beyond  Cherokee  Flat.  Carson  Hill  created  in  1851  great  excitcineiit; 
its  discovery  claim  alone  produced  within  8  years  about  |!2,000,000;  an  ail- 
joining  claim  gave  half  as  nmch,  and  several  others  added  to  the  total,  with 


STANISLAUS  AND  MARIPOSA. 


376 


Thus  far  extended  the  mining  explorations  of  1848, 
including   the   most  valuable   sections   of  the   field. 

siniplu  methods.    Wide-spread,  though  less   glittering,  were  the   flats  and 
gulchoa  round  San  Andreas,  the  county  seat,  which  in  1856  managed  to  sus- 
fciiii  a  large  population  with  the  aid  of  three  ditches  and  quartz  development. 
,S'.  /■'.  BiUklin,  Jan.  27,  1857.     The  eastern  districts  have  less  regular  and  re- 
liable quartz  veins;  yet  at  West  Point  they  yield  from  $20  to  flOO  per  ton. 
Gossan  <leposits  exist  at  Quail  Hill,  Iron  Mountain,  and  Robinson  Ferry,  the 
latter  remarkable  for  rare  telluret.     Hydraulic  operations  found  many  open- 
in  j;s  in  gravel  and  other  suitable  ground,  near  West  Point,  at  Old  and  French 
gulclies,   etc.      Upper  Calaveritas  was  especially  promising.  Id.      Several 
ditches  were  in  operation,  including  that  of  the  Mokelumne  Hill  Co.,  one  of 
wliose  extensions  in  1855  measured  12  miles,  and  cost  ^0,000.  Sdc.  Union, 
Apr.  9,  May  15-29,  June  11,  July  30,  1855.     In  1855  iihere  were  17  ditches, 
325  miles  long.  Cut.  Ass.  Jour.,  1856,  p.  26.     There  were  16  companies  with 
property  wortli  $638,000.  AUa  Val,  Oct.  1,  Nov.  4,  1855,  etc.     The  weekly 
yielil  of  gold  in  the  county  was  estimated  at  $125,000  in  May  1855.     Some 
ricli  strikes  mentioned  in  Id.,  Oct.  6,  1856;  S.  F.   Bulletin,  Mar.  25,   1858; 
which  journal  consult  for  scattered  reports  of  progress,  based  partly  on  the 
C'ltliirenu  Clironirle,  1853  et  seq.     Earlier  references  in  Pac.  Newn,  1849-50; 
S.  F.  Herald,  1850  et  seq.     'laylor,  Eldorado,  i.  88,  speaks  of  the  rush  to 
Lower  Bar,  where  the  two  prospectors  obtained  14  lbs  of  gold  in  two  days, 
iucludiiig  a  2-tt>  nugget.     Campo  Seco,  Clay  Bar,  Chile  Gulch,  Jenny  Liad, 
French  Creek,  the  latter  on  Calaveras  River,  were  among  the  early  camps. 
Tuolumne  county  acquired  fame  in  1848  for  its  dry  diggings  and  coarse  gold. 
(iov.  Riley  pronounced  the  placers  on  the  Stanislaus  and  luolumne  as  among 
the  richest  in  California.  liqport,  Aug.  30,  1849.     The  region  round  Sonora 
was  especially  rich  in  pockets  with  nuggets.    Placer  Times,  Apr.  6,  1850, 
alludes  to  a  piece  of  64  lbs.     But  the  river  bars  were  also  rich  with  more  regu- 
lar strata.     A  claim  was  not  considered  worth  working  then  unless  it  yielded 
one  or  two  ounces  per  day.     Some  secured  four  times  that  amount.  Sutton's 
St'it.,  MS.,  11;  Hancock's  TJurteen  Years,   MS.,  136.     Dean,  Stat.,  MS.,  3, 
olitained  several  ounces  daily  on  the  Stanislaus.     Men  are  making  as  high 
as  5  11)3  daily  at  Peoria.  Cal.  Courier,  Nov.  21,  1850;  Ryan's  Perx.  Aihen.; 
F raft' If  Cal.,  62-73.     They  make  3  ounces  and  more  daily  below  Keeler's  Ferry, 
and  ()1<1  dirt  rewashed  yielded  as  much  as  $1  to  the  pan.  Son.  Ilerakl;  Sac. 
Tran-si-rijpt,  Feb.   14,   1851.     And  so  on  the  Tuolumne,  one  of  the  richest 
streams.     One  small  party  took  out  daily  $1,500,  and  even  28  lbs.  Id.,  Nov. 
14,  1850;  Hewlett's  Stat.,  MS.,  4  et  seq.;  Barstow'a  Stat.,  MS.,  2;   Womls  Six- 
U:vii  Mo.,  100;  Bandolph's  Stat,,  MS.,  5.     A  Mexican  took  out  75  lbs  in  a 
short  time.     It  is  a  common  thing  for  two  partners  to  divide  40  or  50  B)s  per 
\,xk.  Pac.  XeiM,  Aug.  27,  Jan.  1,  May  9-10,  1850;  Cal.  Courier,  Aug.  9,  17, 
S  pt.  9,  Oct.  21,  28,  1850.     A  German  obu  incd  40  lbs  in  2  hours  at  Sullivan's. 
WuO'l.i'  Si.cteen  Mo.,  139;  Cal.  Past  and  Pres.,  109-12;  Cal.  Courier,  Aug.  26, 
2!t,  July  11,  24,  Sept.  2,  16,  1850;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Aug.  31,  Sept.  2,  Oct.  1, 
19,  lS.-)0;  Pac.  News,  Dec.  22,  1849;  Jan.  1,  May  8-14,  24,  Aug.  1,  Sept.  7, 
Oct.  15,  19,  29,  1850;  AUa  Cal.,  Aug.  2,  May  24,  Aug.  4,  1850,  and  1851-6, 
passim;  Prenentand  Future,  Jnly  I,  lHjii;  Son.  Herald,  1851-4,  iiasahn;  Colum- 
li'i  Ciippfr,  Id.  Gaz.,  Dec.   2,  9,  18.54,  etc.;  Hayes'  Minimj,  viii.  217  et  seq. 
Some  Mexicans  who  struck  a  decomposed  quartz  lead  near  Cnrtisville  gave 
some  sliar(.'s  to  Mayor  Dodge  and  others  for  securing  them  against  AmericaJi 
rowdies.     Tliey  frequently  obtained  §10,000  a  day.  AUa  Cal.,  Mar.  1,  1853. 
There  was  excitement  in  Sonora  in  1854,  when  a  party  sought  to  mine  the 
creek  through  the  towii.  Id.,  Jan.  3-t,  1854.     Sonora,  the  county  seat,  and 
long  the  headquarters  for  the  southern  mines,  was  opened  in  1848  bySonorans, 
aii(l  counted  in  the  following  year  several  thousand  in1iabitaiit.s.     The  foreign 
miners'  tax  gave  it  a  blow,  yet  in  1856  it  bad  3,000,  with  support  from  a  wide 
circle  of  camps.     Woods  Crossing,  when  the  southern  mines  were  first  opened 


376 


XJNFOLDING  OP  MINERAL  WEALTH. 


Southward  the  deposits  diminished  in  quantity  and 
quality.     Mariposa  county  could  still  boast  of  valuable 

in  1845,  had  in  1855  over  75  votes.  It  was  overshadowed  by  Jamestown,  the 
American  camp  of  1849,  which  in  1850  aspired  to  the  county  seat,  and  in  1855 
had  a  vote  of  300.  Northward  lay  Shaw  Flat,  once  claiming  2,000  inhabi- 
tants; 'Springfield,  on  Mormon  Creek;  Gold  Springs,  noted  for  its  pure  gold; 
Saw  Mill  Flat,  where  the  bandit  Marietta  had  his  headquarters  a  while;  Co- 
lumbia, which  in  1855  polled  974  votes;  Yankee  Hill,  noted  for  its  nuggets, 
had  in  18i.  some  400  miners.  Jackass  Gulch  of  1848,  was  one  of  the  richest. 
Most  of  these  settlements  lay  on  Woods  Creek,  which  is  said  to  have  yit^Uled 
more  gold  than  any  stream  of  similar  size.  There  were  also  Brown  Flat, 
Mormon  Gulch,  and  Tuttletown  of  1848-9,  Montezuma,  Chinese  Camp,  started 
with  Chinese  labor  and  the  headquarters  of  Mongolians,  once  having  300  votes, 
Jacksonville,  Yorktown,  the  last  three  of  1849,  Poverty  Hill,  Algerine,  Curtis- 
ville,  Sullivan's,  and  Humbug.  On  the  Tuolumne  Stevens,  Red  Mountain, 
Hawkins',  Indian,  Texas,  Morgan,  Don  Pedro,  and  Rodgers  were  the  largest 
bars  in  1850,  and  still  of  note  in  1855.  Southward  extended  Big  Oak  Flat, 
with  Garrote  1  and  2.  A  feature  of  the  county  is  Table  Mountain,  a  mass  of 
basaltic  lava  on  an  average  150  feet  thick  from  1,200  to  1,800  feet  wide  and 
some  30  miles  long,  which  once  pouring  down  the  deep  bed  of  an  ancient 
stream,  forced  the  waters  aside,  and  in  cooling  assumed  the  serpentine  shape 
of  the  channel.  Meanwhile  the  ejected  waters  wore  away  the  banks  on  either 
side  and  left  the  lava  in  isolated  prominence.  Five  years  passed  ere  the 
miners  were  led  by  streaks  around  to  discover  that  the  bed  of  the  filled  river 
was  immensely  rich  in  coarse  gold  of  a  high  quality,  especially  in  the  Sonora 
region,  for  the  section  extendmg  into  Calaveras  was  less  rich.  The  excite- 
ment concerning  it  arose  in  1855,  when  one  claim  of  100  feet  square  was  found 
to  have  yielded  $100,000,  and  journals  vied  in  presenting  glowing  estimates. 
S.  F.  BnlkHn,  Oct.  19,  Dec.  1-5,  17,  1855;  Jan.  21,  28,  Mar.  5,  July  2G,  1856; 
Nev.  Jour.,  Nov.  2,  1855;  AlUi  Cnl,  Nov.  1,  10-12,  21,  Dec.  24,  1855;  Jan. 
21,  Feb.  3,  Mar.  16,  Nov.  20,  1856;  Sac.  Union,  Oct.  29,  1855,  etc.  Claims 
were  taken  up  all  along  the  base  and  on  the  summit,  with  consequent  con- 
flicts, and  tunnels  driven  in  close  succession,  some  reaching  a  layer  of  pay 
dirt  several  feet  in  thickness,  which  produced  $20  or  more  to  the  pan,  others 
obtaining  little  or  nothing  to  compensate  their  costly  eflforts.  Tunnels  were 
also  numerous  along  the  auriferous  belt,  whose  rich  veins  revived  the  droop- 
ing prospects  of  many  a  camp.  The  best  yield  was  at  Soulsby,  but  James- 
town and  other  points  boasted  valuable  ledges.  Bours  stumbled  upon  a  vein 
yielding  50  per  cent  of  gold.  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.  1,  1851.  Surface  i-lacers, 
while  long  sustained,  passed  in  1855  largely  into  hydraulic  claims,  supplied 
by  a  number  of  ditches.  The  Columbia  and  Stanislaus  were  over  40  miles 
long,  and  the  Tuolumne  Big  Oak  Flat  canal  was  begun  in  May  1856  for  a 
75-mile  course,  costing  over  $20,000.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  7,  Dec.  5,  1856;  Alia 
Cnl,  July  9,  1853;  May  17,  1855;  Dec.  30,  1856;  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  7,  1854; 
Apr.  16,  1855;  rtto/wniwe  Directory,  25,  54,  74,  etc.  These  assisted  to  maintain 
a  yield  which  in  1856  was  estimated  round  Sonora  alone  at  from  $40,000  to 
$60,0'H)  weekly.  Caldwell's  claim  at  Shaw  Flat  gave  289  ounces  in  two  days, 
and  Read's  40  lbs  in  four  days.  A  claim  at  Middle  Bar  yielded  30  ounces  daily, 
and  at  Columbia  4  R)S  per  week.  Id.,  June  6,  1855,  etc.;  Alta  Cal.,  Jan.  29, 
1853;  Jan,  4,  1854;  May  2,  1855;  Apr.  7,  Sept.  22,  1856;  8.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec. 
3,  1855;  Mar.  7,  Apr.  4,  1856.  See  also  these  journals,  passim,  for  local  and 
general  accounts.  A  portion  of  the  Tuolumne  wealth  extended  into  the  val- 
ley country  of  Stanislaus,  where  bars  were  worked  for  years  upon  the  Stanis- 
laus and  the  Tuolumne,  particularly  round  Knight  Ferry  a  id  La  Grange,  or 
French  Camp,  for  a  time  county  seat,  and  very  flourishing  in  1854-5.  San 
Joaquin  county  had  a  similar  smaller  streak  of  mining  along  its  eastern  bor- 
der. I  or  particulars,  see  above  generiil  references;  and  Alta  Cal,  Dec.  23, 
1862;  Jan.  19-21, 1853;  Feb.  18,  1854;  Dec.  22, 1855,  etc.;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Apr. 


SILVER  REGION. 


877 


pon  a  vein 
i-lacers, 
supplied 
40  miles 
185G  for  a 
1866;  AUa 
7,  1854; 
maintain 
^,000  to 
two  davs, 
ices  daily, 
Jan.  29, 
klin,  Dec. 
local  and 
,0  tlie  val- 
he  Stanis- 


surfaxje  layers  along  the  Merced  and  Bear  Creek, 
which  attracted  a  considerable  number  of  diggers, 
particularly  below  Horshoe  Bend  on  Merced  River, 
and  near  Quartzburg;  but  on  the  Mariposa,  Chow- 
cliilla,  Fresno,  and  San  Joaquin  they  diminished  to 
small  proportions,  disappearing  in  Tulare  county. 
Beyond  this  they  were  again  discovered  in  1853,  and 
led  to  the  brief  Kern  River  excitement  of  1854-5. 
Bank  and  gravel  claims  also  faded,  with  a  correspond- 
ino-ly  decreasing  demand  for  hydraulic  methods.  The 
cliief  wealth  of  the  section  consisted  of  quartz;  and 
altliough  the  mother  lode  tapers  rapidly,  it  still  makes 
a  good  display  in  Mariposa,  dividing  here  into  two 
veins  wliich  a  number  of  mines  opened.  This  county 
is  entitled  to  the  distinction  of  the  first  discovery  of 
such  veins  in  California,  on  Fremont's  grant,  in 
1849;  but  development  was  obstructed,  not  only  by 
the  early  obstacles  hampering  this  branch,  but  by  liti- 
gation and  lack  of  energy.  Kern  River  revealed 
several  ledges  of  value,  and  above  there  the  Sierra 
Nevada  disclosed  a  large  number,  especially  of  silver, 
extending  into  Tulare  county  and  southward ;  but  being 
less  accessible  and  rich,  they  had  to  bide  their  time. 
The  real  silver  region  lies  on  the  eastern  slopes  of  the 
Sierra  and  beyond,  in  Alpine,  Mono,  Inyo,  and  San 
Bernardino  counties,  each  containing  some  gold,  which 
in  the  last  named  is  found  also  in  gravel  f^  but  lack 
of  wood  and  water  tended  here  to  discourage  early 
efforts.  ^^ 

4-5,  May  10,  July  24,  1856;  Sac.  Unim,  Nov.  4,  1854;  Mar.  12,  June  18, 
July  28,  Sept.  27,  Nov.  5,  1855.  Eastward,  the  auriferous  bodies  passed  into 
Miiiio  county,  beyond  the  Sierra  Nevada,  but  the  limited  placers  round  Mono- 
villo  \vi;re  soon  exhausted,  and  elsewhere  the  prospect  was  poor.  Quartz  was, 
however,  in  due  time  to  produce  activity  here.  Monoville  possessed  a  ditch 
of  '20  miles. 

^'  For  .allusions  to  Alpine  and  Mono,  see  Amador  and  Tuolumne  sections, 
to  which  thoy  belonged  in  early  years. 

^'  In  Mariposa  county,  which  at  first  included  Fresno  and  Merced,  the  shal- 
low, .spotted  placers  were  of  smaller  extent  than  in  Tuolunuie;  yet  the  rich 
(li»c(ivi;ries  made  at  times  sufficed  to  attract  diggers.  Instance  reports  in 
/•'«•.  AViM,  May  25,  Jujie  4,  Aug.  23,  Oct.  28,  1850;  Cal  Courier,  Oct.  5,  1850; 
•S'.  F.  Plrmjftne,  Nov.  2fi,  1850.  In  Nov.  1851,  Bear  Valley  created  an  excite- 
ment by  the  report  of  six  persona  obtaining  ?220,000  in  four  days.  At 
Bear  Gulch  near  Quartzburg,  some  Mexicans  were  said  to  have  taken  out  a 


378 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH. 


The  junction  of  tlie  Sierra  Nevada  with  the  Coast 
Range,  both  at  the  north  and  at  the  south,  brought 

similar  amount.  Martinis  Narr.,  MS.,  64-5.  In  Drunken  Gulch  and  at 
Cunningham's  rancho  near  Princeton  new  ground  was  opened  in  1854,  and 
at  Snelling's  on  the  Merced,  a  river  which  supplied  niany  profitable  races. 
The  section  between  Horseshoe  Bend  and  Washington  Elat  was  producing 
largely  in  185G,  and  at  Red  Banks  $20  a  day  was  obtained,  yet  some  made 
from  $100  to  $200,  mostly  in  pieces  of  from  25  cents  to  $20.  Homitos  yielded 
by  lumps,  partly  of  decomposed  quartz,  Mariposa  Creek,  worked  since  1851, 
was  paying  $3  to  $4  a  day  in  1856.  Chowchilla,  Fresno,  and  San  Joaquin 
rivers  had  each  their  placers.  Coarse  Gold  Gulch,  which  thoueh  prominent 
in  1851,  declined  under  Indian  hostilities;  Fine  Gold  Gulch  rose  later;  Root- 
ville  revived  under  the  name  of  Millerton,  and  Indian  Gulch,  Mounts  Ophir 
and  Bullion,  Agua  Frio  and  Mormon  Bar  flourished  a  while.  Jamestown,  Junc- 
tion Bluff,  and  Coulterville  stood  in  high  repute.  Many  details  are  given  in 
Mariposa  Chronicle,  Dec.  8,  1854,  etc.;  Id.,  Oaz.,  June  27,  1873,  etc.,  with 
reproduction  of  early  records;  AltaCal.,3a.n..  16,  1852;  Mar.  1,  13,  1854;  Apr. 
16,  Oct.  1,  1855;  Jan.  7,  26,  July  12,  Sept.  13,  22,  Oct.  12,  Nov.  4,  29,  Dec. 
27,  1856;  S.  F.  Bulktin,  Jan.  7,  12,  19,  Aug.  5-7,  29,  Sept.  13,  20,  21J,  1S5G; 
Dec.  5,  1854;  Oct.  1,  17,  20,  Nov.  13,  1855;  also  1856,  passim.  Bank  diggings 
and  gravel  claims  were  limited,  and  consequently  tunnelling  and  hydraulic 
works,  with  few  ditches.  Alta  Cat,  Mar.  26,  Sept.  28, 1856.  The  valley  section, 
later  formed  into  Merced  county,  shared  in  its  north-east  part  in  placer  min- 
ing. The  veta  madre  tapers  oflf  in  this  region,  and  divides  on  Fremont's  grant 
into  two  veins,  Pine  Tree  and  Josephine,  upon  which  a  number  of  mines 
opened  in  course  of  time.  Princeton  was  the  centre  of  another  group  opened 
in  1852,  which  at  first  yielded  ^75  per  ton.  The  first  discovery  of  California 
quartz  veins  was  ma<le  on  Fremont  s  grant  in  1849,  the  reddish  samples  yield- 
ing 2  ounces  to  every  25  lbs,  as  Taylor  testifies.  Eldorado,  i.  110-11.  Sub- 
sequent developments  by  others  showed  6  or  8  lbs  to  50  lbs  of  rocks,  and  §2,500 
to  100  lbs.  Pac.  Neios,  Sept.  7,  1850;  Sac.  Trawicrivt,  June  29,  Nov.  2'J,  1S50. 
On  Maxwell  Creek  a  bowlder  of  124  lbs  was  literally  striped  with  gold.  AUa 
Cal.,  July  15,  1851.  According  to  J.  Duflf,  in  Mariposa  Gae.,  Jan.  17,  1873, 
a  quartz-mill,  the  first  in  Cal.  with  steam-engine,  was  brought  by  him  for 
F.  mont  and  planted  near  Mariposa  as  early  aa  August  1849,  but  this  should 
probably  read  1850;  see  later  about  quartz-mills;  four  other  mills  were  ereetc'd 
in  1850,  two  by  J.  Johnson,  and  the  others  by  Capt.  Howard  and  by  I.  R. 
Morris  for  Com.  Stockton.  Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co.  took  charge  of  Fremont's 
claim,  and  uniting  with  a  London  company  made  large  profits.  The  first 
week's  crushing  yielded  $18,000.  Sac.  Tranncript,  Jan.  14,  Feb.  14, 1851;  June 
29,  1850.  One  party  sold  a  vein  at  Burns  for  $55,000.  Fremont's  agent  was 
accused  of  swindling  English  capitalists  by  representing  purchased  quartz  as 
coining  from  his  Mariposa  lead.  Morn.  Olofm,  Aug.  19,  1856.'  Litigation  iu- 
terfered  with  development  on  this  estate;  elsewhere  rich  oroppiugs  continued 
to  be  found,  as  at  Hornitos  and  Johnson  Flat.  Near  Mariposa  tlie  yield  was 
in  1856  reported  at  $43  per  ton.  Pac.  lii'etva,  May  15,  Oct.  4,  1850,  and  Pirdi/une, 
May  15,  Sept.  7,  1850,  allude  to  numerous  luinx)s  from  $4,500  downward. 
The  poorest  quartz  veins  yield  $120  per  ton.  Alta  Cal,  Jan.  3,  Feb.  20,  1854; 
Dec.  13,  1850;  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  5,  28,  May  4,  1855;  S.  F.  Bulktin,  Jan.  7, 
Aug.  25,  1856,  etc.;  HUit.  Fresno  Co.,  87-9,  187,  etc.;  Hist.  Merced  Co.,  S(i,  etc. 
Southward  no  placer  deposits  of  any  note  were  found  till  1853-4,  when  Kern 
River  revealed  specimens,  including  lumps,  one  of  42  ounces,  which  soon  pro- 
duced the  Kern  River  excitement.  This  was  wholly  overdone,  for  the  de- 
posits proved  limited  in  extent.  A  few  parties  made  from  $16  to  $60  ilaily, 
others  were  content  with  $5  to  $8,  but  the  majority  failed  to  obtain  satisfac- 
tory returns.  The  quality  was  also  inferior,  assaying  only  $14  per  ounce. 
The  discovery  was  made  by  immigrants.  Bakersfield  South.  Cal.,  June  8,  Nov. 
23,  1870,  etc.;  South.  Cal.,  Dec.  7,  1854;  Fresno  Expositor,  June  22,  1870; 


LOS  ANGELES  AND  SAN  DIEGO. 


379 


tlic  auriferous  strata  nearer  to  the  ocean,  although  in 
greatly  attenuated  form.  It  was  this  approximation 
in  the  south  that  led  to  the  first  discovery  of  gold  in 
California,  in  Los  Angeles  county,  as  explained  else- 
where. After  being  long  neglected  for  the  richer 
slopes  of  the  Sierra,  this  region  again  received  atten- 
tion, and  with  improved  methods  the  limited  placers 
were  made  to  yield  fair  profits.  The  chief  result  was 
the  revelation  of  valuable  quartz  leads,  extending  into 
San  Diego  county,  upon  which  a  number  of  mines 
opened  in  later  years.  Northward  the  coast  counties 
presented  only  slight  scattered  indications  of  gold, 
which,  however,  unfolded  in  Santa  Cruz,  along  the 
San  Lorenzo,  into  a  limited  placer  and  quartz  field, 
and  later  attracted  a  certain  attention  in  Marin  county. 
Beyond  this  another  barren  expanse  intervened  till 
tlie  approach  once  more  of  the  auriferous  Sierra 
Nevada  became  apparent  in  the  rich  earth  and  rock 
of  Trinity  and  adjoining  counties.  Yet  the  central 
coast  region  was  not  devoid  of  mineral  wealth.  It 
contained  some  coal,  the  leading  quicksilver  mine 
of  tlio  world,  and  other  metals,  consonant  with  the 
solfataric  nature  of  the  determining  range,  the  proper 

Hiwikh  Courier,  Sopt.  8,  1866;  Sac.  Union,  Dec.  1854-May  1855;  AltaCal, 
ill.,  jiiul  scattered  items  in  later  numbers;  I/ayes'  Aiujelea,  ii.  102-8,  258,  272; 
/(/.,  Miiiinij,  V.  122^2  There  had  been  a  rush  in  1851  to  Kerii,  Alld  Cal., 
July  •_'•_',  1 851.  The  deposits  led  to  more  encouraging  quartz  lodes,  at  Whiskey 
Flat,  Liter  Kernville,  Keysville,  Havilah,  etc.;  for  which  mills  began  to  be 
erectL'd.  While  not  extensive,  the  veins  have  proved  rich,  some  assaying  at 
1()  CLiits  per  lb.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  26,  1855;  AltaCnl,  Oct.  20,  1855;  Mar. 
31,  ]S.-)(),  etc.;  Hkt.  Kern  Co.,  101,  110-13,  151.  High  in  the  Sierra  were 
more  extensive  indications,  chiefly  of  silver,  whereof  Tulare  county  had  lier 
share,  but  being  less  rich  and  accessible  they  had  to  bide  their  time.  Above 
tlie  water  line  the  ores  were  easy  to  reduce,  but  not  so  the  main  sulphuretud 
bodies  below.  On  Clear  Creek,  in  Tulare,  the  veins  were  from  2  to  6  feet 
tluck.  East  of  the  Sierra  the  regular  silver  district  was  about  to  unfold  in 
I:iyo  county  in  Panamint  Mountains,  near  the  main  detlectiou  of  the  Amar- 
goso  at  Mojave  desert,  and  at  L-  -'e  Pine  along  the  west  base  of  Inyo  Mts,  the 
liitti  "  'li  mach  gold,  and  assaying  .§100  to  $300  per  ton.  The  lack  of  wood 
aiiit  ■  ,;.  .  together  with  hostile  Indians  were  here  serious  obstacles,  which 
applied  also  to  .San  Bernardino  county,  wherein  the  continuation  of  these  leads 
extc/uled.  Here  a  limited  placer  field  M'ith  gravel  was  found  at  Lytte  Creek, 
wliiuli  awaited  ilitches  for  thorough  working.  .Soule  penetrated  to  the  Aniar- 
gosi)  in  KSJiO,  found  rich  specimens,  formed  a  company,  but  spent  money  in 
viiii  St.U.,  MS.,  3-4.  Others  tried  and  failed.  .S'rtc.  Trnnncr!])i,  Nov.  29, 
1H,")();  //m/fs'  Minimi,  v.  111-22;  Alta  Cal.,  Aug.  26,  1852;  Sac.  Union.  Jan. 
IS,  Oct.  12,  Nov.  14,  1856. 


380 


UNFOLDING  OF  MINERAL  WEALTH. 


development  of  which  pertains  to  the  period  covered 
by  my  next  volume."^ 

^  In  1851  several  slight  excitements  were  stirred  up  by  prospectorg  in  the 
coast  region,  and  in  Loa  Angeles  the  old  San  Fernando  field  waa  reopinej. 
Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.  14,  1851;  Hayai'  Mining,  v.  110-20;  Jawiaen,  Vidn,  .M.s.[ 
221.  In  1854  Santa  Anita  received  a  rush;  the  gravel  claims  of  San  (ial>riel 
Ca&on  were  then  worked  wiih  moderate  success,  encouraging  the  constnictinu 
of  ditches,  and  subsequently  quartz  was  developed  of  promising  quality,  tlie 
region  round  Soleda(l  Pass  revealing  silver.  Alta  Cal.,  Feb.  19  22,  18o4' 
Doc.  29,  1856;  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  10,  Mar.  28,  Apr.  18,  May  9,  1855;  //r/vfV 
Mining,  v.  110-20,  143,  et  seq.;  L.  A.  Eve.  Express,  May  29,  1872.  In  1856 
Sta  Catalina  Island  was  found  to  contain  veins,  which  it  waa  in  later  times 
proposed  to  open.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  June  12,  1856;  L.  A.  Herald,  Dec.  23, 1874. 
San  Diego  also  gave  indications  which  in  later  times  led  to  the  opening  of 
several  veins.  Alta  Cal.,  March  19,  1855;  Hayes'  S.  Diego,  i.  94.  North  of 
Los  Angeles  the  prospect  faded,  with  small  indications  in  Sta  Barbara  and 
Ventura,  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  15,  1855;  and  with  very  limited  developments 
in  later  years  in  S.  Luis  Obispo.  Hist.  S.  L.  Ob.  Co.,  248-53.  In  Santa  Cruz, 
however,  both  ledges  and  placers  were  revealed  which  gave  employment  to  a 
small  number  of  men.  The  padres  are  supposed  to  have  known  of  tliuir 
existence,  but  kept  it  secret.  In  1851  Anson  discovered  placers  on  fhiada- 
lupe  Creek,  but  yielding  only  ^  or  ^  a  day,  they  were  neglected  till  185.1, 
Placer  Times,  June  27,  185.3,  when  remunerative  spots  were  found  also  on  S. 
Lorenzo  Creek.  Alta  Cal.,  July  29,  1853.  Trask,  Geol.,  pointed  to  auriiernus 
signs  from  Soquel  to  Point  Afio  Nuevo.  In  1854  a  rich  bowlder  waa  found  on 
(Jraham  Creek.  In  1855  Gold  Gulch  on  the  San  Lorenzo  yielded  from  83  to 
$10  a  day,  and  lasted  f6r  several  years.  Quartz  waa  also  found,  and  a  liirj.'e 
number  of  companies  took  up  claims;  but  the  first  promise  was  not  sustained. 
Hayes'  Mining,  399-403;  Sac.  Union,  July  21,  Nov.  7,  1855;  S.  F.  Bulletin, 
June  19,  1850.  Attempts  were  also  made  at  beach  mining.  In  Monterey 
county  a  ripple  was  created  by  a  placer  at  Pacheco  Pass,  which  for  a  hrief 
period  yielded  from  ?5  to  §9  a  day.  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.  14,  28,  1851;. 9.  F. 
Picayune,  Jan.  26,  1851.  In  1855-6  San  Antonio  Creek  attracted  attention 
with  a  yield  of  $3  to  85  a  day,  and  occasional  richer  developments;  also  Cow 
Creek.  Sac.  Union,  March  23,  June  20,  Nov.  17,  1855;  Apr.  23,  1850;  AWi 
Cal,  Mar.  21,  1855.  Feb.  7,  Apr.  21,  1856;  Hist.  Mont.  Co.,  95;  S.  F.  Bulle- 
tin, Feb.  7,  1856.  Rumors  of  placers  near  the  southern  end  of  S.  F.  Bay,  even 
around  Oakland  and  Mount  Diablo,  floated  at  one  time.  Sac.  Transcriyt,  June 
29,  1850;  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  7,  1856;  Hittell,  Mining,  27;  and  San  Francisco 
had  indications  on  Telegraph  Hill.  Annals  S.  F.,  417-18;  leakages  from 
miners*  bags  caused  once  or  twice  a  scramble  at  the  plaza,  Tai/lor\^  El- 
dorado, ii.  60-1;  and  Bernal  Heights  gave  food  for  vain  excitements  in  later 
years.  In  Marin  county  a  little  mining  waa  done  in  later  years.  Hist.  Murin 
Co.,  288,  311,  378-82;  and  on  the  Russian  River  some  indications  lured  to 
unsuccessful  attempts.  T.  M.  Smyth  obtained  a  little  dust  from  Dry  Creek. 
Russian  R.  Flag.,  Jan.  22,  1874;  Alta  Cal,  Sept.  20,  1853;  Apr.  G-7,  1855; 
Sac.  Union,  May  30,  1855;  signs  at  Bodega,  Hi.it.  Sonoma  Co.,  29-38;  and 
in  Colusa.  Colusa  Co.  Annwil,  1878,  46.  Equally  feeble  were  the  prospects 
in  Mendocino,  but  in  the  adjoining  Trinity  county  the  auriferous  Sierra 
Nevada  again  revealed  itself. 


I; !  Ii 

ill 


'  fi! 


CHAPTER  XV 


GEOLOGICAL  AND  SOCIAL  ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES, 

1848-1856. 

Physical  Formation  of  thb  California  Valley — The  Three  Geologic 
Belts — Physical  Aspect  of  the  Gold  Regions— Geolot.ic  Forma- 
tions—  Indications  that  Inflpence  the  Frospectok— Origin  of 
RisHEs  AND  Camps — Society  along  the  Foothills— Hvt  am»  Camp 
Life— Sunday  in  the  Mines — Catai^oocb  of  California  Mining 
PvisHEs — Mariposa,  Kern,  Ocean  Beach,  Nevada,  Gold  Lake,  Lost 
(.'abin,  Gold  Blcff,  Siskiyou,  Sonora,  Australia,  Fraher  River, 
Nevada,  Colorado,  and  the  Rest--Minino  Imws  and  Regulations 
—Mining  Tax— Discrimination  against  Foreigners. 

The  largest  and  most  important  section  of  California, 
between  latitudes  35°  and  41°,  may  be  divided  into 
three  geological  as  well  as  physical  belts,  beginning 
at  the  main  axial  line  drawn  from  Mount  Shasta 
tlirough  the  leading  summit  peaks  of  the  Sierra 
Xevada  for  nearly  500  miles.  The  limit  of  the  first 
lielt  would  be  a  line  50  miles  westw^ard  along  the  edge 
(if  the  foothills,  touching  at  Red  Bluff  and  Visalia. 
The  next  belt,  of  equal  width,  would  be  bounded  by 
tlie  eastern  edge  of  the  Coast  Range,  and  the  third 
belt  by  the  coast  line.*  A  fourth  belt  may  be  added, 
which,  extending  eastward  from  the  Sierra  summit, 
falls  partly  within  Nevada,  and  covers  a  series  of  lakes, 
arid  depressions,  and  tracts  marked  by  vtilcanic  con- 
vulsions. South  of  the  great  valley,  where  the  united 
ranges  subdivide  into  low  and  straggling  elevations, 

'  Prof.  Whitney,  upon  whose  Oeol.  Survey  ofCaL,  i.  2  et  seq.,  I  base  these 
olisLTvations,  makes  the  belts  55  miles  wide,  and  adds  a  fourth,  eastward 
front  the  Sierra  crest.  The  zonal  paralleliaiu  of  the  metals  iu  these  belts  was 
first  observed  by  Prof.  Blake. 

(Ml) 


ANATOMY  OP  THE  MINES. 


this  belt  supplants  it  with  vast  deserts,  the  topography 
of  which  is  as  yet  obscure,  like  that  of  the  confused 
mountain  masses  of  the  northern  border. 

The  second  and  third  belts  embrace  the  agricul- 
tural districts,  with  the  broad  level  of  the  California 
valley;  yet  they  contain  a  certain  amount  of  mineral 
deposits.  Solfataric  action  is  still  marked  in  the  Coast 
Range,  especially  in  the  hot  springs  of  the  Clear  I^ake 
region.  Its  rocks  are  as  a  rule  sandstones,  i^liales, 
and  slates  of  cretaceous  and  tertiary  formations,  with 
a  proportion  of  limestone,  granite  being  rare  except 
in  the  south.  The  metamorphism  of  the  sedimentary 
beds,  chiefly  chemical,  is  so  prevalent  as  to  render  the 
distinction  of  eruptive  rocks  difficult.  Most  striking 
is  the  vast  transformation  of  slates  into  serpentines, 
and  partly  into  jaspers,  the  combination  of  which  in- 
dicate the  presence  of  valuable  cinnabar  bodies.  In 
the  sandstones  of  these  cretaceous  formations  occur 
all  the  important  coal  beds  so  far  discovered.  The 
tertiary  strata,  chiefly  miocene  of  marine  source,  but 
little  changed,  begin  properly  south  of  Clear  Lake 
and  assume  importance  below  Carquinez,  where  tlicy 
appear  much  tilted.  South  of  latitude  35°  bituminous 
slate  predominates  in  the  shale  overlying  the  coarse 
sandstone,  and  contains  deposits  of  superficial  as[»lial- 
tum,  with  promising  indications  of  flowing  petroUuni. 
Below  Los  Angeles  the  rocks  acquire  more  of  the 
crystalline  character  of  the  Sierra  Nevada,  and  in  the 
Temescal  range,  with  its  granite,  porphyry,  and  nicta- 
morphic  sandstone,  tin  ore  has  been  found.  Along 
the  San  Gabriel  range  gold  exists;  but  while  pliocene 
gravels  are  frequent  enough  along  the  Coast  Range, 
the  metal  seldom  occurs  in  paying  quantities. 

The  gold  region  is  practically  confined  to  the  first 
belt,  along  the  west  slopes  of  the  Sierra  Nevada,  in- 
tersected by  nearly  parallel  rivers,  and  broken  by  deep 
canons.  An  intrusive  core  of  granite  forms  the  cen- 
tral feature,  which  becomes  gradually  more  cx]iose(l 
and  extensive,  till,  in  latitude  30-7°,  it  reaches  almost 


GEOLOGICAL  AND  PHYSICAL. 


383 


ic  first 
ida,  in- 
)y  tlcep 
le  cfii- 
xposecl 
almost 


from  crest  to  plain.  The  core  is  flanked  by  metamor- 
phio  slates  of  triassic  and  Jurassic  age,  much  tilted, 
often  vertical,  the  strike  being  generally  parallel  with 
the  axis  of  the  range,  and  in  the  south  dipping  toward 
the  east.  This  so-called  auriferous  slate  formation 
consists  of  metamorphic,  crystalline,  argillaceous,  chlo- 
ritic,  and  talcose  slates.  In  the  extreme  north-west 
it  appears  with  though  subordinate  to  granite.  Grad- 
ually it  gains  in  importance  as  the  superimposed  lava 
in  Butte  and  Plumas  counties  decreases,  and  north  of 
the  American  River  it  expands  over  nearly  the  entire 
slope ;  but  after  this  it  again  contracts,  especially  south 
of  Mariposa;  beyond  the  junction  of  the  ranges  it  re- 
appears in  connection  with  granite.  To  the  same  for- 
mation are  confined  the  payable  veins  of  gold  quartz,^ 
chieriy  in  the  vicinity  of  crystalline  and  eruptive  rocks. 
They  vary  in  thickness  from  a  line  to  twoscore  feet 
or  more,  and  follow  a  course  which  usually  coincides 
with  that  of  the  mountain  chain,  that  is,  north-north- 
west with  a  steep  dip  eastwa^^d.*  The  most  remark- 
able vein  is  the  extensive  mother  lode  of  the  Sierra 
Nevada,  which  has  been  traced  for  over  60  miles  from 
the  Cosumnes  to  Mariposa.* 

The  slate  formation  is  covered  by  cretaceous,  ter- 
tiary, and  post-tertiary  deposits,  of  which  the  marine 
sedimentary,  chiefly  soft  sandstone,  made  up  of  granite 
debris,  occurs  all  along  the  foothills,  conspicuously  in 
Kern  county.  The  lava  region  extends  through  Plumas 
and  Butte  northward  round  the  volcanic  cones  headed 
by  mounts  Lassen  and  Shasta,  whose  overflows  have 

'The  quartz  occurs  in  granite,  and  in  the  Coast  Range,  but  rarely  in  pay- 
ing (juautities. 

'■'  Tliu  richer  streak  along  the  footwall,  or  in  the  lower  side  of  the  lode,  is 
often  the  oidy  payable  part.  Sometimes  a  lode  contains  streaks  of  different 
(lUiditius  and  appearance.  According  to  Marcon,  OeoL,  82,  the  richest  veins 
of  (,'alifornia  are  found  where  sienitic  granite  and  trap  meet.  Branches  and 
ofTsots  often  cut  through  the  slate  beils  at  considerable  angles. 

■*  It  runs  south-east,  while  veins  in  the  Sacramento  valley  turn  more  nearly 
nortli  and  south.  Its  dip  is  45°  to  tlie  nortli-east.  The  white  quartz  is  di- 
vided into  a  multitude  of  seams,  with  gray  and  brown  discoloration,  and  with 
siii.ill  proi)ortiou8  of  iron,  lead,  and  other  metals.  The  accompanying  side 
veins  contain  the  rich  deposits.  Blnkenlee.  Tlie  width  may  average  30  feet, 
tliu  thickness  from  2  to  IG  feet,  though  deepening  to  many  rods. 


384 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 


mass  IS 


remaininir 


hidden  the  gold  formation  of  so  large  an  area.  Tlie 
wide-spread  deposits  of  gravel  are  attributed  to  a  sys- 
tem of  tertiary  rivers  long  since  filled  up  and  dead, 
which  ran  in  nearly  the  same  direction  as  the  present 
streams,  and  with  greater  slope  and  wider  channola. 
Eroding  the  auriferous  slates  and  their  quartz  veins, 
these  river  currents  spread  the  detritus  in  deposits 
varying  from  fine  clay  and  sand  to  rolled  pebbles,  and 
bowlders  weighing  several  tons,  and  extending  from 
perhaps  300  or  400  feet  in  width  at  the  bottom  to 
several  thousand  feet  at  the  top,  and  from  a  depth  of 
a  few  inches  to  600  or  700  feet.  The  whole 
permeated  with  gold,'^  the  larger  lumps 
near  their  source,  while  the  finer  particles  were  carried 
along  for  miles."  The  most  remarkable  of  these  gravel 
currents  is  the  Dead  Blue  River,  so  called  from  the 
bluish  color  of  tue  sand  mixed  with  the  pebbles  and 
bowlders,  which  runs  parallel  to  the  Sacramento  some 
fifty  miles  eastward,with  an  average  width  of  a  quarter 
of  a  mile.^  The  depth  of  detritus  averages  three  hun- 
dred feet,  and  is  very  rich  in  the  lower  parts,  where  the 
debris  is  coarser  and  full  of  quartz.  Althougli  the 
so-called  pay  dirt,  or  remunerative  stratum,  lies  in  allu- 
vial deposits  nearly  always  within  ten  feet  of  the  bed- 
rock, and  frequently  permeates  this  for  a  foot  or  so  in 
the  slate  formations,  yet  the  top  layers  often  contain 

''  Fossil  wood  and  animals  axe  found  here,  and  occasionally  layers  of  lava  and 
tufa  often  sedimentary,  and  some  superimposed,  others  in  alternation.  Tlio 
deposits  at  La  Urange,  Stanislaus,  in  a  distance  of  1^  miles  cross  4  wiilely 
varying  formations,  with  elephant  remains  embedded.  Some  of  these  duail 
rivers  present  peculiar  features;  instance  the  Tuolumne  table  mountain,  30 
miles  long  by  half  a  mile  in  width,  which  consists  of  a  lava  How  upon  the  rich 
gravel  of  an  ancient  river-bed.  The  waters  forced  aside  by  tliis  now  washed 
away  the  banks  on  either  side,  leaving  the  lava  isolated  above  the  surrounding 
soil,  with  steep  sides  and  a  bare  level  top. 

''The  smaller  and  smoother  the  gold,  so  the  gravel,  and  nearer  the  bottom 
lands. 

^The  driftwood  in  it,  the  course  of  the  tributary  gravel  currents,  the 
position  of  the  bowlders,  etc.,  indicate  a  stream,  and  one  of  mighty  force,  to 
judge  by  the  size  of  the  bowlders;  yet  some  scientists  object  to  the  river-bed 
theory.  A  line  of  towns  stands  along  its  course  through  Sierra  and  Plactr 
counties,  65  miles,  which  shows  a  descent  from  4,700  to  2,700  feet,  or  37  feet 
per  mile.  But  subterranean  upheavals  may  Iiave  effected  it.  North  of  Sierra 
county  it  is  covered  by  lava,  and  aoath  of  Placer  it  has  been  washed  away  or 
covered  by  later  alluvium. 


rROSPECTINO. 


385 


L  the 

allu- 

bed- 

so  in 

;ontain 

lava  and 

I.     Tiio 

widely 

eye  dead 

iitjiiu,  30 

the  rich 

washed 

rounding 


g(»l.l  In  payable  quantities,  even  in  the  upper  portions 
ol'  liiirh  banks,  which  can  be  washed  by  cheap  hy- 
draulic process.'* 

The  miners  wer^i  a  nomadic  race,  with  prospectors 
f(ir  advance  guard.  Prospecting,  the  searcli  for  new 
troJd-Helds,  was  partly  compulsory,  for  the  over-crowded 
canip  or  district  obliged  the  new-comer  to  pass  onward, 
or  a  claim  worked  out  left  no  alternative.  But  in 
early  ilays  the  incentive  lay  greatly  in  the  cravings  of 
a  ttverish  imagination,  excited  by  fanciful  camp-fire 
talcs  of  huge  ledges  and  glittering  nuggets,  the  sources 
of  these  bare  sprinkling  of  precious  metals  which  cost 
so  much  toil  to  collect.  Distance  assists  to  conjure 
up  mirages  of  ever-increasing  enchantment,  encircled 
by  the  romance  of  adventure,  until  growing  unrest 
makes  hitherto  well-yielding  and  valued  claims  seem 
unworthy  of  attention,  and  drives  the  holder  forth  to 
rove.  He  bakes  bread  for  the  requirements  of  several 
days,  takes  a  little  salt,  and  the  cheering  tlask,  and 
with  cup  and  pan,  pick  and  shovel,  attached  to  the 

'Fine  gold  h;is  frequently  b^en  found  in  grass  roots,  aa  observed  also  in 
W'iUi'<  Bnizil,  ii.  VJrl.  At  Bath  a  stratum  100  feet  above  the  b(;d-rock  was 
drifted  protitiibly,  and  the  top  dirt  subsecjuently  wiished  by  hydraulic  method. 
Ill  Nevada  ciiunty  the  b'dk  of  pay  dirt  ia  within  30  feet  of  the  bottom.  The 
deposit:!  at  French  Hill,  >itanislaus,  show  that  an  undulating  bed-rock  gathers 
riclier  dirt,  yet  in  certiiin  currents  bars  and  points  catch  the  gold  rather  than 
pools  and  bends,  as  proved  also  in  Australia.  Gold  Fields  qf  Victoria,  134.  The 
sand  layers  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  drifts  contain  little  gold.  In  the  gravel 
strata  at  Malakoff,  Nevada  county,  a  shaft  of  200  feet  yielded  from  2.9  to  3.8 
cent:)  per  cubic  yard  from  the  first  120  feet,  from  the  remainder  32.9  cents, 
tlie  last  8  feet  producing  from  5  to  20  cents  per  pan.  Botoiea  I/ydratdic  Minhuj, 
74-5.  Tlun-e  are  also  instances  of  richer  strata  lying  some  distance  above  a 
jioor  bed-roek.  The  tK'ad  rivers  are  richer  in  gold  than  the  present  streams, 
a:id  w  liun  tliese  have  cut  throtigh  the  former  they  at  once  revcEiI  greater  wealth, 
la  addition  to  C'aL  Geol.  Survey,  aee  Brcnone's  Min.  Ren.,  1867;  Whitney  8  A ur{/'. 
Hmcehs,  51G,  etc.;  Laur.  Gisement  de  I'Oi:  C'al,  Ann.  des  Mines,  iii.  412,  etc.; 
SUiiimnH  Diep  Placers;  Phillip's  Mining,  37  et  seq. ;  Bowie's  llydraul.  Miniwj, 
53  et  seq. ;  Ililtell's  Mining,  66  et  seq. ;  B<dch's  M'tnex,  159  et  seq. ;  Trask's  Geol. 
ojOxi.tt  Mu,  43-68;  Hai/e-i'  Mining,  v,  393,  398;  ix.  6  et  seq.;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen., 
1S53,  ap.  59;  1856,  ap.  14;  Sae.  Union,  Mar.  12,  27-9,  Aug.  10,  Oct.  13,  27, 
1855;  Tyson's  Geol.  Cal.;  CcU.  Geol.  Survey,  BejitCoin.,  1852.  Blake,  in  Pac. 
R.  R.  Rejit,  V.  217  etc.,  classified  the  placers  as  coarse  bowlder-like  drifts, 
river  drifts,  or  coarse  alluvium,  alluvial  deposits  oa  flats  and  locustrine  de- 
posits made  at  the  bottom  of  former  lakes,  all  of  which  have  been  greatly 
changed  by  upheavals,  transformed  river  systems,  and  the  erosion  of  currents. 
Additinnal  geologic  points  OM  given  in  connection  with  the  districts  and 
counties. 

Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VL    25 


w 


h'i 


886 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 


'Ill 


I' 


If  I 


I'll 
1i 

lifl 


blanket  strapped  to  liis  hark,  he  sallies  forth,  a  trusty 
rifio  in  hand  for  defence  and  for  providin>.(  meat.  If 
well  off  he  transfers  the  inereased  burdtn  to  a  paik- 
aninial;  but  as  often  he  may  be  obliged  to  eke  it  out 
with  effects  borrowed  from  a  confiding  friend  or  (store- 
keeper/ 

following  a  line  parallel  to  the  range,  northward  or 
south,  across  ridges  and  ravines,  through  dark  gorges, 
or  up  some  rushing  stream,  at  one  time  he  is  seized 
with  a  consciousness  of  slumbering  nuggets  l)eneatli 
his  feet,  at  another  he  is  impelled  onward  to  seek 
the  parent  mass;  but  prudence  prevails  upon  liim 
not  to  neglect  the  indications  of  experience,  the  hy- 
pothetical watercourses  and  their  confluences  in  dry 
tracts,  the  undisturbed  bars  of  the  living  sticams, 
where  its  eddies  have  thrown  up  sand  and  gravel,  the 
softly  rounded  gravel-bearing  hill,  the  crevices  of  ex- 
posed rocks,  or  the  out-cropping  quartz  veins  along  the 
bank  and  hillside.  Often  the  revelation  comes  by 
accident,  which  upsets  sober-minded  calculation;  tor 
where  a  child  may  stumble  upon  pounds  of  metal, 
human  nature  can  hardly  be  content  to  toil  for  a  piti- 
ful ounce. 

Rumors  of  success  are  quickly  started,  despite  all 
care  by  the  finder  to  keep  a  discovery  secret,  at  least 
for  a  time.  The  compulsion  to  replenish  the  larder  is 
sufficient  to  point  the  trail,  and  the  fox-hound's  scent 
for  its  prey  is  not  keener  than  that  of  the  miner  tor 
gold.  One  report  starts  another;  and  some  moniiui; 
an  encampment  is  roused  by  files  of  men  hurrying 
away  across  the  ridge  to  new-found  treasures. 

Then  spring  up  a  camp  of  leafy  arbors,  brusji  Inits. 
and  i)eaked  tents,  in  bold  iilief  upcni  the  naked  bar,  dot- 
ting th  >  hillside  in  picturesque  confusion,  or  nestling 

•In  r  .  ♦,  Doe.,  72  et  seq.,  are  several  agreements  for  repayment  of  o\ittits 
and  ailva^  s  in  money  or  in  shares  of  the  expected  discoveries.  Athicc  for 
outfits  ill  •eer  Times  and  AUa  Cal,  Aug.  2,  1849.  Whoaton,  Stnt.,  MS.,  9, 
and  other  j  neers  testify  to  the  honesty  with  which  such  loiins  were  rejiiiid. 
Later  tho  '  nderfoot.'or  new-comer,  wouhl  be  greeted  hy  weuther-lnaten 
and  dilapid  ed  prospectors  who  offered  to  find  him  a  dozen  good  claims  if 
provided  wj   »  a  'grub-stake,'  that  is,  an  outfit  of  provisions  and  tools. 


EVOLUTION  OF  THE  MININU  CAMP. 


w 


a  j)iti- 


iKiK-ath  the  foliage.  The  houikIh  of  crowbar  and  pick 
ncclio  from  the  cliffs,  and  roll  off  upon  the  hrecze 
iiiiiiu'h'd  with  the  hum  4)f  voices  from  hnuized  and 
iiairy  men,  who  delve  into  the  Imnks  and  hill-slopc, 
covoto  into  the  mountain  side,  burrow  in  the  gloom  of 
tunnels  and  shafts,  and  broa-st  the  river  currents. 
Soon  drill  and  blast  increase  the  din;  Humes  an<l 
(litelies  creep  along  the  canon  walls  to  turn  great 
wheels  and  creaking  pumps.  Over  the  ridges  cf>me 
the  mule  trains,  winding  to  the  jmgleof  the  leader's  bell 
anil  the  shouts  of  arrieros,  with  fresh  wanderers  in  the 
wake,  bringing  supplies  and  consumers  for  the  stores, 
diinking-suloons,  and  hotels  that  form  the  solitary 
main  street.  Here  is  the  valve  for  the  pent-ui)  ^ph'it 
of  the  toilers,  lured  nightly  by  the  illumined  canvas 
walls,  and  the  boisterous  mirth  of  revellers,  noisv,  oath- 
breathing,  and  shaggy;  the  richer  the  niort)  dissolute, 
yet  as  a  rule  good-natured  and  law-abiding."*  Tlie 
chii  f  cause  for  trouble  lay  in  the  cup,  for  the  general 
display  of  arms  served  to  awe  criminals  by  the  intima- 
tion (»f  summary  i)unishmont;  yet  theft  found  a  certain 
t'lKouragement  in  the  case  of  escape  among  the  ever- 
moving  crowds,  with  little  prospect  of  pursuit  by  pre- 
uciLipiod  miners." 

The  great  gathering  in  the  main  street  was  on  Sun- 
day;, when  after  a  restful  morning,  though  unbrokcji 
by  the  peal  of  church  bells,  the  miners  gathered  from 
liills  and  ravines  for  miles  around  for  marketing  and 
relaxation.  It  was  the  harvest  day  for  the  gamblers, 
who  raked  in  regularly  the  weekly  earnings  of  the 
improvident,  and  then  sent  them  to  the  store  for 
credit  to  work  out  another  gambling  stake.     Drinking- 

'"  Conspicuous  arms  add  to  the  unfavorable  inipreseioii  of  language  and  ap- 
pcnrauce,  '  but  strange  to  say,  1  never  saw  a  more  orderly  congregation,  or 
s\uli  ;.'iH>d  behavior  in  such  bul company, '  writes  Coke,  A'/V/e,  .3(50.  ( Jov.  Riley 
ruiKirted  in  similar  conituendatory  strains.  U.  S.  Oor.  Dnc,  Cong.  31,  Soss.  ), 
11.  K.x.  Doc.  17,  ,J.  78(>-i).  Bortlnvick,  Cul.,  171-4,  found  camp  liotels  in  1851 
charging  from  ^12  to  .*>!.")  per  week.  Meals  were  served  at  a  long  tiible,  for 
wliicb.  there  was  generally  a  scrandde.  With  1H50  crockery,  tal de-cloths,  and 
Other  signs  of  refinement  began  to  appear.   DftfiiioK  Li/'',  '2W). 

"Sei!  the  testimony  (if  Borthwick,  (i3,  Raiulolph,  Stut.,  MS.,  10,  and  others, 
and  details  of  crime  in  my  Popular  TtibuHaU,  i.  143,  435,  521-3,  5SG,  eto. 


388 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 


,■<•'     ! 


ii:    i''(ii 


saloons  were  crowded  all  day,  drawing  pinch  after 
pinch  of  gold-dust  from  the  buck-skin  bags  of  the 
miners,  who  felt  lonely  if  they  could  not  share  their 
gains  with  bar-keepers  as  well  as  friends.  And  enougli 
there  were  of  these  to  drain  their  purses  and  sustain 
thoir  rags.  Besides  the  gambler,  whose  abundance 
of  means,  leisure,  and  self-possession  gave  him  an 
influence  second  in  this  respect  only  to  that  of  tlie 
store-keeper,  the  general  referee,  adviser,  and  provider, 
there  was  the  bully,  who  generally  boasted  of  his 
prowess  as  a  scalp-hunter  and  duellist  with  fist  or  pistol, 
and  whose  following  of  reckless  loafers  acquired  for 
him  an  unenviable  power  in  the  less  reputable  camps, 
which  at  times  extended  to  terrorism. ^^  His  opposite 
was  the  effeminate  dandy,  whose  regard  for  dress  sel- 
dom reconciled  him  to  the  rough  shirt,  sash-bound, 
tucketl  pantaloons,  awry  boots,  and  slouchy  bespattered 
hr^  of  the  honest,  unshaved  miner,  and  whose  gin- 
gerly handling  of  implements  bespoke  in  equal  con- 
sideration for  his  hands  and  back.  Midway  stood  tlie 
somewhat  turbulent  Irishman,  ever  atoning  for  his 
weakness  by  an  infectious  humor;  the  rotund  Dutcli- 
nian  ready  to  join  in  the  laugh  raised  at  his  own 
expense;  the  rollicking  sailor,  widely  esteemed  as  a 
favorite  of  fortune.  This  reputation  was  allowed  also 
to  the  Hispano  Californians,  and  tended  here  to  cre- 
ate the  }>rejudice  which  fostered  their  clannishness.'* 
Around  flitted  Indians,  some  half-naked,  others  in 
gaudy  and  ill-assorted  covering,  cast-off  like  them- 
selves, and  fit  subjects  for  the  priests  and  deacons, 
who,  after  preaching  long  and  fervently  against  the 
root  of  evil,  had  come  to  tear  it  out  by  hand." 


;!iii£i 


•'^  Bftrthwick,  Cal,  134,  makes  most  of  these  ruffians  western  border  men. 
Lainbfitie,  Toy.,  259,  declaims  against  the  roughuess  and  brutal  egotism  ot 
certain  ulasses  of  Americans. 

'^  Letts,  t'nl,  103-4,  remarks  on  the  luck  attending  sailors,  etc.  Militiry 
deserters  alx)unded.  Riley  appealed  to  people  to  aid  iu  restoring  deserters 
from  the  war  and  mercliant  vessels,  mrtly  to  insure  greater  protection  aii'l 
cheapness.  5.  D.  Arfh.,  iv.  349;  Willey'ti  Mem.,  8(5;  Carnonn  Rtc,  17-1'.'; 
Heitn'x  Ked,  lG-24;  Unbound  Doc.,  327-8;  Fisher'n  Cat.,  42-9;  B^inijimd  Pnl- 
tfHn  M<n,  2li3,  287-98,  with  comments  on  Spanish  American  traits. 

'*Their  open-air  meetings  attracted  some  by  their  novelty,  others  as  a 
means  for  easy  penance. 


CABIN  ROUTINE. 


leir 


own 

as  a 

also 

cre- 


[ilitiiry 
scrttiN 
oil  aii't 
17-l!t; 
((/  J'n/- 

•a  an  A 


On  week  days  dulness  settled  upon  the  camp,  and 
liie  was  distributed  among  clusters  of  tents  and 
huts,  some  of  them  sanctified  by  the  presence  of 
woiiian,'^  as  indicated  by  the  garden  patch  witli  flow- 
ers F<^r  winter,  log  and  clapboard  houses  replaced 
to  a  great  extent  the  precarious  tent  and  brush  Jiut,^* 
although  frequently  left  with  sodded  floor,  bark  roof, 
and  a  split  log  for  the  door.  The  interior  was  scantily 
provided  with  a  fixed  frame  of  sticks  supporting  a 
stretched  canvas  bed,  or  bolster  of  leaves  and  straw. 
A  similarly  rooted  table  was  at  times  supplemented 
by  an  old  chest,  with  a  bench  or  blocks  of  wood  for 
scats.  A  shelf  with  some  dingy  books  and  pa))ers,  a 
broken  mirror  and  newspaper  illustrations  adorned  the 
walls,  and  at  one  end  gaped  a  rude  hearth  of  stones 
and  mud,  with  its  indispensable  frying-pan  and  pot,  and 
in  the  corner  a  flour-bag,  a  keg  or  two,  and  some  cans 
with  preserved  food.  The  disorder  indicated  a  batch- 
elor's  quarters,  the  trusty  rifle  and  the  indispensable 
flask  and  tobacco  at  times  playing  hide  and  seek  in 
the  scattered  rubbish." 

The  inmates  were  early  astir,  and  the  cabin  stood 
deserted  throughout  the  day,  save  when  some  friend 
or  wanderer  might  enter  its  unlocked  precincts,  wel- 
come to  its  comforts,  or  when  the  owners  could  att'ord 
to  reuurn  for  a  siesta  during  the  midday  heat.*'* 
Tfiward  sunset  the  miners  came  filirii;  back  alonjyf  the 
ravines,  gathering  sticks  for  the  kitchen  fire,  and 
merrily  speeding  their  halloos  along  the  clifl's,  whatso- 
ever may  have  been  the  fortune  of  the  day.  If  sev- 
eral belonged  to  the  mess,  eacii  took  his  turn  as  cook, 

'' Not  a  few  joined  their  husliands  in  gold- .cashing.  Cal.  Courier,  \)ec.  7, 
18')0;  (/riiH.1  Vcl  Dirt^cUwjt,  ISfM),  44;  Buniclt'n  Jive,  MS.,  ii.  150-3;  S.  J. 
J'iuiu'ir,  Nov.  23,  1878;  Sunf/i  Jiosn  Dvmoc.,  Aug.  29,  1870. 

'"Tlie  latter  made  of  four  corner  posts  covered  with  leafy  bruahwooil,  the 
sides  lit  times  with  ba.iket-work  filling.  Others  erected  a  sort  of  l>ru^sll  tent 
witii  a  ridte-pol";  upheld  at  one  end  by  a  tree  and  supporting  sloping  sticks 
iil"iii  which  the  brush  was  piled. 

''  The  kitchen  fire  was  in  summer  as  often  kindled  beneath  a  tree,  in  the 
smoke  of  which  danglud  the  ham  bone.  No  sooner  was  a  cabin  erected  than 
a  large  lilack  species  of  rat  nestled  beneath  it,  to  make  raids  on  fooil  and 
clothing. 

'"  We  returned  to  work  at  3  p.  M.    Wheaion's  Stat.,  MS.,  6. 


390 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 


and  preceded  the  rest  to  prepare  the  simple  food  of 
Siilt  pork  and  beans,  perhaps  a  cliop  or  steak,  tea  or 
coffee,  and  the  bread  or  flapjack,  the  former  baked 
with  saleratus,  the  latter  consisting  of  mere  flour  and 
water  and  a  pinch  of  salt,  mixed  in  the  gold-pan  and 
fried  with  some  grease.^^  Many  a  solitary  miner  de- 
voted Sunday  to  prepare  sup})lies  of  bread  and  cotlce 
for  the  week.  Exhausted  nature  joined  with  custom 
in  sustaining  a  change  of  routine  for  this  day,^*^  and 
here  it  became  one  for  renovation,  bodily  and  mental, 
foremost  in  mending  and  washing,  brushing  up  tlio 
cabin,  and  preparing  for  the  coming  week's  campaign, 
then  for  recreation  at  the  village.  Every  evening  also, 
tlie  camp  fire,  replenished  by  the  cook,  drew  convivial 
souls  to  feast  on  startling  tales  or  yarns  of  treasuru- 
troves,  on  merry  songs  with  pan  and  kettle  accom- 
paniment, on  the  varying  fortunes  of  the  cards.  A 
few  found  greater  interest  in  a  book,  and  others,  lulled 
bv  the  hum  around,  sank  into  reverie  of  home  and 
bo^'hood  scenes. 

The  vounjT  and  unmated  could  not  fail  to  find 
allurement  in  this  free  and  bracing  life,  with  its  natuie 
environment,  devoid  of  conventionalisms  and  fettering 
artificiality,  with  its  appeal  to  the  roving  instinct  and 
love  of  adventure,  and  its  fascinating  vistas  of  enrich- 
ment. Little  mattered  to  them  occasional  privations '^ 
and  exposure,  which  were  generally  self-imposed  and 
soon  forgotten  midst  the  excitement  of  gold-huntiiiu'. 
Even  sickness  passed  out  of  mind  like  a  fleeting  niglit- 


it 


"The  Australian  'damper,'  formed  by  baking  the  dough  beneath  a  thick 
layer  of  hot  atiheij,  prevailed  to  some  extent.  Wliile  heavy,  it  retained  an 
a^ipeti^ing  moisture  for  several  days.  Aniericaus  preferred  to  u.se  saleriitus, 
for  whicli  sedlitz  and  other  powders  ivere  at  times  substituted.  Low  a  Stnl., 
MS.,  3—1.  The  Hapjaek  was  also  roasted  by  placing  the  pan  upright  ln'fore 
the  tire.  Burt/ivick'nC'ii,  152-G;  Helper  a  Laml,  156-7.  Coffee  could  be  gromul 
by  crushing  a  small  bagful  between  stones. 

'■"Terry,  Traveln,  90-1,  observes  that  fines  were  sometimes  goo<l-humori'illy 
exacted  from  workers  on  this  day.  In  some  districts  a  briefer  season  i'dii- 
verted  Sunday  into  a  cleaning  up  day,  when  tlie  sluice  washing  was  paiiiitd 
out.  There  were  no  laundries  in  thr  camps,  and  bad  there  been  their  prices 
would  not  have  suited  the  miner. 

'"  With  scanty  supplies,  as  when  rain  or  snow  held  back  the  trains.  Aw. 
Newt,  Dec.  22,  IM9;  Arm^tromja  Explor.,  MS.,  13. 


FATE  OF  THE  MINER. 


nmre."  And  so  they  kept  on  in  pursuit  of  the  will-o'- 
tiio-wisp  of  their  fancy,  neglecting  moderate  prospects 
from  which  prudent  men  were  constantly  getting  a 
comj)etency.  At  times  alighting  upon  a  little  'pile,' 
which  too  small  for  the  rising  expectation  was  lav- 
ishly squandered,  at  times  descending  to  wage-working 
f(»r  relief.  Thus  they  drifted  along  in  semi-beggary, 
from  snow-clad  ranges  to  burning  plain,  brave  and 
liai'ly,  gay  and  careless,  till  lonely  age  crept  up  to 
conHiio  them  to  some  ruined  hamlet,  emblematic  of 
tlit'ir  shattered  hopes — to  find  an  unnoticed  grave  in 
the  auriferous  soil  which  they  had  loved  too  well.^ 
Shrewder  men  with  better  directed  energy  took  what 
fortune  gave,  or  combining  with  others  for  vast  enter- 
piiscs,  in  tunnels  and  ditches,  hydraulic  and  quartz 
luiiiing,'*  then  turning,  with  declining  prospects,  to 
diticrent  pursuits  to  aid  in  unfolding  latent  resources, 
introducing  new  industries,  and  adding  their  quota  to 
progress,  throwing  aside  with  a  roaming  life  the 
loose  habits  of  dress  and  manner.  This  was  the 
American  adaptability  and  self-reliance  which,  though 
preferring  independence  of  action,  could  organize  and 
fraternize  with  true  spirit,  could  build  up  the  greatest 
of  mining  commonwealths,  give  laws  to  distant  states, 
import  fresh  impulse  to  the  world's  commerce,  and 
foster  the  development  of  resources  and  industries 
throughout  the  Pacific."'* 

'''-  Xature  and  caudea  in  the  chapters  on  society  and  population.  See  also 
Iiiff'ri''<  Keel,  251-4;  Carson's  Rec,  39;  Brooks'  Four  Mo.,  183.  Bufifuin,  Sir 
Mil.,  97,  reiers  to  early  scurvy  from  lack  of  vegetables  and  acids.  Burnett's 
Her.,  MS.,  ii.  '237;  AllnCoL,  Dec.  15,  1849;  CoUon's  Three  Years,  339. 

■■"  Thu  incident  of  finding  a  coriise  on  Feather  River,  and  l>y  its  side  a 
plate  with  the  inscription,  '  Duserted  by  my  friends,  but  not  I)y  God'- -(?«/., 
J//.M-.  Ili.tt.  Pnjt.,  26,  p.  10 — applies  to  many  of  these  Wandering  Jews  of  the 
goM  ri'j,'ion.  I'arsons,  L\/'p,  of  Marshall,  157-01,  gives  a  characteristic  sketch  of 
a  miutT.s  burial.  Woods,  Pioneer,  108,  tells  of  a  minor  crazed  by  good  for- 
tune. The  habit  of  Americans  to  'rap-dement  depunser  I'or  qUils  recueill- 
tTiiiit'  in  a  l)lessing  as  compared  with  the  hoarding  of  the  Russians,  observes 
tlic  Heme  de.^  Deii.r  Monde.'^,  Feb.  1,  1849. 

'■"  It  is  iv  not  uncommon  story  where  tlie  poor  hohlers  of  a  promising  claim 
diviiled  forces,  some  to  earn  money  as  wage-workers  wherewith  to  supply 
means  for  the  rest  to  develop  the  mines. 

"  From  Chile  to  Alaska,  from  the  Amur  to  Australia.  For  traits,  see 
Biiinnid'.'t  Mormon.'<,  350-1,  370-1,  379,  3ld\:  IMchimjs'  Ma;/.,  i.  218,  340;  iii.  343, 
4<i'J,  500-19;   iv.  452,  497;  King's  Mouniaineerimj,  285;  Buffuin  and  Brooks, 


Hi ; 


I 


ivi 


ANATOMY  OF  TUE  MINES. 


Tho  brontltT  ofToct  of  prospecting?,  in  oponiiiLij  new 
fields,  was  uttoiulud  by  the  pt^culiar  exciti'inent  known  as 
rushes,  for  whieh  Cnhferniuns  evinced  u  renmrkaldo 
tendency,  possessed  as  they  were  by  an  ex;itjil>I<!  tciu- 
peranient  and  love  of  clianju^e,  with  a  propensity  Inr 
specuhition.  This  spirit,  indeed,  had  guided  tlu  in  on 
tlie  journey  to  the  ihstant  shores  of  the  Pacific,  an<! 
j)erhaps  one  step  farther  nii^lit  brin|j^  tlieni  to  th"  -^lit- 
terinn"  goal  Tlio  iliscoveriivs  and  troves  nuuK^  daily 
art)und  them  were  so  iuterestin«?  as  to  render  any  talc 
of  jj^oKl  cri>dihle.  An  elfervescini?  socii^ty,  whose  day's 
work  was  but  a  wager  against  the  ITniden  treasure  dl" 
nature,  was  readily  excited  by  every  breeze  of  ruinur. 
JCven  men  witii  valuable  claims,  yielding  perhaps  ,SJ0 
or  $40  a  day,  would  he  seized  by  tlu;  vision  and  tullow 
it,  in  hopc^s  of  still  greater  returns.  Others  had  tx- 
hausttnl  their  working-ground,  or  lay  under  enroictd 
inactivity  for  lack  or  excess  of  water,  according  to  the 
nature  of  the  field,  and  were  conseijut^ntly  prepared  to 
join  the  current  of  less  fortunate  adventurers.'" 

So  that  the  phenomenon  of  men  rushing  hither  and 
thither  for  gold  was  constant  enouiih  within  the  (lis- 
tricts  to  keep  the  population  ever  ready  to  assist  in 
extendinijf  the  field  beyond  them.  Tht;  Mariiiosa 
region  received  an  infiux  in  1841),"^  which  two  years 
later  fiitted  into  Kern,  yet  left  no  impression  to  guard 
against  tho  great  Kern  Kiver  excitement  of  IS.k"), 
when  tho  state  was  disturbed   by  the  movement  of 

jKutsiin;  MerriWn  Stat.,  }>[S.,  f),  10;  Cnmn'n  SttiL,  MS.,  18;  Mixed.  S(>if.,  MS., 
I(>,  oto.;  With'  H'csY.,  .Jan.  ISTm;  J'hiiirr  Mttij.,  i. '21',\,',H1;  l'iijin>ii'.i  <'<il..  '2'.M; 
S.  F.  liuHithi,  Jan.  4,  185S;  liorthwirk'H  I'tti,  passiin;  J'oli/msiiDi,  vi.  7S.  M'; 
St  Anituit,  I'd//.,  i'lT'i-D;  (hrrliintl.  May  1872,  4.'J7-S;  xiv.  3l'l -S;  .\<ii-iliii-ii 
h'nti'iyri.if,  March  '20,  KS74;  Xoiir.  Ainialo*  I'oi/.,  cxxi.x.  I'21-4,  '_*'J.'>-4();  Ki}i'ii 
Vid.  Skrti'/wK,  SO- .V2.  Frij,'iiot,  ('«/.,  109,  coiiiinuiit.H  on  tho  alwoucc  of  nigaiii- 
/atioiis  ainoiii;  Kurojieans  ami  Spanish  Aiiiericans  for  groat  i'iitori>risos. 
U\mlii\n-irK  Stilt. ,  MS.,  3-:W,  au(l  7\/lrrs  BidweWs  Bur,  MS.,  5-8,  contain 
peijoiial  romiiiiseeiu'es  of  mining  life. 

'■"' Ignorance  of  gi-ologie  laws  fostercil  a  hcliof  in  a  vast  mother  loile,  [itr- 
l\a|)s  depoaitetl  by  a  volcanic  eruption,  from  which  the  met:il  couM  lio 
shovelleil  or  oliiselled  off  by  the  cart-load.  Instances  of  tlieories  in  II'ikh/s' 
Pionft'i;  ()4-.');  Dcohk  Stttt.,  MS.,  3;  /J«//i(w'.'»  Six  Mo.,  74-5;  Siiiij>iions  Cid., 
11-13;  Oit'i-hml  Mo.,  i.  141;  Hayes'  Minimj,  L  80, 

"  Carson's  liecoL,  9 


IIUSIIKS  FOR  NKW   FIKLIW. 


303 


Tioarly  5,000  disappointwl  fortuiio-lmntiTH."'*  An  ox- 
jiiniii.iliou  ()f'tli(!  «iii(^ir<'lin<j;  ran^ciH  1(m1  to  iiion;  or  I(;.sh 
siiccrssful  <i«'HC(;ntH  U[)ori  Wiilk(!r  Jliviir  atui  other  (\'\*r- 
ijiii'^s. "  which  Hcrvcnl  to  buihl  up  thocoutit'u!S  of  Mono, 
Jiivo,  niid  San  Hfirnardino,*'  whilo  wivoral  Hni.illcr  (k-- 
ta(  ImHiits  of  niinorH  at  diflV-rcnt  periodH  starth'd  tho 
sImkI  old  coaHt  countK'H,  from  Loh  An<^<'l('H  to  Monti;- 
rcy  and  Sonoma,  witli  dolusivo  Htatcinmts  hawd  on 
faint  atuiforoUH  traces.  ]Oa.stward  the;  fickle;  cncluin- 
tnss  Ird  luT  train  on  a  vvild-^ooHc;  (rliaso  to  TnickiMi 
]jakc,"  in  IS41),  and  in  the  followin;^  year  she  raised 
a  niiian't!  in  tho  form  of  a  Kilver  mountain,'''  while 
o|Mnini;  tlu;  patt;  at  (Jarson  Yaihiy  to  Ni'vadaH  .silver 
land,  wiiich  was  oc(;upi(!d  hy  the  multitud<5  in  ISdO 
ami  iJie  followini^  y(!ars.  Tin;  .same  ev<;ntf'al  IHTjOsaw 
coiisidiiahle  n(>rthern  extensions  arising  from  th(!(jiold 
j.ake  fiction,  wliich  drew  a  vatst  crowd  towanl  the 
111  IK  I  waiters  of  Feather  ]liver.  Altliouf^li  the  }^old- 
jimd  lake  presented  itscilf,  a  fair  compensation  was 
(iH't  led   at   the  rich   bars   of  the   stnsam.''     Another 

'"I'lic  ili.s,'ip|i<iiiiliii;{  dihI)  of  IN5I  Hoiiglit  for  Kith  iimlirr  ili<!  Rio  lilaii(;(i  of 
liiili.in  n|)<iits.  A(/H('iil.,  July  "22,  \H'>\.  In  IH't'A  u  lliittcr  occiirrcil  lierc!. 
IV.w/,..  />(l/,i,  Auk.  '».  I**"4;  heiiii'i  Slut.,  iMS.,  15.  Yot  tlic  ru.sli  of  1855 
liriiviil  not  wliolly  a  ilclusion. 

•'  !•<  ikiuikxmI  liv  thi;  I'lurrnnlli:  liidijn  and  S.  F.  BulH'in,  May  '_'7,  IS.W. 

■'' Miiii'ic'.s  li.'iil  ooi^n  made  liurc!  alns'idy  iu  1850.  tinr.  Tninxrri)it,  Nov,  2!), 
IS.'tO;  Sniili'.t  Still.,  MS.,  3-4.  In  1858  an  oxiiloriug  l)arty  found  tU^nvrn  in 
illl'i  rrril  p.irln  of  tlio  Siorra,  on  the  way  from  L«».>*  Angelo.s  to  Mono.  S.  /'. 
Jliilhiiii,  .Sept.  15,  1858. 

^'  Kasi^l  on  tiiu  Htoric.s  of  nno  (Greenwood,  about  gold  pobldeuon  ita  Htrand. 
.Six  wii  |<s  of  liard.sliipH  n-wardod  tin;  expedition. 

'-"I'lii'iiui;))  tlie  iuMtruinttntality  of  Kudmond  of  Stockton,  wlio  led  'J4  uion 
liy  the  1  ulani  Valley  in  Nov.  18.5().  Account  ill  AUn,  i'ul.,  .Jan.  i!7,  ]8.')0. 
Vrt  ( 'arson  Valley  waa  opened  HUOceMHfuUy  tluM  year.  I'ur.  N^iirx,  Aug.  21, 
Oct.  Id,  l,S.".0. 

'■'  Niit:ilily  Nelson  Creek.  Attn  Cut.,  .June  13-14,  July  1,  ]Hiti>,  and  contem- 
iMirirics  ilcscrilied  the  excitement,  especially  at  Mary.sville,  and  tlio  dcpopu- 
laticiii  of  many  camps.  It  had  hueii  started  hy  one  .Stodflard  on  tlu;  vague 
stiii'ics  of  otIiiT.s,  and  he  narrowly  escaped  lynching  at  the  hand.s  of  his  dis- 
;ippoiiitt.,l  party.  Kinie'n  Stut.,  Mixr.el.  S'jif,.,  Ms.,  <>-|();  Ihlnmin  Lif<,  .'$32-3; 
Jl'illnii'.H  Ai/irii.,  M.S.,  25;  Orerlniid,  xiv.  .324.  Versions  of  tlie  story  vary,  as 
ill  X.  /•'.  Biilktii,,  July  21),  1858;  Feb.  20,  1881);  Nmula  I).  (Inz.,  June2«, 
ISiiti;  Sltittitd  ('ituiicr,  March  31,  188(i,  wlucli  latter  states  that  (ireenwood  had 
oin'i'  lived  on  tlie  lake,  where  hi.s  children  played  with  the  nuggets.  Jle  died 
lithiri^  tliU  searching  party  started,  but  a  negro  overheard  their  plan  and 
iiniliiiMJ  by  it.  Mt  Minsr III !<■>■,  of  July  1805,  and  Oct.  4,  187.3,  ideiitili.'d  the 
l:iki'  witli  a  s[)ot  12  miles  from  l)o\viiieville;  but  conteiniiorary  accounts  show 
that  iiii.'.'(Ms  on  the  North  Fork  were  then  lookini;  towanl  F<!ather  Kiver  for  it, 
a^j  the  Ttrrit.  EiiU'i-pritie,  of  July  1805,  points  out,  iu  refutation  of  the  MiMfiijei: 


fll^ 


11 'J 


I 


M--  § 


"W' 


394 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES 


widely  current  story  placed  the  once  fabulously  rich 
mine  of  1850,  known  as  the  Lost  Cabin,  in  the  rejj^ion 
of  the  upper  Sacramento  or  McLeod  River,  and  ki'pt 
hundreds  on  a  mad  chase  for  years.^*  North-eastward 
on  the  overland  route  a  party  of  emigrants  of  1850 
invested  Black  Rock  with  a  silver-spouting  volcano, 
although  long  searches  failed  to  reveal  anything  better 
than  obsidian.^^  More  stupendous  was  the  Gold  Blutf 
excitement  of  1850-1,  an  issue  of  the  chimerical  ex- 
pedition to  Trinidad  Bay,^  the  originators  of  which 
blazoned  before  San  Francisco  that  millions'  worth  of 
gold  lay  ready-washed  upon  the  ocean  beach,  disinte- 
grated by  waves  from  the  speckled  bluffs.  The  diffi- 
culty was  to  wrest  from  the  sand  the  little  gold 
actually  discovered.^^  Some  of  the  deluded  pjuties 
joined  in  the  recent  Trinity  River  movement,  and  par- 
ticipated in  the  upper  Klamath  rush,  which  in  its  turn 
led  to  developments  on  Umpqua  and  Rogue  rivers.^ 
In  this  way  the  extreme  borders  of  California  were 
early  made  known,  and  restless  drea'"«ers  began  to 

A  new  gold  lake  was  sought  in  1851  by  a  party  from  Downieville,  guidud  by 
l)el()reaiix.  Some  of  the  deluded  ones  opened  Forest  City  Diggings.  JlitteWs 
JUiiiiiiij,  25-6. 

'■^*  Two  brothers  had  worked  it  until  the  Indians  killed  one  and  drove  the 
other  with  his  tale  to  the  valley.  Bii«tow's  lieiicountern,  iilS.,  d-lO.  AimtliiT 
version  ascribes  it  to  Joaq.  Miller  and  a  brother  of  Gov.  McDougal.  Willi  jo 
liecordcr,  Sejjt.  10,  1871.  AUii  C'al.,  May  1,  1851,  instances  one  report  of  its 
discovery.  A  similar  cabin  story  is  credited  to  two  Germans  far  up  on  tlie 
American  North  Fork,  who  never  could  find  their  way  back  to  it.  Diiti-h 
FlittEng.,  Oct.  2,  18G7. 

^■".Sf.  J.  Piaiicer,  July  19,  1879,  says  that  a  mill  was  erected  16  years  later 
to  crush  the  so-called  ore.  An  expedition  from  Yreka  penetrated  to  it  in  ISoS 
by  way  of  Goose  Lake.  S.  F.  Bulletii,,  Sept.  16,  1858. 

^"iSee  account  of  early  mining  on  Trinity  River  and  the  search  for  its 
jnoutli  at  Trinidad.  Cottonwood  Creek,  which  had  been  the  first  pathway 
for  Trinity  miners  of  1848-9,  received  a  disappointed  infiux  in  1850.  lu  1S4S 
a  party  had  proposed  to  seek  Trinidad  Bay.  Cali/ornian,  March  2!),  1S4S; 
Palmer's  Voj/.,  22-9. 

^'  A  calcul.'itiou  proved  clearly  on  paper  that  each  member  of  the  formed 
company  would  secure  at  least  $43,000,000.  Nevertheless,  these  mond)iTS 
evinced  a  sclf-sacrilicing  willingness  to  share  with  others  by  soiling  .stock. 
Eight  vessels  were  announced  Tor  the  bluffs,  but  ere  many  miners  Iwul  de- 
parted the  bubble  burst.  Annala  S.  F.,  312-14,  states  that  the  exhibited  saml 
was  speckled  with  brass  filings.  See  reports  on  treasure  and  excitement  in 
Alta  C'al.,  Jan.  9-18,  etc.,  1851;  Placer  Ttmes,  etc.;  Polynesian,  vii.  154,  etc.; 
Fnijnet,  Voy.,  180-3. 

'"''  Cal.  Courier,  Sept.  27,  1850,  mentions  an  exped.  by  sea  to  the  Umptiua. 
Lambertie,  Voy.,  222-3. 


CALIFORNIA  TOO  SMALL. 


395 


l()nk  beyond  for  the  sources  to  which  mystery  and 
(listaiue  lent  additional  charm,  enhanced  by  increas- 
iu<r  dangers.  Large  numbers  sought  Lower  Cali- 
foiiiia  and  Sonora  at  different  times,^  particularly 
Frenchmen  and  Mexicans  embittered  by  the  persecu- 
tion of  the  Anglo-Saxons.  A  similar  feeling  prompted 
numy  among  those  who  in  1852-3  hastened  to  the 
newiy  fcjund  gold-fields  of  Australia.**  In  1854  nearly 
2,000  men  were  deluded  by  extravagant  accounts  in 
the  Panamd  journals  to  flock  toward  the  headwaters 
of  the  Amazon,  on  the  borders  of  Peru.*^  In  the 
opposite  direction  British  Columbia  became  a  goal  for 
wash-bowl  pilgrims,  who,  often  vainly  scouring  the 
slopes  of  Queen  Charlotte  Island  in  1852,*'  found  in 
1S5S,  upon  the  Fraser  River,  a  shrine  which  drained 
California  of  nearly  twenty  thousand  sturdy  arms, 
and  for  a  time  cast  a  spell  upon  the  prospects  of  the 
Golden  Gate,"  Thence  the  current  turned,  notably 
between  18G1-4,  along  the  River  of  the  West  into 
wood-clad  Washington,  over  the  prairie  regions  of 
Idaho,  into  silver-tinted  Nevada,  and  to  the  lofty  table- 
lands of  Colorado. 

Other  spirit-stirring  mirages  rose  in  due  time  to 
lend  their  enchantment,  even  to  ice-bound  Alaska  and 
the  bleak  shores  of  Patagonia,  some  conjured  by 
unscrupulous  traders,  others  by  persons  really  self- 
deeeiv.'d."     Although   California  has    become    more 

''111  185'2,  1854,  etc.  The  French,  in  connection  with  Raouaset,  the 
Spanish  Americans  by  government  invitation.  Ihe  placer  mines  here  proved 
ot  cDiiiparative  small  value. 

'''The  convict  element  mostly  joined  the  thousand  and  more  who  sailed. 

*'  Wliere  25  lbs  of  gold  could  daily  be  obtained  by  any  one. 

*''  Thruc  vessels  sailed  thither  in  March. 

"Suo  //'•<<.  B.  C,  this  series;  also  journals  for  the  summer  and  autumn 

of  1  s:)8. 

"  Nearly  every  excitement  was  fostered  in  some  way  by  business  men  to 
create  a  demand  for  goods,  and  for  stiige  and  steamer  service.  Tliu  Gold 
Like  and  other  rushes  were  traced  partly  to  vague  utterances.  The  absence 
of  soiiu;  well-knowu  digger  from  his  camp,  or  the  unusual  plethora  of  some 
hitherto  tliin  purse,  as  revealed  at  the  store,  would  set  the  neighborliooil 
agog.  The  least  favorable  discovery  on  the  pirt  of  those  who  set  themselves 
to  «Mtcli  and  track  the  suspected  miner  might  empty  the  camp.  A  rush 
ImKtw  Sacramento  in  June  1855  was  caused  by  the  filled  pockets  of  a  pair  of 
tro'.isers  left  proliably  by  some  dying  miner.  HitteWg  Mining,  '2S.  Tlie  streets 
of  Yreka  were  once  staked  off  and  partly  overturned,  owing  to  the  salting 


396 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 


I '  a 


;1  '(• 


settled  and  sedate,  with  industrial  and  family  tios  to 
link  them  to  one  spot,  yet  a  proportion  of  restless, 
credulous  beings  remain  to  drift  with  the  next  current 
that  may  come.  They  may  prove  of  service,  howtver, 
in  warning  or  guiding  others  by  their  experience. 
Excitements  witli  attendant  rushes  have  their  value, 
even  when  marked  by  suffering  and  disappointiiiciit. 
They  are  factors  of  progress,  by  opening  dark  and 
distant  regions  to  knowledge  and  to  settlement;  liy 
forming  additional  markets  for  industries  and  stimu- 
lated trade;  by  unfolding  hidden  resources  in  the  new 
region  wherewith  to  benefit  the  world,  while  estab- 
lishing more  communities  and  building  new  states. 
Each  little  rush,  like  the  following  of  a  wild  theory 
or  a  dive  into  the  unknowable,  adds  its  quota  to 
knowledge  and  advancement,  be  it  only  by  blazing  a 
fresh  path  in  the  wilderness.  Local  trade  and  condi- 
tions may  suffer  more  or  less  derangement,  and  many 
a  camp  or  town  be  blotted  out,^^  but  the  final  result 
is  an  ever-widening  benefit. 

The  sudden  development  of  mining  in  California,  by 
men  new  to  the  craft,  allowed  little  opportunity  lor 
introducing  the  time-honored  regulations  wliich  have 
grown  around  the  industry  since  times  anterior  to  cunei- 
form or  Coptic  records.  Even  Spanish  laws,  whicli  gov- 
erned the  experienced  Mexicans,  had  little  influence, 

trick  of  a  wag.  Yreka  Union,  July  3, 1875.  Many  another  town  was  actually 
uprooted  or  shifted  by  diggers.  No  place  was  sacred  before  the  pick  ami 
pan;  farms,  dwellings,  ana  even  cemeteries  were  burrowed.  Thus  suti'ered 
the  grave-yard  at  Columbia,  and  the  Indian  burial-place  near  Orovillo;  tlie 
brick-yard  at  San  Andreas  came  to  grief.  Who  has  not  heard,  besides,  df  the 
expeditions  to  Cocos  Island  in  quest  of  buried  pirate  treasures?  Seu,  for 
instance,  Alta  Cat.,  Oct.  19,  1854. 

**  This  was  especially  observed  after  the  Eraser  excitement,  from  which 
interior  towns  suffered  greatly.  One  feature  of  the  rushes  was  that  they  car- 
ried off  foremost  the  least  desirable  classes,  leaving  steady  and  industrious 
family  men;  and  brought  out  much  unproductive  hidden  capital  to  promote 
enterprise.  See,  further,  Durbiiis  Stat..  MS.;  Garnisa'  Early  Days,  M.S.,  li)- 
20;  Hemhaw'8  Everdu,  MS.,  10;  S.  F.  Elector,  May  14,  18G9;  West  Shore  (laz., 
15;  Carson's  Appeal,  June  18C6;  Grass  Valley  Direct.,  10-11;  Letts'  CaL,  \')\- 
2;  Overland,  May  1873,  393,  etc.;  Yul>a  Co.  Hist.,  42-3;  Browne's  Min.  I!'S., 
15-18;  Nevada  Jour.,  Aug.  3,  1855;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Nov.  21,  1861;  Ajir.  5, 
18G5;  Oct.  14,  1878;  UittcWs  S.  F.,  271-3;  TuthiWa  CaL,  334,  etc.;  Annals 
S.  F.,  403-5. 


LAWS  AND  REGUIATIONS. 


307 


owin*^'  to  the  subordinate  position  held  by  this  race, 
and  to  the  self-adaptive  disposition  of  the  Anglo-Sax- 
ons. In  the  course  of  time,  however,  as  mining  as- 
sunii'd  extensive  and  complicated  forms,  in  hydraulic, 
quartz,  and  deep  claims,  European  rules  were  adopted 
to  souio  extent,  especially  German  and  English,  partly 
modified  by  United  States  customs,  and  still  more 
transformed  here  in  accordance  with  environment  and 
existing  circumstances.  In  truth,  California  gave  a 
moulding  to  mining  laws  decidedly  her  own,  which 
have  acquired  wide-spread  recognition,  notably  in  gold 
regions,  where  their  spirit,  as  in  the  golden  state,  per- 
meates the  leading  institutions. 

The  California  system  grew  out  of  necessity  and 
experience,  based  on  the  primary  principle  of  free 
land,  to  which  discovery  and  appropriation  gave  title. 
At  lirst,  with  a  large  field  and  few  workers,  miners 
skininK'd  the  surface  at  pleasure;  but  as  their  number 
increased  the  late-coming  and  less  fortunate  majority 
demanded  a  share,  partly  on  the  ground  that  citizens 
had  ecjual  rights  in  the  national  or  paternal  estate,  and 
superior  claims  as  compared  with  even  earlier  foreign 
arrivals  on  the  spot.**  And  so  in  meetings,  improvised 
upon  the  spot,  rules  were  adopted  to  govern  the  size 
and  title  to  clahns  and  the  settlement  of  disputes. 
On  the  same  occasion  a  recorder  was  usually  elected 
to  register  the  claims  and  to  watch  over  the  observ- 
ance of  the  resolutions,  although  frequently  officers 
were  chosen  only  when  needed,  custom  and  hearsay 
serving  for  guidance. 

Tlie  size  of  claims  varied  according  to  the  richness  of 
the  locality,  with  due  regard  for  its  extent,  for  the  num- 
ber of  eager  participants  composing  the  meeting,  and 
the  difficulty  of  working  the  ground;  so  that  in  some 
districts  they  were  limited  to  ten  feet  square;  in  others 
they  covered  fifty  feet  along  the  river,  while  in  poorer 
regions  one  hundred  or  more  feet  w^ere  allowed ;  and 
this  applied  also   to   places  involving  deep  digging, 

''At  least  until  the  government  should  bsue  regulations. 


Vii 


398 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 


tunnels,  and  other  costly  labor,  and  to  old  fields  worked 
anew.  The  discoverer  generally  obtained  the  first 
choice  or  a  double  lot.*^  Claims  were  registered  by 
the  recorder,  usually  for  a  fee  of  $1,  and  fretjucntly 
marked  by  stakes,  ditches,  and  notices.**  Possessory 
rights  were  secured  by  use,  so  that  a  certain  amount 
of  work  had  to  be  done  upon  the  claim  to  hold  it, 
varying  according  to  the  depth  of  the  ground,  tlio 
nature  of  the  digging,  whether  dry  or  witii  Mator 
accessible,  and  the  condition  of  the  weather.*"  F(»r  a 
long  time  holders  were,  as  a  rule,  restricted  to  one 
claim,  with  no  recognition  of  proxies,"*  but  the  trans- 

*'  While  10  feet  square  prevailed  in  mjvny  rich  digf^ing-s,  this  the  lowot  rec- 
ognized size  was  frequently  made  the  rule  at  other  places,  owing  to  tli(;  ilaiimr 
of  numerous  participants.  Instjuice  at  Wuher,  in  Kelly'n  Excur.,  ii.  '2.\.  In 
Willow  Bar  district  27  feet  were  conceded  to  the  discoverer  of  a  rich  gulch 
aid  18  feet  to  other,  with  indefinite  depth.  UnlKmnd  Doc,  50.  At  .Fackiiss 
Oulch,  near  Sonora,  the  claim  of  10  feet  square  often  yielded  .?10,(M)0  fiinn 
the  surface  dirt.  In  reworking  this  ground,  the  limit  was  extended  ti>  100 
feet.  At  Jacksonville  the  rule  was  "0  feet  along  the  river;  in  Garrote  district 
TjO  yards  along  the  creek  and  75  yanls  in  the  gulches;  at  Moutezmna,  Tuol- 
umne, three  squares  of  100  feet  each  for  surface  claims;  150  feet  in  width  for 
tuimel  claims;  100  hy  .100  for  deep  shaft  claims.  For  such  claims  with  enstly 
work,  douhle  claims  were  at  times  granted.  Quartz  claims  will  lie  Cdiisiilcreil 
Hter.  See  .il^o  special  later  rules  in  different  districts  in  Jfiftilt'.H  MiiiiiKj, 
l!)'2-6.  Existing  holders  were  frequently  respected  in  their  claims,  but  new- 
comers must  accept  a  smaller  size. 

**  At  times  the  recorder  had  to  inspect  the  claim  and  mark  the  comer 
stakes,  or  affix  a  tin  plate  with  the  nund)er  to  the  claim  stake,  a.s  at  \«.w 
Kanaka  and  Copper  Canon.  The  stakes  and  notices,  with  the  owiut'.s  name 
and  limits,  were  required  in  some  camps  to  be  of  prescribed  form,  boxed  for 
protection,  painted,  or  cut,  e^'C.  The  inscriptions  were  frequently  pecnliar, 
both  in  grammatic  aspect  and  in  force  of  expression,  as  'Clame  Xoti.se. 
Jumpers  will  be  shot.'  In  Jamestown  a  ditch  one  foot  wide  and  one  iloep 
must  be  cut  round  the  claim  within  three  days.  A  common  rule  was  to 
mark  possession  by  leaving  old  tools  in  the  claim,  and  woe  to  the  uiuu  who 
disturbed  them. 

**  At  New  Kanaka  one  full  day's  work  in  three  was  required,  uidcss  the 
owner  could  prove  sickness.  In  caae  of  temporary  absence,  claim  noticua 
had  to  be  renewed  every  month  or  oftener.  At  dry  diggings  the  term  was 
reduced  by  half  when  water  could  be  had;  as  at  Jackass  Gulch,  where  aii 
absence  of  5  days  during  washing  time  forfeited  the  claim.  At  Pilot  Hill, 
Calaveras,  work  to  the  value  of  §25  per  week  was  in  1855  required  from  each 
company  holding  a  shaft  or  tunnel  claim.  At  North  San  Juan,  Nevada  eo.,  an 
hydraulic  centre,  an  expenditure  of  §500  secured  the  claim  for  two  years.  At 
Shaw  Flat  claims  over  24  feet  in  depth  could  be  held  without  work  from 
Dec.  1st  to  May  1st,  owing  to  the  eflfects  of  the  rains.  In  many  plaies  work 
must  be  begun  within  three  days  after  staking  a  claim.  River  claims  could 
be  left  untouched  during  winter,  and  ilry  ravine  claims  during  summer,  vith- 
out  forfeiture. 

^dai,  MisreL  Pap.,  34.  Owners  of  different  claims  could  unite  to  w'ork 
one.  This  led  frequently  to  the  formation  of  companies  with  liititious 
members,  as  Frignet,  Voy.,  105-S,  points  out.     At  fclhaw  Flat  the  abuso  was 


COURTS  AND  CLAIMS. 


809 


f(  r  of  claims,"  like  real  estate  property,  soon  spranj^ 
into  voi^ue,  with  the  attendant  speculation.  Disputes 
wde  settled  in  certain  castas  by  appeal  to  a  nieetintif,'^'' 
l>ut  oreneraliy  by  the  recorder,  alcalde,  or  a  standing 
coininittce.'^ 

For  the  settlement  of  important  questions,  meetinp^s 
well'  held  at  stated  periods.  In  Nevada  miners  as- 
.soinhltd  from  every  district  in  the  county  late  in  18J2 
to  tV.nne  laws  for  quartz  mining.  Claims  were  ex- 
tnnK'd  to  100  feet  on  the  ledge,  including  "all  dips, 
ani,'lts,  and  variations,"  a  Germanic  form  of  inclined 
location,  adopted  in  England  and  the  Utiited  States. 
Tlie  S[>anish  law  limited  placer  and  quartz  mining 
alike  to  perpendicular  sides  within  the  surface  lines  of 
the  claim,  and  this  simpler  rule  has  strong  advocates 
in  the  United  States. ''^  The  Nevada  miners  further 
decided  that  work  to  the  value  of  $100  had  to  be  d(jne 

checke'l  liy  declaring  that  part  of  a  company  could  not  hold  the  claims  of  t'no 
wliulu.  Tlie  incorporation  of  coiiipaiues  ia  outlined  iu  /»/.,  1S2-3.  Wliilo 
m-.iiilKrs  of  a  couipany  sliared  alike,  nuggets  wero  often  as.-iit;iieil  to  the 
ti:iil>r,  if  found  bufore  entering  the  cradle.  Bnmks'  Cut.,  77.  Mush  Flit, 
I'hrvr  lo.,  alloweil  a  hill,  flat,  and  ravine  claim  to  ono  holder  by  preemption, 
or  oocupatiou,  and  any  number  by  purchase. 

^'Oiten  by  verbal  agreement,  but  more  safely  by  deed,  under  the  rules  of 
the  district,  as  sliown  by  MciJarron  I'n  O'Connell,  7  Cal.  lo'2;  Jnckson  va 
Fi-itlitr  Itiitr  Wiitt'r  Co.,  14  Cal.  23.  The  title  could  be  sold  xiiidi'r  cxecu- 
ti;in.  MrKinn  vt  BUhee,  9  Cal.  l.ll).  To  this  many  objections  were  rai.sed. 
MiA  r,l.,  March  25,  18.")«;  Site.  Union,  March  9,  1S55;  S.  1'.  Jiullrtin,  Maicli 
7.  1>'>7;  Xti'.  Jonrwil,  Jan.  18,  1S5G.  Legislation  was  demanded  to  remedy 
tlie  li>i>>enes3  prevailing  in  mining  titles.  Miners'  words  were  all  suHicieiit 
in  early  days.  Siuipnona  Cal.,  G7.  Midst  the  fricmUhip  j)crvadi!ig  camps, 
rules  Were  of  course  waived  or  8tretche<l,  and  jumping  claims  was  widely 
(iverlcMikeil,  especially  wliere  only  foreigners  were  injured.  The  restriction 
to  ci.'ie  claim  has  l>eea  maintained  iu  many  districts  till  late  times.  Demi's 
St-il.,  M.S..  4. 

■■-  ( ir  miners'  jury  specially  summoned,  and  responding  if  the  case  seemed 
to  do.serve  it. 

-■Or  by  any  member  of  the  committee.  They  were  sworn  by  the  justice 
of  till.-  pv.icc.  Decision  of  jury  or  arbitrator  was  final,  cost  being  paid  as  in 
leg-il  ca.sus.  The  average  feu  of  an  arbitrator  was  .V-.  This  aocdrdiui;  to 
Spriii;_'litld  rules.  At  Sawmill  Flat  each  disputant  was  advised  to  choo.<o  two 
arliitrators,  the  four  selecting  a  referee.  At  Montezuma  Camp  the  recorder 
was  pre.-ident  of  this  improvised  court  of  four  arbitrators.  Appeal  could  bo 
made  to  a  meeting.  Brown  Valley,  Yuba,  held  semiannual  meetings  to  de- 
cide dill'erent  questions;  claims  not  represented  were  forfeited.  Sitinn,  Mimnrj 
C'liiip,  220-6,  instances  a  case  at  Scott  Bar,  near  the  Oregon  border,  where 
two  strong  parties  narrowly  avoided  a  bloody  battle  over  a  rich  gravel  claim, 
ami  se:it  to  S.  F.  for  lawyers,  the  winners  paying  the  cost. 

•"  S-'c  my  chapters  on  mining  in  /fiif.  Met.,  iii.,  vi. ;  /7«.v<.  Nevada,  Cal.,  etc., 
thisseri.'o:  liockuxLi's  Up.  Alex.  Laici,  51-4,  etc. 


II  < 


400 


ANATOMY   OF  TIIK  MINES. 


witliin  30  days,  and  reported  yearly,  to  hold  tlio  cliiin 
until  a  company  was  or^'anized.  The  erection  of  u 
mill  worth  $5,000  entitled  it  to  a  title-deed." 

A  defect  in  these  spontaneous  rej^ulations  was  the 
lack  of  uniformity,  which,  however,  was  larpfely  necos- 
sarv,  owiiiij  to  the  varied  nature  of  the  field.  To  a 
certain  extent  it  was  due  to  the  pressure  of  partici- 
pants, but  throughout  equity  was  the  guiding  jirin- 
ciple;  and  so  courts  lent  their  approval  by  hasing 
decisions  ^)n  the  customs  of  the  district,  and  the  gov- 
ernment  displayed  a  spirit  of  the  utmost  liberality  l)y 
abstaining  from  interference.  This  was  more  tliaii 
the  miners  had  counted  upon.  Under  Spanish  laws, 
the  crown  asserted  its  claim  on  the  mineral  wealth  by 
exacting  a  royalty,  and  it  was  widely  expected  that 
the  United  States  would  proclaim  its  rights  in  similar 
manner.  Indeed,  Governor  Mason,  Senator  Fremont, 
and  others  proffered  suggestions  for  the  lease  or  silo 
of  claims,  the  issue  of  licenses,  or  the  imposition  of  a 
tax  on  miners.*^"     A  royalty  need  not  appear  objcc- 

" Guaranteeing  perpetual  proprietorship.  The  above  work,  equivalent  to 
20  full  days'  labor,  must  bu  repeated  till  then  each  year.  The  Sauraniciito 
miners  required  the  reeortlcr  to  certify  to  the  20  days  of  annual  work.  Tiny 
excluded  foreigners  wlio  had  not  declared  their  intention  of  Injcomiiig  iitize:m 
from  holding  clainia.  Sierra  county  extended  claims  to  200  fuct  on  tlie  Imlo 
by  5lX)  in  width.  Other  points  in  the  roi.^latif-n8  concerned  the  form  of  con- 
veyance, rights  of  adjoining  holders,  abandonment  of  riparian  rights,  for- 
eigners, assessments,  etc.  The  regulations  of  Columbia  District,  Tiiohiinnc, 
among  the  most  coTuplete,  considers  in  18  articles  the  extent  of  the  district, 
size  of  claims,  limitation  of  one  claim  to  each  holder,  term  of  forfeiture,  noii- 
diversion  or  absorption  of  water  without  consent,  exclusion  of  certain  for- 
eigners, laying  over  of  claims  during  disadvantageous  periods,  recordir's 
duties,  riglit  to  run  water  and  tailings  across  adjoining  claim  so  long  as  no 
injury  done.  According  to  the  regulations  of  Mush  Flat,  uaremuucrative 
work  to  the  amount  of  ll,030  upon  a  cLiim  entitled  the  hol.lar  to  discontinue 
work  for  a  year.  Several  prospect  claims  could  be  held  if  in  different  lociili- 
ties.  Concerning  the  formation  of  camps  and  districts  and  local  govcrnnient, 
I  refer  to  my  chapter  on  birth  of  towns;  Capron'a  Cat.,  231;  Borthwirh's  Cai, 
125,  155-7;  Woods'  8  j-ti-m  Mo.,  125-48;  Jlelper'a  Lanil,  152-3;  AUj,  C<d., 
March  21,  1852;  Jan.  i:i  I'f',  1S53,  etc. 

**'ihe  latter  was  IVeirj<  nt's  idea.  Mason  thought  that  licenses  to  Mdrk 
lots  of  100  yards  sqnrr  could  bo  issued  from  f  100  to  $1,000  a  year,  uuder 
a  superintendent;  or  iv  tter,  to  survey  and  sell  20  or  40  acre  tracts,  or  lovy 
a  percentage  on  the  gold  found.  The  sec.  of  the  int.  recommended,  Dec.  3, 
1849,  that,  as  the  sovereignty  in  mineral  lands  had  passed  to  the  U.  S.,  they 
bo  leased  or  sold  on  condition  that  the  gold  pass  through  the  mint  for  levying 
a  percentage.  Surface  deposits  might  be  leased.  By  this  means  the  wwilth 
could  be  protected  from  the  foreign  intruders.     The  latter  point  was  especially 


TIIK  MINES  BEFOUK  COX(;UESS. 


401 


tioiifil'le,  especially  if  rogulatoil  in  favor  of  citizens; 
hut  tlie  sale  or  lease  of  claims,  ns  tendinj^  to  favor 
sptciiliitors  and  monopolists,  to  the  prejudice  of  poor 
n,,,!, — this  raised  a  general  outcry.  The  Icj^islaturc 
joiiitd  in  prot(>sting  and  recommending  free  mining, 
•Mid  lienton  and  Seward  kd  in  urging  upon  congress 
\.\ui  adoption  of  a  liberal  policy.  They  gained  at  the 
time  only  a  delay,  but  this  sufficed.  B(>forc  the  next 
session  took  place,  the  operations  of  the  free  system 
prcscnti'd  so  favorable  an  aspect,  and  local  regulations 
appeared  so  satisfactory,  that  interference  was  deemed 
unwise.^'  Indeed,  the  government  allowed  no  land 
surveyors  within  the  mining  region  to  impede  tlie 
itulustry.  Notwithstanding  the  occupation  and  trans- 
fer of  claims,  there  was  no  real  possessory  right,  so 
that  the  same  piece  of  land  might  be  enjoyed  by  sev- 
eral j)arties,  for  placer  digging,  quartz  working,  tailing, 
and  lluming,'^^  and  water  could  be  led  away  from  its 
channel  by  the  first  claimant  for  any  purpose.^^     Farms 

urged  by  the  mc.  of  state,  ami  the  prusiduut  also  favored  the  sale  of  lota. 
Cm'iriM.  (IMif,  1848-9,  p.  'J57,  etc. ;  1849-50,  ap.  22-3,  ami  imlox  '  mines;'  lil., 
1S.')0  1,  4;  (■((/.  I'uxt  (iiiil  P.,  187-9;  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc,  Cong.  31,  Scss.  2,  Sun. 
i»()c.,  1,  p.  11;  H.  Ex.  Doc.,  1,  p.  27-8;  Umii-rstil,  Xov.  30,  1850,  etc.;  I'oly- 
ifsimi,  V.  190;  Taylora  Ehlorndo,  i.  191;  Cranva  Past,  23-30.  Ma.son  in- 
iitrtiotcil  an  officer  to  inspect  tlio  goM-lields,  and  report  on  measures  for 
rcgidatiimH,  etc.,  and  ho  threatened  at  one  tinto  to  take  niilitjiry  2)osse8sion  if 
tliu  miners  did  not  help  him  in  arresting  deserters.  The  miners  saw  the 
Iri-shisiM,  if  the  covcrnor  did  not,  for  without  his  deserters  caught — or  even 
with  them,  for  tliat  matter — where  was  the  force  to  eonio  from  to  impose 
regulations  on  10,000  moving  miners,  buzzing  about  500  miles  of  wilderness 
like  liees?  U.  S.  (lav.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sesa.  1,  \l.  Ex.  Doc.,  17,  477,  554-C, 
")iil,  580-1;  Brooln'  Four  Montlix,  15,  200.  The  Mexican  custom  of  'denounc- 
ing'mines  was  abolisheil  by  Mason's  order  of  Feb.  12,  1848.  Unliound  Doc., 
•m,  408-11;  S.  D.  Arch.,  iv.  325;  CaHfomuin,  Feb.  2.3,  1848;  .<?.  J.  Arch.,  ii. 
49,  G9. 

^"  Tlie  president  so  regarded  it,  and  withdrew  his  former  recommendation. 
Mfud'/e,  Dec.  2,  1851;  C'om^.  Ololie,  1851-2,  13,  etc.;  17.  S.  (lov.  Doc.,  Cong. 
3-2,  Se'ss.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc,  2,  p.  15,  etc. ;  Cal.  Jour,  llo.,  1850,  802,  etc.;  Id.,  Axu., 
18.VJ,  p.  829-:«;  Id.,  Sen.,  1852,  583-92;  Puc.  News,  Apr.  20,  May  11,  1850; 
fi'c.  Transcript,  Feb.  14,  1851;  Alia  Cal.,  Aug.  1.3,  29,  Sept.  29,  1851;  Jan. 
iS,  .March  3,  July  17,  Dec.  11,  1852;  Ifitana  Judyen,  79;  Cranes  Past,  23;  Cw 
pivii's  <'(d.,  2?1.  The  people  would  risa  against  officers  who  might  lease  or 
sell  Lin<l,  it  waa  declared.  Riley  upheld  local  regulations,  and  the  legislature 
conferred  iurisdiction  in  mining  claims  upon  justices  of  the  peace,  to  be  guided 
by  miners  meetings. 

j*  Joiics  rs  Jackson;  O'Ke^e  vs  CunningJiam,  9  Cal.  237,  589.  Any  damage 
inflicted  upon  a  neighbor  by  subsequent  occupants  of  the  tract  must  be  paid 
for. 

^  Subsequent  claimants  may  deviate  and  use  it  on  condition  of  returning 
it.  Ditching  comi)anie8  can,  therefore,  by  priority  carry  away  and  sell  the 
IIisT.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    26 


402 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 


I.,  :], 


established  in  the  mining  region  were,  therefore,  apt 
to  be  encroached  upon  by  miners,  without  further 
consideration  than  payment  of  damage  to  crop  and 
buildings.  Mining  was  paramount  to  all  other  iiittr- 
ests  in  early  days,**  and  its  followers  could  wash  away 
roads  and  soil,  undermine  houses,  and  honey-comb  or 
remove  entire  towns.*^  In  course  of  time  agriculture 
assumed  the  ascendency,  and  with  the  opening  of  land 
to  actual  settlers,  the  ownership  in  fee-simple  embraced 
the  soil  and  everything  embedded,  to  the  exclusion  of 
intruders."^ 


Those  we  have  injured  we  hate;  so  it  was  with 
Mexicans  and  Americans  in  California;  we  had  un- 
fairly wrested  the  country  from  them,  and  now  wo 
were  determined  they  should  have  none  of  the  bene- 
fits. The  feeling  bred  by  border  war  and  conquest, 
and  the  more  or  less  defiant  contempt  among  Anglo- 
water.  McDonald  and  Rlnckhirn  vs  Bear  River  and  Auhurn  Water  and  .][. '  '.r., 
13  C'al.  220;  Jnrin  rs  J'/iillip-^,  5  C'al.  140;  Sims  vs  Smith,  7  Cal.  148:  Unto: 
Canal,  etc.,  vs  Waters,  etc.,  11  Cal.  143.  This  was  contrary  to  Eni^lisli  t\[kx- 
riaii  rules,  which  were  agitated  in  later  years  for  irrigation  purpoties,  as  will 
be  shown  in  n»y  next  vol. 

*•  Instance  decisions  in  Xima  vs  Johnson,  7  Cal.  110;  Oillam  vslfiifrluii-<mi, 
IG  Cal.  153;  Lentz  rs  Victor,  17  Cal.  271;  Inoin  vs  Plidips,  5  Cal.  14.");  llnU 
vs  Bill,  3  Cal.  227.  In  course  of  tinje,  miners  were  forbiddea  to  aiiproacli 
too  close  to  buildings.  An  act  of  Apr.  25,  1855,  protecteil  crops  and  iinpidvo- 
inunts  till  after  liarvest.  Eveti  town  lots  could  be  mined  so  long  as  rt'siilciR  r.s 
and  business  were  not  injured,  and  many  camps  and  settlements  were  inove  1 
more  than  once.  No  patents  were  issued  to  land  in  this  region  in  early  ilavs, 
and  so  long  as  it  was  not  formally  withdrawn,  miners  might  bring  proof  fnr 
gaining  entry.  See  comments,  in  Sac.  Union,  Dec.  8,  1854;  iSopt.  20,  l>."i,'i; 
Alta  Cal.,  Nov.  3,  Doc.  21,  1852;  I/<iyes'  Jliniiu/,  ii.  20«}-48;  Sac.  Tran.icriyi, 
Jan.  14,  1851;    Wood's  I'imecr,  {)8-9. 

*'  Instance  cases  in  Shinns  Miniwj  Camps,  2(52  et  seq.  Often  barn.-ii  jilaces 
were  enriched  with  valuable  soil,  but  oftener  good  land  was  ruined  b}-  harnja 
debris.     This  question  belongs  to  my  later  vol. 

"•'tjuch  holdings  under  Mexican  grants  did  exist,  and  contrary  to  tlie 
usage  of  most  countries,  and  of  Mexico  itself,  the  United  States  piTiuitUil 
no  intrusion  upon  them  even  for  minerals.  See  Fremont  vs  Floirer.  Folsom, 
Bidwcll,  and  Heading  were  among  other  tract  owners  in  the  mining  rc';;ioii. 
Laud  in  the  mining  region  was  Uto  long  withheld  from  sale  to  faiiiiers,  fcr 
moat  of  it  was  valueless  for  mining.  Conventions  met  to  consider  the  rcspLCt- 
ive  interests,  and  the  legislature  gave  them  attention.  Cal.  Jour.  yl.NV-.,  iS.").l 
p.  8G5;  A/.,  Sm.,  649;  J/aifes'  Miniwj,  ii.  201,  etc.;  ('«/.  Politics,  207-74;  /.'i,./ 
Of.  Jfcpt,  1855,  141;  Sac.  Union,  March  16,  July  13,  Aug.  9-10,  1855;  Ian.  '.'S, 
Feb.  14,  Apr.  22-3,  1856;  AUa  Cal.,  Dec.  8-11,  Dec.  25-31,  1852;  May  JS, 
Aug.  1,  Nov.  2,  12,  1853,  with  convention  proceedings.  Peachy,  on  Miniwj 
Laws,  1-80;  Savaye's  Coll.,  43-4. 


FOREIGNERS  IN  THE  MIXES, 


408 


;foro,  apt 
,  furtlier 
crop  and 
ler  iuttT- 
ash  away 
-comb  or 
jriculture 
ig  of  land 
embraced 
elusion  of 


was  with 
J  had  un- 
l  now  wc 
the  bene- 
conquest, 
ig  Anglo- 

crnnd  SL ''»., 
\\.  US;  liulK 
Eni,'li^li  rija- 
|)oscs,  ad  will 

il.  14.');  H'xh 
to  a[iiiroaili 

|an<l  iiiipiow- 
as  iTsideiii'i-ii 
were  iiidve  1 

|iii  early  ila_\  s, 

!pt.  '20,  l>Vi; 
7V(Ui-«' /•(■;>,', 

Ijarrt'ii  \A\wi 
Jed  by  larn.a 

trary  to  the 

t;3  jiertiiitti.ll 

gc/-.       l''olsiiIll, 

lining  ri';.;iiiii. 

farmers,  fur 

the  rcsjiict- 

I.  As.-^.,  lS,i:t, 

l()7-74 ;  L'wl 

155;  Tan.  '2S, 

J)2;  May  -S, 

I,  on  fli'iiifj 


Saxons  for  the  dark-hued  and  undersized  Hispano- 
Aiii'ricans,  nicknamed  greasers,  liad  early  evoked  an 
i]l-(!is«fuised  animosity  between  the  two  races.  A 
(|iH  .<tion  having  two  sides  arose  when  the  United  States 
men  saw  pouring  into  a  country  which  they  regarded 
;is  tluir  own  a  host  of  aliens  to  share  in  the  iiolden 
jiarvist.  Then  rose  rankling  jealousy  as  the  untiring 
t^jxrience  and  tact  of  Mexicans  and  Chilians  became 
a[tpart'nt  in  the  discovery  of  good  claims  and  their 
profitable  development.  The  zeal  of  General  Smith 
in  j)roposing  to  exclude  foreigners  from  the  mines^^ 
oa\o  countenance  to  a  class  which  stood  prepared  to 
athieve  it  by  forcible  measures.  A  nmnber  of  iso- 
lated affairs  took  place,  chiefly  in  ejecting  Spanish- 
Americans  from  desirable  claims,  which  the  usurpers 
proceeded  to  work  with  a  tacit  approval  of  their 
countrymen. 

This  occurred  chiefly  in  the  central  and  northern 
mines,  where  Mexicans  were  few  in  number  and  unable 
to  offer  resistance.  In  several  places,  however,  on  the 
American  forks,  they  banded  for  resistance,  and  lent 
support  to  rumors  of  future  retaliation,  and  of  a  grow- 
iii<4  strength  which  might  soon  give  them  the  ascen- 
dency in  some  rich  districts.  The  prospect  created 
wide-spread  alarm ;  and  fortified  l)y  arguments  against 
aliens  who  carried  away  the  wealth  of  the  soil  to  en- 
ricli  other  rei^ions,  and  who  emiiloved  serfs  to  dciifrado 
labor,''*  entire  districts  rose  in  self-protection,  to  banish 

''His  announcement  as  military  chief  of  California,  that  he  would  check 
tlie  iiillu>:  of  foreigners  into  the  ^'oM  region,  was  addressed  tliroujjh  the  consul 
at  i'aiiuiiia  to  consuls  througliout  Spani.-^h -America,  and  pulilished  in  Pun. 
Sin;  Fell.  1'4,  184«,  etc.;  /'«>,.  ,;■  An/,.,  3-4,  IK-'Jl.  ^  He  would  treat  all 
fiirei^'iiers  as  tre<jKisser8.  De:ijiat(h  to  Washington,  C  S.  (Snp.  Dor.,  Cong. 
HI,  Siss.  I,  H.  E.\.  Doc.  Vi,  {>.  7(t4-8,  7-0.  No  attention  was  iiaid  to  it,  says 
Will,y,  Mem.,  MS.,  GO-2;  l>ut  it  must  have  checked  the  emigratiuu  sonie- 
wliat.     The  ^overnnieni  did  not  approve  of  the  step. 

''* Pl'ii-ir  Tillies,  Apr.  28,  J\ine  2,  IH4'.),  expresses  itself  strongly  against 
Cliiliaii  gangs  employed  hy  niaste;-s.  Native  Californians  brought  Indians  to 
ilig  fur  them,  but  Americans  also  emjiioyed  them.  Shaw,  (foliltn  Drtnint, 
5lt.  oliserves  that  Australians  banded  in  open  dcHance,  aiid  adopted  lilne 
sliirts  I'lir  a  party  color.  Tlie  cynical  Helper,  Lnml  of  Hold,  151-2,  dwells  on 
tlif  siii.'.lal  policy  of  allowing  aliens  to  enjoy  every  benefit  without  sharing 
til     ' ,     uus  of  citizens. 


404 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 


foreigners.^^  Men  of  the  Latin  race  thought  it  prudent 
to  obey  quietly,  and  to  join  their  brethren  in  the  San 
Joaquin  Valley.  Here,  indeed,  they  could  muster  in 
sufficient  number  to  frustrate  detached  and  unautlior- 
ized  hostility,  but  this  very  attitude  roused  tlicir 
opponents  to  additional  efforts.  The  aid  of  the  legis- 
lature was  induced  to  impose  a  tax  of  |20  per  month 
on  all  foreign  miners,  in  the  form  of  a  license.** 

So  heavy  an  impost  implied  prohibition,  in  view  of 
the  reduced  average  gain  among  miners,  under  months 
of  inactivity,  prospecting,  or  fruitless  preliminary 
labor.  A  host  there  were  whose  earnings  seldom 
yielded  the  surplus  required  for  the  tax.  Thousands 
had  consequently  to  abandon  the  gold-fields,  and  to 
drift  into  dependent  positions  in  the  towns,  or  to  ho 
assisted  to  return  home.*'     Others  hastened  in  tlieii 

**  Riley  lays  the  chief  blame  on  the  English,  Irish,  and  Germans,  and  a!  i 
that  the  foreigners  '  quietly  submitted. '  livport  of  Aug.  30,  1849.  t'liil^.m, 
and  Peruvians  were  expelled  from  every  section  of  the  Middle  and  Noitli 
Forks.  Placer  Thiie%  \lay  26,  July  25,  1849.  The  victims  were  given  tlirue 
hours'  gr.T,ce.  Many  naturalized  citizens  suffered.  They  were  not  allowcil  to 
fcvke  witii  them  their  provisions  and  machines.  Id.,  June  30,  July  14,  Sojit.  1, 
1849.  Mexicans  also  leaving.  The  desire  to  expel  foreign  'vagrants '  is  very 
general.  Alta  (  nl.,  Aug.  2,  1849.  Wheaton,  Shit.,  MS.,  (i,  refused  to  leml  Ins 
ritle  to  the  regulators.  On  Deer  Creek  the  miners  elected  an  alcalde  to  ofiKt 
away  foreigners.  KirkpHtrick's  Jour.,  MS.,  37;  FvMt's  HiM.  t'tiL,  439;  Pal;/- 
ju'Hiiin,  vi.  71.  Taylor,  Eldorado,  i.  87,  102-3,  speaks  of  cxpuliiions  also  d.i 
the  S.  Joaquin  tributaries,  and  regards  the  foreigners  as  intnulers.  Bloml- 
shed  attended  several  demonstrations.  Pac.  iVews,  Nov.  27,  1849,  etc.;  Ai /(</'< 
Excur.,  ii.  23;  Torren,  Perip.,  MS.,  148-9.  Even  Frenchmen  were  inchuliil 
in  some  proscriptions,  but  a  show  of  spirit  overruled  the  or<ler.  fii/an\i  A  diin., 
ii.  290-8.  In  several  camps  the  more  liberal-minded  Americans  interfured 
to  annul  the  banishment.  Instance  Georgetown,  Foster  Biir,  etc.  I'pkun'.i 
Notes,  328-9;  MaryHville  Directory,  1858,  25-0;  Lnniherfle,  Voi/.,  2.59-Gl. 

^'The  treaty  with  Mexico  in  1831,  revived  in  1848,  exem]  ted  peoi)le  of 
either  country  from  any  charge  or  tax  not  paid  by  citizens  of  the  state  wljcre 
they  may  reside.  See  also  the  Chilian  treaty  of  1844,  as  alluded  to  I)y  tliu 
consul  in  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  31,  Sess.  1,  H.  Ex.  Doc.  17,  p.  35-7.  IV lu 
sent  a  war  ship  in  1849  to  look  after  her  people.  Polijiteslan,  v.  183.  Fur 
Spanish-American  consuls,  see  Untmuiid  Doc.,  12,  383.  The  tax  act,  passed 
Apr.  13,  1850,  provides  that  no  foreigner  shall  mine  without  a  lieeuiiu  (till 
congress  issue  regulations  for  the  industry).  After  the  second  Mondiiy  in 
May  1850,  the  license  to  bo  renewed  monthly  at  $20  per  month.  V(d.  St'tui"; 
1S5»,  p.  221  -3.  Report  of  committee,  in  Vnl.  Jour.  Uo.,  1850,  802;  Id.,  S<  k, 
493,  1302,  1342.  Comments,  in  Soiioreiise,  Aug.  16,  1850,  rather  against  the 
continued  abuse  despite  licenses;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Aug.  14,  1850;  II'.  /*''•. 
News,  Aug.  1,  1850;  Cal.  Courier,  Feb.  1,  1851;  S.  F.  Jlerald,  June  1,  4,  1S.-.0. 
Lambertie,  Voy.,  239,  is  disgusted.  Frenchmen  remonstrated  as  lite  aa 
1856,  on  the  ground  of  treaty  privileges.   Le  Mlneur,  June  29,  1856. 

*'  City  crowded  with  Mexicans  who  have  bec^  diiven  from  the  niiuea. 


*1 


CHINESE  AND  MEXICANS. 


40B 


lK']|)lcssness  from  the  exposed  northerly  districts,  to 
soik  counsel  witli  their  countrymen  in  the  San  Joa- 
quin ivgion;  for  the  tax  was  rigidly  enforced  against 
tlw  others  than  the  Chinese  and  Spanish-Americans. 
The  headquarters  of  the  Mexicans  centred  at  Sonora, 
whose  famous  dry  diggings  suited  their  methods,  and 
while  monte-banks,  bull-rings,  and  other  revelry  bore 
testimony  to  their  predilections."*  Here  the  news  of 
tlie  tax  collector's  approach  had  a  different  effect. 
]ilailc  confident  by  numbers,  and  by  the  desperation 
of  a  large  proportion  which  could  neither  pay  nor 
di'part,  they  resolved  in  public  meetings  not  tt)  heed 
tlic  act.  The  gatherings  were  sufficiently  demonstra- 
ti\c  to  rally  Americans  from  surrounding  camps  for 
sc'H' i>rotection,  and  for  maintaining  order.  The  as- 
pect became  threatening,  but  nothing  serious  occurred 
Ix'voiid  the  excitement  attendiuij  the  fruitless  trial  of 
four  suspected  murderers,  the  arrest  of  a  large  num- 
b 'i'  of  blustering  Mexicans,*^  and  the  advance  of  the 
coik'ctor  with  his  formidable  escort,  before  which  most 
of  the  Mexicans  either  turned  in  flisrht,  liniuff  the 
roads  with  their  women  and  chattels,  or  pleaded  pov- 
crtv  and  abandonment  of  mininuf,  thoujjh  readv  to 
resume  operations  under  the  sheltering  screen  of  those 
who  possessed  a  license.  At  more  distant  camps  they 
defied  the  collector,  arms  in  hand.  Others  passed 
onward  to  seek  new  diggings  in  less  frequented  spots 
v.liere  it  would  be  difficult  to  follow  them;  or  vieldinuf 
to  ,v  national  propensity,  under  the  impulse  of  want 
and  viiidictiveness,  they  became  highwaymen.  So 
•uivilig,  indeed,  was  the  increase  in  robberies  and 

r  ,  I  .11: '-i\  A'..g.  6,  ISoO;  M'lrtiii's  S'tin:,  MS,,  r)4;  Sitr.  Traimcri) it,  Juno 
'!■',  i>-'  >.  "ih:'.  Chiliai'  ';ousiil  iirriiiii,'i'il  to  sfiul  lioiue  8(K)  [lursona,  at  lt(iO 
ei>  h. '.    >iep  .  .••(.iiiise  ot  repaymeiit.    jf'o/vci,  Periji.,  MS.,  14'J. 

"^  Kiiu',  liepnrt,  20,  estiin:ites  tho  iiutnlMjr  of  Mexicans  here  in  1841)  at 
lO.lKK). 

''■'()vor  100  were  brought  in  ami  detained  awliilo  in  a  corral.  Four  otluTS 
M'lTu  I'ciund  in  suspicious  connection  witli  two  dead  Americans,  and  narrowly 
i>i-,i|i.-,l  lynching.  Tho  court  being  installed,  they  were  tried  and  acijuitti'd. 
l)>t.iils,  and  of  poor  result  attendnig  the  tax  collection,  Altn  Cal.,  May '..'4, 
.liiiR'  .{,  ISSO.  etc.;  S.  F.  JlnaU,  Jtdy  l'.)-'2:»,  Aug.  I,  IS.V);  P,„:  A',  "v,,  May 
2,"  .SI.  Ort.  10,  2-i,  18.->0;  Cil.  Couri,',;  July  11,  Iti,  1850;  S.  /'.  J'icayune,  Aug. 
U,  IV.I);  S.  J.  J'lomri;  Aug.  11,  18,  1877. 


ii  i 


9b  !i 

•  i  i 

s  ' 

w 

-i 

406 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MINES. 


murders  tliat  a  company  had  to  be  raised  to  pursue 
the  marauders  and  watch  over  the  district,'"  and  a 
vigilance  committee  was  forn  ed,  which  after  some 
abortive  efforts  reappeared  in  the  following  year  of 
popular  tribunals  to  achieve  most  gratifying  results.'' 
The  difficulty  of  collecting  the  heavy  tax,  due  cliieflv 
to  its  excessiveness,  the  protestations  even  from  tliosc 
not  subjected  to  it,  and  the  questions  raised  concerniii"' 
its  constitutionality  "'^caused  it  to  be  repealed  in  1851; 
but  after  further  consideration  and  pressure  it  was  re- 
stored in  the  following  year  at  the  reduced  rate  of  $3 
per  month,  which  was  increased  to  64  a  year  later  and 
long  sustained.''^ 

" '  So  resolved  in  meeting  of  July  3,  1850,  when  subscriptions  began  for  the 
f")  HUM  to  bo  raised  by  Litton.  Appeal  was  also  made  to  the  governiufiit  f.  r 
a  lU't .  'i  icii*;  A  meeting  of  July  21st  resolved  to  appoint  a  conimitto.  i.i 
each  uc    i  lie  permits  to  respectable  foreigners,  and  order  all  tithoi.s  to 

leave;   aL  ,'ners  having  to  deliver  up  their  arms.     The  enfurociMtut 

proved  dihic  Aviii,  Doc,  2i:o.     At  Don  Pedro  B.ir,  Tuolumne,  an  aflniy 

took  place,  Aug.  7,  18.")9,  between  the  collector's  party  of  12  and  tlio  gatlicnl 
Mexicans.  The  former  fired  and  killed  several,  but  receiveil  so  warm  a  Y(--]Ay 
that  they  withdrew.  i!>\  F.  Pknyune,  Aug.  12,  1850;  W.  Pac.  Ncios,  Aii«.  f, 
1830;  and  references  in  preceding  note. 

"As  fully  related  in  my  Popular  TrUmnitb,  i.  496-514,  etc. 

'"The  supreme  court  alHrmed  the  constitutionality,  altliough  art.  1,  sec. 
17,  of  the  state  organic  law  implies  that  foreigners  shall  enjoy  the  same  prop- 
erty rights  as  citizens. 

'^The  law  of  May  4,  1852,  gave  as  a  reason  for  the  tax  'the  privileges  a:i(l 
protection  '  secured  to  the  foreigner  while  not  liable  to  t!ie  same  duties  as  tiii- 
Zens.  Loopdioles  were  cut  off  by  making  employers  liable  for  the  t;ix  nl'  ein- 
ployes,  and  by  imposing  it  upon  all  foreigners  in  the  mining  region  not 
directly  engaged  in  other  pursuits.  An  amendment  of  IS.'m  raised  the  tax  to 
$o  for  perscms  ineligildo  for  citizenship  (.lot  intending  to  bjcome  citizens)  an  1 
increased  it  by  $2  every  year;  but  this  was  annulled  in  1S.")(),  ami  the  gencrd 
$4  rate  athrmed.  Another  act  of  April  30,  IS.w,  niaile  captains  liaMe  to  p.-iy 
$50  for  every  immigrant  not  competent  to  become  citizens;  but  it  ]ii-ov.  il 
short-lived.  Cil.  Sf:tiit<'.%  1851,  March  14,  p.  424;  1S52,  p.  M;  IS.".:?,  M  iir!i 
30,  p.  (J2-5;  1854,  1(5(5;  185.5,  Apr.  28,  30,  p.  194,  21G;  185;!,  Apr.  l".t,  p.  141. 
i'(d.  Coiiip.  Lawii,  1850-3,  218-22;  CaL  Jour.  Ash.,  1S53,  704-5,  etc.;  .(".v ', 
Cat.,  \\6-\\.  It  was  stated  that  8,000  Sonoraus  stood  prepared  at  Los 
Angeles  to  rush  to  tlio  mines  when  the  repeal  law  of  1051  was  issued.  .1//' 
fill.,  ^larch  20,  1851.  The  receipts  from  the  tax  for  the  2d  lijcal  year  IS.'i.i-l 
amounted  to  only  .y29,9Ul,  despite  the  heavy  rate;  the  3.1  fi.scal  year  hroiiL'iit 
$1,003;  the  4th  !>53,1-J1,  at  .^3;  the  5th  and  «th,  at  $4,  $100,558,  and  !:1-J;;.:ii;!, 
and  the  following  year,  18,55-6,  brought  still  more,  nearly  a  half  at  .S(5.  ('"I- 
Jour.  Srti.,  1851,  pp.  5J1-8,  (}(10-701;  1855,  Apr.  3,  p.  27;  18.56,  p.  4(H)-  1.  Apr 
22,  p.  6;  I<L,  yl.*'*.,  1857,  Apr.  2,  p.  31.  S<ic.  Union,  Aug.  13,  Sept.  25,  Oct. 
9,  1855,  June  28,  Dec.  31, 1856,  refers  also  to  fraudulent  licenses  and  ev^'.-ioiis. 
S.  F.  Manmil,  iy7-2;)4;  Hnius'  Mhiiwj,  ii.  20-5;  Cal.  Pcivnuo,  4-10.  Tlu'  fol- 
lowing statistics  show  the  proportion  of  mining  as  well  as  foreigners  in  <acli 
CdUTity  for  the  civil  year  18.5(i:  Foreign  Miners' Licenses,  18.56,  in  coniitie>: 
El  Dorado  co.  $2.5,301),  Placer  $14,.500,  Nevada  $10,000,  Tuolumne  .SKMhki. 
Klamath  $3,000,  trinity  $4,500,  8acto  $1,000,  Siskiyou  .'^1,000,  Butte  t^KMHM, 


POREION  MINERS'  TAX. 


407 


o  pursue 
,"''  auJ  a 
ter  some 
year  of 
results."' 
le  chiefly 
oni  those 
Hiceriung 
.  ml851; 
it  was  re- 
■ate  of  $3 
later  and 


began  for  t!ie 
(verniiiLMit  fi.r 
coimiiittL'.  i.i 
all  otliem  to 
I  c'uforci'iiient 
mil',  an  aflr.iy 
I  the  gathcrc  I 
warm  a  rti'ly 
N'ttos,  Aug.  1, 


;li  art.  1,  sec. 
lie  same  prop- 

iirivilegesi  a;nl 
[diitit'S  as  cili- 
iho  fcix  (if  eiu- 
ig  rt'Liioii  not 
ic-l  the  tax  to 

citizens)  an. I 
|(l  the  oentr;;l 

liahle  to  I'-iV 

lut  it  ]iiov.  il 
I  IS,-,:?,  .M,trc!i 
ir.  l'.>,  IP.  141, 

1  etc. ;  .1  ii'.i"; 

lureil  at   Los 

1  is-5ue(l.  A  U I 
year  l«'l-l 

j'ear  liromrlt 

iiuUi-j;i.:i-!. 

If  at  so.  O'i 

400-1,  Apr 
.  2r),  Oct. 
Lml  ev:'.-ious. 
[o.  Tlie  fol- 
rners  in  <acli 
liu  counties: 
liiio  .^KMNHI. 
littotllMK*!, 


The  reduction  gave  fresh  courage  to  the  Mexicans, 
vlio  with  the  Mongols  constituted  almost  the  exclusive 
prey  of  the  collector;  but  it  brought  little  relief  from 
Ani;lo-Saxon  persecution,  with  the  attendant  seizures 
of  tempting  claims  and  maltreatment,  exclusion  from 
camps  and  districts  and  not  infrequent  bloody  encoun- 
ters when  objections  were  made,"*  a  show  of  armed 
resistance  affording  an  excuse  for  even  more  liberal 
minded  men  to  regard  the  safety  of  the  community 
as  endangered  and  to  support  the  crusaders.  The 
French,  with  Latin  blood  and  sympathies,  suffered  so 
severely  from  the  persecution  that  their  immigration 
was  much  reduced,  while  large  numbers  sought  relief 
by  departing,  notably  with  the  disastrous  expeditions  of 
Raousset-Boulbon."  Native  Californians  found  so  lit- 
tle protection  i.i  their  citizenship  from  similar  outrages, 

Calaveras  §12  500,  Shasta  8.3,500,  Mariposa  $7,500,  Sierra  $.3,000,  Yuha 
§ti,")(K),  Pluina<  S4,750,  Amador  §3,8i)0,  Stanislaus  ^400,  Sail  Joa<piiu  §500, 
Tul  ire  $500,  Merced  $1,000,  Fresno  $2,000.     Total  $125.^00. 

■'  ItUers  would  occasionally  raise  a  'stake '  by  a  fraudulent  double  levy  of 
tax,  after  tearing  up  the  exhibited  receipt.  For  notable  outrages,  sec  Cut. 
Coiirii-i;  Feb.  18,  1851;  AUa  Cal.,  Apr.  30,  June  18,  1851;  Sur.  Triin.scrij>t, 
Feb.  L'S,  May  15,  1851,  with  mention  of  three  encounters,  half  a  score  of  killed, 
anil  conserpient  exodus  of  Mexicans.  The  miners  at  Rough  and  Ready  in 
May  iSri'J  prohibited  foreigners  from  mining  in  the  district.  S.  F.  J/iiriit<t, 
May  'Jl,  IS,j2.  In  Mariposa  both  French  and  Mexicans  were  driven  olf  from 
a  .series  of  valuable  claims,  but  the  French  consul  succeeded  in  reinstJiting 
some  of  the  expelled.  ylrtaC'a/.,  May  12-14,  June  12-13,  July  1,  5,  11,  15-16,22, 
18.VJ.  A  convention  met  inTuoljmne  on  Sept.  18th  to  consider  the  question. 
/'/,  Sept.  20,  2C,  Oct.  18;  Cnlavenrs  Chronicle,  Si^it.  1852;  Echo  Par.,  J ii\y, 
Sept.  I>S52;  Soiiora  Herald,  Sept.,  Oct.  1856.  At  Bidwells  Bar  and  other 
places  it  was  resolved  not  to  register  claims  for  foreigners.  In  1 S.").'}  ( 'alaveras 
county  was  marked  by  wide-spread  expulsions,  with  attendant  outrages  that 
roused  a  ery  of  indignation  throughout  Mexico.  Somreme,  ^lar.  25,  Apr.  8, 
15,  lS.ia,  etc.;  Riwni,  Ilist.  Jul.,  iv.  371;  AltaCnl.,  Apr.  20,  Aug.  21,  Oct.  2, 
Kov.  1,  1853;  March  18,  1854;  S.  F.  HernUl,  Jan.  29,  1853;  S.  F.  117//;/,  Jan. 
2i),  IS.nS,  with  allusions  to  squatter  outrages.  Cronka,  Dec.  20,  18.14,  and  I'oa 
Soiiiirii,  Get.  5,  1855,  etc.,  continued  to  deplore  tho  Hispauo  persecution.  Sue. 
Uiiidii,  Apr.  9,  May  7,  28,  July  28,  Aug.  11,  14,  Sept.  5,  1855.  has  allusions 
to  Mexican  robber  depredations  au('  consequent  ill  feeling  in  Amador,  Cala- 
veras, and  adjoining  counties.  In  the  summer  of  1856  Mexicans  were  largi'ly 
exiielkd  from  Amador.  Id.,  June  20,  Dec.  16,  1S.")6;  S.  F.  Bulbiin,  ilay  1, 
July  2,  Dec.  18,  1856;  Jfuyi'.s'  Awji-Im,  xviii.  101-3;  and  so  at  (Ireenwood 
valley  and  in  Mariposa.  In  Shaata  the  sheriff  had  to  bring  lire-arms  to  bear 
on  a  party  intent  upon  expelling  Chinese.  Marymille  Appeal,  Aug.  24,  18(57, 
brings  up  the  fate  of  the  rilles. 

'■'As  related  in  the  chapter  on  filibustering.  Lambertie,  Vnij.,  2,il-3,  and 
AiigiT,  Cni,  105-l.S,  instance  several  marked  outrages.  They  acknowledge 
tlie  luck  of  unity  and  perseverance  among  French  parties.  Seo  AlUi  Cai,  Apr. 
2S,  1851,  July  1853,  etc.,  for  outrages,  and  preceding  notes. 


li. 


40S 


ANATOMY  OF  THE  MIXES. 


from  land  spoliation  and  other  injustice,"*  wliich  liaci 
moreover  reduced  a  larire  proportion  to  povoity,  tliat 
plans  for  emio^rating  to  Mexico  were  widely  enter- 
tained.'^ In  the  mines  the  ill-will  turned  greatly  in  a 
new  direction  with  the  growing  influx  of  the  ^-ct  iiKire 
obnoxious  Chinese,  ujwn  whom  the  wrath  of  America 
gradually  concentrated."'^ 

"^Officials  of  their  race  were  treated  with  contempt,  from  wliich  many 
BOUfxht  to  save  theinselvea  by  tiikiiig  sides  witii  their  opprc^ssurs.  /Vo,  /'fw., 
i.  llli,  507-9.  Incautious  arranj5eiiieiits  with  lawyers,  1,'auibUng,  and  extriiv- 
agant  di^iilay  hrouglit  alxuit  the  ruin  of  a  large  pr()|)orti(m  of  wciltliy  tain- 
ihes.    lionrh'it  SM.,  MS.,  o-Ci;  Al/'i,  Oil.,  Aug.  ll>,  1S,")1,  Aug.  5,  Kv"):j. 

"'Ihe  insecurity  iu  Mexico  from  internal  wars,  Indian  raids,  and  ,iilii- 
trary  oihcials  alone  prevented  a  large  exodus  in  response  to  tlie  invitations 
tendered  by  states  as  well  as  private  landdiolders.  For  colony  schonns  and 
inta^ures,  see  ValUjo,  Dor.,  xxxvi.  liS!>.  '2\'.i;  Hi<t.  Dor.  dtl.,  i.  Ti-JO;  iii.  .ST I  82; 
it'll-.  Union,  Feb.  12,  185.');  Sufi-ji',  Coll.,  MS.,  iii.  188;  HU.  Xorll,  .\ri:i:  Stiten 
unit  Ti'.r.,  ii.,  this  series,  especially  iu  direction  of  Souora,  for  which  a  ^jm  cial 
colonization  society  was  formed. 

'''A  man  whose  early  life  in  California  is  a  mosaic  of  sucli  expcru'iiccs  as 
are  inilicutcd  in  the  above  chapter,  is  llim.  I'eter  i)eanof  S:ui  l'iaiiii>co. 
Born  in  Knglaiid  l)ec.  '27),  IS-JS,  he  came  to  tlie  U.  S.  in  K*^-'.*  M'iili  liis  laUur's 
family,  his  ancestors  having  been  land-owners  from  the  Norman  perii-il. 
Jvluca'cd  in  New  England,  he  caine  to  California  .lune  IS,  18P,),  (in  the 
second  trip  of  tiie  Ori'imt,  being  one  of  \'2  forming  the  (lasjieo  nailing  co. 
After  .some  experimental  mining,  the  compauy  estaiili.~hed  a  terry  acro.-.s  the 
Tiui'  liiiiie  I'i  IT,  and  afterwards  dug  a  canal  to  fiunish  water  to  miners, 
neitliec  of  Aviiicli  maile  tiieir  fi>rtuiies  owing  to  accidi'iits.  In  tlie  tall  (if 
1S.")1  iJeaii  returneil  to  San  Francisco,  and  in  company  with  Saiiuul  .lacksou 
went  to  Orejon  in  a  schmuier,  which  was  loaded  with  liimbor  aiul  live 
stock  for  Portland.  After  getting  to  sea,  a  .soutlu'ast  storm  disabled  thu 
vessel,  wliicii  was  driven  up  the  co:i>t,  but  finally  found  its  way  into  iMau'.s 
inlet  on  the  mainland  ea.-totC>ueen  Charlotte  i.--land,  \\  lieie  they  were  detained 
A'.i  days,  tlic  crew  suliering  many  hardships,  alter  w  liicii  the  vessel  was 
worked  back  to  Tuget  sound,  and  I'ean  went  by  land  to  the  Cohmiliia 
rivei',  where  he  took  passage  on  the  steam-hip  Cotiiinliiii  for  San  Fraiui.ico. 
After  mining,  traling  in  cattle  in  Idaho,  and  various  undertiilciiigs  in  many 
phices,  he  scitled  in  San  Franci>co  in  ISIi'.l.  Throughout  the  war  periiul 
lie  was  an  ardent  unionist.  In  1871  he  was  elected  director  of  the  I'ieiieer 
society.  In  \Sl'.i  lu!  was  elected  ."school  director;  and  also  W'asclio><  ii  \  ice- 
pivsiilent  of  the  rioneer  society.  In  l>7r)  and  I87t>  he  was  acting  proideiit, 
anil  in  1877  was  elected  president.  Jli-^  politics  in  187")  was  iiuh  |ienilriit. 
he  being  a  member  of  the  bolly  \'arden  convention.  In  1S77  he  \v  as  elected 
to  the  state  senate,  and  defeudeil  the  school  system  of  San  Fraiuix'o 
against  attacks  from  its  enemies,  lie  was  in  the  state  convention  of  tliu 
rejmlilican  party  in  1878.  He  opposed  the  unlimited  coinage  ol  silver, 
and  urged  upon  longress  the)>olieyof  governmental  control  of  the  traiiMnn- 
tiiuiital  railways;  endeavorecl  to  divide  the  buidcn  of  the  water-tax 
between  the  ratepayer  and  pro|ierty-iiwner;  opposed  Chinese  immigratiun, 
and  tailored  for  the  jiurity  of  the  ballot,  and  the  registration  of  voters. 
Mr  lUan  has  also  been  jiromiiient  in  commercial    atiairs.      He  was  elected 

iii'csideiit  to  close  up  the  biisiiiLss  of  the  Mas(.nic  bank  ami  Merchants 
•".xcliange  bank;  and  is  (1888)  pn>ideiit  of  the  Sierra  lumber  company 
and  hoMs  other  ollicial  positions;  besides  attending  to  aii  extensive  private 
business. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

MlNlNi;    MKTHODS. 

1S48-1S5C. 
PRIMITIVE  ^^IVI^'r!  MAnuNKRv — Imi'kovkk  ^Ikans  fok  Ptxxj  l)i(i(us«;.s — 

(    \I.IK)I!M.V    ISVEMIONS — ToM,     Sl.rilK,    Fl.rMIM; HYDUACI.If    Ml,MN(! 

— iMniiKs,  SiiAhTs,  AMI  TfXSKLs — Qi"  Ai;  1/.  Ml  M  Ni; — Tin;  I'lKsr  Mili-.s 

—  K.XlITKMK.N  r,    FaILI'KK,     AM>     UkVINAI. — I.MIKOVKD     M  \rill\KKV --('(J- 
CrKI;ATI()N" — YlKLl) AvKIiACE  llAl.NS— Cl.l.>r  OF  tlol.l) — K\"1L    AM)    liKNK- 

noi \i. KnECTs  OF  Mixing. 

liicii  surface  deposits  and  few  participants  did  not 
tend  to  advance  mining  niL'tlu>d.s;  hut  as  Uw.  easily 
Worked  alluvia  became  sear<H'r,  and  the  mntd»er  of 
uiiiievs  increast/d,  attentit>n  was  turned  to  less  remu- 
iiirative  auriferous  strata,  to  \>c  found,  not  alone  iii  the 
t-l.alldw  river  har  and  ^ukh  di.^'^'in;L;'s  which  so  far  had 
been  merely  slcimnied,  hut  extend: ny^  throu^li  benches 


aliove  the  level  of  the  sLreauis  an;!  ravin 


.11 


le  jiouows,  aiK 


1 

through  flats  and  j^ravel  hills,  the  de[)osits  of  .-uicient 


rivers,     ^^'ith  these  were  coimected  rich  b 


eo 


diilicult 

ot'acci;;;s.  as  in  the  bottom  <>f  rivers,  or  at  a  v;reat  (le}ith 
Iciieuth  layers  of  soil  (.f  little  or  no  value,  .\llof 
vliicli  )'i(ju:red  a  comhinatiou  of  hands  and  caj.ital,  for 
rcinovinLf  barren  surface,  sinkin-^  shafts,  and  drixin*'- 
tumicls,  and  for  machiiii>ry  with  which  to  perlbi-m  this 
wasteful  work  in  the  most  expeditious  manner,  and  to 
better  extrait  a  compensatinL*-  amount  of  Liold. 

Xuinhersdfexpei-inientsweri'  introduced  by  thought- 
ful iiinniLjTants,  but  nearly  all  deviseil  without  practical 
know  ledge,  and  utterly  useless.'     ^lauy  exct'Uent  ideas 

'I:!stanc<!  t'lie  ou;ril>r<r,is  ;i  id  co-nplicited  cievi  s,  ale.iiliics,  W!i>ilii  rs,  Jiiid 
dige.sttis  i.iLiitioned  i:i  Burin //'.■<  /.'<«•.,   MS.,  ii.  42-->;  J'l'i'fr  Ti^i    -,  May  "(5, 


410 


MINING  METHODS. 


(Mh'  ' 


:i  fJ 


were,  however,  obtained  from  men  conversant  with 
the  methods  of  other  countries,  and  these  suggestions 
assisted  in  unfolding  one  method  after  another.  In 
1850  the  long-tom  began  to  supplant  the  cradle,  uf 
which  it  formed  practically  an  extension,  with  a  capa- 
city fivefold  and  upward  greater.^  Complementarv  to 
it  was  the  quicksilver  machine  for  saving  fine  gold.^ 
Both  were  replaced  within  two  or  three  years  by  the 
more  effective  and  permanent  sluice,*  an  extension  of 

1849;  Sioan's  Trip,  48-9;  Cal.  Pioneers,  no.  49;  Simpson's  Gold  Miiic!>,  7-8; 
Aw/er,  Cal.,  8-9;  Sac.  Bee,  Jan,  16,  1874;  OmrUind,  xiii.  274-85;  which  drew 
riiliculo  upon  the  owners,  and  were  cast  aside  often  without  trial.  Tho  ex- 
])re!isiiian  (-iregory  brought  out  diving  suits  for  which  he  was  oflfered  70<)  jior 
cent  protit  beture  trial,  and  Degroot's  diving  bell  raised  hopes  in  many  hroasts; 
but  they  proved  wort}des8. 

■■'An  inclined,  stationary  wooden  trough  or  box  from  10  to  30  feot  in 
length,  1  i  ft  in  width  at  the  upper  end,  and  widening  at  the  lower  end,  wliere 
perforated  sheets  of  iron  are  let  into  the  bottom,  under  winch  is  placijd  a 
sliaUow  Hat  ritHe-box,  four  or  five  feet  long,  with  cross-bars  to  catch  tiiu  run- 
ning gold.  Such  bars  are  sometimes  nailed  also  across  the  bottom  of  tlie  \\\\\wt 
box  to  assist  in  catching  the  gold.  Dirt  is  shovelled  into  the  upper  cml  liy 
one  or  more  men,  and  upon  it  plays  a  continuous  stream  brought  in  hose  fnnii 
the  dam  above.  Other  men  below  assist  in  dissolving  the  dirt  by  stirring  it 
with  shovels  or  forks,  and  in  removing  gravel.  The  puddling  box  ol)tuiiit'il 
favor  where  water  was  scanty  and  tlie  clay  tough.  It  was  a  l)ox  aljout  G  feet 
square  wherein  the  dirt  could  be  stirred  in  the  same  water  for  some  time, 
with  a  rake,  and  frequently  with  animal  power.  By  removing  a  plu^'  a  few 
inches  from  the  bottom,  the  slimy  matter  could  be  run  off  and  fre-sli  water 
introduced.  The  box  has  been  more  widely  adopted  in  Australia.  YnA\\  (if 
these  machines  existed  in  cruder  forms  in  (Jeorgia  and  elsewhere.  See  ,1  usinl's 
Gold  Seeker,  85-7;  Zerrenwer,  AuUetunij,  51,  for  similar  apparatus.  Croshy, 
Stat.,  MS.,  21,  refers  to  toms  in  May  1849,  apparently. 

*  Wliich  the  simple  cross-bars  failed  to  catch.  It  was  a  long  rocker  with 
perforated  iron  top  throughout,  above  the  riflle-box,  above  each  of  whose  bars 
some  quicksilver  was  placed  to  absorb  the  gold,  which  was  regained  by  scjiircz- 
ing  tlie  mercury  through  buckskin  and  retorting  the  amalgam.  The  eraille 
has  been  described  in  the  previous  chapter  on  earliest  mining  methods.  Tlie 
quicksilver  machine  was  introduced  from  the  eastern  states  in  1840,  3-400  lln 
in  weiglit,  and  costing  $1,000-$1,200,  as  described  in  Placer  Times,  Get.  'JO, 
1849;  but  by  1850  they  were  reduced  in  weight  and  price  from  three  to  six 
fold.  The  introduction  and  improvement  are  ascribed  to  C.  Bruce,  who  re- 
sided in  Mariposa  in  1873.  Mary-fville  Aj>peal,  Jan.  16,  1873;  Sac,  Tramcript, 
May  29,  1850;  Placer  Times,  Apr.  13,  1850. 

♦  Eitlior  may  be  several  hundred  feet  long.  W^hen  of  board  it  is  niaile  in 
sections  for  ready  fitting  and  removal.  Small  sluices  reijuire  from  lialf  a 
dozen  to  a  score  of  men.  Largo  ones  demand  preliminary  liydraulie  ('[ler- 
ations  for  bringing  dirt  and  a  little  river  of  water,  which  obviate  nmeh  iiiaunal 
labor.  The  wear  of  timber  for  the  boxes,  the  bottom  of  which  lias  often  to 
be  renewed  every  20  days,  led  to  the  adoption  of  the  under-current  shii^e, 
wherein  iron  bars  and  double  channels  separate  the  coarse  debris  from  tiie 
liner,  and  allows  a  more  gentle  and  prolonged  current  to  save  more  gold. 
Tho  costly  timber  is  wliollj'  or  partly  saved  by  ditch  sluices,  sucli  as  tbi>  lotk 
sluice,  wherein  the  bottom  is  formed  of  lenticular  rolled  pebbles  or  colilile- 
stones  overlapping  each  other  in  regular  order.  One  form  of  tliis  is  lie  tail 
sluice,  generally  laid  in  the  bed  of  a  creek  with  larger  stones,  for  washing'  the 


TOM  AND  SLUICE. 


411 


,nt  with 
gestiuus 
ler.  Ill 
radlc,  of 
I  a  ca[ta- 
ntaiy  to 
no  gold.^ 
J  by  the 
msion  of 

Milieu,  7-8; 
which  drew 
,1.  Tlio  ex. 
ired  'iW  per 
any  hreasts; 

i  30  feet  in 
r  end,  where 
I  is  jilaced  a 
tch  tlie  run- 
of  the  uiijier 
)l)er  end  hy 
ill  hose  fniin 
)y  stiri'iiig  it 
)ox  (ihtaiiied 
ahdUt  G  feet 
•  some  time, 
1  pUii;  .1  few 

fresli  water 
a.  Bdlli  of 
|8ee  .1  ii.iliil's 

8.     Crosby, 

Iroeker  witii 
wliose  bars 
ly  sqileeZ- 
jTlie  cradle 
(hods.  The 
]>,  3-400  lln 
[ot,  Oet.  -JO, 
lireo  to  six 
Le,  who  re- 
\Tnin.'iCript, 

I  is  iiKule  in 
toiii  hah'  a 
liuliu  I'lier- 
pch  iiiamial 
lis  often  to 
pnt  hhi'uv, 
from  the 
knoi'e  fii'id. 
Is  the  roek 
or  colihle- 
lis  he  tail 
shiii''  the 


tlic  tdin,  and  either  constructed  of  boards,  or  as  a  sim- 
|)h  inclined  ditch,  with  rocks  instead  of  wooden  ritttes 
foi-  retaining  the  gold.  Operations  on  river  bars  soon 
led  to  explorations  of  the  bed  itself,  to  which  end  tlie 
stream  was  turned  into  artificial  channels  to  lay  bare 
the  bottom.^  The  cost  and  risk  of  deviating  the  river 
course  caused  the  introduction  of  dredgers  with  fair 
success.^  Along  the  northern  coasts  of  California  the 
auriferous  bluffs,  worn  away  by  the  surf,  deposit  very 
f  lie  gold  in  the  beach  sand,  which  is  carried  away  on 
nmh-back  and  washed  at  the  nearest  stream. 

To  the  sluice  and  its  coordinates  are  due  the  im- 
mense increase  in  the  production  of  gold  during  the 
early  mining  period;  for  without  their  aid  the  industry 

escaped  tailings  of  other  sluices.  Tunnels  are  sometimes  cut  to  ohtain  an 
oiulet  for  washing,  whence  the  term  sluice  tunnels.  The  ground  sluice  is 
used  for  rapid  descents,  aud  as  it  can  cut  its  own  channels  it  is  often  ai)plicd 
for  opt:iiing  railroad  cuts,  etc.  Booming  is  to  discharge  an  entire  reservoir 
upon  a  mass  of  dirt.  The  grade  of  the  ordinarj' sluice  ranguH  from  2  to  tJO 
i'.u  lies  for  every  12  feet.  The  upper  part  may  preferably  bo  steeper  to  pro- 
mote the  disintegration  of  debris;  the  lower  part  nuist  be  gentler  in  descent 
to  prevent  the  fine  gold  from  being  washed  away.  The  roek  sluice  not  only 
Ka\  rs  more  gold  than  board  sluices,  but  it  oflers  less  facility  for  robl)ers,  and 
reiiiiires  less  frequent  cleanings  up.  Quicksilver  is  used  in  proportion  to  fine- 
ni-s  of  the  gohl,  frecjuently  ill  the  cheaper  connection  of  amalgamated  copper 
pl.itrs.  Nevada  county  claims  the  credit  of  first  using  the  torn,  grizzly  (in 
connection  with  under-current  sluices),  and  sluice.  ^''criidaCo.  Dinrforif,  1S07, 
(11  ■_'.  riiny,  in  his  Xat.  I/i.^tor;/,  Del  Mar,  Prcc.  Mctalx,  280,  Austed,  (/old 
li'iii  r  aud  M'niiiiij  in  Pit'  ,  11,"),  129-33,  show  that  sluices  and  hydraulic  wash- 
ing were  known  to  Ronuins,  Brazilians,  and  others.  Others  point  to  board 
f-luiii's  in  N.  Carolina  in  1>S40.  W.  Klwell  constructed  one  at  Nevada  City  in 
till'  sin-iug  of  ISoO;  but  some  incline  to  credit  Mr  Eddy,  ilr  Eddy  i.s  credited 
with  the  accidental  discovery  of  the  sluice  method  in  California,  by  using  a 
trough  to  carry  the  dirt  and  water  from  his  claim,  across  that  of  a  (puirrel- 
soniu  neighbor,  to  the  rocker  lielow.  The  cleats  or  bars  in  the  trough  caught 
the  gold,  leaving  none  for  his  rocker  to  wash.  Blake,  Miiiiii'j  Min/iiiirn/,  \), 
instances  a  tail  sluice  5,000  feet  long  at  Dutch  Flat,  which  cost  .'?.")").0(X),  and 
took  4  years  to  construct.  The  best  account  of  sluices  is  given  in  limvie's 
J/yi/ritiilir  Mininij,  218  et  seq. 

•'The  water  is  turned  by  wing  dams  into  Humes,  which  are  usually  cheaper 
than  ditches,  owing  to  the  rocky  character  of  the  banks.  The  lluiiie  current 
isu[iplies  water  for  sluicing  and  power  to  jmmp  the  bed.  Bowlders  are  lifted 
liy  derricks.  At  times  the  stream  is  contineil  to  one  half  of  tlic  bed  while  the 
other  is  worked.  The  absence  of  heavy  rains  betwi^en  May  and  I)eceud)er 
permit  such  operations.  Plncer  Timm,  July  20,1840,  refers  to  several  tlumiug 
enterprises  on  the  American  forks  thus  early;  also  JJeiin's  Stm.,  MS.,  4-5. 

''The  steam  dredger  P/nfiiix,  of  the  Yuba  Dredging  Co.,  in  Jan.  IS.'il,  was 
highly  commended  for  its  success.  The  buckets  discharged  the  dirt  into  huco 
rocker  rillles.  Pnc.  Nrvi,  Oct.  10,  18.")0;  Sac.  7''-.t;wr/vj)^  Sept.  30,  ]SM;  Feb. 
1,  14.  18.")l;  ,<?.  /'.  P/w/wnr,  Nov.  27.  1850;  Moore,  Pionrer,  MS.,  11-12,  re- 
fers to  success  aud  failure  in  dredging;  also  t'onutock;  i'i'j.,  MS.,  30. 


it^ 


412 


MINIX(J  METHODS. 


ii' 


would  have  failed  to  provide  remunerative  einjdoy- 
mont  for  more  than  a  small  proportion  of  the  niininjr 
force,  as  shown  l>y  the  rapid  deviation  of  poorer  liiix)!-. 
ers  to  other  pursuits  after  1852.  The  savinj^  effcttcd 
by  the  rocker,  as  compared  with  the  pan,  \vr>'i  about 
fourfold.  The  tt>m  gained  an  equal  advance  upon  tlic 
rocker,  and  the  sluice  was  found  to  be  three  tiiius 
cheai)er  than  the  tom,^  for  about  35  cents  per  cubic 
yard  of  mining  dirt.  Even  this  price,  however,  was  too 
heavy  to  permit  the  mining  of  the  largest  auriferous 
de{)osits,  in  the  gravelly  banks  and  hills,  which  had 
moreover  to  be  removed  before  richer  underlying  strata 
could  be  profitably  worked.  The  sluice  process  jter- 
mitted  them  to  be  cheaply  washed,  so  that  in  tlic  ex- 
cavation or  removal  lay  the  chief  cost.  To  this  end 
was  invented  in  1853  the  hydraulic  process,^  to  undtr- 

'Tlie  calculations  of  Laur,  Product,  iletaux  Cal.,  on  a  basis  of  20  f ratios 

Eer  (lay  for  wages,  made  the  pan  process  cost  75  fr.  pi;r  cubic  metro  of  gravtl; 
y  the  rocker  20  fr.,  by  torn  5  fr.,  by  sluice  1.71  fr.,  and  by  hydraulic  pruccss 
0.'J8  fr. 

"A  Frenchman  named  Chabot,  in  April  1852,  used  a  hose  without  iidz/.Iu 
upon  ills  claim  at  Buckeye  Hill,  Ncvaila  co.,  to  sluice  away  the  gnivtl  wliicli 
had  boon  loosened  by  the  pick.  A  similar  method  is  said  to  have  boon  usc'l 
at  Yankee  Jim's  in  the  same  spring.  The  idea  was  applied  a  year  Liter  liy 
E.  E.  Matteson,  from  Sterling,  Conn.,  with  improved  j)ressure  to  wa.sli  ddwii 
the  bank  itself,  and  so  save  the  costly  pick  and  sliovol  work.  Ho  soon  foiiiul 
that  the  nozzled  hose  could  do  the  work  of  a  large  force  of  men  at  siiiull  t'dst. 
A>««/«  to.  Dim-tonj,  1867,  32-3,  67;  IlitleWit  Mining,  22,  144.  Hydraulics 
first  Used  at  Anierican  Hill,  Nevada  City,  says  Hint.  Nev.  Co.,  197.  Oiiu  of 
tlie  best  improvements  on  the  pipe,  etc.,  was  8ug<;ested  by  Macy  ami  othi  rs  nf 
the  same  county.  Matteson 's  perishable  canvas  hose,  strengthened  by  uutting 
and  rope,  and  with  wooden  nozzle,  w:is  speedily  replaced  by  sheet-iron  piiifs, 
and  these  by  wrought-iron  pipes,  with  goose-necK  and  other  nozzle.^.  Tliu 
wide  application  of  the  method  without  due  proportion  of  plant  to  cl.iiins 
caused  disappointment  in  mauy  directions,  with  a  consequent  abatement  of 
use,  but  with  greater  experience,  combination,  and  improvements,  the  re- 
vival became  extensive.  The  main  effort  was  now  to  obtiiin  a  sutiicieut  quiiii- 
tity  of  water,  with  pressure  increased  from  30  or  40  feet  to  200  or  400.  To 
this  end  special  companies  undertake  to  construct  reservoirs,  or  to  bring  wiiter 
from  distant  rivers.  The  fall  ranged  from  6  to  25  feet  per  mile,  tlie  liest 
grade  being  13  feet.  Wooden  flumes  were  in  time  largely  replaced  by  tlio 
less  fragile,  iron  tubes,  with  inverted  siplions  and  other  saving  appliances; 
yet  ditches  proved  the  most  lasting,  needing  also  less  repair.  The  water  is 
sold  per  inch;  that  is,  the  amount  escaping  through  an  opening  one  ineh 
square,  yet  the  volume  varies  with  pressure.  For  detailed  accounts  of  liy- 
draulic  apparatus,  mcthoils,  and  cost,  see  the  lieport  of  the  conimissiouei'  of 
mining  stiitistics;  Bowie's  Hydraulic  Mining:  Blake's  Mining  Mn<iiiner>i,  etc. 
Blasting  assisted  in  loosening  the  more  packed  strata.  Care  had  to  be  taken 
for  obtaining  a  sufficient  dumping-place  for  the  vast  debris,  to  whicli  end 
tunnels  and  other  outlets  were  at  times  rei^uired. 


HYDRAUUC  SYSTEM. 


418 


mill  '  and  wash  down  banks  by  directing  against  it  a 
stnum  of  water  through  a  pipe,  under  great  pressure. 
Tlu'  same  stream  did  the  work  of  a  host  of  pickraen 
and  siiovellers,  and  supphed  the  washing  sluice;  so 
tliat  in  course  of  time,  with  cheaper  labor  and  machin- 
ery, tlio  cost  of  extracting  gold  from  a  cubic  yard  of 
(rravrj  was  reduced  as  low  as  half  a  cent,  while  the 
cost  umUr  the  old  rocker  system  of  1848-9  is  estimated 
at  several  dollars.  After  many  checks  from  lack  of 
exp'riciice  the  hydraulic  system  acquired  here  a  greater 
expansion  than  in  any  other  county,  owing  to  the  vast 
area  of  the  gravel  beds,  and  the  natural  drainage  pro- 
virli'd  by  the  Sierra  Nevada  slopes;  but  an  immense 
preliminary  outlay  was  required  in  bringing  water 
through  flumes,  ditches,"  and  tunnels,  sometimes  for 

*The  official  report  for  1855  gives  the  following  list  of  canal  ditches  and 
branches: 

Cnuntles.             No.  of  Canals.       No.  of  Miles.  Value. 

Aiiiailor 30  355  ^(i,0<)0 

Butte 16  287  347.000 

f.ilaveras 17  325  497,500 

Kl  D' irado ....    20  610  935,000 

Humholtlt 60  60  100,000 

Klamath 6  130  150,000 

Mariposa 8  150  180,000 

Ntvada 44  682  1,123,000 

Plumas 2  65  100,000 

riacer  29  498  649,400 

Sacramento , 4  29  54,800 

Shi-sto 5  89  109,000 

Siskiyou 1  80  84,000 

Sitrra 79  810  aTO.OOO 

Trinity ....10  278  228,500 

Tuolumne 18  285  447,500 

Yulja 8  360  560,000 

Total 303  4,493  $6,341,700 

In  year  1854 1,164  $2,294,000 

Increase  in  one  year 3,429  $4,047,700 

In  addition  to  the  above,  112  canals  and  ditches  have  been  couinicnced, 
and  will  jmdiably  be  completed  within  the  next  year.  Amongst  tiiein  is  the 
•SiiTHi  Nevada  Mountain  Canal — an  immense  work — ten  feet  at  the  bottom, 
fcmrtet'i'.  at  the  top,  and  designed  with  branches,  to  extend  over  ■  '  o'lt  150 
njiles.  The  aljove  report  is  not  perfect,  but  better  than  that  for  ]  ■'■■!'•.  Com- 
pare C'a/.  Jour.  Axs.,  1856,  p.  26;  Id.,  1857,  ap.  4,  p.  28-32;  Id.,  is:.5,  p.  41- 
2,  etc.     Also  preceding  notes,  and  later  account  in  my  next  vol. 

The  first  noteworthy  ditch  is  ascribed  to  Coyote  Hill,  from  Mosquito 
<'reek.  Nev.  co.,  in  1850,  when  two  or  three  more  were  constructed  in  the 
Mine  county,  as  already  pointed  out  under  this  district.  The  claim  is  con- 
tinned  in  the  main  by  Sac.  Tranncript,  which  on  Feb.  14,  1851,  points  out 


I 


414 


MINIXG   METHODS. 


several  score  of  miles,  tlirou«»li  mountains,  over  dc  p 
ravines,  and  alon*^  preeipitous  elifi's,  by  means  of  luftv 
aqueduets  liun«5  sometimes  by  iron  brack'  •  \l\V'_r^. 
reservoirs  ]»ad  also  to  be  provided,  and  o  ts  and 
exte'jsive  places  of  deposit  at  a  lower  elevation  lor 
tlie  washetl  delwis. 

Deep,  timbered  shafts  were  not  common  in  j)l;i((  r 
minin<j^,  for  the  j>ay  dirt  was  seldom  profitable  enoii;!! 
to  cover  the  expense,  but  for  prospectinijf  hills  tluv 
proved  of  value  in  determininj^  the  advisability  and 
direction  of  a  tunnel,  which  by  permitting  easy  drift- 
ing, and  offering  a  slight  incline  for  drainage  and  use 
of  tramways,  greatly  reduced  the  cost  of  extractiiijr 
dirt.'"^ 

This  system  became  more  identified  with  quartz 
operations,  which  already  in  1849  began  to  be  regunird 
as  a  future  main  branch  of  mining.  Explorations  sooii 
justified  the  belief  by  revealing  the  mother  vein,  wlin  li 
with  its  breadth  of  easily  worked  pay  rock  promisi  il 
stability,  while  tlie  outlying  parallel  veins,  in  hardi  r 

tliiit  two  canals  of  9  and  6  miles  were  alreaily  Itringing  water  at  Xevjuli,  the 
first  of  tho  1,000  long-tonis  kept  hu.sy  theroliy  jiayiug  .*l(i  i)t'r  day,  ami  t'.i' 
last  ill  tinier  .^1,  for  tlio  iiuuMy  residue.  On  May  15,  18">l,  it  ad. Is  tint 
the  'first  ranal  experiment' was  made  near  Nevada  by  brir  ;  KiKkCiik 
waters;  followed  by  a  Deer  (.'reek  conduit,  a  third  canal  Deer  Cick, 

parallel  to  the  first  being  nearly  ready.     Several  other  »  liail  luiii 

started.  See  also  June  15,  18,")1.  Ora/in  Vol.  Dlircforif,  Ibou,  10-12,  alhi  !■  s 
to  the  canal  from  Deer  Creek  to  Rough  and  lleaily,  j)egun  in  Aug.  IS.'iO,  iw 
the  first  enterprise  'on  a  lar<!;e  scale.'  Coloma'a  claim  to  the  first  ditch,  oi  .•:< 
miles,  is  supported  in  J/mt.  El  Dorwlo  Co.,  177,  and  that  of  Yankee  Jim's,  in 
1851,  ity  Placer  Co.  Dinrlon/,  ISGl,  1.3,  and  by  <S'(f»  Awliriin  Iinlifxn  :•  i, 
wliieh  attributes  it  to  IS.M).  loira  Hill  Pittrint  denies  this,  but  PI  im-rill'  "',. 
Kcnvr  atHrma.  Some  of  these  ditclies  could  with  the  aid  of  natural  cli.imnN, 
e.-isy  ground,  etc.,  be  constructed  for  as  low  a  rate  as  §200  per  mile,  l)ut  ;u  .i 
rule  tlie  expense  wiis  not  umler  S1,0:)0  per  mile,  and  often  much  more,  espe- 
cially whi!n  bridges  a!id  tunnels  were  re(iuirctl.  On  tho  Yuba,  water  \\;n 
pumped  from  the  river  by  means  of  wJK'els  attached  to  barges  wliieli  w.;e 
moored  in  the  strougest  current.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  June  IS,  1850.  The  I/.iiiIl.i 
Lake  Ditch  was  75  miles  long,  with  190  miles  of  branches,  coating  nr:i:Iva 
million,  and  yielding  a  weekly  revenue  of  $0,000.  Sac.  Union,  of  Nov.  l.'i, 
18M,  speaks  of  a  flume  over  3,000  feet  long  on  Feather  River. 

'"This  method  had  its  beginning  in  California  in  the  ' coyote '  burrowing 
of  the  Mexicans,  and  in  following  gravel  deposits  under  river  banks.  It  ■'.il 
not  assume  the  rank  of  a  distinct  branch  until  18.')2,  when  ancient  river  oliaii- 
nels  l)egan  to  attract  attention.  Fully  half  of  the  early  attempts  resuU(  ■!  in 
failure,  owing  to  miscalculations  and  insufficient  adjuncts,  but  the  expericiue 
proved  of  vahie.  The  first  extensive  drift  mining  was  bcgim  in  18.52  at  i'ur- 
est  Hill,  Nev.  J.  McGillivray  hatl  however  in  1851  drifted  a  claim  at  Brown 
Bar  on  the  Middle  Fork  of  the  American. 


ili  !:!''■ 


FLUMINa  AND  COYOTING. 


415 


)Vor  (li't'p 

IS  of  Kitty 

•    lai'i^d 

ts  and 

»ati()ii  for 

in  pliici  r 
le  eimunh 
liills  tlioy 
lilllty  and 
iaay  drift- 
jo  and  use 
extract  in'' 

til  quartz 
iru^iii'dfd 
itionssoDii 
ein,  %virn]i 
promised 
in  harder 

t  Neviula,  the 

(lay,  itiiil  t':i' 

it  ad.ls  tint 

;  Kink  (Vi'i k 

Dt'cr  C'rci!;, 

4    liail    liirll 

I1O-I2,  allii!  ^ 
I  Aug.  1S.">0,  iH 
[t  (liteli,  (if  .•:< 
iikce  Jiiii'rt,  ill 

llllllJH'll  '<■   I, 

'I  nrrrill'- O',. 
[iral  cliaiuicls 
iiilu,  but  as  a 
h  more,  csjic- 
la,  wat(.r  v.is 
Is  -wliicli  wi've 
The  I'.anlia 
|tiiij|  lU'aily  a 
of  Ndv.  1."), 

! '  biirnnviiig 
Lnks.  It  I'.u 
|t  river  cliau- 
Is  resuU(  '1  in 
le  experitMue 
11852  at  For- 
lim  at  linnva 


raslnir,  presented  more  hazardous  prospects  of  speidy 
pmlits  in  tlieir  narr()\ver  and  riolier  but  also  more 
uiitvcidy  distributed  deposits.  The  first  quartz  vein 
was  discovered  in  Mariposa  in  1849,"  which  was 
quii  kly  followed  by  other  dovelopnicnts  alonij  the  ^old 
helt,  and  in  1850  the  first  mill  was  planted  at  Grass 
Vallry.>=^ 

Tifoccupied  with  remunerative  and  ready  placers 
few  among  tlie  j^old-seekers  hail  so  far  taken  an  inter- 
est ill  the  new  branch ;  but  now,  with  the  organization 

"Oil  Fremont'a  grant,  the  reddish  samiileB  yielding  two  ounces  to  every 
2.')  iiHimls  as  Taylor  testilies  in  iJliliriiJo,  i.  110-11.  Aiiiinig  those  who 
Ikicm  :ii'  interested  in  tlio  branch  was  (}.  W,  Wriyht,  wlio  spent  the  Hiiinuier 
of  I'l'.)  in  exploriiiiT  the  gold  region  for  quartz,  'and  his  oxperiiiieiits  have 
ji.'KVid  so  M'onderfuTas  (iliuost  to  cliallciij^'o  credulity,' writes  Butfuin  at  the 
tine  ill  his  Sl.r  Moii/li.^,  109.  Comparing  the  (juality  witli  (Jeorgia  ore,  which 
jciilwcll  at  12j  cents  per  bushel  of  rock,  it  was  lound  tliat  tlio  California 
«r'..irt/  vvipiild  yield  §75  per  bushel;  Botliat  a  mill  might  readily  crush  .^ilOO.OOO 
•liily.  Ai'cording  to  Ikan,  Ni-v<ula  Directory,  18()7,  48,  tlie  first  cpiarty.  loci- 
tio:i  is  ascriheil  to  Butte  co.,  near  Oroville.  Pac.  X<wn,  May  23,  IS.'O,  reports 
line  (jii  lit/  discoveries  on  Yuba  and  Feather  rivers,  yielding  ?14  to  two 
otiii  e<  of  (jtiartz. 

"Tin;  lirst,  a  ' periphery '  from  the  eastern  ntatcs,  is  ascribecl  to  Witten- 
hacii.  v'lo  ai'tiT  working  vainly  on  mica,  on  Auierican  Kiver  in  IS-tO,  set  it 
tip  , it  ili;i.ss  Valley  in  the  following  year  for  Aright.  Itiis/i,  1-2;  i'll.  Misc 
lli<l.  !'<■]>.,  diio.  .14.  Bean  agrees  with  this.  The  second  was  an  S-staiiip 
•Stinktiiii'  mill,  with  an  engine  of  10-horse  power,  brought  across  the  Isth- 
mus, and  also  erected  by  Wittenbivch  for  Wright  of  Phil.  Rush  had  10  tons 
cni-lied  at  a  co<t  of  $-10  per  ton,  while  the  yield  was  only  ^.'>!)7.  /'».  ///■</. 
Xifi'l'i  Co.,  1S7,  calls  this  the  first,  and  dates  the  erection  early  in  KS,")1. 
Hawl  y,  Sf'i/.,  ^IS.,  9,  calls  King  the  first  builder  of  quartz-mills,  tirst 
iTcittd  at  ( I rass  Valley,  and  his  testimony  is  good,  for  he  owiiiil  a  mill  in 
Jliriiiosa  late  in  1850.  JldrijKVia  (ti:z.,  Jan.  17,  187.3,  claims  tho  first  mills 
fur  its  county,  and  states  that  J.  DutT,  residing  there  in  1S7.'1,  erected  the 
lirst  (|iiartx-iiiill,  including  a  small  engine,  in  August  1S49,  close  to  Mariposa. 
It  VMS  known  as  the  Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co.'s  mill.  Another  was  erected  in 
June  IS.'tO  on  Stockton  Creek,  for  Com.  Stockton.  A  third,  lirought  out  by 
<'a]it.  Howard,  dates  about  tho  same  time.  J,  F.  Johnson  put  up  two  mills 
ill  l^.'O.  S'ir.  Trannrript,  June  29,  18.J0,  refers  to  Rrockway  going  cast  to  ob- 
tiiii  machinery.  AUi  C<il.,  Feb.  1,3,  1809,  refers  the  above  Piilincr  &  Cook  mill 
fridii  I'liil.  erected  by  C.  Walker,  to  Sept.  18,"0,  while  still  calling  it  the  first; 
tlie  second  is  ascribed  to  E.  F.  Beale,  later  U.  S.  surveyor-gen.  Mnrip.  (hiz., 
IVh.  L'C,  l^i;;9;  Xaliowil,  March  28,  1808.  P(w.  Nam,  Aug.  27, 1850,  alludes  to 
a  p.ii-ty  leaving  ,Stocl:ton  with  machinery  for  a  quartz  vein.  This  may  Ije  for 
tlie  mill  either  of  Wittenbach  or  Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co.  'Till  now  the  pulver- 
iziagof  (piartz  has  been  confined  almost  exclusively  to  the  southern  diggings,' 
Riys  Siu:  Tnin^rri})t,  Nov.  14,  1850.  Matthewson,  SUit.,  AIS.,  8-0,  writes  of 
of  his  own  fruitless  eCforts  with  mills;  and  so  docs  Hawlcy,  Sttt.,  MS.,  8  9, 
wlio  erected  a  mill  on  Saxton  Creek,  Maripo.sa,  end  of  1850,  and  crushed  ore 
at  .?1.".0  piT  ton,  so  that  the  rich  yitd.l  of  over  ^dOO  per  ton  failed  to  pay.  L'nl. 
Cmiriir,  Aug.  2(5,  IS.'O.  By  Feb.  1851  there  were  three  companies  at  Nevada 
oi>eratiiig  quartz  niai'hinery.  Snc.  Transcript,  Fob.  1,  14,  28,  March  14,  1851. 
Pliici:r  Tiinc/f,  Oct.  23,  1S51,  gives  a  list  of  mills. 


I! 


mi. 


416 


MINING  METHODS. 


of  companies,*'  the  air  became  filled  with  wild  rumors. 
Assay  upon  assay  demonstrated  that  California  ore 
was  ten  to  a  hundred  fold  richer  than  well-paying 
lodes  abroad,  and  exploration  rev*'aled  that  auriferous 
rock  existed  throughout  the  state.  Here,  then,  lav 
an  inexhaustible  wealth,  and  one  which  eclipsed  tlie 
famed  placers.  Owners  of  ledges  regarded  their  for- 
tunes as  assured,  and  reluctantly  yielded  a  share  to 
the  clamoring  mass  of  buyers,  chiefly  to  obtain  funds 
for  machinery,  vast  sums  being  spent  upon  plar^ts. 
When  the  practical  test  came,  it  was  found  that  rock 
assaying  20  or  30  cents  to  the  pound  would  yield  two 
or  three  cents  only,  and  that  the  reduction  cost  from 
$40  to  $150  per  ton,  when  it  should  have  been  eflected 
for  $6  to  615. 

The  chief  trouble  was  inexperience  in  saving  the 
gold,  and  in  the  deceptive  nature  of  the  ore;  for  the 
rich  pockets  which  had  led  to  the  erection  of  costly 
mills  were  found  to  be  contained  in  the  least  promis- 
ing veins.  Hundreds  were  ruined.  A  reaction  set  in. 
Quartz  mining  fell  into  disrepute,  and  mills  were  loft 
to  decay."  A  few  prudent  men,  and  those  with  very 
rich  ledges,  persevered,  however,  aided  by  arastras 
and  other  simple,  inexpensive  machiner}\  Their  suc- 
cess spread  valuable  lessons,  which  with  1853  led  to  a 
revival  of  confidence,  and  two  years  later  saw  three- 
score mills  in  operation,  producing  over  $4,000,000.*^ 

'"The  first  regular  quartz  mining  co.  was  the  Merced,  including  J.  C, 
Palmer,  i)rest,  Mottat,  the  assayer,  Butlur  King,  and  others.  J;'<tn;)owt  (I'lZ., 
Jan.  ?7,  1873.  The  Los  Angeles  Mining  Co.  organized  ahotit  the  siimo  time 
to  tear  asunder  the  Imwels  of  a  gold  ir>ount.  200  uiilus  s.  E.  (f  Los  AngrU.s. 
Its  shares  were  offered  at  auction  Aug.  27,  1850,  which  was  probably  the  lirst 
public  sale  of  mining  stock  in  Cal.  Some  10  or  12  sets  of  nmchinury  luid  bi'uu 
ordered  by  different  cos.  in  Grass  Valley  before  the  snririg  of  ISjI.  S'ic. 
Tmnacriftt,  March  14,  1851.  Companies  were  forming  in  Lonilou.  Eiv.  Jour., 
May  25,  ]S'>'2.  'ihe  first  incorporated  mining  company  of  Cal.  was  the  Bos- 
ton Bar  Co.  of  1850.  Jfist.  El  Dormlo  Co.,  35. 

'*  The  erection  of  machinery  ere  the  vein  hail  been  sufficiently  opened  aiiJ 
t«sted  was  a  mistake  oft  repeated.  Others  sank  t'ostly  shafts  without  <hie 
surface  indication,  or  drifted  from  '  chimneys'  into  Darren  ground,  or  trusited 
to  unskilled  suiierintendents. 

'^  The  official  returns  not  quite  complete  mention  59  mills,  crushing  2*22,  • 
000  tons  and  yielding  ^,082,100.  Cul.  Jour,  Am.,  185(},  p.  20;  A/.,  1857,  .ip. 
4,  p.  28  et  seq.,  leas  complete.  Over  a  dozen  more  nulls  were  bcgtin  lietdre 
the  close  of  1855.     Tb'j  compares  well  with  1853-4,  but  not  with  that  uf 


I  m 


QUARTZ  CRUSHING. 


417 


Machinery  v/as  now  turned  to  better  use,  and  Cali- 
fornia added  several  new  processes  and  improvements 
witli  which  to  advance  the  industry.'* 

Quartz  mining  belongs  less  to  the  present  period 
tlifiii  the  exploitation  of  placers,  in  which  progress  has 
been  as  rapid  and  extensive  as  the  transformation  of 
the  Pacific  wilderness  into  a  populous  and  flourishing 
state,  and  the  progress  is  due,  not  alone  to  the  vastness 

1852.  U.  S.  CenittM,  1850,  p.  985,  which  enumerates  108  mills,  ami  a  capital 
of  .<.J,87ti,0<X)  invested  in  quartz  mining,  mostly  wasted.  Sm.  Uitinn,  M;vrcli  0, 
ISJ."),  givus  a  list  of  53  quartz  companies.  Puffing  began  agaia,  Xevuda, 
Jon,:,  Ffl).  29,  1856,  as  it  had  lieen  in  1850-1.  Puc.  Neirx,  Oct.  24,  Nov.  15, 
1S.")0.  In  1857  a  quartz  convention  met,  which  did  good  service  in  promoting 
the  l)raiiL'li.  S.  F.  HuUetin,  June  17,  1857,  etc.  See,  further.  Oil.  Coiini'i; 
N.iv.  2"),  18r)0;  Borthwifk's  C'al.,  189,  244,  324;  Hunt's  M<i<j.,  xxvii.  382-3, 
44.)-r)0;  Mta  Cat.,  Aug.  25,  Oct.  28,  1852;  June  16,  1853;  Aug.  1«,  18.")4;  July 
It),  IS.').");  Fel).  9-24,  1856,  etc.;  Orms  Val.  Tiilinyg,  March-May,  1879;  Hue. 
Union,  1854-1);  S.  F.  JiiilUtin,  1855-6,  passim. 

'"  A.S  will  be  more  fully  related  in  my  next  vol.,  stamping  and  milling  was 
in  the  Hay  ward  mine  reiluced  to  66  cents  per  ton.  Cronixe,  Cnl.,  424.  Cali- 
fdriiia  has  borrowed  quartz  machinery  from  different  nations,  from  i;he  slow 
yet  otlt-ctive  Mexican  arastra,  de8cril)ed  in  Hmt.  Mex.,  iii.,  vi.,  chapters  on 
iiiiiiing,  this  series;  the  Chilian  mill,  in  which  the  drag-stone  of  the  arastra 
ia  rcplaei;!!  by  one  or  two  large  wheels  to  turn  on  a  pivot  in  the  ore-crushing 
li'cl;  to  the  square  stiunp  with  its  vertical  fall,  which  has  been  the  fav  -rite. 
Tilt!  incihanical  and  chemical  processes  for  separating  the  gold  are  numerous; 
fur  the  Califnrnian  is  ever  ready  to  try  the  latest  aiid  best.  A  few  early  local 
iiiviutioiis  are  referred  to  in  Sac.  Union,  Aug.  18,  Oct.  22,  Dec.  20,  1855; 
F.li.  12,  IXo.  30,  18.")0;  AUa  Cal,  May  19,  Oct.  27,  1856;  the  latter  witii  fre- 
ipU'iit  s|)ecial  and  general  reports  of  mining  operations  throughout  tlie  state 
.Muce  1848.  See  also  S.  F.  llvitM,  and  after  18.>4  and  1855,  Sar.  Union  aud 
.^'.  /■'.  Bulletin:  HayeH  Minim/,  "..-ii.,  passim.  More  scattering  and  incidental 
are  the  accounts  in  Caraonn  Jttrol.,  10;  Wood i'  Sixteen  Mo.,  50-4;  Croxhi/'n 
i'/viiAv,  M.S.,  20-1;  Shermans  Mei,..,  i.  52;  Capron's  Cal.,  229;  Srhtw/inftoeit, 
r,!;.,21()  et  acq.;  WiUmns  Life.  MS.,  7;  Moore  a  E.i-pet:,  MS.,  11-12;  Bur- 
«.«'x  /.Vr.,  :m,  etc.;  Coleman  a  Viij.,  MS.,  146;  Tt/ler'a  Biilm,U'.t  Bur,  MS., 
2;  Tliniinm'  Minim f  ffemin.,  MS.,  1  etaeq. ;  Xouv.  Annales  *'oi/.,  cxxviii.  325- 
41;  cxxix.  10i(-26,  3.'>:»-73;  H<  rjK-ra  M<uj.,  xx.  598-616;  Ot-,  rlaml,  xiii.  273, 
etv.;  //Iiilon'n  Ariz.,  88-99;  Ro»wuij,  Mi'tnuj;  24-53;  Miner's  Own  lionh,  1-32; 
Tlinwpynii'K  Hoiilen  lies.,  1-91;  Sunonin,  Vie  Souter,  494,  etc.;  Bdlr/i'.i  Minfs, 
IKWsiiii;  HltfiU's  Miniwj,  22,  etc..  Id.,  MS.,  4-12;  I'/iiUips'  Minimj,  129  et  acq.; 
Bliih'n  Miniwj  Mitcfiinery,  paii»im;  (/old  Miniwj  in  Cnl.,  53  et  seq. ;  Bowie's 
llijilmn'.ir  Mininij,  47,  etc.;  SiUimaWs  Deep  Placers,  15-42;  the  last  few  books 
cnntaiiniig  more  or  less  comprehensive  reviews.  Among  curious  appliances 
may  he  mentioned  the  Norwegian  telescope  for  examining  river  bottoms;  a 
tliithdiling  apparatus,  in  Ilunl't  Mitij.,  xxvi.  513,  and  the  gold  magnet  and 
iliviniiig-rod  superstitions;  the  former  a  tiny  affair  two  or  three  inchei  square 
carrii'tl  over  the  heart  by  the  prosi)ector,  and  supposed  to  give  a  shock  when 
pMsiiig  over  gold;  the  ro<l,  a  fp-sh-cut  fork  of  haxel  held  horizontally  by  both 
liaiul.s;  the  point  in  front  tips  over  ore  lK)dies  when  carried  by  appropriately 
constituted  person.  Reichenback  seeks  to  explain  the  principle  in  his  vVlic- 
Magnetic  Letters,  and  many  intelligent  nuners  vouch  for  it.  They  do  not  seem 
c  >  eon.sider  that  nature  is  always  true  to  herself,  and  that  if  these  tests  are 
ever  true  they  are  always  Irna.  For  minuij'  terms,  see  /Union's  Ariz.,  ap., 
62-7;  Wriijfit's  Biij  Bmtama,  567-9;  Batch's  Mines,  l'£6  et  seq. 
iliBT.  Cal.,  Vot.  VI.    27 


%\ 


418 


MINING  METHODS. 


of  the  deposits  and  the  favorable  configuration  of  the 
country,  but  to  the  ingenuity  and  enterprise  of  the 
men  who  invented  and  perfected  means  for  exploita- 
tion, and  knew  how  to  organize  their  strength  for 
great  undertakings.  A  striking  feature  in  this  con- 
nection is  the  number  of  such  operations  by  miners 
who  possessed  few  or  no  resources  for  them  save  pluck. 
Each  successive  improvement  of  method  by  toin, 
sluice,  or  hydraulic  process,  increasing  as  it  did  the 
extent  of  claims  and  work  connected  with  each  opera- 
tion, demanded  more  cooperation,  and  augmented  tlie 
number  of  companies  at  the  expense  of  individual 
laborers,  whose  diminution  corresponded  to  the  do- 
crease  of  rich  surface  placers  and  the  advent  of  scien- 
tific mining.  The  massing  of  forces  eliminated  the 
weaker  members  of  the  fold,  partly  under  the  pressure 
of  lower  wages,  and  drove  them  to  other  pursuits  for 
which  they  were  more  fitted.  The  industry  acquired 
further  stability  in  the  abatement  of  nomadic  habits, 
by  the  growing  magnitude  of  operations  which  de- 
mantled  a  prolonged  stay  at  one  place.  Concentrated 
and  improved  efforts,  not  only  resulted  in  a  rapid  swell- 
ing of  the  gold  yield  after  1849,  but  in  sustaining  the 
production  for  years  at  a  high  rate,  largely  from 
ground  which  elsewhere,  under  less  favorable  configu- 
ration and  skill,  had  been  rejected  as  utterly  worth- 
less. 


%   i^ 


California  placer  gold,  tinged  in  some  parts  by 
copper,  reveals  in  the  more  general  paleness  the 
wide-spread  admixture  of  silver,  which  is  especially 
marked  beyond  the  summit  of  the  Sierra  and  in  the 
south.  In  Kern  the  fineness  ranges  as  low  as  ()()0  or 
700  thousandths,  but  increases  rapidly  nortliwaid, 
until  on  the  Stanislaus  it  reaches  over  900.  After 
another  decline  to  somewhat  below  this  figure,  it  rises 
again  above  it  on  the  Yuba  and  Feather  rivers,  that 
of  Butte  cominjr  at  times  within  ten  thousandths  of 
absolute  purity.     Beyond  this  county  tl.ure  is  another 


FINENESS  OF  GOLD. 


419 


1  of  the 
J  of  the 
ixploita- 
ififth  for 
his  con- 
f  miners 
;e  pluck. 
by   toin, 

did  the 
•h  opera- 
nted  the 
1  dividual 

the  de^ 
of  scien- 
lated  the 

pressure 
rsuits  for 

acquired 
ic  habits, 

fhich  de- 
entrated 
nd  swell- 
ing the 
ely  from 
configu- 
y  worth- 


)arts  by 
ncss  the 
Upecially 
id  in  the 
lis  000  or 
Irthwaid, 
After 
fc,  it  rises 
Its,  that 
kidtlis  of 
another 


abatement  to  below  900.  The  average  fineness  for 
till-  state  being  placed  by  Dana  and  King  at  880  or 
8y;i,  which  is  a  fraction  above  the  average  for  the 
United  States." 

^lany  spots  are  remarkable  for  the  uniformity  of 
shape  in  their  deposits,  of  scales,  pellets,  grains,  or 
threads,  and  in  quartz  are  frequently  found  the  most 
beautiful  arborescent  specimens. ^^  It  is  strange  that 
lumps  above  an  ounce  in  weight  should  be  so  rare  in 

'"Tlie  lowest  quality,  whitened  by  silver  admixture,  lies  on  the  east  side 
of  tlie  Sierra,  and  in  the  southern  part  of  San  Joaquin  Valley.  In  Kern  it 
falls  111  arly  to  600  thousandths,  tlie  other  400  heing  mostly  silver.  The  aver- 
age liiiunoss  is  about  (JOO.  In  Fresno  it  rises  about  100,  reaching  in  Mariposa 
ail  aMTiigu  considerably  over  800,  and  in  Tuoluume  as  high  as  950,  the  aver- 
agi-  lifiiig  nearur  this  figure  than  900.  King  found  920  for  Stanislaus  county 
as.siiy;<,  aii.l  850  to  900  for  Calaveras.  U.  S.  GeoL  Evf4,  1880-1,  370.  The 
gru'lu  decliues  again  until  it  touches  below  900  for  the  Mokelumnu.  This 
apphts  also  for  l3  Dorado,  although  there  the  quality  varies  greatly.  On  tlie 
\ul)a  it  ascends  again,  several  spots  reported  by  Whitney,  Auriferous  Oraifix, 
giving  from  910  to  O.'SO,  with  a  few  also  below  900.  Several  examinations  by 
King  ill  Placer  yield  784  to  9«iO,  in  Plumaa  840  to  936,  and  in  Butte  900  to 
••70:  for  the  latter  Whitney  has  925  to  950  and  for  Butte  958  to  980.  In 
Siurra  the  figure  varies  greatly,  although  tlie  average  is  over  900.  Butte 
(.'(luiity  stands  preeminent  for  its  tine  gold,  wliioh  has  assayed  even  al>ove  9!K), 
ami  lirought  $i20.40  per  ounce.  Northward  it  falls  again  somewliat.  Trinity 
raii;;os  bt'tween  875  and  927,  Del  Norte  875  to  950,  Siskivou  749  to  950,  and 
Minpltjs  from  Humboldt  and  Shasta  726  to  i)40and  885.  The  gold  bluffs  yielil 
aUdit  8S0.  Uittell,  Minitiij,  49-50,  placed  the  California  average  at  855;  Dana, 
Mill'  fiiliyi/,  raised  it  to  88<J;  and  Knig,  (ienl.  Snnvy,  1880-1,  p.  .382,  to  883. (i, 
with  an  average  for  tlie  United  States  of  876,  Idaho  being  780.6,  Colorado 
8-JO.J,  Oregon  872.7,  Mont;ina  895.1,  (leorgia  922.8,  Dakota  923.5.  See  also 
Boirir'n  Ujiilraul'irs,  289-91;  W/iitiiei/'n  Auri/'ernim  OrmrA:  /'/iilti]>.H  Minimj,  3; 
BaHi'a  Milieu,  etc.;  iSiii/iiHutVa  SUit.,  MS.,  12-13,  by  an  eaiK  j.'iiM  broker. 

''"Of  the  smooth  water-worn  gold  usually  found  in  rivt-r*,  '  llnur  iuul  grain' 
giild,  the  fineness  approaching  to  flour  and  gunpowder,  belongs  mostly  tn 
liicu»triiie  depr>sit8,  and  to  the  gold  bluffs.  'Shot'gobl  samples  liave  iuen 
furnished  by  Secret  Ravine,  I'lacer.  '  Scale  '  gold  is  often  of  remarkabli-  uni- 
fiirniity.  On  Yuba  and  Feather  river  bars  it  was  almost  circular,  almut  one 
tenth  (if  an  inch  in  diameter.  '  Threatl '  gold  has  l)een  found  near  Vreka, 
and  (in  Fine  Gold  Creek,  Fresno.  Of  the  coiirse  gold  generally  attributed  to 
r  ivines,  the  crystalline  is  rare;  pellets  of  the  size  of  peas  are  presented  by 
Cittonwootl  Creek,  Shasta;  at  the  ailjoining  Horsetown  they  ttnik  the  shape 
of  lieans.  (''■"'.  7'ianed  like  moceasous  is  fcmnd  in  Ccxirse'ioltUiuleh,  Fresno. 
Near  I'rairle  City,  El  l>orado,  a  long  rilge  presents  shot  gold  on  one  .-tide  ami 
■  scale'  j^iiM  on  the  other.  Alfa  Cal.,  Die.  24,  1850,  comments  on  the  beautiful 
Iriif  gold  found  at  Wood  l)igginu8.  The  latter  form  is  connnon  in  quart/, 
where  the  gold,  usually  ranging  between  inqierceptiblo  specks  and  streaks, 
api>.Mrs  also  in  pellets,  in  aborescent,  deuditric,  and  foliated  forms.  Fern- 
Ifuf  speciineuB  are  very  beautiful,  as  fountl  near  Shingle  Springs,  Kl  Dorado, 
some  studded  with  octahedron  crystals,  as  at  Irish  Creek,  (^'oloma.  Blake 
descril)es  several  specimens.  N.  S.,  I'nr.  If.  /i'.  I{ept,  v.  300.  Most  rich 
quartz  crumbles  rea<Hly,  so  that  pieces  for  jewelry  have  to  be  sought.  .Marble 
Springs,  MariiK>8a,  furnished  the  most  iu  early  days.  JJiUeU'n  Minimj,  44; 
AU.I  CiL,  Sept.  21,  1804. 


J^i^'^Si- 


MINING  METHODS. 


-■:i 


actual  quartz  veins,  while  the  supposed  derivatory 
placers  have  yielded  nuggets  by  the  hundreds  from 
one  pound  and  upward.  Australia  still  holds  tlie 
palm  for  the  largest  piece,  but  California  ranks  not 
far  behind.  The  largest  ever  found  here,  in  Novem- 
ber 1854,  from  Calaveras,  weighed  161  pounds,  less 
some  20  pounds  for  quartz,^"  which  represented  a  sum 

"At  $17.25  per  ounce  the  estimated  value  was  $38,916.  It  ine.-uurt(i 
irregularly  15  inches  hy  6  in  width  and  4  in  thickness.  The  claim  l)elongt'il 
to  5  poor  men,  4  Americans  and  a  Swiss,  who  upon  finding  the  lump,  in  Nov. 
1854,  sot  out  for  S.  F.,  guarding  it  night  and  day.  Other  accounts  reduce 
the  value  to  $2<.»,000.  S.  F.  OazeUe  and  L'Echo  Pac.,  Dec.  1,  1854;  Sue.  L'„i.,i,, 
Nov.  27-30,  1854,  May  24,  1855.  It  was  to  be  exhibited  abroad.  Hunt'x  M«.j., 
xxxii.  255;  Daily  Tntimcripl,  Feb.  28,  18G6.  On  the  strength  of  this  discovery 
goes  the  story,  a  stranger  deposited  a  nugget  of  2,319  ounces  at  a  N.  York 
assay  office,  which  he  permitted  to  be  assayed  from  one  point,  not  wishing  to 
mar  the  appearance.  He  obtained  a  loan  of  $G,000.  The  lump  was  sulisc- 
quently  found  to  be  a  gold -covered  piece  of  lead.  QritJts  Val.  Union,  .luiie 
18-22,  1872.  One  of  even  greater  valuation  than  the  161 -lb.  Inuip  is  said  to 
have  been  found  by  Chinese  in  Aug.  1886,  but  at  present  I  will  conline  ni\  - 
Belt  to  early  annals.  AUa  Cai,  May  II,  1855,  refers  to  a  96-lh.  lump  from 
iiear  Downieville;  72  lbs  from  Columbia  Sept.  1854;  CaL  Courier,  Nov.  U, 
1850,  to  50-tiO  lbs  from  the  Yuba;  a  $10,000  piece  from  Ophir,  Sutter  co.,  A/., 
Dec.  21,  1850;  S.  F.  Pkuyuite,  I>ec.  20,  1850;  a  65-lb.  from  near  Columliia, 
S.  J.  Pioneer,  Feb.  16,  1878;  also  one  of  54  lbs  from  Dogtowii,  Butte,  and 
one  of  51  lbs  from  French  Raviue,  Sierra,  1853;  50  lbs  with  some  quart;;  from 
near  Mariposa,  PUicer  Times,  Apr.  13,  1850;  500  oimces  near  GilNioiivilk, 
Alt*!  Val.,  Oct.  4,  1855;  one  netting  ii8,829.  Sac.  Union,  May  21,  1855;  :W  ll« 
with  7  lbs  of  quartz,  near  Yuba  forks,  S.  F.  Herald,  July  7,  1850;  an  .S.S.OtH) 
lump  near  Downieville,  1851;  30  lbs  near  Sonora,  Siic.  Union,  Jan.  10,  lS.'i.'>; 
30  and  20  lbs  at  Vallecito,  Calaveras,  AUa  CaL,  May  7,  1854;  28  lbs  woriii 
$4,400,  Holden's  gardeu,  Sonora,  SawteWa  Pioneers,  MS.,  5;  27  11>s  at  Colum- 
bia, Alta  CaL,  Apr.  5,  1854;  400  ounces,  at  Gil)sonville,  Snr.  Union,  Oct.  6, 
1855;  25  lbs,  American  North  Fork,  PUicer  Times,  June  23,  1849;  and  anotlar 
such  mentioned  in  Sac.  Transerift,  Apr.  26,  1850;  25  ll>s,  ilt  Echo  m\A  Aln 
CaL,  Sept.  1,  1852;  23  lbs,  Sonora,  Pac.  News,  May  17,  1850;  23  lbs,  Frtiicli 
(Julch,  Alta  CaL,  Sept  15,  1856;  22  lbs  on  the  Calaveras,  I<L,  Dec.  23,  IS.'iO; 
Poliimsian^  vi.  198;  CaL  Couiicr,  Dec.  25,  1850;  also  284  ounces,  near  Kl  I"— 
rado.  Quartz  bowlders  are  several  times  referred  to  of  aljout  40!)  lbs,  rsii- 
mated  as  high  as  $25,000.  S.  F.  Picayune,  Sept.  16,  1850;  Albi  CaL,  Maivli 
4,  ia')4;  CaL  Courier,  Sept  10,  20,  1850;  S.  F.  liuUetin,  Oct  30,  18.'>5.  ki 
Carson  Hill  a  piece  of  1 12  lbs  was  cluselled  out  in  Feb.  1850.  Htyes'  Miniwj,  ii. 
46.  Several  more  might  be  added,  for  Sonora,  round  Sonora  alone  elaiiiis 
eight  nuggets  between  20  and  30  lbs,  uncovered  from  1850  to  1855.  Tliu  list 
is  based  mainly  on  newspaper  items.  Lumps  below  20  lbs  in  weight  are 
innumerable,  and  the  region  round  Sonora  is  the  most  prolific  in  this  din'ctioii, 
as  shown  in  iS.  /'.  Picayune,  Sept.  16,  Oct.  15,  1850,  which  writes,  'one  luiii- 
dred  pieces  of  gold  averaging  12  lbs  each  have  been  got  out  within  a  tVw 
mouths.'  CaL  Courier,  Oct  15,  1850;  Pac.  News,  May  14,  Aug.  30,  <Xt.  19, 
1850;  AUa  CaL,  Feb.  19-21,  May  16,  1853;  Oct  9,  1855;  PUicer  Time*,  May 
17,  1850;  and  list  in  HittelPt  Minimj,  48.  Mariposa  claimed  a  goodly  ttliare. 
8.  F.  Picayune,  Sept  10,  1850;  CaL  Courier,  Nov.  16,  1850;  Sac.  Union,  Aui;. 
4,  1855;  Pac.  News,  May  10,  1850.  The  size  of  Mokelnmne  pieces  is  instamid 
in  <'aL  Courier,  Dec.  16,  \SriO;  Alta  CaL,  Oct.  5,  1852.  Place.-  Times,  F.l>  9, 
1850,  refers  to  a  woman  near  Flacerville  who  took  out  a  13  lb.  nugget;  //  '.v  "> 
Alituay,  ii.  3.     Auburn  boasted  of  many  tine  lumps.  Placer  I'ttnes,  Fel>.  ilS, 


NUGGETS  AND  POCKETS. 


481 


of  over  $30,000.  It  is  doubtful  whether  any  more 
lumps  were  obtained  prior  to  185G  containin*^  100 
pduiids  of  pure  gold,  but  there  are  several  ranging 
below  tliis  to  50  pounds,  and  a  large  number  from  ton 
pounds  upward. 

Those  who  found  valuable  nuggets  were  few  as 
compared  with  the  number  who,  alighting  on  remu- 
nerative claims,  took  out  fortunes  from  coarse  and 
fine  pay  dirt.  These  especially  form  the  theme  of 
anecdote  and  newspaper  record,  all  with  the  usual 
exaggeration.^  Instance  the  prospecting  claim  on 
Carson  Hill,  from  which  gold  was  chiselled  out  in 
l)ii;  chunks,  and  w^hich  yielded  within  a  short  time 
.some  $2,000,000;  and  such  troves  as  were  repeat- 
edly obtained  by  individual  diggers,  especially  in  the 
numerous  'pockets*  of  the  Sonora  region,  including 
W(K)d  Creek,  the  richest  of  its  size,  the  bars  of 
American,  Yuba,  and  Feather  rivers,  with  such  spots 

1850;  Sac.  Tranaerijtt,  Apr.  26, 1850;  Placer  Times,  March  9,  1850;  Alta  Cnl, 
Marcli  23,  1856.  For  finds  at  Grass  Valley,  etc.,  /-/.,  March  18,  1854;  S,u: 
Tr'iiiKi-ri]tt,  May  15,  1851;  Sac.  Union,  June  30,  1855.  Scott's  River  liad  many 
siiecinieiis.  /(/.,  Jan.  27,  March  7,  1855;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Nov.  liO,  1855;  AlUi 
Oil.,  July  2,  1851.  See,  further.  Little's  StiU.,  MS.,  12;  J/aifes'  Minimj,  i.-vi., 
iias.sini,  aud  under  different  districts  in  this  chapter,  as  Feather  River  and 
Tuohiume. 

^Tho  results  of  fluming,  sluicing,  and  other  work  entailing  costly  prelini- 
inarii's  l)y  a  company  are  uumerous,  but  hardly  belongs  to  the  ia.stJiuces  liero 
intruded,  yet  the  product  of  a  single  claim  is  to  the  point,  as  that  of  Carson 
Hill,  where  big  pieces  were  chiselled  out,  one  of  1 12  lbs;  a  single  blast  yielded 
i'llO.lHM),  and  within  2  years,  says  the  report  in  Hayex'  Miniw/,  ii.  4(i,  over 
yj, 000, 000  was  obtained.  Three  men  obtained  ^,000  on  the  Yuba.  Cat. 
i'uurkr,  Nov.  14,  1850;  and  five  are  credited  vdi\i  525  lbs.  Sue.  Transcript, 
S,pt.  30,  1850.  A  party  of  21  gathered  $14a,f)00  at  Jacksonville.  S.  F.  Jiiil- 
lilin,  Apr.  28,  1856;  S.  F.  Picayune,  Nov.  1.1,  1850.  A  rich  leail  was  struck 
(111  top  of  a  hill.  Sue.  Transcript,  March  14,  1851.  At  Oregon  Cafloufour  men 
tdcik  300  lbs  in  coarse  gold.  Little's  Stat.,  MS.,  12.  At  Sherlock's  diggings 
SsWjOOO  was  obtained  from  a  small  hole.  Woods'  SLrtceH  Mo.,  84.  One  man 
liroiii,'lit  $>12,000  from  I)eer  Creek,  mostly  dug  out  in  one  day.  Plucer  Tinies, 
March  10,  1850.  A  Mexican  took  28  lbs  from  a  '  pocket,'aud  another  .S8,0(K». 
TiDjlors  kidonulo,  i.  246-7.  Six  are  said  to  have  obtaine<l  ^220,(K)0  from 
B  ..  Valley,  Marii>osa.  Murderer's  Bar  was  first  worked  by  three  sjiilors, 
ttlio  aveniged  11  lbs  daily.  Altti  Cat.,  July  15,  1853.  Rush  Creek  lays  claim 
to  a  yield  of  ^,000,000.  Barstow'a  Stat.,  MS.,  2.  Other  similar  instances  in 
Uolilen  Era,  cap.  20;  <S'«tc.  Transcript,  Jan.  14,  1851;  PU'o,  Acont.,  MS.,  77; 
6\  /■'.  Picayune,  Aug.  19,  1850;  Littles  Stat.,  MS.,  6-7;  Foster's  Gold  Riyinn, 
11-2'.};  Torres,  Perip.,  MS.,  81;  Ballou's  .!*/»««.,  MS.,  25;  Poli/w.van,  vii.  7; 
P'lr.  Xeins,  Nov.  10,  1849;  AUa  Cal.,  Aug.  2,  Itec.  15,  1849;  FUZ'jerahr.t 
iSb /r/wn,  I79-S1;  Shertcooirs  CoL,  MS.,  3.  See  m/«  sup.  for  additional  troves 
ami  value  of  mining  ground  under  the  districts.  '  As  much  as  Si2,700  liaa 
btta  waslied  out  froui  one  pan.'  Mc Daniel's  Early  Days,  MS.,  7. 


422 


MINING  METHODS 


as  Park  Bar,  Kush  and  Nelson  creeks,  where  the 
yield  of  one  day's  work  frequently  fulfilled  the  bright- 
est hopes  of  the  gold-hunter.  The  American  Middle 
Fork  yielded  perhaps  the  best  steady  average  of  gold- 
dust.  All  found  sooner  or  later  that  mining  was  a 
lottery,  for  adjoining  claims  even  in  a  reputably  rich 
spot  might  bring  to  one  a  fortune,  to  others  nothing;"' 
and  the  veriest  tyro  might  strike  a  deposit  in  the  most 
unfavorable  place,  while  experienced  diggers  toiled  in 

•       22 

vam. 

It  was  a  lottery  wherein  a  vast  number  of  blanks 
were  overshadowed  by  the  glitter  of  the  few  prizes. 
The  great  majority  of  diggers  obtained  little  more 
than  the  means  to  live  at  the  prevailing  high  prices, 
and  many  not  even  that.  At  times  they  might  find  a 
remunerative  claim,  but  this  was  offset  by  periods  of 
enforced  idleness  in  searching  for  new  ground,  hy 
waiting  for  rains  or  for  the  abatement  of  waters,  by 
more  or  less  extensive  preliminary  work  to  gain  access 
to  the  paying  strata  and  making  it  available,  with  the 
aid  of  shafts,  tunnels,  ditches,  and  so  forth.  In  addi- 
tion to  obstacles  came  the  drains  of  companionship, 
which  absorbed  time  and  money  to  the  enrichment  of 
stores  and  drinking-places.^     It  was  generally  admit- 

"  Woods  relates  a  striking  c&se.  A  dispute  arose  between  two  miners 
concerning  a  narrow  strip  between  their  claims.  An  arbitrator  was  ciiileil  to 
settle  it,  who  in  compensation  received  the  portion  of  the  disputed  tract. 
Within  a  few  hours  the  two  large  claims  were  abandoned  aa  worthless,  wliiie 
the  arbitrator  found  in  his  strip  a  pocket  yielding  $7,435.  Sixteen  Alo.,  .')7. 

'''''  It  was  a  common  saying  that  sailors,  niggers,  and  Dutchmen  were  the 
luckiest,  particularly  the  drunken  ohl  salt.  Borthimck's  CaL,  G6.  At  Pilot 
Hill  a  greenhorn  was  directed  by  some  fun-loving  miners  to  a  most  unlikely 
spot  by  the  side  of  a  hill  for  taking  up  a  claim;  but  tlie  joke  was  reversi'il 
when  the  novice  there  struck  a  rich  deposit.  Aloore'a  Kxper.,  MS.,  5-(i.  The 
slave  of  a  southerner,  who  worked  with  his  majiter,  <lrcaracd  of  gold  l>eiieatli 
a  certain  cabin.  This  was  purchased,  and  $20,000  was  obtained  Itefore  the 
ground  was  half  worked.  BorthwirJc's  CaL,  103.  A  cook  found  $7  in  the  L'iz- 
zard  of  a  chicken.  Pne.  Netm,  Nov.  II,  1850.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Aug.  22,  1^7, 
relates  how  a  claim  fraudulently  sold  by  '  saltera '  yielded  a  fortune  to  the 
dui)e.  Many  another  claim  hail  been  abandoned  or  sold  by  a  dcspairinu  or 
impoverished  digger  in  which  the  new-comer  found  a  ricik  spot,  perhaps  at  the 
first  stroke.  Hunilreda  of  thotisands  of  dollars  were  on  the  other  liand  ox- 
|>ended  on  flumes  and  other  costly  work  at  times  without  bringing  any  re- 
turns.    Delano,  Life,  281-2,  instances  cases. 

''Traders  and  speculators  secured  the  most  of  it.  A  miner  came  back  to 
camp  after  some  weelu'  absence  with  what  he  considered  a  good  yield,  uuly 


I     ! 


GOLD  PRODUCTION. 


4» 


ted  that  the  steady  wt^e-worker  coula  show  a  far 
larorer  balance  at  the  end  of  the  year  than  the  aver- 
age miner,"  and  as  a  test,  one  has  merely  to  divide 
the  total  annual  production  by  the  number  of  workers 
to  find  that  their  earnings  were  far  below  the  current 
wages.**     In  1852  the  average  yield  for  each  of  the 

tn  Und  that  his  wife  b^  lanndry  work  had  earned  much  more.  Ryan's  Pera. 
Ailv*n.,  ii.  1-64.  A  fair  illustration  of  average  success  is  presented  in  Wooda' 
tiu-tfi'it  Monthn,  171-6,  showing  that  in  a  company  of  141  members,  two  mado 
$15,000  and  ^,000  by  trading;  two  made  $6,000  each  by  miuiug  and  manu- 
facturing; three  made  $2,000  by  minins,  trading,  and  teaming;  two  others 
uia4^1e  $1,500  and  $1,000;  about  70  matk  a  mere  living  in  mining,  etc.,  and 
the  remainder  died  or  disappeared  into  obscurity.  Woods  adds  other  similar 
data.  Letts,  CaL,  102,  shows  that  if  a  man  finds  a  lead  paying  $6  a  day  he 
ii»es  well,  but  this  as  a  rule  lasts  only  from  six  to  ten  days,  owing  to  the  lim- 
ite<l  size  of  claims.  Then  comes  a  week  or  more  searching  for  a  new  lead  or 
claim.  If  he  goes  far  a  mule  must  be  bought  to  carry  food,  machine,  etc. 
AJ<1  cost  of  living  to  the  expense,  and  what  remains?  The  cynic  Helper, 
Lml  o/Gold,  103-5,  158-65,  paints  the  situation  in  still  darker  colors.  Auger, 
Cut.,  113-16,  and  Shaw,  Golden  Dreams  nttd  Leaden  JiealUies,  110,  etc.,  take  a 
]iros:iic  mi<ldle  course,  which  agrees  with  the  average  statentent  by  pioneers  iu 
the  MSS.  referred  to  in  this  chapter.  Numbers  went  home  with  the  rcputa- 
tiiiii  of  having  made  fortunes,  when  only  a  small  proportion  of  the  shame- 
faced and  disappointed  crowd  could  point  even  to  a  sum  equivalent  to  the 
salary  they  might  have  earned  during  their  absence. 

'" Bortliwick,  CaL,  190-2,  believes  that  the  average  earning  of  the  miner 
who  worked  was  in  1851  $8,  but  ecnerally  not  over  $3  or  $4.  Buffum,  Six 
ilimUm,  131-2,  places  the  average  m  1849  at  $8,  although  a  stout  persevering 
man  could  make  $16.  Gov.  Riley,  Report,  Aug.  30,  1849,  agreed  with  the  lat- 
ter item.  Ten  dollars,  says  N.  Y.  Henild,  Aug.  3,  1849;  Cal.  Pu>if,  Prea., 
112.  ( >nly  1^  or  $8,  says  Vclasco,  Son.,  307.  The  average  decreased  gradually 
every  year.  See  also  Fridne'a  Remin.,  ^IS.,  35,  and  later  references. 
'^The  estimated  gold  production  stands  aa  follows: 

1848 $10,000,000  1853 ,...$65,000,000 

1849 40,000,000  1854 60,000,000 

1850 50,000,000  1855 55.000,000 

1851 60,000,000  1856 66,000,000 

1852 60,000,000 

Total $456,000,000 

Based  on  a  recorded  export  of  $331,000,000,  plus  unregistered  treasure  and 
^■iiM  retained  for  local  use.  For  argument  and  references  in  support  of  these 
tiguresi,  I  refer  to  the  chapter  on  commerce,  in  connection  with  shipments  of 
^old  and  currency.  According  to  the  census  of  1852,  three  fifths  of  the  popu- 
atiiiii,  ..itout  153,000  out  of  255,000,  belonged  to  the  mining  counties,  and  100,- 
out)  of  this  number  might  Im)  called  miners.  An  official  rei»ort  in  Caf.  Ann.  Jour., 
lS">."i,  ap.  14,  p.  80,  also  accepts  this  figure,  but  reduces  it  to  86,000  for  185.3 
and  I8:>4.  Dividing  $60,000,000  by  100,000  leaves  $600  a  year  as  tlie  average 
earning  of  a  miner;  and  as  many  made  fortunes  as  individuals  or  eiuployers, 
till-  average  for  the  struggling  majority  fell  to  little  more  than  $1  per  day, 
aiiii  tiiis  at  a  time  when  common  labor  was  still  four  or  five  times  higher,  sm 
shown  in  tlie  chapter  on  commerce.  The  average  rate  makes  the  uold  cost 
three  times  its  value.  Del  Mar,  Prerivta  AltUilM,  262-4,  has  a  calculatioa 
whicli  I)ring3  its  cost  to  five  times  the  value,  but  he  exaggerates  the  number  of 
miners  and  the  rate  of  wages,  and  ailds  that  the  low  yieltl  caused  the  death 
of  thousands  by  privation.  Miners  could  always  earn  or  obtain  food.  The 
^igh  wages  were  due  to  the  preference  for  mining  life.     King  complains  that 


r; 


424 


MINDTO  METHODS. 


100,000  men  engaged  in  mining  was  only  $G00,  or 
barely  $2  a  day,  while  wages  for  common  labor  ruled 
twice  and  three  times  higher.  Deducting  the  profits 
of  employers  and  the  few  fortunate  ones,  the  majority 
of  diggers  earned  little  more  than  $1  a  day.  Tliis, 
however,  was  the  culminating  year  for  individual 
miners,  for  the  lessening  share  disheartened  large 
numbers  and  directed  their  attention  to  other  indus- 


in  1849  foreigners,  chiefly  Mexicans,  carried  away  $2,000,000.  Report  Cai,  C8; 
anil  Somreme,  March  28,  1851,  shows  that  at  Guaymas  alone  2,500  niarcoa  of 
gold  were  registered.  Daring  1850  there  was  more  than  $3r)0,0()0  besides  un- 
registered introduction.  A  calculation  in  Pla-rer  Times,  Oct.  1850,  estimates 
that  two  thirds  of  the  miners,  or  57,000,  were  mining  in  the  region  bft\vt<;i 
the  Cosumnes  and  the  upper  Feather  River,  and  pro«iucing  during  tliu  average 
mining  season  of  five  months  fully  $30,000,000,  of  which  Feather  Rivtr,  witli 
9,000  diggers,  yielded  86,400,000,  at  ^  a  day;  the  Yuba,  with  .30,000  di-^trs, 
$14,400,000,  at  $4  a  day;  the  Bear,  with  3.000  diggers,  $1,440,000,  at  44  a 
day;  the  American,  with  5,000  diggers  on  each  of  its  three  forks,  $<J,0()(),I)(X), 
at  |5  a  day.  Pae.  NetM,  Oct.  29,  1850.  Buffums  Six  Mo.,  131,  divides 
100,000  miners  in  Jan.  1850  in  live  20,000  groups,  one  for  the  American  furks, 
one  for  Yuba  and  Feather  rivers,  two  for  the  8.  Joaquin  tributaries,  and  one 
in  various  dry  diggings.  In  Aug.  1850,  CiU.  Courier,  Aug.  9,  IS.IO,  as- 
signed 8-10,000  to  the  Stanislaus  and  Tuolumne.  Alia  Cal.  assigns  ir),()lX) 
souls  to  the  American  forks  on  Dec.  15, 1849.  Buffum  regards  the  Aiiterieau 
Middle  Fork  as  most  widely  permeated  with  gold.  Six  Mo.,  79-87.  The 
Feather  yielded  probably  the  most  brilliant  results  to  the  drst  comers, 
to  judge  by  the  items  given  under  this  district.  The  remaining  'J!),0(JU 
diggers  were  occupied  chiefly  between  the  Mokelumne  and  Tuolunine, 
witn  a  scattering  bielow  and  in  the  north-west,  and  to  them,  if  tiie  almve 
figures  be  correct,  nearly  $20,000,000  nmst  be  attributed  to  make  up  the 
$.W,000,000  estimated  for  1850.  With  virgin  ground  and  rich  pockets,  tin  y 
certainly  ought  to  have  made  more  than  the  above  $4  to  §5  average.  Si  e 
also  Laiiib'a  Mining,  MS.,  and  Hancock's  Thirteen  Years,  MS.,  131-0.  Tlie 
preceding  annual  total  yields  are  nearly  all  from  placer  diggings.  Quartz 
mining  was  as  yet  in  its  infancy,  for  the  59  quartz  mills  of  18.j5  produee(l 
only  H082,100  from  222,060  tons  of  ore.  Cal.  Ass.  Jour.,  1856,  p.  20.  The 
report  for  1856  reduces  the  mills  to  58.  Id.,  1857,  ap.  4,  p.  28-32.  Hy- 
draulic work  proper  also  claimed  merely  a  small  proportion,  althougli  nist 
gaining  strength,  as  may  be  judged  from  the  sudden  increase  of  ditehes, 
which  from  1,164  miles  m  1854,  costing  $2,2<.)4,000,  expanded  to  4,593  miles 
in  1855,  costing  $6,341,700.  The  increase  for  1856  was  small,  to  judge  by  the 
less  complete  returns  for  that  year.  Compare  above  references  with  11., 
1855,  ap.  14,  p.  69-91;  Id.,  Sen.,  40-3,  ap.  5,  p.  29  et  seq.;  Id.,  1856,  ap.  5, 
p.  50  et  sell.;  Id..  1853,  ap.  14;  1852,  651-2;  U.  S.  Census,  18.'}0.  985;  Bn)>rm'.i 
Mm,  Res.,  15-200;  S.  F.  Merc.  Oaz.,  Jan.  3,  1857;  also  AtUi  Cal.,  S.  t\  li<iil<- 
tin,  and  Sa^.  Union,  for  the  close  of  each  year.  Also  Id.,  Dec.  23,  1854;  Sept. 
29,  1855;  AUa  Cal.,  Feb.  5,  1853;  /?.  F.  Bulletin,  March  26,  May  6,  9,  Aug.  'Z\, 
1856;  Hayes'  Mining,  L  93-5,  etc.;  Hunt's  Mag.,  xxiii.  19;  xxxv.  121,  etc.; 
JVev.  Jour.  Sen.,  1877,  ap.  10,  i.  179,  introduce  comparisons  with  Australia; 
Qvart.  Rmew,  Ixxxvii.  422;  xc.  492;  xci.  529;  SoiUh.  Qtuirt.  Rev.,  v.  'M\ 
Revue  Deux  Monties,  Feb.  1,  1849;  Jacob's Prec.  Metals,  ii.  41;  Roswag,  Mttutu, 
54,  etc.,  have  figures  on  gold  yield  in  the  world,  with  comments  on  the 
e£fect  of  California't:  large  addition.  This  subject  will  bo  touched  in  my  next 
voluA^ie. 


FASCINATIONS  OF  MINING  LIFE. 


42S 


tries  wliich  should  bring  a  better  and  more  permanent 
result.  Yet  raining  had  attractions  in  its  independent, 
unrestrained  camp  life  and  roaming  intercourse  with 
nature,  besides  the  alluring,  though  generally  doclusive, 
lio|)e  of  rich  troves,  which  for  many  years  continued 
to  bring  fresh  recruits  to  its  ranks. 

The  increase  of  production  from  $40,000,000  in  1 849, 
by  ordinary  digging  process,  to  $00,000,000  in  1852, 
a  figure  long  sustained,  or  nearly  so,  was  at  first  due 
to  the  extension  of  the  field  over  nmch  new  ground, 
and  then  to  the  gradual  improvement  in  methods, 
which  permitted  larger  quantities  of  soil  to  be  opened 
and  washed  at  an  ever-decreasing  expenditure  of  time 
and  labor,  as  shown  elsewhere.'^''  The  development  of 
liydraulic  and  quartz  fields  brought  additional  means 
for  checking  a  decline  which  otherwise  would  have 
been  rapid.  Measured  by  the  labor  expended  upon 
tlio  production,  its  cost  was  three  times  the  value.  A 
host  of  other  items  may  be  entered  to  its  debit,  such 
as  the  disturbing  influence  of  the  emigration  of  gold- 
seokers,  and  the  loss  to  different  countries  of  capital'"^ 
and  stout  arms,  a  proportion  of  which  succumbed  to 
liardships  and  danger.  Society  suffered  by  the  loos- 
ened moral  restraint  of  mining  life,  with  the  consequent 
development  of  vice  and  increase  of  crime  and  blood- 
shed, and  the  spread  of  a  gambling  spirit  which  fos- 
ivYvd  thriftlessness,  and  disturbed  the  healMiy  mental 
equilibrium.'^^     California  had  further  to  endure  devas- 

-''It  is  curious  to  note  the  gloomy  predictions  expressed  at  irequcul  inter- 
vals, whenever  a  temporary  decline  in  gold  reinittancus  agittttud  conimcrciul 
fears.  In  1849-51  it  was  generally  supposed  that  the  y''.id  M-'iuld  sofin  he 
exhausted.  After  this,  doubters  became  more  cautious,  yet  even  local  jour- 
nals raised  a  wail  at  times.  Acta  Cal.,  Sept.  9,  Dec.  31,  1852;  Jan.  9,  185ti;  S. 
F.  JMlHiii,  Apr.  15,  Aug.  23,  185G. 

'^' Tiie  Loudon  Times,  in  the  autumn  of  1849,  remarks:  'A  great  man  once 
said  tliut  it  was  no  wonder  if  Oxford  and  Cambridge  were  such  learned  places, 
eoiisiduring  how  nmch  knowledge  was  yearly  carried  thither,  and  how  little 
was  ever  brought  away.  We  are  almost  inclined  to  apply  the  same  rule  to 
the  settlements  on  the  Sacramento.  If  California  is  not  the  richest  couniry 
upon  the  civrth,  it  soon  ouglit  to  be;  for  all  the  available  capitJil,  whetluT  in 
goods  or  cash,  of  the  Indian,  Pacitic,  and  the  Atlantic  8eal>o:irdH,  aiijiears  to 
1>e  ilcspatched  to  San  Francisco,'  showing  so  far  a  largo  balance  against  the 
placers. 

-"  Cuuipare  statistics  of  insanity  in  Cal.  and  eUewhcre.     The  efi'ect  of  ex- 


426 


MINING  METHODS 


tation  of  soil  by  the  washing  away  of  fertile  surfaces, 
and  the  ravaging  of  others  by  noxious  gravel  deposits, 
and  of  streams  by  pollution  and  fillage.^  On  the  other 
hand  must  be  considered  the  great  and  enduring  g<HKl 
effected  by  gold-mining,  and  the  movements  to  which 
it  gave  rise;  the  impulse  received  by  trade  and  in- 
dustries throughout  the  world  through  the  new  mar- 
kets and  traffic,  besides  affording  additional  outlets  for 
surplus  population ;  the  incentive  and  means  for  ex- 
ploring and  unfolding  resources  in  adjoining  and  in 
new  regions,  and  enriching  them  with  settlements. 
The  gold  discoveries  in  Australia,  British  Columbia, 
and  half  a  dozen  other  countries,  with  their  trains  of 
migration  and  prosperity,  followed  closely  on  the  CaU- 
fornia  event.*  The  United  States  was  at  one  step 
placed  a  half-century  forward  in  its  commercial  and 
political  interests  on  the  Pacific,  as  marked  by  tlie 
oi)ening  of  the  sealed  ports  of  China  and  Japan,  partly 
by  steamers  which  completed  the  steamship  girdle 
round  the  world,  by  the  construction  of  the  Panama 
railway,  and  by  the  great  transcontinental  steam  line. 
The  democratic  principles  of  the  republic  received, 
moreover,  a  brilliant  and  effective  demonstration  in 
the  equality,  organizing  skill,  self-government,  and 
self-advancement  displayed  on  the  Pacific  coast.  That 
is  to  say,  at  one  breath,  gold  cleared  a  wilderness  and 
trans{)lanted  thither  the  politics  and  institutions  of  the 
most  advanced  civilizations  of  the  world. 


posure  and  privations  in  the  mines  was  to  some  extent  balanced  by  the  vahie 
of  tlie  training  in  strengthening  many  constitutions. 

™  Helper,  in  his  Land  qf'  Gold,  23-31,  makes  a  formal  list  of  losses 
standing  to  the  debit  of  California,  the  purchase-money  by  U.  S.,  the  wages 
of  her  population,  the  cost  of  transport  to  and  fro,  losses  by  contlagratiniis, 
by  wrecks  and  debts,  which  alone  would  cover  the  value  of  the  gold  l>y  I'S."i.J 
threefold.  He  might  have  added  the  cost  of  the  war  of  con<|Ucst,  i\\n  value 
of  steamers  ami  other  connecting  service,  the  capital  invested  in  and  with 
California,  and  lost  in  trade,  etc.,  the  expenses  of  Indian  wars,  and  so  ou. 
He  looks  only  on  the  dark  side,  and  fails  to  find  compensating  good. 

*•  A  mania  set  in  for  discovering  gold,  and  in  18.")2  alone  it  was  found  in 
ten  countries,  Siberia,  New  Zealand,  South  America,  etc.  Men  swariiifil 
from  California  to  all  pares  of  the  Pacitic,  as  diggers,  atlventurcrs,  manutac- 
turers,  capitalists,  (^wirt.  Review,  xcL  512,  has  pertinent  remarks  ou  the 
Australian  gold  discovery 


AUTHOUmES. 


427 


Oenural  mining  authorities  are:  Cong.  Glolif,  1848-9,  pp.  2S7-8;  1849-50, 
ai.ii  -"J-S,  iiiJcx,  p.  xviii.;  1850-1,  4;  1851-2,  18;  IMjier'a  Luiul  </  UM, 
\X\  ."),  l.'.l-7,  l(iO-5;  VarHonn  E<irly  RicoU.,  6-9,  17,  19,  39;  Crn>thy»  KrenU, 
MS  .  H.  16-17,  19-22,  25;  Colemnna  Vig.  Conu,  MS.,  146;  SiiUfr,  in  CaL 
(«..<•.  /'/')//.,  N.  Y.,  1875,  53;  Sherman's  Mem.,  i.  52;  Simonin,  Vie  Souter., 
4«W  JO,  419-20,  494,  498,  641-8;  Rimrn,  IfUt.  Jalavn,  iv.  371;  vi.  371;  Piro, 
Ji<^.,  i.  l'.»l;  Jil.,  AcotU.,  77;  London  Qwirt.  Rev.,  Ixxxvii.  41&-23;  xo.  492- 
5in!;  xci.  505-0,  512,  529-40;  Low's  Stnt.,  MS.,  3-4;  Larking  Doc.,  vi.  107; 
/</.,  "/".  C'lirr.,  ii.  55;  Kw/a  Rept  Cat.,  68;  Id.,  GeoL  Ejrnhr.,  iii.  1-9;  Del 
M'l'i  nut.  Prec.  Metalx,  165,  260-6;  Fowltr'a  Diet.,  MS.,  14  et  seq.;  Lumb'a 
Miniiti)  t'(i»«;w»,  MS.,  passim;  Lane's  Nnrr.,  MS.,  108-112;  S/mw'a  Ooblen 
Jtrciin^,  33-4.  59,  87-8,  116;  Sitlimun's  Deep  Plueera,  15-23,  39-42;  JUtuWs 
Hi"!.  •>'.  P-,  l-'7-8,  289,  462;  Id.,  Minimj,  2-8,  20-22,  36;  Id.,  Land  C(uea, 
MS.;  I'irlz'  Our  Boi/t,  1(56-71;  Anhlami  (Or.)  Tidimja,  Aug.  9,  1878;  Crane's 
I'ut,  r,'H.,  23,  29-30, 112,  184-9;  CaL  Statutea,  1850,  221-«J;  1851,  424;  1852, 
aO:  KS.->:<.  63;  1854,  166;  1856,  141;  Annals  S.  F.,  417-18;  Esmeralda  Ilertild, 
Oct.  4,  IMlt;  El  Donulo  Co.  Hint.,  117;  CaL  Comp.  Lawn,  1850-3,  218-22; 
lhl.,„;'H  U/f,  etc.,  281-2,  290;  Anthony's  Sialiyou  Co.,  MS.,  6-14;  Moore's 
l'i.>ii.  Lip.,  MS.,  6-12;  Xnnv.  Annnles  Voy.,  cxx.  366-74;  cxxiii.  225;  cxxviiL 
S-ii  41;  cxxix.  109-24,  225-46,  35;J-C4;  Roamig,  MrUnix,  24-53;  CaL,  Jour. 
Hon.-.,  \SM,  802,  and  index  •min.  hiiuh;'  18o2,  829-36;  1853,  704-5,  715; 
1S.V.,  8!i.S,  app.  no.  14,  i>p.  67-91;  18.")6,  24-7;  1857,  no.  2,  31;  no.  4,  28-38; 
<•'/.  J-"r.  Sni.,  18.-.0,  1302,  1342;  1851,  591-8,  6«)0-3,  68.3-701;  1852,  6.->l-2, 
<V.V.t  (..■>,  7.")5;  1S5.3,  638,  619,  715,  app.  no.  3,  55-45;  1854,  586;  1855,  4i>-.3,  905, 
id.'),  aj.p.  no.  3,  27,  app.  no.  5,  29,  86-8;  1856,  400-1,  app.  no.  5,  50-7,  220- 
3:.'4,  a]!].,  no.  22,  6;  Burnett's  RvrolL,  MS.,  i.  367,  3l)!i-7;  li.,  passim;  El  Sono- 
r.;<«<.  .M.inh  21,  2."),  28,  Apr.  8,  15,  Aug.  16,  Sept.  27,  Nov.  29,  Dec.  22,  1848; 
JW/'i,  />«•.,  2'-.");  Eriahie's  Rem.,  MS.,  35;  Croniae'a  NiU.  Wealth,  132;  Xev., 
Jonr.  S' II.,  1877,  app.  10,  pp.  179-81;  Xorthem  Enterprise,  March  20,  1874; 
Ilitrl-in ll'a  Spin,  ami  Mex.  Law,  507-94;  Jfnnt'a  Mereh.  Mwj.,  xxvi.  613; 
xxvii.  3JS2-3,  445-50;  xxxii.  255;  xxxv.  121-2;  Overland  Monthly,  xiii.  273- 
8 1;  xiv.  3:21-8;  Miner'a  Advocnh;  Nov.  25,  1854;  ^renentuml  Future,  July  1, 
Jv>:',;  Dxin'a  St  itement,  MS.,  2-5;  Miner'a  Own  Book,  pp.  32;  El  Mhwur,  June 
2.1,  |s.-k;;  Riixxim  Rii^r  Fliij,  Jan.  22,  1851;  Minimj  Review,  1S76,  6,  8,  17-18; 
Si'-l',  ia  (h:  Jour.  Council,  1857-8,  app.  42-3;  Rosa'  Narrative,  MS.,  13-17; 
L'tfoiiK  Jwljva  and  Cri.n.,  79;  Id.,  Pera.  Adv.,  IL  1-64,  29i>-8;  Ilavilah 
(.•iirin;  Sipt  8,  1866;  Ilarjter'a  Maij.,  xx.  598-616;  O'dland  OuziUi;,  Ai)r. 
I'J,  1S7.'{;  June  19,  1875;  Roach'a  Stnt.,  MS.,  6-6;  Reivre'a  Keel  and  Saddle, 
1  iM,  2.")l-4;  Randolph's  Stat.,  MS.,  51;  Simonin,  Lea  Minea,  in  Rente  di'.i  Deux 
M'lidx,  Nov.  1875,  pp.  286-8;  Cnisoe  I4nnd,  336;  A.  M.  ComMork,  in  Vitj. 
i'oiii.  Mi"c.,  36;  LoaAmj.  Ifernld,  Dec.  23,  1874;  Loa  Ami.  Ev'i/  Ejpress,  May 
29,  l.STi';  S'lc.  B<e,  Jan.  16,  1374;  Sac.  Record,  Sept.  10,  1S74;  Sac.  R<r.~ 
I'll -III,  Nov.  3,  1677;  Deletaert,  Lea  Minea,  in  Ri'i'ne  dea  Deux  MondeM,  Feb.  1, 
Hl'.i,  pp.  478-83;  Tailor  a  El  Dorailo,  i.  60-1,  87-9,  92,  101-3,  110-11,  191, 
2».-»  7,  •Jt(>-JS;  /,/.,  Spr.  Presa,  ISA,  IM,  150\.  265-6,  2t);).i„  290,  TOl'.,  431, 
4.!7-!>,  441,  4."j1,  453,  500,  581;,;  Rnme  dea  Den.c  Monde--^,  Feb.  1,  1IS49;  Lloyd's 
J.ijhi-i,  J.',."),  5,;S;  ijuincy  Union,  Dec.  9,  16,  23,  JW,  1S.)5;  Frijnel,  La  CaL, 
8t  4,  90-lu;j,  le)5-8;  Or.,  Jour.  Cmindl,  KS.j7-8,  app.  42-3;  Xararro  Ln/ea, 
F,l..  Ks.'>6,  3.5.3-9,  551-0;  Xcr.  Journal,  Aug.  ^,  Nov.  2.3,  1855,  Jan.  18,  FeS. 
211,  \S:Mi;  Sirada  D.  Tramtcript,  Feb.  28,  LSiJO;  Xemdi  D.  Gaa'ite,  May  10, 
UW;  S,r.  City  Tri-u-eMy  J  I.  raid,  M  ly  23,  1878;  //isY.  Xc-mla,  1 70-206; 
X'-^(.Ai.'/aw«  Vid.  Dirvit.,  1S56,  10-12,  28-32;  Direet.  Xev.  Co.,  1867,  3_'-3, 
4S-y,  Gl-2;  Thomaa'  Minimj  Remin.,  MS. ;  Ilancock'a  Thiiieen  I'f'w,  M:i., 
l->l-(>;  Pioiu  Mag.,  iv.  345;  Coluxa  Co.  Annual,  1S78,  46;  liuffum'a  S;.c 
.!/(.„//(x,  p:is.sini;  Fremont'a  Amer,  Travel,  99,  103-4;  Direct.  Placer  Co., 
ISiil,  ]:\;  Thompson's  Ooldiii  Ren.,  1-91;  Sonl-'a  St  tt.,  3-4;  ,S.  /'.  Pinujum; 
Aug.-Iiec.  1850,  passim;  Hintona  Ariz.,  app.  62-99;  Eureka  Weat.  Coa.it  Slj- 
*<"/,  M  uth  19,  1873;  Portland  Bidlitin,  Aug.  3,  1872;  Plarerrille  Ripuh.,  June 
27.  I -.76;  Placerrille  Democrat,  July  1,  Aug.  19,  1876;  Cnhon'a  Three  Years, 
2:i-.-.,  2S0-1,  .3'J6,  3.39;  Armatronj'a  '49  Experienrea,  MS.,  13-14;  MerriUa 
Si  a.,  MS.,  5-10;  Foster'a  Gold  Region,  17-29;  Connor'a  Stat.,  MS.,  2;  Grass 


1 


MININO  METHODS. 


ViiL  Union,  June  22,  1872;  Pnmmd  Star,  Feb.  24, 1S40;  HewUtt's  Slot.,  M>( . 
J/mrn'n  t'liA  Skttrhen,  MM.,  8;  Littlf't  SUit.,  M.S.,  0-8,  12;  Suyimril'H  /•*,„. 
llewin.,  MS.,  12-13;  .lM</fr,  Toy.  fnCal.,  lU&-l(t:  Crtucenl  Citt/  I/enidl,  Nov 
21»,  l.s.'»4;  CAfM  HitlUiml,  in  Co/W  V^cft.m,  May  1873,  p.  76;  t'ote'a  Huh,  \s\ 
a')iMK);  <?rjM*  Fii/.  Fimthill  Tiiliiujit,  March  15,  22,  29,  Apr.  6,  12,  I'.t,  •.>(;, 
May  3,  10,  17,  1879;  Vit»iilns  SUit.,  MS.,  18;  Fremo  Expontnr,  June  22,  187(1; 
Foil'*  SUU.,  MS.,  11-13;  Lamfiertk,  Voy.  Cut.,  23»-40,  259-03:  Hht.  Si.,„„. 
Ifuia  Co.,  103-*;  Fvrry'n  TnwU,  90-1;  S.  F.  CulL  Jan.  19,  1873;  Jun.  lo, 
1S75;  S.  F.  Mrr.daz.  ami  S/iipjnj  Ke,j.,  Jan.  .1,  1867;  8.  F.  W'hl<jii>idA,/r.,l., 
Juno  11,  18."i3,  2;  S.  F.  Pool,  Ana.  8,  1877;  S.  F.  Manml,  197-2W;  S.  t\ 
Ihrall,  Jan.  29,  June  1,  4,  6,  8,  July  10,  23,  Aug.  1,  1850;  May  21,  |S.V.>; 
(•»/.  Spint  TiiiieM,  Dec.  25,  1877;  S.  F.  .Worn.  GU,U,  Aug.  19,  1850;  S.  F. 
Toii-n  Talk,  May  (J,  185«;  Ferry,  Oil.,  100-7;  Lerl-y'a  Rtit.,  i.  275;  C,,niti\ 
llaiMiwiK,  28-9;  Fix/ier'n  Cal.  42-9;  T/wwjmm,'»  S/al.,  M.S.,  21-ti;  Fitbj-r.1l.f4 
i'al.  Ski'uhea,  179-81;  .Mm  IWmf.  in  M^ncel.  St<it.,  19-20;  I'mchya  Mini„j 
Lnm,  1-8(5;  /.€/<*»  Val.  Illu.^,  102-4;  Fimlla's  SUitemeiU,  MM.,  9;  Ta/.  ^.r. 
a«(/  Titx.  licrit)tH,  4-10;  5.  /'.  Jiiillelin,  1855-7,  pansini;  Brooks'  Four  ilimUiA, 
15,  17,  51-3,  59-01,  05,  08-72,  77,  89,  91.  183,  200;  /(/.,  Iliot.  Mex.  W"r,  -ilW; 
ilr<MS  Val.  Uninn,  Nov.  15,  1807;  Metuhw  Luke  W.  Sun,  N.iv.  24,  18t>4;  ('. 
T'mM  ddziUf,  Apr.  9,  1879;  VaL  Diijger'it  IIiiml-Boi>k,  7-9,  12-14,  27-8,  :<0-8, 
43,  0(5,  72-8;  S.  F.  Parijic  A'<tw,  D«c.  22,  1849;  Jan.  1,  10,  Apr.  20-7,  18.V); 
May-Dec.  IS.IO,  paasim;  UnlKtuml  Doc..  12,  50,  318,  327 -S,  383,  408-11;  A7 
Uim^i-xiil,  Juno  5,  1W9;  Nov.  30,  1850;  TyUr'a  BvlirrWn  Bur,  MS.,  -2  7; 
Trinity  Tim,:i,  Jan.  27,  18.")5;  Tr<i^k's  Geol.  CuL,  23-4;  Torrf»,  P  ...  SI, 
14S-'.»;  Tmhl'M  Siinnet  Land,  45;  SonUi.  Quart.  Itfvine,  v.  (X.  S.):K)l-:il;  Khk- 
jHitrick'M  Jour.,  MM.,  .37;  Kip's  OiL  Ski-tf-hen,  MM.,  6,  30-41,  48-52;  Kdly's  A!/-. 
curxion,  ii.  215-4;  MiUl/ifWuoii'it  Stat.,  MS.,  8-9;  Upluirn  it  Notes,  328-9;  Sin  nth 
U.  S.  Cinsu»,  9S5;  SutkiyouVo.  Affairn,  MS.,  10;  Shenroo<Vn  i'al.,  3-27;  .V.  t'. 
Cdl.  Courier,  July-Dec.  1850,  paasim;  Stw.  Union,  18."»4-0,  passim;  St  Amnnl, 
I'liy.,  575-9;  Miijuel  Crrea,  in  Soc.  Mex.  Oeog.,  ii.  44;  (inmt  Val.  Hatiimil,  I'l'C. 
31,"  l;>74;  S.  Jo^i  Mercury,  Jan.  12,  1805;  Dirett.  Grass  Vnl.,  I8«55,  OH  88; 
(.'arni-s'  Fnrli/  Dat/s  S.  F.,  MM.,  15;  S.  Diei/o  Arch.,  325,  349;  Hayes'  *•-,,«, 
San  Diiyo,  i.  94;  Id.,  An<jeli8,  ii.  102-8,  258,  272,  279;  xviii.  101-3;  /(/.,  .l//«- 
iiiij  C'li,  i.-vii.,  passim;  litL  Gold  liajions,  15;  Cat.  PoL  Scraps,  207-74; 
Simii's  Trip  to  the  Gold  Mines;  Cal.  Pion.,  no.  49,  pp.  4J-9;  BarntnirH  SUrt., 
MM.,  2,  4-7,  U;  Capron's  11*1.  Cal.,  229-34;  Borthwick's  Three  Years  i,.  T..', 
pa.ssiui;  Bonwiek's  Mormons,  ,50-1,  370-1,379,  391;  Knox'  Umlenjr  "ml,  1^',- 
814;  Savaye  Coll.,  MM.,  iii.  188;  U.  S.  Land  Off.  Jlept,  1855,  141-2;  St  ,".-,r» 
Gdd  Mines,  6,  7-8,  11,  13,  27;  Marystrille  W.  Appeal,  Aug.  24,  18(57;  .Mun^- 
ritle  D.  A^rpeal,  Oct  23,  1804;  Marysrille  Direct.,  1858,  2;»-30,  94;  Bamfs  /> 
and  Down,  12.V.10;  Ilutchiwjs'  Jllitst.  Cal.  Ma,/.,  i.  218,  340;  iii.  34.3,  4()'.'t,  .Mif., 
519;  iv.  452,  497;  Valle,  Doc.,  72  ot  seq.;  Hist.  Doc.  Cal.,  i.  607-9,  o-.'d;  111. 
371,  373,  379-S2;  Vallejo,  Col.  Doc.,  xxxv.  03;  xxxvi.  189,  2i:5;  Bi.,i<r'i 
Di'iry,  MM.,  7(5;  Brmone's  Min.  Pes.,  15-72,  193-200;  Martin's  Aur.,  MS., 
54-5;  M'trryat's  MouHtaim;  Kane,  in  Miirci  Stat.,  10;  Hawley's  Ohxerv.,  Ms., 
8-9;  Marnioxa  Gazette,  Feb.  20,  1809;  Jan.  17,  June  27,  1873;  Id.,  C/mw., 
l>oc.  8,  1854;  U.  S.  Govt  Doe.,  Spec.  Sess.,  March  185.3,  Sen.  D<h;.  4,  pp.  40.J; 
/(/.,  31st  Cong.,  1st  Ses-s.,  Men.  1,  p.  4S8;  MeDanieVa  Early  Dayx,  MS.,  7; 
McCollum'a  C(d.,  45;  Jaroh's  Prec-  Metals,  ii.  41  et  seq.;  Jantsens,  Viday  .id., 
MM.,  221;  B<fkersjidd  South.  Cal.,  Juno  8,  Nov.  2.3,  1870;  Barnes'  Or.  ami 
(';/.,  14-18,  118;  J/iv.  Hist.  Papers,  Doc.  20,  .34;  Soc.  Mex.  Geoj.,  Boltt.,  li. 
44;  Voiri-irg  Miiiiwj  Districts,  MM.,  2;i-4;  Ballou's  .Advent.,  MS.,  25;  Whentcn'^ 
Stat.,  MM.,  0,  9;  Colnmhia  Gaz.,  Dec.  9,  1854;  /(/.,  Cli]>per,  Dec.  2,  IS.'vl; 
S  uiora  Herald,  Dec.  9,  1854;  Schlai/intireit,  Cal.,  210-311;  SaffonVs  A'lrr., 
MS.,  21-2;  Son.  Co.  Hist.,  29-38;  Weston's  LjJ'e  in  the  Mines,  MM.,  7;  La  I'az 
tie  Soiiora,  Oct.  5,  1855;  Velasco,  Son.,  3D7;  Van  Dyke's  Stat.,  MS.,  3-5,  8; 
Ytil.a  Co.  Hixt.,  44,  13(5;  Vallejo  D.  Recorder,  Nov.  6,  1870;  ,S.  /'.  AlUi  (<di- 
J'ornia,  1819-5(5,  p.a.ssiui;  Wriyht's  Bitj  Boiiamn,  507-9;  Son.  Democrat,  .Im. 
31,  1880;  Sutloii's  Sl.tl.,  MS.,  3-4,  11;  Yreka  Union,  Feb.  20,  18(54,  June  .">, 
1S;59;  Woo,linard's  St'(t.,  MS.,  3,  5;  Wooil's  Sixteen  Months,  50-4,  57,  *»4,  S4, 
100,  125-30,  135,  144-8,  171-0;  /./.,  Pioneer  Work,  04-5,  98-9. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

BIRTH  OF  TOWNS. 

1709-1869. 

Mexican  Town-makino— Mission,  Prehidio,  and  Ppfblo — Thk  ANnu>- 
Amkkhan  Method— Clkarinci  away  the  Wilderne**  -  The  Ameki- 
CAN  MiNioiPAL  Idea— NECKHstTiEH  Attendinu  Selfciuvernment — 
HoMK-MAUE  Laws  and  Justice — Arbitration  and  LiTKiATioN— Camp 
AM>  Town  Sites — Creation  or  Counties— Nomenclature — Kiveiu 
iis.i  Harbors — Industries  and  Progress. 

For  three  quarters  of  a  century  California  had  been 
a  colonial  appendage  of  Mexico,  occupied  as  a  military 
frontier,  with  friars  to  superintend  the  subjugation  of 
the  natives,  and  convert  them  into  citizens  useful  to 
tluinselves  and  to  the  state.  They  were,  for  lack  of 
ready  material,  to  swell  the  ranks  of  the  colonists,  who, 
undor  protection  of  the  sword  and  cross,  formed  nuclei 
for  towns,  raising  up  in  due  time  a  self-sustaining 
province  of  tribute-paying  subjects.  The  missions 
luing  gradually  changed  into  U)cally  self-governing 
pUL'l>k)S,  the  teaching  and  protecting  friars  and  soldiers 
were  to  pass  onward  with  the  extending  border  line. 
But  the  Mexicans  did  not  possess  the  true  spirit 
of  hard-working,  thrifty  colonists  and  homo-builders. 
Tlioy  were  easily  deterred  by  such  obstacles  as  distance 
from  convenient  centres  and  home  associations,  espe- 
cially when  their  indolent  disposition  was  disturbed 
l)v  danger  from  beasts  and  savages.  Even  for  con- 
tiifuous  states  within  the  republic,  colonization  had  to 
Ih'  fostered  by  military  settlements,  with  semi-com- 
pulsory enlistment;  hence  progress  fell  into  the  ruts  of 

(429) 


i 


Pi 


430 


BIRTH  OF  TOWNS. 


:':  !:^i 


slow  pastoral  life,  in  which  the  well-known  prolificness 
of  the  race  ranked  as  chief  factor.  Under  like  con- 
ditions there  would  have  been  like  drawbacks,  only 
in  less  intensified  degree,  when  California  became  a 
part  of  the  United  States.  Development  would  have 
been  very  gradual  but  for  the  same  incentive  which 
had  promoted  the  occupation  of  America,  and  the 
rapid  extension  of  Spanish  conquests  to  the  borders 
of  Arizona — ^gold.  The  broader  effect  of  its  discovery 
was  here  greatly  owing  to  the  facilities  provided  for 
immigration  by  a  more  advanced  age,  no  less  than  to 
the  energetic,  enterprising  character  of  the  chief  par- 
ticipants. 

The  Anglo- Americans  were  in  good  training  for 
the  conquest  of  nature.  During  the  past  two  centu- 
ries much  of  their  time  had  been  spent  in  subduing 
the  wilderness,  in  killing  off  the  wild  beasts  and  wild 
men,  and  planting  settlements  along  the  gradually 
retreating  frontiers;  so  that  when  they  came  to  Cali- 
fornia they  were  ready  to  make  short  work  of  what- 
ever should  stand  between  them  and  that  grand 
development  which  was  to  see  a  valley  of  pathless 
plains  and  silent  foothills  blossom  within  one  brief 
year  into  countless  camps  and  busy  highwa3'^s.  Be- 
fore this  their  adventurous  vanguard  had  dis;  layed 
to  easy-going  pueblo  dwellers  their  bent  for  city 
building  by  planning  more  than  one  pretentious  site; 
but  it  was  in  the  mining  region  that  this  talent  was 
to  appear  in  impromptu  evolutions,  out  of  which 
should  spring  regulations  so  admirable  in  principle 
and  adaptability  as  to  serve  as  a  Imsis  for  later  com- 
munities, and  to  eclipse  the  century  codes  of  Europe. 

The  concurrence  of  the  miners  at  some  promising 
locality,  and  the  demand  of  numerous  and  letis  fortu- 
nate late  comers,  called  for  a  distribution  or  readjust- 
ment of  ground  claims  on  the  principle  of  free  land 
and  equal  rights,  at  least  among  citizens  of  the  United 
States,  as  title  holders,  and  with  special  consideration 
for  the  discoverer.  This  was  the  foundation  of  the 
aiining-ca'   p  system. 


MINING  COMMUNITIES. 


431 


The  miners  were  an  ultra-democratic  body,  priding 
themselves  upon  an  equality  which  to  the  present  end 
manifested  itself  in  according  free  and  full  voice  to 
every  person  present.  True,  might  here  also  retained 
a  certain  sway,  permitting  the  bully  at  times  to  over- 
ride the  timid  stranger  or  the  stripling,  and  ever 
giving  precedence  to  the  preponderance  of  brain,  of 
tact,  of  fitness,  which  required  assurance,  however,  to 
make  its  way  in  the  joHtling  crowd.  The  only  injus- 
tice countenanced  in  general  assembly  was  perhaps  in 
tiie  direction  of  race  prejudice.  A  large  proportion 
of  the  people  had  been  trained  partly  in  local  political 
clu}>s  and  movements,  partly  in  the  rules  and  coopera- 
tive duties  of  overland  companies;  and  the  need  of 
partners  for  labox  and  camp  routhie  tended  to  sustain 
the  practice,  frequently  defined  'jy  written  rules,^  but 
tinctured  by  a  socialism  of  the  fraternal  type. 

With  the  Germanic  trait  of  swift  adaptation  of 
means  to  ends,  so  highly  deve'oped  among  Americans, 
the  first  indication  of  a  gr  .iicring  connnunity  or  the 
jrewing  of  public  questions  was  signalized  by  a  meet- 
in*;  for  framing  rules  and  appointing  officers  to  watch 
over  their  observance.  The  emergency  found  both  able 
leaders  and  intelligent  followers.  A  committee  was 
{ironijttly  nominated  of  men  with  clear  heads  and  per- 
iiapis  legal  experience;  and  their  project  for  regulating 
tlie  size  and  tenure  of  claims,  the  settlement  of  dis- 
putes, recording  titles  and  enforcing  order  in  the  camp, 
would  be  enunciated  by  the  chairnmn  from  the  com- 
manding elevation  of  a  tree-stump  or  empty  provision 
barrel,  and  adopted  with  occasional  dissent,  article  by 
article,  by  show  of  hands  or  word  of  mouth.*^     The 

'CoiiceminK  the  share  in  cxpeusea,  househohl  and  mining  labor,  tools, 
yield,  I'tc,  as  snown  iu  the  chapters  on  mines. 

''  Kor  rules,  see  the  chuntitr  on  mining.  In  due  time  the  boundaries  of  dis- 
tricts were  given  to  whiuti  the  rules  applied.  The  use  of  water,  ciicroach- 
inents,  riffhts  of  foreigners,  recorder's  duties,  meeting  place  and  procedure, 
the  Hide  of  claims,  fees,  amendments,  etc.,  received  consideration,  although 
nut  at  all  meetings,  the  earliest  rules  covering  as  a  rule  only  a  few  essential 
points.  Each  camp  was  a  IxKly  (Militic  by  itself,  asking  leave  or  counsel  of 
nmie  others;  and  thus  arose  a  lack  of  uniformity,  whicli  in  duo  time,  however, 
wud  modified  through  the  lessons  brought  by  intercourse. 


i!i, . 


'ill' 


f    I    • 


432 


BIRTH  OF  T0^VN8. 


prevalence  of  rlistinct  rules,  even  in  closely  adjoining 
districts,  was  no  doubt  confusing,  but  they  had  tlie 
merit  of  better  suiting  the  requirements  of  its  occu- 
pants and  the  nature  of  the  environments  than  a 
general  code,  which  frequently  proved  obstructive  by 
inapplicable  features.  In  some  camps  hearsay  suf- 
ficed to  rule  proceedings  subsequent  to  the  first  distri- 
bution, but  usually  a  recorder  was  chosen  to  register 
claims  and  decide  disputes.  Compromise  formed  here 
the  lea<iing  feature  of  Anglo-Saxon  adjustment,  until 
complex  society  and  interests  gave  predominance  to 
lawyers.'  In  grave  cases,  or  in  those  of  wide  appli- 
cation, a  gathering  was  called,*  from  which  judge,  jurj-, 
and  defenders  might  be  chosen  to  hold  trial.  Conven- 
tions were  also  ordained  for  stated  periods  to  consider 
the  condition  of  affairs  and  effect  improvements.^  A 
pul)lic  jealous  of  its  rights,  and  with  ready  views,  kept 
guard  over  proceedings,  and  assisted  with  fixed  or  vol- 
untary and  casual  contributions  to  form  a  financial  de- 
partment for  the  simple  and  honest  administration  of 
affairs. 

Larger  camps  found  it  prudent  for  order  and  ad- 
ministration to  install  a  permanent  council,"  with  more 

''As  a  rule,  questions  were  submitted  to  neighbors.  8oine  districts  dexig- 
nated  a  special  arbitrator,  or  a  standing  committee  sworn  by  the  aicuMe. 
Fees  ranged  from  #2  or  ^  to  50  cents,  at  times  Mrith  mileage  added. 

*At  tlie  instance  of  any  one,  although  it  was  left  to  the  summoned  persons 
to  disregard  the  appeal  if  trivial.  A  vote  on  the  B\>ot  might  settle  the  qiu'!i- 
tion;  otherwiue  a  pre.siding  officer,  judge,  jury,  and  defenders  would  lie 
chosen;  witne8sc:)  were  summoned,  and  a  written  record  was  kept.  Any  one 
was  permitted  to  proiiccute,  while  liable  to  be  called  out  as  executive  otiicr''. 
In  civil  cases  the  jury  w.ia  often  restricted  to  six  men  for  the  sake  of  ecouDir y. 
There  were  plenty  of  lawyers  among  the  miners,  who  appeared  when  callid 
upon.  Although  decisions  were  as  a  rule  prompt,  with  enforcement  or  t.M'- 
ciition  witliiti  a  few  hours,  yet  at  times  days  were  consumed  to  accord  lull 
weight  to  testimony.  The  I'uud  derived  from  registration  of  claims  proviled 
for  tlie  costs;  otherwise  collections  or  assessments  M'ere  made,  particular!,.'  to 
pay  tlie  sheriff.  The  alcalde  used  to  receive  his  ounce  of  uold  for  a  trial,  jurors 
proliab'.y  $5  for  a  ciuie,  and  wituetsses  actual  expenses.  Two  rival  claiiiiaiits 
to  a  deposit  at  Scott  IVar,  Klanuith  River  region,  once  sent  to  S.  F.  for  lawyers 
and  judge  to  conduct  the  ease.     'Die  winners  paid  the  cost. 

^  With  the  aid  of  delegate*.-*  from  other  districts,  and  to  annul  obnoxious 
rules.  Inxtance  the  six-monthly  meetings  at  Jamestown,  and  those  of  Bro  vn 
Vaii^y  in  .Ian.  and  Aug.  ISA.!.  Claim-holders  had  in  some  places  to  attend. 
Instance  also  tha  'hungry  convention '  at  (trass  Valley  during  the  winter 
of  18ft2-.H. 

"  As  at  Rough  and  Heady,  where  three  citixens  composed  it.     The  stand- 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT. 


433 


,.;•  less  extended  sway.  Others  adhered,  under  the 
^•i.idance  of  earher  arrivals,  to  the  existing  form  of 
local  government  by  chosing  an  alcalde.  This  semi- 
oriental  feature  was  indeed  upheld  by  the  military 
jrovernors,  who  preferred  to  interfere  as  little  as  pos- 
sible with  Mexican  customs  pending  congressional 
enactments.^  But  the  Aff-rican  alcalde  had  about 
him  little  of  the  autocratic  and  parental  control  ac- 
corded to  his  southern  prototype,  whose  subjects  were 
so  largely  composed  of  servile  Indians.  The  prevail- 
ing sense  of  intelligent  equality  quelled  assumption. 
Yet  a  certain  degree  of  arbitrary  power  was  exercised 
by  him  to  save  precious  time.  Guided  by  simple 
equity,  and  occasionally  by  some  code  from  an  eastern 
state,  his  decisions  were,  as  a  rule,  abided  by,  with 
rare  appeal  to,  the  governor. 

In  1850  the  state  laws  ordered  alcaldes  to  be  re- 
placed by  justices  of  the  peace  for  every  township, 
with  jurisdiction  of  no  mean  grade;*  but  several  places 
incorporated  as  towns  and  cities,®  burdening  them- 
selves often  too  hastily  with  an  elaborate  staft*  of  offi- 

iiig  committee  of  arbitration  was  a  form  of  it.  At  Sonora  a  regular  town 
ciiuncil  of  seven,  with  a  mayor,  was  chosen  in  Nov.  1849,  in  connection  with 
a  iiioveniL-iit  to  establish  a  hospital 

'  As  liite  as  Aug.  1849  Gov  Riley  ordered  an  election  of  alcaldes  and 
other  local  otiicials.  See  remarks  on  Nevada,  Sunora,  Marysville,  and  Sac- 
ramento, aitd  in  the  chapter  on  S.  F.  1849;  also  Riley's  favorable  commeut 
on  the  mining  alcalde.  Kept  of  Aug.  1849;  Taylor't  Elttormio;  Rynnn  Ad- 
vent. In  Southern  Cal.  the  alcalde  spirit  lingered  Ions  under  Mexican 
officials.  Sta  Barh.  Arrh.,  77-115,  passim,  1864,  etc.;  and  y'aflejo,  Doc.,  xxxiv.- 
V.     A  constable  was  early  chosen  to  aid  the  alcalde. 

''Chieriy  because  they  were  enniowered  to  settle  mining  cases  of  any  value. 
The  townships  at  this  time  extended  at  times  over  an  average  county. 

*  In  some  cases  town  organization  had  been  effected  too  hastily,  for  a  char- 
ter from  the  legislature  was  required  to  give  it  legality.  The  existing  coun- 
cil at  Sonora  was  accordingly  disbanded  till  this  document  was  obtained. 
Nevada  fell  into  debt,  dismissed  her  officials,  and  reincornorated  under  a 
cheaper  charter;  San  Bernardino  suffered  a  relapse  in  the  Niormon  exodus; 
Beuicta  was  overshatlowed  by  8.  F.,  and  so  forth.  The  first  rules  governing 
auch  iucoriwrations  are  given  in  CuL  SUUuUa,  1850,  78,  128.  The  population 
necessary  for  towns  must  exceed  200,  whose  government  was  assigned  to  five 
trustees,  elected  annually,  with  a  treasurer,  assessor,  and  marshal.  For 
cities  the  population  must  exceed  2,000.  The  otiicials  to  be  elected  were 
mayor,  marshal,  police  judge,  and  a  council  of  at  least  three  members,  one 
for  each  ward;  term  not  to  exceed  two  years.  These  rules  were  elastic,  for 
oM  Alameda  was  incorporated  in  1854,  when  the  population  on  the  entire 
ueninxnla  barely  exoMded  100;  and  Benicia  and  others  assumed  9ity  garb  with 
less  than  2,000. 

UisT.  Cau.  Vol.  VL   ». 


434 


BIRTH  OF  TOWNS. 


I' I 


cials  under  the  selfish  manoeuvring  of  politicians  and 
speculators.  Taking  advantage  of  the  unsettled  ((ni- 
dition,  and  the  business  preoccupation  amtjng  citizens, 
these  worthies  furthermore  proceeded  to  divert  local 
resources  to  their  own  ends,  and  ingulf  the  settleniont 
in  debt  by  useless  or  extravagant  measures  from  w  hiih 
they  sought  enrichment.  They  sold  offices  to  tlie 
liighest  bidder,  and  by  the  complexity  of  departments 
and  routine  they  manipulated  justice  to  shicM  tlie 
corrupt,  by  whose  support  they  susttiined  themselves." 
These  were  among  the  causes  which  converted  lar<f(  r 
towns  into  hot-beds  of  crime,  the  refuge  of  a  class 
driven  from  cam|»s  and  other  places  ruled  by  the  fear- 
inspiring  swiftness  of  a  miners'  court." 

The  site  of  mining  camps  received  apparently  little 
of  the  consideration  governing  the  location  of  sottk- 
ments.  In  the  rush  for  gold,  nothing  was  thought  of 
save  the  momentary  convenience  of  being  near  to  the 
field  c^f  operation.  And  so  they  sprang  up,  often  in 
the  most  out  of  the  way  spots,  on  the  sandy  tlat  lift 
by  retreating  river  currents,  along  the  stvep  slope  of  a 
ravine,  on  the  arid  plain,  on  the  hilltop,  or  in  the 
cul-de-sac  hollow  of  some  forbidding  ridge,  with  lack 
or  excess  of  water,  troubksomc  approach,  and  otlier 
obstacles.  Even  the  picturesque  faded  fast  as  the 
foliage  fringe  round  the  white-peaked  tents  was  reduced 
to  shorn  stumps,  midst  unsightly  mounds  of  earth, 
despoiled  river-beds,  and  denuded  slopes,  the  <;1  lastly 
battle-field  of  Titanic  forces.  The  chief  ct)nveniences 
were  due  to  the  store-keepers  and  liquor  dealers,  who, 
with  a  keen  eye  to  the  main  chance,  followed  in  the 
train  of  the  diggers;  and  while  planting  themselves 
on  the  most  conspicuous  spot,  were  prompted,  on  puh- 
lic  grounds,  although  for  private  gain,  to  demainl  for 

•'"See  the  chapters  on  S.  F.,  an<l  the  Mectiona  on  S.-vc.,  Oukluii.I,  iti. 
Under  the  county  notes  are  shown  inatances  of  ineoriMiration.  A-.  'iwiii 
eaiuc  to  Ciil.  with  the  exnresaaini  to  legittlate  for  her,  Hoothcrt  tli>cki<l  lathu 
to  gatlier  the  crumbs  of  loi-al  management. 

''Compulsory  in  a  great  degree,  owing  to  the  laok  of  prisoiu  and  keepers 
for  ofiurdiug  delay  ior  trials. 


THE  MAIN  STREET. 


«9 


resiJcnts  an<l  wayfarers  an  outline  for  a  street  with 
itiuly  accoiss  to  their  bar  and  counter.  Along  this 
thoroughfare  clustered  the  shrines  of  Bacchus  and 
Fortuua,  t^ambling-halls,  shed-like  hotels,  and  other 
ailjuiK'ts  of  life  and  traffic,  corresponding  to  the  extent 
and  prominence  of  the  diggings.  In  most  cases  the 
st)lit;uy  and  perhai>s  crooked  main  street  formed  the 
(nilv  avenue  among  the  cluster  of  tents,  brush  huts,  and 
l(»sjf  cabins;  in  others  the  camps  were  scattered  at  fre- 
(jiitiit  intervals,  especially  along  the  Stanislaus.  Occa- 
sitiiially  a  rich  field  drew  a  gathering  of  thousands 
witliin  a  few  weeks'"^  to  one  point,  which,  like  Sonora, 
Colunil>ia,  Placerville,  and  Nevada,  became  the  centre 
for  a  number  of  minor  groups,  and  marked  its  stages 
dt'  progress  by  such  significant  features  as  tlie  trans- 
formation of  early  canvas  structures  and  sheds  into 
Iramc  buildings,  and  these  again  sometimes  into  sub- 
stantial brick  edifices;  the  appearance  of  a  local  news- 
paper; tlie  introduction  of  sewers  and  water-works, 
anil  finally  gas,  the  crowning  affirmation  of  permanent 
piw:n,rity,  more  so  than  the  documentary  claim 
prt'siiited  in  a  city  charter,  whose  pretensions  were 
tVotpKiitly  swept  away  b\'  disincorporation. 

As  c'(  litres  of  mining  districts  they  often  controlled 
a  Hourisliing  trade  over  a  large  extent  of  country,'"* 
until  tiie  growth  of  population  demanded  a  division 
with  now  or  subordmate  rallying  points.  In  due  time 
tht  y  bt'camo  aspirants  for  the  honors  of  a  couikty  seat, 
soino  by  influencing  the  creation  of  a  cimnty,  on 
pitas  similar  to  those  for  organizing  districts — pub- 
li<-'  convenience'* — but  which  were  widely  .stretched 

'-'Any  of  the  rich  HtreainM,  .StaiiUlaui,  Yiilta,  Feather,  furiUHhi'H  instances, 
a.s  ^llllwn  in  thu  note  on  counties,  and  in  the  chapter  oil  mining.  Sonora  and 
N>  v.iilit  arc  antonu  tlie  best  known. 

'^'I'o  u'iiivli  pnyHiual  oltstacleD,  m  ravines,  rivers,  and  ranges,  and  tlie 
atti'Mil.iiit  convenience  assigneil  the  limits.  The  moineiit  these  created  oli- 
j  (.'tKiii.s  a  new  district  w;is  formed  without  evi-ii  consulting  the  mother  dis- 
trii-t.  Rules  were  tnodiKcd  to  suit  the  change  and  wishes  of  the  majority 
<u-ni|i\iiig  the  new  centre.  At  times  camps  united  also  fur  certiiin  ol>jects. 
I'l-ttrnts  were  frcmiently  cut  in  twohy  the  arhitrary  l>order  lines  of  counties, 
yit  this  seliloiit  affected  their  organization  or  unity. 

"Tlie  legislature  was  swayed  ^jreatly  l»y  whim  aud  {mlitical  intriu'ue  in 
cruatiii;;  counties.     Soctions  like  El  Dorado  aud  t'aldveraa  were  lung  left  iu> 


4M 


BIRTU  OF  TOWNS. 


iii». 


i;r 


to  suit  the  fauf'V  of  speculators  and  politicians,  in 
and  out  of  legislature.  Others  managed  by  a  ]>re- 
ponderating  vote  and  interest  to  wrest  t]i(3  dig. 
nity  from  less  powerful  towns. ^*     In  many  instances 

tact,  although  countine  already  in  1850  a  population  of  over  20,0lM)  »n(I 
16,000  respectively,  anu  presenting  numerous  internal  obstacles,  iiotuMy  in 
Bteep  ranges  and  rugged  divides;  while  other  regions,  like  Memlociiio,  w  ith 
a  white  population  of  only  55,  and  small  prospects  for  advancement,  wure 
accorded  equal  status.  Compare  also  the  contemporaneous  segregation  of 
Coluba,  Yolo,  and  Solano,  with  ready  means  for  intercourse  and  a  scanty  |iii|i. 
ulation,  except  in  a  few  spots,  and  the  limitation  of  Marin  to  a  nionntain- 
ous  comer,  while  the  adjoining  Sonoma  revelled  in  a  fertile  expannc,  with 
jurisdiction  in  a  measure  as  far  na  Humboldt.  Subsequently  such  small  mx- 
tions  were  lopped  off  aa  rich  Amador  on  one  side  of  the  Mokelumnc,  and 
barren  Alpine  on  the  other.  Lassen  was  grant<fd  autonomy  to  pkiLse  a  few 
growlers,  while  similar  louder  and  sounder  complaints  eldcwhero  rLinaincl 
unheeded.  Del  Norte  and  Klamath  were  given  the  sway  of  their  res|teL'tive 
rocky  circuits;  and  when  the  latter  speedily  sought  relief  from  the  i)rivil.'ge, 
its  terrain  must  needs  be  awarded  to  the  already  cumbersome  HumlMiMt  a;i>l 
Siskiyou,  without  a  share  to  Del  Nort«,  for  which  proximity  and  natural 
boundaries  designed  it.  According  to  the  act  of  Apr.  22,  1850,  the  XMitition  of 
at  least  100  electors  was  required  for  organizing  a  county.  Later  the  S">: 
Union,  Apr.  11,  1855,  etc.,  objected  to  a  voting  population  as  a  ba.sis.  The 
Politiral  Code  qf  Cut  divides  the  couuties  into  tliree  classes,  the  fint  with  a 
population  of  290,000  and  over,  the  second  with  8,000  and  upwards,  the  thinl 
below  8,000,  with  boards  of  supervisors  numbering  7,  5,  and  3  memlHT.i  re- 
spectively, each  representing  a  supervisor's  district  for  a  term  of  three  y<  ars,  a 
portion  of  the  board  retiring  annually.  Its  meetings  are  fixed  for  tlic-  tii^t 
Monday  in  Feb.,  May,  Aug.,  and  Nov.,  the  books  kept  by  it  covering  minuter) 
of  proceeding,  allowances  from  the  treasury,  warrants  upon  the  treatsury,  IlsI 
of  franchises  granted,  and  records  of  roaifs  and  works.  Of  county  otticers, 
every  two  years,  aa  judge,  sheriff,  treasurer,  clerk,  auditor,  recorder,  attor- 
ney, surveyor,  coroner,  assessor,  collector,  school  superintendent,  puMic  ad- 
ministrator, and  commissioners  of  highways,  several  positions  may  after  ihte 
notice  be  consolidated  in  counties  of  inferior  rank,  for  tlie  sake  of  econoniy, 
the  clerk,  for  instance,  acting  also  as  auditor  and  recorder.  For  townslii|>j, 
subordinates  could  be  added  to  the  indispensable  justices  of  the  peace  ami 
constables,  and  every  official,  except  judges,  supervisors,  and  justices,  couU 
appoint  the  needful  deputies.  ^\  ith  several,  residence  at  the  county  scat 
was  compulsory  for  obviifOs  reasons.  Bonds  ranged  from  $10(),()(k)  for 
treasurers  in  the  first-class  counties,  to  $5,000  for  school  superintiuileiitj 
and  coroners,  the  proportion  in  third-class  counties  being  aUaut  one  fifth 
titese  amounts.  Changes  have  been  made  under  this  heading,  as  well  as  that 
for  pay.  Instance,  proposed  reforms  in  CaL  Jour,  Sett.,  18i><-8,  a^.  'S.  Que 
act  abolished  the  suiiervisor  office  in  several  counties.  Cal.  SUtUiU*,  l^M,  '2''0. 
Other  reforms  are  indicated  by  the  assessment  list,  which  raised  valuations  for 
1873-4  to  nearly  three  times  the  amount  ruling  in  1872-3.  Proi>erty  in  Oak- 
land, for  iustuice,  then  valued  at  fC,600,000  waa  in  1873-4  assessed  at 
$18,500,000. 

'^  Placerville  gained  it  from  Coloma,  and  quelled  the  aspirations  of  several 
rivals.  In  Yolo  the  disuity  was  tossed  from  one  villase  to  anotiier,  as  <liffer- 
ent  speculators  obtained  the  upper  hand.  In  the  south  San  Joaquin  counties 
the  railroad  founded  towns  ami  aided  them  to  seize  the  prize.  In  Alanic<U 
Oakland  snatched  it  by  force  of  vote  from  a  more  central  locality.  In  some 
other  counties,  as  Solano,  a  central  point  was  specially  located  as  the  seat. 
Several  towns  owe  their  existence  chiefly  to  a  retention  of  the  officials.  Hum- 
boldt countv  was  moved  to  secession  from  Trinity,  because  the  seat  was  trans- 
farreU  to  inland  Weavervillo. 


ORIGIN  or  NAMES. 


m 


lans,  in 


a 

he 

istaiices 


l)re- 


20,0()0  anil 
iintalily  in 
jciiHi,  with 
neiit,  Wire 
ri'gatidii  of 
iciinty  jKiji- 
b  iiKiuiitain- 
[Kiiisc,  with 
I  small  si'C- 
luniiK-,  anil 
)lfiLse  a  few 
o  rt'iiiaiiit'il 
r  rt'^i'tctive 
le  iirivilfge, 
.nilK)lilt  aiiil 
Mill  natural 
3  petition  of 
tcr  tlie  S'lf. 
basis.    The 
first  witli  a 
Is,  the  tliinl 
meiiilKTu  re- 
iree  yiars,  a 
|for  tlie  first 
iiig  minute:) 
reaiiury,  list 
iity  (iHicfrs, 
ler,  attor- 
jiuMic  ail- 
afttT  ilue 
eoiiUDmy, 
townships, 
peace  and 
tices,  coull 
mntv  wat 
00,000  for 
inti'iiilLiit* 
;  one  fifth 
ell  as  that 
,  78.    One 
lS.-vt, '>0. 
uatiiins  fi>r 
ty  in  Oak- 
.ssessetl  at 

,  of  seviral 

as  differ- 
|iu  c'i>untie« 

Alanic'la 
In  »i>iiie 

the  seat. 
lals.  Hum- 
Iwas  tram- 


private  efforts  supplemented  a  natural  expansion  in 
inoN  ing  the  centre  of  a  town  to  some  addition,  or  for- 
iiur  suburb.*'  This  has  been  notably  the  case  in  the 
nuiblos  of  the  south,  where  the  adobe  dwellings  of 
Mexican  days  generally  form  a  quarter  by  themselves, 
(lisiLTiiatod  as  the  old  town,  while  the  new  or  Ameri- 
can .sections  present  the  characteristic  blocks  of  frame 
dwellings  in  the  midst  of  gardens,  or  with  a  yard  in 
the  rear  and  a  flower  or  lawn  patch  in  front,  radiating 
from  brick-lined  business  streets. 

Xot withstanding  their  recent  beginning,  the  history 
of  the  great  proportion  of  mining  towns  is  traditional  or 
olwure,  owing  to  the  erratic  c<»urse  of  mining  move- 
inent.s.  Their  origin  is  too  frequently  loosely  ascribed 
to  some  sudden  influx  of  diggers,  guided  by  vague 
rumor;  but  these  so-called  first-comers  had  been  often 
nreccdtd  by  a  band  of  workers  who  had  for  some  time 
VI  iled  their  operations  in  secrecy,  and  these  again  by 
Sduu-  prospector  who  was  ever  flitting  on  the  outskirts 
of  the  districts,  probing  into  virginal  ground.  Fre- 
quently tlie  only  record  lies  embedded  in  the  name. 
Yet  this,  if  a  personal  appellation,  indicates,  perhaps, 
only  the  trader  whose  store,  as  the  general  rendezvous, 
gave  name  to  the  spot.  More  generally  it  points  to 
some  incident  or  feature  connected  with  the  site  or 
fduntling,  for  California  names  are  certainly  as  signifi- 
cant as  they  are  varied.*'     They  mark  the  progress  of 

"'At  New  San  Diego,  Horton's  addition  gained  the  supremacy.  In  S.  F. 
the  ciiitre  has  moved  away  from  Portamouth  wpiare,  ana  even  the  city  hall 
here  ii:ts  Iteen  supplanted. 

''  Till'  earliest  S[>anish  explorers  by  sea  left  tlieir  records  along  the  coast  as 
far  a.4  Trinidad,  to  which  later  Kiigli.sh  navigators  a<lded  names  like  Point  .St 
•  ii'iirgi:,  always  remembering  stu-li  localities  as  Drake  Bay.  The  Kii.s.sians, 
who  actually  occupied  the  country,  are  only  inilirectly  recalled  in  Uus.siaa 
Uiver,  Fort  Ross,  Subasto])ol;  Mount  St  Helena  Iteing  their  solitary  christen- 
ing. Tlie  terms  of  French  cruisers  failed  to  remain,  but  cognate  trappers 
hl.izcil  their  i>ath  in  tlie  interior  as  m.irked  by  Cache,  Itutte,  and  as  some 
have  it,  Siskiyou  and  Shiista,  while  a  Ihinish  confrere  is  reinend>ored  in  Las- 
H'U.  In  the  south  Mexican  designations  natunlly  predominate,  and  they 
oiTtainly  surpass  all  others  for  Iteauty.  Olt^ervc  the  melodious  Sau  Juan, 
Saiit'i  ( 'rux,  Tamali>ais,  Santa  Rosvi,  the  niaje.stic  Mendocino,  Del  Monte,  the 
f wii  t  .\lanieda,  San  Benito.  True,  the  frifjuent  recurrence  ot  the  .San,  and 
ito  feminine  Santa,  present  a  detracting  monotony,  fur  which  are  responsible 


1 1 


488 


BIRTH  OF  TOWNS. 


explorers  from  the  time  of  Cabrillo  and  Drake  to  tlio 
era  of  missionaries  and  trappers.     The  Spaniards  hud 


partly  tlie  friar  element  in  exploration  and  management,  partly  tho  rcligioiis 
ciiiitoni  of  applying  the  name  of  the  saints  which  figure  for  evury  day  in  the 
calendar  alike  to  the  new-liorn  bal)e,  or  to  tliu  di.suovered  situ  of  tlu:  pro- 
po8t'd  town.  Tlie  ttacred  prevails  also  without  the  saint,  as  in  Los  Aii^t'lt'.t, 
Triiiitlad,  Sacraiiiento.  Tlie  descriptive  profane  appears  in  Caliento,  I'lisii..' 
(•atos,  Pesuaduro,  Sauzalitn.  The  <to  is  a  common  diiiiinntive  eudinv',  ofttu 
carestiing  in  import.  Spaniards  have  not  ncgleotud  the  devil  ami  hiti  ilk,  as 
in  Monte  <1el  Diahlo,  but  tho  application  diners  from  tho  American  in  hciii^ 
of  superstitious  source.  Bare  terms  like  Pajaro,  bird,  and  Soledad,  solitiulc, 
arc  peculiar.  A  certain  concessi(m  is  shown,  especially  hy  intelligent  Anirr- 
iciins,  for  Indian  names,  partly  in  justice  to  the  original  lords  of  the  soil, 
pirtly  from  a  taste  for  tlie  antique  an<l  melodious,  and  native  wnnls  art' 
not  deficient  in  liipiid  beauty.  Insbuice  the  soft  intonation  of  SDnmiia, 
Tuhama,  Wyeka,  Inyo,  Napa,  Yoh>,  which  are  compact;  while  Chowdiilla, 
Tuolumne,  8uiaun,  Klamath,  savor  of  the  barbaric.  Americans  havu  mt 
always  preserved  these,  or  even  Spanish  terms,  uncorrupted.  To  W'ycki 
they  have  added  the  r  so  widely  lacking  among  aborigines,  and  mmk'  it 
Yrt'ka;  of  Uba,  Yuba;  San  Andreas  of  San  Andres;  Tulare  instead  of  Tularis 
or  Tular;  t'arquinez  in  place  of  Cariiuines,  es  being  the  Spanish  plural.  TIk' 
K  initial  here  applied  by  the  original  recorder  was  due  to  iguoraucu.  Sow 
appellations,  as  for  tlie  islands  Angeles  and  Yeguaa,  have  been  trauslatcil  into 
Angel  and  Mare  islands. 

Ill  the  northern  half  of  ^he  state  American  designations  prevail,  saw  in 
occasional  deference  to  Indian  and  Spanish,  the  latter  usually  ihie  tn 
pioneers  dating  before  1849,  who  had  acquired  a  smattering  of  or  liking 
for  SpaiuMh  forms.  The  terms  are  as  a  rule  both  appropriate  ami  ex]irt's- 
sive,  although  tinged  too  much  by  the  looseness  and  hairbrainod  rcikliss- 
iiess  of  the  Hush  times,  with  their  characteristic  abjuration  of  elugunir. 
Like  the  Spaniards,  they  displayed  a  bent  for  the  supernatural,  whik'  siiii- 
stituting  'If!  Satanic  for  the  saintly.  Never,  indeed,  was  the  devil  bfttir 
rememberect,  even  though  the  spots  dedicated  to  him  harlxired  little  ot 
the  complimentary.  Instance  especially  the  Ueyser  regions.  Other  cdniiiinii 
and  characteristic  terms  were  drawn  from  the  prevalent  drinking  ami 
gambling,  as  Whiskey,  Brauily,  and  Drunkard's  bars,  Keiio,  Eiiclir.',  and 
Poker  flats,  etc.,  with  Fi<ldletowii  of  cognate  revelry.  The  gi'iu  ral  ap- 
plication of  nicknames  among  eoinradcs  was  wiilcly  recofiled,  uiili  tiic 
striking  trait  of  the  victim,  as  Jim  Crow,  You  Bet,  after  a  man  usinj.;  tiii< 
expressi(m,  lied  l)t»g,  from  the  owner  of  such  an  animal,  lianty  Dodilk'i-;  al.-n 
(Jrtenhorn,  Loafer  J^  !1,  Chicken  Thief  Flat.  Naticmality  was  friM|nintly 
added,  as  Yankee  Jim's,  Dutch  Flat,  lloosier,  Buckeye,  Nigger  Bjir,  (lira.sci 
and  Chinese  flats.  The  supurstititms  element  occurs  in  the  many  H(iisrsli(" 
bars  and  Last  Chance.  The  repulsive  have  often  Iweu  transformed  into  ncati  r 
shape,  as  Lousy  Level  or  Liar's  Flat  into  Rice's  Crossing;  yet  Shirt-ta;! 
Caflon  lingered.  Scholarly  atTectatioii  has  been  left  unchallenKetl  in  Alnli  i 
and  Omega,  and  puritan  selections  are  revealed  in  Havilah  and  Antioili.  Tl'' 
common  Uich  gulches  and  bars  point  to  strokes  of  fortune.  Gold  Hill,  0)>iiir. 
ami  Eureka  have  also  been  frecpiently  applied,  though  replaced  by  U'.-<s  hack- 
neyed terms  to  prevent  confu.sion.  L<K-alitie8  denoting  disappointiiii'nt  an' 
e<iually  numerous,  as  Pinch-em-tight,  Bogus  Thunder,  Liar's,  Huni1>ii|'.  anl 
Poverty  Hats,  the  latter  two  being  fnxjueiitly  paraded,  although  the  In ttir 
known  of  these  places  have  provecl  misnomers;  indeed,  they  were  f recpu  ntly 
applied  by  lucky  tinders  to  frighten  awav  rivals.  Many  are  the  spots  cimi- 
meinorative  of  misfortunes,  as  Murderer's  iMvrs  and  gulches,  Hangtown,  <iiiH(!o 
Eye,  Dead  Man's  Oulch.  These  are  ri'lieved  by  a  large  sprinkling  witli  n  itunl 
features,  as  Otter,  Orizzly,  Jackass,  Wildcat,  with  ironic  allusi<ma,  Rti  I'lnii, 
Green  Mountain,  Deadwooil,  Blizzardville.     Honorary  and  patriotic  miw» 


IDOMENCLATURE. 


439 


tiino  to  stamp  little  more  than  the  southern  coast 
rcoidii  with  a  nomenclature  characterized  by  saintly 
form  ami  melodious  and  stately  rinj^.  A  portion  of 
the  Indian  tiTms  preserved  by  antiquarian  taste  and 
.soiiso  of  justice  fall  not  behind  in  liquid  beauty.  Botli 
liiivt'  been  to  some  extent  corrupted  by  Americans 
who  filled  the  north  and  interior  with  their  expressive 
and  descriptive  terms,  tinged  in  the  mining  region  l)y 
tlu!  loose  and  reckless  si>irit  of  the  flush  times,  with 
tlitir  predilection  for  slang  and  nickname,  blunt  terse- 
ness and  waggery.  Camp,  bar,  flat,  run,  slide,  are 
among  the  j)ecuhar  aftixes  here  supi)lenjentary  to  the 
jiatkneyed  ville,  city,  ton,  burg. 

Tlie  large  proportion  of  camps  have  disappeared 
with  the  decline  of  mining.  Some  fell  as  rapidly  as 
tlicy  had  risen,  when  tlu;  rich  but  scanty  surface  gold 
which  gave  them  life  was  worked  out.  Everything 
|tiutook  of  the  precarious  and  unstable  marking  this  era 
of  wiKl  speculation  and  gambling.  Never  was  there 
a  place  or  ))e()[)lc  where  the  changes  of  life,  its  vicissi- 
tmli'S  and  its  successes,  were  brought  out  in  such  boUl 
relief  as  here.  The  rich  and  the  poor,  the  proud  and 
the  humble,  the  vile  antl  the  virtuous,  changed  places 
in  a  day.  Wild  speculation  and  slovenly  business 
habits,  touether  with  the  ffandjlinff  character  of  all  occu- 
pations,  and  the  visitations  or  benign  influences  of  the 
elements,  and  a  thousand  uncalculable  incidents  usually 

altouuil,  as  in  Rouj^li  ami  Koatly,  after  (run.  Taylor;  Fremont,  Jack^4o^,  C'ar- 
siiii,  Vi.salia,  after  Vice;  with  home  a«8(>eiationH  in  Wanliington,  liostori,  H:in- 
U<<i',  Alal)iiiiia;  Timluictoo  liaa  a  humoronD  twang,  ami  liikth  an  English  a.-i>L'et. 
The  li.u'kiie,\eil  tiirm  of  ville  is  due  more  to  tliu  iiursonal  ambition  of  foun>lers 
than  to  poor  taste;  liurg  is  letM  fre(|Uent  than  the  aihlitioii  city  ami  town, 
wliiili  are  ho  granililiM|Uently  apjilied  even  to  p»?tty  collections  of  huts. 
Xiimeiii'latiire  is  frequently  aeconU^l  paragraplis,  e«jieeially  in  country  jour- 
nals, aiicl  in  tnii.-it  instances  commentators  allow  tliemselves  tt>  he  ih  Imleil  hy 
casual  resemlilanecs  to  wonls  in  forei^'n  languages.  They  actually  hunt 
viicahularies  for  terms  to  tit  their  hohhy,  as  marked  notahly  hy  the  calida 
fiiniax  explanation  for  California,  tlie  Narizona  or  arida  zona  forms  fur  Ari- 
Z'liia,  Orejiuies  for  Oregon,  instead  of  recurring  to  the  more  likely  almriginal 
sources.  Compare  yl;</(>wri«<,  July  '2(5,  1879;  AUn  i'ul.,  June '.K»,  1S70;  Sei)t 
17,  1S71;  Aug.  'Ji,  188<»,  etc.;  Sta  Hhm.i  Demoe.,  Nov.  V2,  1870;  liw^.  h'iiir 
l-'hn,  .lune  'M,  1870;  niUdl'x  y?«.y.,  4lh!  S;  A/.,  Minmj,  44-6;  Cot/,.  »orl,l,  ii. 
8iH»:  //>(/,<'  Cil.  Xntm,  ii.  48.  Tavh>r,  Eli/orndo,  151,  was  particularly  .stntck 
liy  Hell's  Delights  and  (rround  Hog's  <;iory.  //rljx'r'i  Land,  150,  170,  etc.; 
Williitiiin'  Par.  Tuurint,  205;  JJvarne'n  Hkctc/ivs,  MS,,  4-5. 


I'';!' 
111)' 

■y  4     I 


r  If--: 


m 


440 


BIRTH  OF  TOWNS. 


classed  in  the  category  of  luck,  were  constantly  lift'm}» 
up  one  and  pulling  down  another,  inflating  tiiis  town  (;r 
district  and  shrivelling  that.  Brick  stores  and  Hashy 
residences  dii^place  the  cloth  tents  and  rude  cabins  uf 
the  mining  c«mp  that  suddenly  displays  i*8  treasuit's 
in  bright  abundance;  and  almost  in  a  da;  sometiinos 
when  the  pockets  of  the  placers  appear  abruptly  euii»ty 
the  town  collapses,  the  houses  are  deserted.  Some 
lingered  for  years  the  victims  of  countless  ordeals,  of 
sweeping  fires,  which  befell  almost  every  town  in  this 
inflammable  land;"  of  undermining  and  removal  to 
more  favored  localities.*"  Finally  yielding,  they  left 
as  record  of  the  struggle  long  lines  of  tottering  edi- 
fices and  unroofed  cabms,  witli  hero  and  there  crum- 
bling walls  ot  brick  to  signal  the  extent  of  the  defeat," 
and  around,  the  desolate  aspect  of  denuded  slopt^s  and 
barren  gravel  plains,  with  gaping  pits  and  decaying 
tree-stumps,  and  rivers  turned  from  their  ancient 
course.  Another  proportion  survived,  partly  as  cen- 
tres for  later  hydraulic  and  quartz  operations,  thougli 
chiefly  as  farmmg  villages,  at  times  under  the  veil  of 
a  new  name;  and  in  humbler  though  more  assured 
prospects,  others  outgrew  their  period  of  mining  and 
gambling,  roughs  and  vigilants,  to  rise  to  staid  buf^i- 
ness  centres,  affecting  piety  and  learning.^*  Agricul- 
ture had  here  its  beginning  in  garden  patches,  with 
IM)werful  auxiliaries  in  the  water  ditches  of  nnnin;^ 

**  Yankee  Jim's  and  Ophir  were  burned  down  in  1852,  tlie  latter  succiiml)- 
ing  under  the  blow.  IXiwnieville  Huffered  in  the  Haine  year  jiiiOO.OUO.  Tuwiis 
not  distant  for  nearly  the  aaniu  amount  in  1858.  And  so  the  torch  circulatnl. 
See  under  counties  and  towns,  and  conqtare  with  S.  F.,  with  daniagi'8  ranging 
&»  liigh  as  a  half-score  millions.  Heli>er,  Lnml  qfOoUl,  16,  etc.,  assumes  tli'> 
tire  losses  during  I»49-.>5  at  over  $4.>, •)()(), 000.  Others  raise  it  to  lf(iti,»K)t».iH)0 
l>y  ISTi'i.  Not  only  were  hou.tes  as  a  rule  of  combustible  material,  but  pui>iilc 
were  careless,  witli  a  large  criminal  atlmixture. 

'»  For  no  site  in  the  gold  region  was  safe  in  early  days  from  miners'  in- 
roails.  Fanning  land  and  highways  were  washed  away,  and  entire  town  sitcn, 
leaving  ]iroi)i>e<I  walls  and  caving  streets,  a  certain  amount  of  damages  lnuig 
alone  recoverable. 

'''Tliesc  remains,  once  plentiful,  are  growing  scarce  under  the  utili/mg 
efforts  of  adjoining  settlers. 

"  Hangtown  lieing  changctl  to  the  more  attractive  Placerville,  for  olivinus 
reasons.  Others  to  avoid  confusion  with  namesakes,  or  under  the  ambitious 
efforts  of  new  founders. 


RISE  0.    AfiRICULTURR 


441 


(lays,  wlilch  assisted  to  change  the  industries  of  entire 
counties  within  a  few  yeara 

K\  t'li  the  central  El  Dorado  and  Placer  are  becom- 
in<4  known  as  vinieultural  rather  than  mining  districts. 
Aipino  rolics  upon  her  pastures,  and  most  of  the  gold 
Ix  It  < It  ponds  upon  tillage;  while  in  the  extreme  south 
San  I)i»\!^'o  and  Los  Anj^eles  unfolded  quartz  deposits. 
Tlif  Santa  IVirhara  region  was  by  the  drouj^ht  *>f  one 
sea.Mtn  tiansfornied  from  a  stock-raising  to  a  predomi- 
natinLT  farming  ranufe.  The  current  of  population 
U'lian  in  1850  to  turn  back  to  the  momentarily  al)an- 
tinned  roast  slopes,  filling  first  the  ( «  ntral  bay  valleys, 
tilt  n  with  a  reflux  the  river  bottoms  near  tin;  mines; 
till  unthr  the  growing  occupation  of  land  it  swept  also 
over  tlie  south  and  grouped  elsewhere  around  ports, 
anil  timber,  and  fishing-grounds.  In  many  regitms, 
esiteeially  the  south,  it  was  stemmed  a  while  by  dis- 
putetl  land  titles,  due  greatly  to  intriguing  new-comers; 
liut  whatever  personal  injustice  they  intlicted  by 
u>urpation  of  ranchos,  they  infused  a  new  energetic 
8"iiit  into  the  easy-going  Hispano-Californian  com- 
nninity,  lifted  stagnant  pueblos  into  flourishing  cen- 
tennial citii's,  and  with  irrigation  and  other  undertak- 
ing's transformed  arid  plains  into  waving  fields  and 
golden  orange  groves. 

A>ide  from  mining  camps,  lingering  or  transform t  d, 
Caiit'tiniia  jH)ssesses  a  wide  range  of  se-ttlements,  from 
the  missions,  pueblos,  and  harbors,  sites  of  Spanish 
origin,  through  the  series  of  agricultural  and  manu- 
faeturing  centres,  inland  ports  and  entreixits,  suburbs 
and  resorts,  to  the  recent  railroad  stations  and  hor- 
tieultnral  colonies.  Sea-ports,  which  antedate  in  a 
nit  us n re  even  the  ancient  pueblos  as  entrejM^its  for  the 
first  foundations,  have  been  widely  reenforc<(l  by  land- 
iiij^s  since  the  early  fur-trading  times.  While  o;aining 
in  JiH  al  trade  they  have  declined  in  general  impojtjmce, 
as  c(»mi>ared  with  tht  only  two  good  ship  harbors  of 


m 


4*2 


BIHTH  OF  TOWNS. 


Sun  Fram-isco  and  San  Die^o.*^     A  fact  <lui'  to  ini- 

ttroved  couMt  and  interior  trattic,  inland  {torts  Iiad  tin  ir 
K'<^innin«^  proiwrlv  in  Benit-ia,  the  firMt  to  n-rcivr  laivf 
vossoIh  antl  assert  itsulf  as  a  Imrbor  town.  SacranK  nto 
and  Sttx-kton,  so  far  petty  landin<j;s,  followed,  eac  h 
beconiinjTf  the  centre  of  a  host  of  tributary  river  laini- 
in^jfs,  Sacramento  having,  however,  to  share  its  tradt- 
with  the  Ujnur  heads  of  navigation,  notably  ^[aivs- 
villo.'^^  All  of  these  prominent  places  were  bcsrt  hy 
a  nundjer  of  rivals,  eager  for  their  prospective  pri/rs. 
Benicia,  risen  as  a  competitor  of  San  Francisco,  had 
in  time  to  yield  to  the  adjacent  Yallejo  both  its  trade 
and  aspirations,  and  Marysvillc  having  in  timt.'  to 
divide  its  gains  from  Sacramento  with  towns  abovf, 

Many  of  these  aspirants  attained  only  to  the  rank 
of  paper  towns,  of  which  speculative  California  has 
probably  hud  a  larger  proportion  than  any  other  coun- 
try of  its  size,"*  owing  to  the  unparalleled  unfold uKiit 
of  settlenuMits,  the  consequent  opiH)rtunity  for  entn- 
]»Ats  in  ditt'erent  directions,  and  the  abunilance  of 
moiuy  for  investments.     City  building  became  u  i>usi- 

'•  Sfo  ohitptcrtt  nit  tnule  in  prQceding  volumes,  HuinlioliU  T^y  ailiiiiU  mil) 
Hiiiallor  VfSHeln;  C'reswiit  City  in  a  j;(kmI  rotulHtvtid,  with  a  scanty  rant'c  <>t  ac- 
LVH-sililt!  country.  Wilmington  rises  little  aUitvo  tlio  HoutlK-rn  roaiL-itta.!-!, 
ik'spito  costly  artilieial  breukwatera.  8auzalito  is  an  anclioragu  trilmtary  tn 
Sm  Francisco. 

'^  For  early  port  of  entry  privileges,  see  the  chapter  on  coninicrcu.  IV  ta- 
luina  liccamu  tliecliicf  shippingpoiut  for  Sonoma,  Napa  and  Vallujolor  N.i|m, 
Suisun  for  Solano,  etc. 

•"Instiinco  Mont(>zunia  an<l  New  York  of  the  Pacilic,  and  C'oUinsvilii'  nr 
Newport — c.xpiwe  in  .V.  /'.  liitUH'm,  May  11,  1H."»7,  etc. — which  strove  tnr  tl:f 
valley  trade  against  nil  the  |irominent  townn  aiNtve  named;  Vernon,  Freiiioiit, 
Nicolaus,  and  llolxikeii,  wliicli  entered  tliu  list  against  8acram<'nto  an' I  M.iryi- 
ville;  Haiiiilton  anil  I'luniiis  against  the  latter;  Butte  ( 'ity  and  Mnnroeville, 
which  songlit  to  he  recognized  as  heads  of  Saenimento  navigation,  a  privili-e 
gained  in  a  measure  hy  (.'olusa,  Tehama,  an<l  Red  lllutl.  Stockton,  al-o 
Fredriiia,  Site.  Trnn.irripl,  Apr.  2(),  I80O,  liad  even  less  Huccessfni  clainiant^ 
in  the  cities  of  San  Joa(iU'.i,  SUuiisluus,  Mokelumne,  and  Tnoliinmc  lastanre 
also  Klamath  City,  wl-.ich  wjw  killed  hy  the  shifting  river  har.  They  \>i:e 
duly  trumpeted  liefove  the  people,  with  the  aid  of  interesting  maps,  sulisi<li/.e<l 
journals,  and  persuiusivo  ligents,  and  many  made  fortunes  for  their  projcct"r:i 
iH-'foro  tlio  collapse  came.  Frightened  hy  adverse  reimrts,  had  titles,  or  [■<  ii- 
Oilieal  spells  of  dul:<ess  at  existing  towns,  men  hought  lots  in  ditiVreiit  [Ak<* 
to  secure  themselves.  Yet  others  failed  to  cover  expenses.  One  company 
siHsnt  nearly  §ir>0,0(K)  in  vain.  Helpers  Lund,  177-*.  The  failure  of  Vall  !» 
to  secure,  for  a  time,  at  least,  vhe  capital,  M'as  due  to  had  management.  T!ie 
ajieculativo  excitement  suhsideil  for  the  bay  towus  by  the  sumnier  of  \i>'0. 
lu  18U3  a  revival  occurred  for  soii-^turts 


THE  lMX)MIXa  HL'SIKESS. 


iKss.  At  various  points  tracts  of  laud  \vt  re  sii/id 
aii<l  town  lots  niuppecl  out  and  sold.  Then  tlu;  ad- 
vaiitau^rs  of  the  placr  wero  trumiK'tcd  far  and  wiiK", 
and  all  wtTo  invited  by  oily-ton«^Ufd  ai^fnts  to  coniu 
and  l>uy  and  live.  Title  acquired  often  l»y  f»»r(e  and 
tiii  ktry  was  kept  by  the  power  of  the  riHo  and  Ie;^al 
juu'jlery.  The  most  and>itioUM  projects  souj^dit  to 
(•-;iiil)ine  the  head  of  ship  navii^ation  in  the  bay  with 
a  coniiHand  of  the  j^reat  valley  outlets,  as  instanced  in 
Nt  u  York  of  the  l*acific.  Then  followe«l  claimants 
to  the  head  of  river  navigation  in  the  Sacramento  and 
San  Joaijuin,  beoinning  with  Vernon,  and  conti-stants 
f(»r  the  control  of  the  trade  with  certain  tributaries 
and  districts.  Along  the  coast  rose  several  pn't«'nders 
ti>  harbors,  with  promising  river  drainage,  as  Klamath 
City,  and  throughout  the  interior  were  sprinkhd  jtlats 
intended  for  valley  centres  and  county  seats,  some  of 
wliich  nurse,  as  mere  hamlets,  the  dream  of  greatness 
nalized  by  their  successful  neighbors.  The  specula- 
tive fever  for  city  building  raged  most  viruU  ntiy  dur- 
ing IH41)  and  into  1850,  raising  a  crop  of  prosjteetive 
millionaires,  after  which  the  symptoms  abated  to  sp«>- 
radic  forms,  with  occasional  epidemics,  as  in  IHO.'J. 

Agricultural  towns  date  from  the  Si)anish  pueblo 
(•(•Ionics,  supplemented  in  tinje  by  converte«l  missions, 
and  latterly  by  lingering  and  transformt-d  mining 
camps,  some,  like  San  Jose,  of  centemiial  dignity,  ami 
the  younger  Salinas,  depending  on  wheat  regi(»ns,  l^os 
Anmlts  boasting  of  her  oran-jje  ifroves,  Analuim  and 
St  Helena  leading  a  hofst  of  vinicultural  ronnnunities, 
and  llealdsburg  prominent  in  the  display  of  (irclianls. 
Aside;  from  the  woollen  mills  and  other  industrial  ad- 
juncts of  the  large  cities,  a  number  of  towns  live  by 
their  manufacturing  interests.  Eureka  and  (luerne- 
ville  are  conspicuous  among  a  host  of  places  producing 
lumber,  the  earliest  manufacture  on  a  laigc  scale. 
Flour-mills  have  found  d(!veh)pment  at  Valhjo;  So- 
qurl  depends  upon  a  variety  of  industrirs,  notably 
tanneries;  Taylorsville  is  a  paper-mill ;  Suisun  aj)ack- 


*' 


'1§ 


Sy. 


ll 


BIRTH  OF  TOWNS. 

iiiff  place;  Martinez  figures  among  fish-canning  places; 
Alvai-aclo  is  known  for  its  beet-sugar  mills;  Boca  for 
breweries ;  and  Newhall  for  oil.  Nortouvillo  and  New 
Almaden  find  their  chief  support  in  coal  and  quicksil- 
ver; Folsom  flourishes  by  a  prison  and  its  quarries; 
Berkeley,  Benicia,  and  Santa  Clara  rank  among  c(4- 
lege  ttjwns;  Santa  Cruz,  Santa  Bdrbara,  and  Santa 
^lonica  are  sustained  greatly  as  watering-places,  their 
list  swelled  by  San  Diego,  Calistogra,  Auburn,  and  a 
number  of  other  places,  particularly  in  Lake  and  San 
JMateo,  as  health  and  pleasure  resorts;  while  Oakland, 
Alameda,  and  Washington  are  known  rather  as  the 
betl-cliambers,  or  suburbs,  of  cities. 

During  the  last  three  decades  the  railroad  has  risen 
as  arbitrator  in  the  fortunes  of  many  of  these  towns. 
By  i>a.ssing  them  by  it  has  drawn  away  their  trade 
and  left  them  to  lingering  decay,  as  illustrated  notably 
by  Sun  Juan  Bautista,  and  several  towns  of  the  Sun 
Joaquin  Valley.**  It  has  build  up  instead  numerous 
thriving  stations,  araon^  which  towns  like  Modesto, 
Merced,  Bakersfield,  and  Hollister  have  been  30  etleet- 
ively  fostered  as  to  secure  the  impt>rtant  dignity  of 
county  seats  to  swell  their  expanding  trade  resources. 
In  other  eases  it  has  revived  many  languishing  settK- 
ments,  as  for  example,  Calistoga,  Oroville,  Sauza)  ito, 
and  opened  the  way  in  the  southern  deserts  for  nour- 
ishing and  reclaiming  oases. 

The  latest  feature  of  town  building  is  presented  by  a 
new  form  of  tlie  agricultural  colonies,  which  were  first 
planteti  by  S|>aniard8,  under  official  auspices,  as  at 
San  J«»sc,  Los  Angeles,  and  Branciforte.  Sonoma 
was  a  subsequent  semi-official  venture,  and  SutterV 
Fort  partook  of  this  stamp.  Americans  introduced 
the  e<)0|»erative  systeni,  beginning  with  San  Bernar- 
dino of  tlie  industrious  Mormons,  but  more  properly 
with  Anaheim.     This  stands  an  a  prototype  hove  of 

*M<hU>  to  ovi-r«ha«1ovreil  Knii^ht's  Fer/y  ami  La  Orange,  Merced  took 
life  aiiil  limiori  friiiii  Siiclliiig,  FreMiio  f'.<un  Milleitoii.  Alvino  Iiim  Hutli^nil, 
SliiutU  in  I'l  iliiciil,  eto.  A  few,  like  Briglitou  ttud  StouUlaUM,  huvuU.  a  wc.ik 
exMtouce  Ity  mo  'iug  tu  Uiv  riiilroad  line. 


stahtling  surprises. 


445 


tlio  chiefly  horticultural  sei:lementi*  started  on  coop- 
erative principles  to  overcome  the  early  difficulties  of 
such  undertakings,  marked  by  costly  irrigation  canals, 
lutii-productive  planting  periods,  and  manufacturing 
adjuncts.  These  vanquished,  each  member  assumed 
independent  control  of  his  allotted  share,  associated 
with  his  neighbors  only  by  a  general  and  voluntary 
interest  in  cert»'»i  branches,  and  in  sustaining  the  in- 
dispensable canals.  Many  owners  of  large  ranchos 
are  profiting  by  the  success  of  these  ventures,  wliich 
with  proper  management  is  almost  assured,^  by  open- 
mii  ditches  and  occasionally  lianting  tracts,  and  then 
.selling  the  land  in  small  lots,  with  the  expectation  of 
profiting  also  by  the  fonnation  of  a  village  by  each 
cluster  of  colonists.  There  are  a  number  of  these  set- 
tlements round  Fresno,  and  in  the  three  southern 
counties  along  the  coast;  and  with  the  now  growing 
reputation  of  California  as  a  wine  region,  so  well 
suited  for  them,  they  are  assuming  wider  proportions 
and  importance.*^  They  form  one  of  the  many  star- 
tling surprises  with  which  this  country  has  abounded, 
from  the  first  glittering  harvcHts  of  gold  to  the  suc- 
ceechng  and  richer  crops  from  waving  fields;  in  the 
spreading  fame  <>f  balmy  clime  and  fertile  soil,  once 
uvrrshad(»wod  by  supposed  deserts  and  aridity;  in  the 
variety  of  its  magnificent  resources  and  the  grandeur 
of  its  scenery,  with  giant  trees  and  geysers,  with  oaves 
ai:<l  mountain  clefts;  hi  the  birth  of  towns  and  expan- 
sion of  resour  efe  and  wealth,  at  times  swift  in  rise  and 
fall  as  tiie  te,  ror-in8[)iring  justice  of  the  vigilance 
coinmitte<3S,  at  times  slow  and  majestic  as  befits  the 
dawning  of  eternal  empire. 


''The  earliest  colony  at  FreMiio  f&iled  for  lack  of  due  precaution  and 
t-nurgy. 

"  Agua  Mansa,  in  San  Bernardino,  is  a  lan^ishing  colony,  formed  in 
1H4'J  l>y  New  Mexitiana.  The  not  far  distant  Rivoraide  ia  one  of  the  moat 
riouriahing  apota  in  the  county  Lonipoo  ia  a  Temperance  coltmy  in  Hta 
Barlk-iia.  Compare  with  A'otti/u)f«  ('ummuniHk  •SorieMe*,  3(i\S.  Hoiiieatead 
ait«<K-iationa  are  to  he  found  in  connection  with  ntoat  large  citioa.  Comments 
ill  \iition<il,  I>ec.  2(i,  1864;  Apr.  II),  18(>5.  Just  lieforo  t))n  oiiening  of  the 
nv-i-rland  railway  in  1870  a  homentead  fever  rageil  all  round  the  iMy.  Lottery 
Halu)«  attended  them  at  one  time.  Sof.  l/nioii,  June  25,  185A;  .Ian.  27,  1857{ 
■S'.  F.  Ak  Poat,  July  2.%  1870.     See,  further,  under  cuubties,  next  chapters. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

CITY  BUILDING. 

1848-1888. 

TiiK  Oreat  Istkrior— River  ask  Plain— SriTERviLtE  anp  SArniMFATo— 
Plan  ov  Sitrvky— The  Thkke  Simple  Swiss — Bettek  fok  tiiki  ors. 

TKV  THAN  A  BeTTEU  MaN-— HeALTHY  ANI»  HkaRTY  <  'OMI'ETITION       1)KVH,- 

oi'Ment  ok  Sapramesto  City— Marthvillk— St(mkton— Plackkvii.i.k 
— Sosora—Xkvai)A—<^Jrah8  Valley— Benhi  A— Valle-iu— Martinez— 
Oakland  and  Vicinity— Northern  and  Soutueks  Cities. 


In  illustration  of  tho  proceclinj^  oUscrvations,  I  a]i- 
poiul  a  sketch  of  the  early  dovel«»[nnent  of  the  pnini- 
j>a!  and  tyi)ical  cities,  ana  of  eacli  county  in  the  stutf, 
particularly  with  reference  to  the  birth  of  its  towns 
and  to  the  general  tendenc}'^  of  progress.  J^iinitni 
8pace  forbids  more  than  u  brief  consideration  of  the 
topical  jioints;  and  I  must  refer  the  reader  t<»  the 
special  chai)ters  on  politics,  mining,  aj^riculture,  iii.iii- 
ufacture,  commerce,  society,  education,  and  (liunli, 
for  further  details  touchinj^  tho  different  8e(ti<»i»s. 
^ly  information  has  been  culled  by  systematic  search 
throU]L!;h  many  original  manuscripts,  and  througli  the 
newspapers  of  San  Francisco,  as  well  as  those  fn»iu 
every  quarter  of  the  state.  I  have  also  carefully  con- 
sulted the  reports  of  census  officers,  surveyors,  and 
assessors,  county  histories,  and  directories,  local  ar- 
chives of  towns  and  counties,  the  Vallejo,  Larkin.and 
Hayes  documents,  and  scattered  notes  in  books  and 
pamphlets  of  a  more  or  less  general  character,  as 
indicated  in  the  narrative,  only  the  most  point. d 
references  being  retained  to  affirm  or  illustrate  special 
statements. 

(446) 


SALUAMENIO  AND   SUTTERVILLE. 


447 


Tlu'  liest  proapecta  for  an  interior  city  lay  naturally  along  the  Sacramento 
Kivi  r,  near  tlic  mouth  of  its  last  great  tributary,  the  gate  to  tlio  central  an<l 
niirtliirn  parts  of  tlio  great  valley.  This  atlvantagu  must  have  intluenued  the 
f.miiltr  of  Sutter's  Fort;  but  the  small  extent  of  its  hill  site,  surrounded  by 
liiw  lyiii),'  banks  which  were  subject  to  overHow  in  very  wet  seasons,  was  in- 
a  l.(|U<it<!  for  a  city,  ami  such  a  one  l>cing  required,  SutterN'ille  wan  laiil  out  on 
till'  rising  ground  three  miles  below,  whence  a  dry  wagon-road  to  tho  nioun- 
tiiiis  ciiuld  ]h3  constructed.  It  made  slow  progress,  for  tho  fort  still  retained 
the  aseenilency,  by  virtue  of  its  ferry,  supplies,  stores,  and  workahops  Tlio 
goM  excitement,  however,  while  assuring  urban  preeminence  to  this  ipiarter, 
(l.'iiianiled  quieUly  an  exjHkUsion  of  site,  and  it  was  to  be  cx]icctcd  that  the 
cliicen  spot,  Sutterville,  should  Injcome  the  centre.  '*  Had  I  not  been  snowed 
in  at  ('i)Ii>iiia,'' said  Sutter  to  me  at  Litiz,  "  Sacramento  never,  never,  would 
liive  lutii  built."  Rut  the  Swiss  potentate  hickeil  business  ability.  He  had 
va.tt  resources  and  golden  opportunities;  but  in  his  wide-reaching  plans  he 
li.iil  lireoine  lieavily  involved,  an<l  to  escai)o  his  creditors  he  transferred  his 
pnipert y  to  his  son,  John  A.  Sutter,  a  young  man  lately  from  sciiool.  This 
t,,,,k  jiliec!  Oct.  14,  1848.  Stater's  Per.  Item.,  MS.,  pp.  178-81;  Plmr  Times, 
\)  .:  1.-,,  KS49;  S.ir.  III.,  p  8,  AUaCa'.  Feb  6,  18.-)3;  .5.  F.  Herald,  Feb.  9, 
!..■.;{;  'J'lit/illCn  J/ist.  Cal.,  p  297  For  t<.itimony,  In  re  John  V.  Idtliy  v»  A. 
i/iisi-li  it  III.,  18(>0,  see  .S<ir.  Dirertory,  1871.  As  the  interest  in  Sutterville 
Ii;iil  mostly  ]iassed  out  of  his  hands,  Sutter  permitted  his  son  to  lay  out 
aiiiitiier  town  at  the  emijarcadero,  or  landing,  just  below  the  fort,  to  which 
the  name  of  the  river  was  applied. 

Tlie  fort  had  fre<iuently  been  called  by  that  name,  although  Tehama  was 
tlie  Inlian  appellation.  The  survey  was  made  by  VVm  H.  Warner,  of  tho 
L'.  S.  t'ipog.  engineers.  He  was  shot  in  1849  by  the  Indiana  while  nurveyiug 
near  tlie  sources  of  Feather  River.  Tho  fort  formed  the  nucleus  of  his  oiiera- 
tioiis;  thence  down  to  the  embarcadero  and  along  the  river  bank  he  laid  out 
streets.  Those  ]ianillel  with  the  stream  were  called  First,  Second,  Third, 
etc.;  tliose  at  riylit  angles  to  it  A,  B,  C,  etc.;  the  avenue  bordering  on  the 
river  was  called  Fnmt  street.  All  were  80  feet  wide  except  the  centre  street, 
M,  wliieh  was  made  100  feet.  The  blocks  were  320  by  400  feet,  divided  by 
'Jll-l'iKit  alleys  running  east  and  west.  Tlie  landing-place  was  in  itself  no 
Hiiiall  ailvantago  in  favor  of  Sacramento,  while  the  slough  at  Sutterville, 
wliieli  ntjuireil  briilging,  operated  against  the  latter.  Suiters  Pii».  Hem., 
M.S.,  17S-S1;  Placer  Ttmes,  Dec  15,  1849;  Sherman  a  Mem  ,  i.  59,  77;  Bur- 
ii.ff\  Pn:  Iter.,  MS.,  ii.  1-2;  Id.,  Kee  ,  287-8.  Winans,  Days  qf  IS4D,  MS., 
S,  and  Crosby,  Erenis,  MS.,  27,  diflfer  on  the  date  and  surveyor,  A  year 
later  Seton,  Ord,  and  Sherman  wore  employed  to  connect  Warner's  survey  of 
IS.uTHiiiento  with  Davidson's  survey  of  Sutterville.  An  auction  sale  of  lota 
til  Iw  lu'ld  at  Sutter's  Fort  on  Jan  8,  1849,  was  advertised  under  date  of  Dee. 
'ill,  in  the  SUir  and  Cal.  of  lK;c.  2.%  1848  The  first  sales  were  near  the  fort, 
but  at  the  close  of  Jan.  1849  lots  near  the  river  came  into  demand.  The  pur- 
chase of  more  than  four  lota  to  one  person  was  diseourageil  in  ortler  to  pro- 
mote settlement,  which  was  also  favorecl  by  time  payments  and  uniforin 
prices.  P.  H.  Burnett  became  on  Dec.  30th  the  attorney  f«)r  Sutter,  jr.  He 
reeeived  one  fourth  of  the  procceils,  but  becoming  too  rapidly  rich,  according 


CITY  BITILDINO. 


Iff'! 


to  Sntter's  idea,  the  power  wh  truufcrred  to  Peachy,  who  sharotl  tli<;  mIs 
with  Schoolcraft.  In  leu  than  nx  Diontha  Burnett  loKl  half  of  \m  lots  for 
|00,00a  " Peachy  maile  98(),OUO  out  of  me."  aaya  Sutter,  Autol>io.j.,  ITh-U. 
At  the  close  of  1848  there  wuro  at  the  emkarcatlero  only  two  huiiMiii,  onv  a 
(Irinking-saloon,  the  other  occupied  by  the  Stewart  family,  and  a  iliMinantli  il 
ship,  which  G.  MoDnugall  and  his  partners,  Blackburn,  Parker,  and  Hn  ton, 
had  brought  from  San  Franciaoo  laden  with  gooda,  and  moored  mt  a  Htoru  ,tt 
the  foot  of  I  street.  Burnett,  Per.  Jtte.,  M^.,  ii.  14-10,  calU  Intth  of  the 
house*  log  cabins.  Henshaw,  Stat.,  MS.,  2,  designates  only  one  om  of  logn, 
the  other  as  a  wooden  building.  Buffum,  Six  Mo.,  32,  differs  somewhat;  liut 
changes  were  rapid  in  those  days. 

In  January  1840  a  frame  building  was  placed  at  the  comer  of  Front  ami 
I  sts,  by  Hensley,  Reading,  and  Company,  followed  by  the  clotli  houHiM  of 
Ingersoll  on  Front  st,  between  J  and  K,  and  of  Stewart  on  the  rivL-r  liauk 
between  I  and  J,  the  latter  aa  a  tavern.  Sam  Brannan  completed  a  frame 
store  at  the  corner  of  J  and  Front  sts  in  February,  aliout  which  tii:ie  alto 
Priest,  Ijee,  A  Co.  moved  from  the  fort  to  occupy  new  premium,  of  clotli,  nayi 
Barnes,  Or.  and  Cat.,  MS.,  14.  Gillespie  and  Carpenter  erected  log  houstn. 
Sae.  m,  8,  and  others  wrongly  call  Brannan 's  the  first  building  in  Sacra- 
mento. Cronlty'a  Eii-ntu,  M.S.,  15;  Tnylor'sOrrij.,  MS.,  5.  Theorigiiinl  HtoriMif 
Brannan,  associated  with  Melius,  Howard,  Greene,  A  Stout,  wiut  a  <mu»tory 
adobe  50  yards  east  of  the  fort.  Orim»Kaw'$  Xarr.,  MS.,  22-7;  Morse,  in  .Snf, 
Dir.,  185.V4. 

The  first  public  sale  of  lots  on  January  8,  1849,  was  quickly  followol  l>y 
the  erecticm  of  business  houses  and  dwellings.  Sutter\'ille  atteuiptiMl  uuiKr 
the  direction  of  McDougall  k  Co.  to  gain  the  ascendency,  but  %  laviMh  clintri. 
butinn  of  lots  by  Nutter  thwarted  her,  and  further  judicious  elTortM  t('ii<lt'<l  to 
tlirect  hither  tlie  inflowing  migration  by  land  and  water.  VcwiuU  ^atinnil 
along  the  bank,  ami  midst  the  thickly  sprinkled  tents  rose  pretention!*,  it  not 
substantial,  canvas  and  frame  buildings,  which  by  June  nuiiilN:rud  KM),  ami 
lota  which  four  months  previously  ha<l  sold  for  |25()  conmiaixied  now  aa 
much  us  f3,(KI0.  Sacramento  ab«orl>ed  also  the  remnant  of  traile  no  far  t  rant- 
acted  at  the  fort,  leaving  \ew  Helvetia  a  negleeteil  subur'tan  HiMit,  ami  <lualt 
at  the  same  time  an  effective  blow  at  the  still  struggling  Sutt^irville. 

McDougall  k  Co.  had  a  large  amount  of  money,  ami  U'gan  to  f<'>-l  very 
strong.  From  Sutter  they  obtained  a  lease  of  the  ferry  privilege,  mar  tho 
outlet  of  Sutter  I^ke;  on  the  strength  of  which  they  claimed  the  excluHivti 
right  to  4U0  yanls  of  rivor  bank.  This  being  ilisallowe<l,  they  liecamc  aii^ry, 
swore  vengeance  against  young  Sutter  and  his  Sacramento  town,  a.id  miommI 
their  hulk  to  SuttervUle.  They  urge«l  Priest,  Lee,  ft  Co.  an<l  Brauii.in  to 
move  to  the  better  site  below,  offering  them  a  gift  of  eighty  lots  in  Snttir. 
viUe.  Seeing  their  atlvantage,  these  men  manipulate«l  Sutter  so  woll  ox  to  ^i  t 
500  Sacramento  lots  for  remaining.  See  WinnM'  Dajf*  qf  ISp,  .MS.,  7  S; 
Tafflor'a  OreiioniaM,  MS.,  6;  and  Abr.,  MS.,  10,  by  McChristian,  who  \^i*  a 
olerk  of  MoDougall's. 

In  October  the  first  brick  house,  the  Anchor,  was  completed  by  (i.  Vm*, 
tho  brick  l)eing  made  by  him  at  Sntterville,  where  the  first  brick  Iiounc  in  tlie 
state  had  already  been  erected  from  the  first  kiln  ot  his  brick'yard.  //«<■  ^'^t. 


NOTABLE  HOUSES  AND  HRMS. 


449 


Co.,  •'>0,  146.  Homctt  bunit  one  kiln  thia  year  at  Sac,  %n'\  in  1851  Cirli'th 
aililtMl  brick-making  to  hit  buililing  operations.  Among  otiier  mi^aMo  liousefi 
wliii'h  roHO  (luring  the  autumn  of  1849  were  the  cine  warchouae  near  tliu  out- 
lit  »t  Like  Suttvr;  the  zinc  hoiue,  and  the  Empire  saloon  buililing  nn  ,1  Mtrevt, 
bvtwccii  Front  anil  Saoond;  Merritt's  building  on  the  comer  of  J  and  .St-coml; 
tlif  briok  block  on  Front  st,  lietwoen  N  and  O  sts;  the  St  Louiu  Kxchanju, 
kept  l>y  a  brother  of  Commodore  Ciarrison;  and  the  theatre,  a  frad  stntcture 
iionr  the  City  hotel.  For  additional  information,  seo  Mrllvnine'f  Sirtrfirn,  7, 
Mitl)  view  of  town;  CHbxr's  Dirertorjf;  Sitf,  Tnii  nrrip*,  M.iy  iiJ,  ISoO,  whiili 
ruilily  rudiices  the  numlter  of  houses;  Miitthrfim>Hi>  SUit.,  M.S.,  1-2;  Frirml, 
\>vc.  1,  1S40;  Itkhnrflmn*  MiiuHij,  MS.,  13;  t)\e  SUtt.,  of  Ciu-punt^ir,  who  put 
up  a  diK-tor's  shop  on  the  comer  of  K  and  Second;  .S'tut,  of  Brock,  who  oitciicd 
a  tinware  shop;  ArmMrouij*  Efftrr.,  MS.,  1.1.  '  A  t4>wn  «if  tents, '  sayn  ( 'idu- 
mail,  ti'ti,  b'xp.,  MS.,  141-4,  with  ita  Tuture  on  i»aiM!r,' adds  \V<»i)d8,  S'uirfn 
.l/i).,  47.  At  the  end  of  June  184U  the  endiaruulero  containeil  LdevtMi  wliolusalu 
lumnest,  nccording  to  the  Pltuvr  Timn:  IViest,  Leo,  k  Co.,  with  1*.  B.  Corn- 
wall UN  partner,  Hensluy,  Reading,  k  Co.,  Brannan,  Wbitlock  and  (ii'miiii, 
Saniiiel  .Norris,  (.tillospie,  IngRrsuU,  Itobinson,  I).  Hauua,  H.  (ti-Utou,  and 
Taliur.  Beside  these  wore  fourti«n  smaller  stores.  Mr  Henshaw  in  his  ntaiiii- 
HiTipt  givus  lungthy  details  of  ove.its,  sueli  as  the  wudding,  on  .luiie  litth,  of 
.laiiK'.'*  H.  LapjMJUS  and  Aim  Hitchcock.  The  Fourth  of  July  wu«  ecli-bratc  I 
ill  ii  gnivu  adjacent,  and  with  tiro-works.  The  second  week  in  July  the  tliur- 
iniinii'tur  marked  at  niNin  1 14°,  and  at  ni{{ht  H'2^.  Z.  HublMird'M  obsceno  K^mnd 
Tent  for  a  time  t'cli|Mk!d  all  competitors.  This  was  followed  by  the  (ioni,  tiiu 
Kiii|iii'r,  tliu  Mansion,  the  Humlioldt,  thn  I'iana,  ai.d  cithers.  I'Iuto  was  ouf. 
calK  d  the  Plains,  with  ita  widU  atlorned  with  s':enic  illusiratuius  •  f  tliu  mutu 
aiTOHM  the  continent.  'Building  lots  which  four  months  pruviou-i  Iiad  noM  nt 
frniii  ts'><>  to  I^JlN),'  writes  lluffum  in  April,  *  were  now  held  by  their  owiiltn  :it 
fpiiii  ^l,(NM)  to  ^-'iiUl-N). '  Yt't  Morse  assumes  that  the  iHipulatioii  iit  the  fort, 
Sai.,  and  Sutturville  did  not  exceed  \'A)  April  1st.  Dir.  Sar.,  liCi.'t,  4.  Oil 
■I line  'JOtli,  however,  he  estiiiiatvci  the  tiumlier  of  houses  at  .Sae.  tdnne  at  l.K), 
aniiiiig  which  was  rising  the  City  hotel,  enH't«!d  from  the  material  |>rf]Hire  1 
tnf  Slitter's  tbiuriiig  mill,  on  Front  st,  between  1  and  ,\,  Xi  by  .Vi  leet,  tliiie 
Ntiiries  ill  luMtjIit,  costing  $IU(),(MH),  and  reittiii^  to  Fowler  and  Fry  a  feu* 
iimntliK  later  for  9S,(NN)  a  month,  i'liirrr  Timrn,  Felt.  Ili,  ISfiO;  lt<iyttnl  'J'tij/lmn 
Hblunuh,  i.  'I'M.  Shortly  after  McColluin,  i'ni,  4ti,  mentions  the  l'.  .S.  hotel 
an  til*'  lieiit.  The  Sutter  house  rose  on  Fmnt  st,  lietweeii  K  and  \t,  and  Me- 
KMij^lU'ii  .\lilPriean  hotel  on  K  st,  Itetwei  II  Seeond  and  Third. 

Ill  March  Burnett  visited  .S,  F.  t<i  meet  the  incomin){  ti<le  of  gobl-seeker.'* 
ami  ilirc'i-t  it  to  Sac.  .Meanwhile  several  veMsels  ^atllert'd  nlon^  tlie  liaiikH, 
iiu'linlin^  tlie  Hqnarc-rig^eil  Elkuloni,  Joi<rH  lluumvitum:,  and  the  Utik  II  liilim, 
Ml  April  and  May,  some  to  serve  for  stom-ships  niid  <vliarvcs;  and  habitation* 
riwo  in  all  liireutions,  iiiimt  of  them  friiil  an  I  traiiMient  :ii  character,  of  InNinlH, 
CAnvaM  Htretehed  on  stieks,  and  common  tents.  April  'JHth  the  weekly  I'Ufiv 
Timrt  was  issued  by  Kd.  Kendile  k  Co.  to  trum|>et  the  town.  The  eniltar- 
ea'liTo  JMNksts  'J.l  or  ;W  stort's,  it  cnes;  the  fort  and  its  vicinity  H  or  H>  more. 
Tliere  is  a  hotel,  a  printing-ofliee,  liakery,  blaeksmith-nhop,  tin-shop,  bitlinrd- 
riNiin,  IsiwIiiiK-nlley,  t^i  say  nothing  of  driiiking-Halootis,  and  Imuses  of  pros- 

utsT.  I'Ai.,  Vol..  vi.   a 


4M 


CITY  BUILDmO. 


(  .i 


titution.  Thnagh  an  exceedingly  healthy  place,  u  the  editor  affinnnl,  it 
should  still  have  a  hospital.  Sacramento  will  Iteconie  great.  For  it  alt  tiu-.Mt 
rising  inctitutiuns  were  not  enough,  tliere  was  the  inauguration  of  the  ^^ime 
of  monte  in  the  famous  Stinking  Tent,  kept  by  Jantes  Lue. 

About  June,  Sutter,  jr,  rcconveyed  to  the  father  his  estates;  titluti  for  t!ie 
sold  lots  were  perfecttxl,  and  with  the  changes  of  agents  a  spirit  of  rivalry 
sprang  up  between  the  fort  antl  town.  The  former  had  so  far  n-t-iiiuil  a 
prontirtent  position  as  mail  station,  as  goreral  iN>int  of  arrival  and  deitartiirr, 
and  as  the  site  for  nnmerons  branch  stores,  all  of  wliiuh  serx'cd  to  siiHt.ii.i  a 
lively  intercourse  between  the  two  pliious,  so  much  so  that  thrt!u  U.iv*  of 
stages  were  kept  busy  making  «<ac'li  several  trials  daily.  But  Satdr,  jr, 
quarrelled  with  Hensley  and  Itwuling,  the  lea<ling  firm,  and  rctirol  May  1st 
from  their  (lartnership,  J.  K.  Snyder  tiiking  his  place;  whereuiMm  tin:  timi 
withdrew  from  the  fort,  and  ctinccntrated  their  busineHs  at  the  ninrt!  i-mive- 
nient  landing.  Othem  followed  their  example,  giving  a  sliaru  t<i  Suttt  rvrllu, 
till  the  fort  was  desertetl  by  traffic,  and  enipliiyed  ohiclly  for  h(i.Mpit.tI  pur- 
poses. Sutterville  seized  the  opi>ortunity  to  strengthen  itself,  ainl  the 
McDougall  firm  sought  to  attract  trade  liy  loudly  offering  to  sell  gixi.h  at 
cost;  but  tlio  shrewd  Sac.  dealers  coml>ine<l  to  purchase  them,  autlso  tliuartiil 
the  man«i-uvre.  Nevertheless  their  proeiiects  looked  fair  for  a  wliik'.  (loi, 
McKinstry  opened  a  store;  a  hotel  was  Itegun  and  a  ferry  projMNteil,  aixl  a 
few  vcssel.t  were  staying  tliero  to  land  intended  settlers.  The  kitter  hti'iv.  .1 
p4H>r  eneour-igement,  however,  for  L.  W.  Hastings,  who  owned  the  central  |>irt 
of  the  town,  could  not  lie  induced  to  hM  at  reasonable  prices,  ile<tpit«i  the  I'liorti 
of  McUougall  and  McKinstry,  the  lioMers  of  the  outitkirts  on  eitlu-r  xiiK-. 
Finally  the  latter  nuule  matters  worse  by  quarrelling.  Tlie  (lUarteriuL;  lure 
of  a  U.  S.  g.'irrtiton  during  IH4i)  M«!r«'ed  only  momentiirily  to  suMtaiii  t!i<'!.<t 
sUgnatinu  town.  5<i<-.  7'r«i«*-n;rf,  May  21»,  Sept.  30,  1850;  ,S'.  F.  D^iiii  Jl.  kiI.I, 
Feb.  9,  1  «.").■{;  Mfl'/iriMutH,  in  /'htteer  Skrtr/ien,  MS.,  10;  Sherman'ii  ilrm.,  i.  77; 
Jintokn  Four  .Mntil/ui,  27;  Morite,  in  Sue.  Dirfrtory,  lS.'>;V-4;  Site,  fllii*.  Jll<t..  H; 
BitfiuaxSU  MohUiji,  lo'2-3;  Frxutt'it  Jliit.  CuL,  \\:\;  .^Aenotw./'*  Oil.,  .Kl;  /.'</-. 
nrtt'a  A'lC,  MS.,  ii.  29;  Sue,  Dhtctory,  1853-4,  9;  SehinOUUr,  Wrijini.  r,  7S, 
with  plan. 

A  fcatiii'o  (if  this  progress  wiis  the  rapiil  iucreoMO  of  river  tratlic,  in  iikiil 
by  the  iii.'iu^^iinition,  in  August,  of  steam  service  by  the  Oeonje  Wii.iltiiijt'm. 
Within  tlir<-<>  inaiiths  half  a  iloztfu  riv:il.4  api)earcil  mi  the  hoi-iic,  iiu-liuliiii:  tlie 
comnio:lii>UH  .SnuUor.  Siiiling  vesw^ls  also  ascended  the  river  to  suiVf  tlu'  •  \- 
])ensu  of  transshipment,  and  to  serve  here  for  storing  goods,  and  by  May  i *«■'() 
a  fleet  of  S'>  sea-going  Itottoms  lay  in  tlie  stream,  with  a  touiuigc  nf  dvit 
I'J.OOO,  half  of  which  was  claimed  for  storage.  Tlie  dignity  of  a  port  of  fiitry, 
Itestowi-d  since  April,  was  couse(|uently  well  merited.  It  was  a  place  sur;.:iiig 
with  sjMtcuIatioii  and  uproarious  with  traffic;  profits  rea>.-hiiig  nmre  than  lilO 
per  cent  above  the  nite^  atHjepted  at  the  city  on  the  l»ay,  and  ntiifs  nilmj;  .u 
high  as  ^.'i,(K)0  a  month  for  a  building,  while  lots  erupt  up  to  $30,000.  Not< 
withstaiiditi;,'  the  tlinwiness  of  the  structures,  their  value  toward  tin;  I'o-  <'f 
1849  wax  .-stinintetl  at  $2,(MM),0(N). 

On  tlie  l.'itli  of  August  a  seow  was  laniu-hed,  and  two  days  later  the  tl'onje 
Wiuhinjlo::,  tlic  tirst  river  st«»mlH>at  of  Callfortiia,  arrived  from  Boni<'ia      I» 


«  ■ 


RrV'ER  NAVIGATION. 


Ml 


Soptember  the  Saemmeitlo  was  lannched  a  mile  above  the  town,  and  shortly 
•ftur  arrived  another  of  the  aame  name,  of  scow  build,  which  sold  for  $40,UU0. 
AU't  CiiL,  Jan.  4,  1850;  Placer  Ttme*,  Aug.  18,  18o0.  In  October,  the  steam- 
Ixhits  .ITi'nf  and  McKim  introduced  a  more  regular  and  suiwrior  communication 
Hit!)  S.  F.,  nlthoMgh  *  oth  were  surpassed  by  the  Semilor,  whiuli  made  her 
s|i;Kjarauce  here  Nov.  6th.  Rates  of  [lassage  were  I^W  and  ftlO  for  cabin  and 
ilit'k,  iuid  freight  f2.5U  per  lUO  llw,  or  |1  per  foot.  The  shipping  intercHt hiul 
by  tliis  time  grown  to  resitectable  proportions.  On  Sept.  Ist  there  were  8 
U'lrks,  1 1  brigs,  ami  7  schooners  along  the  bank,  and  by  April  I8r>0  they  ha«l 
iiii.rL'ODvil  to  some  20  barks  and  ships,  27  brigs,  and  a  numlnir  of  minor  craft, 
riii^iii){  as  high  as  400  tons,  and  drawing  over  10  feet  of  water.  For  Miiy 
I.S.'><),  thu  harbor-master  reporte<l  33  store-ships  at  the  levee,  with  a  timnagu 
(if  (i.ii'.'H;  .VJ  Bhi^M,  kiorks,  and  brigs,  5,577  tons;  IG  regular  steamer*,  2,(Nm 
toiix;  Ilia  receipts  |3,356.  Sue.  Tntnaeripl,  Apr.  20,  June  29,  Nov.  14,  |8.'i0; 
Plntfr  Tiniea,  May  2(5,  Nov.  17,  1849;  March  9,  18.J0,  etc.;  *'ur.  I>ir<-rUn-y, 
1S7I,  52;  /</.,  1873,  15;  (Vi^  C'onnVr,  Sept.  14,  1850;  Ujtluim's  NoUnr^M-'MHi, 
31'.'.  Kvcn  vessels  drawing  12  feet  could  roach  the  American  Kivor,  says 
Ciirrey,  Inrul.,  MS.,  7.  Tlie  ferry  to  the  Washingtim  side  of  tlie  river,  iin- 
jiriivcil  with  horse-power,  was  in  1H.*)0  convcrttid  into  a  steamltoat,  Alp/ui,  to 
tiiiit  till!  increasing  trathc.  'the  rates  were  f2  for  a  two-home  wagon,  ani- 
mals M  ccntj  each,  man  and  home  75  cents.  Koa4U  to  the  inttTior  were  iiii- 
provi'il  for  the  hundrviU  tif  teams  daily  ]MMMiiig.  A  post-otKce  had  lH>en 
e>tiilili>>licil  at  the  emliarcadcro  in  the  mitUlle  of  IH49,  tin  lMiar>l  the  W'hitoii, 
H.  K.  Uiiliinson  iHiing  the  first  imstmaster;  but  the  Herviou  proved  so  irregular, 
e.^H'tiiilly  (luring  the  winter,  that  expresses  had  to  l>e  invoked.  PUircr  Tiiin-x, 
July  -JO,  Aug.  1,  10,  Oct  13,  1850;  Sof.  Trtiiurripl,  .May  »,  Seiit.  'M\  1850; 
AllaCii,  Dec.  21,  1850.  See  aUo  /^nbw's  7>or.,  vii.  92,  123;  W i mi im' Still., 
MS.,  7  IT,  20,  referring  to  general  security  here  in  1849;  BnrnUiirM  StiU.,  MS., 
3:  MiillhnrMm'n  Still.,  MS.,  12;  t'nml,tf\  EreitUi,  MS.,  15;  Sttiyles'  Slut.,  MS., 
7.  The  real  estate  on  I  street  was  valued  at  half  a  million,  siiys  Taylor,  AV- 
ilnniiln,  i.  2*J5.  Anything  wimiil  st  II,  enuuiion  flannel  sliirtn  at  from  •^'>  to  ^8, 
M.uikitit  $12  to  $2(),  liootH  $'.*0  to  ${2;  Hour  rwv  to  ^50  per  liarn^l  iluring  the 
siituiiiti,  niutttm  ^\  a  (HiURd;  la'oor^lOand  uiiward,  curponters  striking  fur 
luiirv  tlan  tht!  §12  a  iKiy  offereil.  Tttfloi'x  Kl'lnnulo,  i.  225-0;  LtttWal.,  I.'il- 
3;  WhniloHH  Slat.,  MS.,  7;  M'i/..«»m"  SiiU.,  MS.,  7  17;  Dfldno'n  Li/i;  2."il; 
I'hnr  'J'imrn,  F<'li.  10,  |H.">0;  'f 'l»-t  m  /Aij-ji-r,  7t'>;  Fni/'ii  FarlH,  .MS.,  7;  Coif- 
niini-  I'i./.,  MS.,  1+4-5;  HhjT'Hh'h  Sir  .l/ii.,  32,  110;  I'lurif  Tiim:i,  ,\ug.-D(t*. 
IMlt,  ^MVKHim;  Cronlii/'.-i  Stttt.,  MS.,  15;    WilUyn  Mnu.,  5W-5;  GriitmhuivH  A'lir., 

MS.,  :i;«  43. 

.'\s  t)i<-  influx  by  s«agavc  impulse  to.S.  F.,  tm  the  niignition  overland  and 
ti<  tlir  mini's  favort'il  the  city  of  the  ]ilainH,  asHiMtint;  to  collict  lu^re  a  popnla- 
tioii,  liy  l)-t.  1849,  of  alxKil  '2,i*M,  v  ah  a  vote  of  I, ;«»();  liy  Dec.  fully  ilonlilc, 
anil  liy  tht>  following  winter  nearly  lO.UlO,  inehnling  tniVi'licrs,  HUHtiiining 
miiiM'  4<H»  Mton!M,  with  Hcveral  nuuiuf;icturni;r  cKi.ililishnmnts,  notably  tlir<-e 
it(>ani-iiiill.s.  The  estimate  f<'rtheenil  of  l>CM)  w.w  7,'NK)  rvNJiiiHitH,  UcMidcs 
IktIkijw  .'{.OOO  transirnt  {MTsorss — a  figure  which  Taylor,  Eklnnuh,  i.  219-20, 
hitufily  aitHJgns  for  1849,  l>>ttN,  I'nI.  ///.,  131,  giving  even  a  higher  ostiinat^'. 
'Ilic  calculations  of  the  Sac  Tntiurrij*  for  tiic  Iteginniag  of  Nov.  1,  1850,  .s 


482 


CITV  BUILDING 


i: 


lii 


limited  to  6,000  inhabitants,  including  400  females,  with  403  stores,  8)  of 
which  sold  clothing.  Tliero  were  66  blacksmith-shoiis,  3  steaui-mill.i,  H  cul)- 
iuut-shops,  2  soda  factories,  3  lemou-syrup  factories,  2  breweries,  8  livt-n  ■ 
stables,  90  physioiaos,  70  lawyers.  Rtipeuted  in  Col.  Courier  and  9.  F.  Un- 
aid,  Nov.  18,  I860;  Culvrrt  Sac.  DirtcL,  78-0;  Upftavi's  NoU»,  307.  T\w  votu 
in  Oct.  1850,  before  the  winter  influx  had  properly  set  in,  numbered  2,'.'l*J, 
against  3,440  for  S.  F.  Sue.  Tranaeript,  passim. 

It  was  a  tented  city,  of  young  men,  with  a  sprinkling  of  women,  yet  not 
altogether  of  sturdy  youth;  for  hither  came  inexperienced  miners  with  nuil- 
adius  brought  on  by  toil  and  exposure,  and  emigrants  reduced  by  the  lianl- 
sliips  of  transit,  until  on  every  hand  suffering  apiiealed  to  the  sympathieii  of 
the  (leoplc,  and  not  in  vain,  The  Odd  Fullows  organized  and  set  the  exaiiiplt' 
in  deeds  of  charity  and  in  establishing  hospitals,  whicli  soon  came  to  gervu  in 
a  far  worse  strait,  when  in  the  foUoMring  autumn  cholera  broke  out,  carrying 
off  fully  500  persons,  and  frightening  away  several  thousand  uf  the  iuliabituut.H. 

A  hospital  at  the  ^rt  charged  |1G  a  day  for  the  few  patients  tended  Iiy 
the  city;  the  rest  had  to  depend  upon  private  charity;  and  here  the  resident  ( ><ld 
Fellows  distinguished  themselves.  This  laudable  object  causetl  the  fraternity 
to  meet  informally,  Aug.  20th,  eacli  member  becoming  a  visiting  committui-. 
The  society  spent  large  sums  on  coffins  alone,  which  cost  from  $(iO  upwards. 
The  Masons  joined  them  in  the  work,  and  in  sharing  hospital  ex|ienses  at  tli» 
fort.  Pldcer  Times,  Sept.  29,  Nov.  3,  7,  Doc.  8,  1840,  etc.;  Wiaana  Sl(U.,  Ms., 
]G.  Cliiiriis  for  reimyment  were  afterward  presented  by  the  city  and  othci-M 
upon  the  state  and  U.  8.  government,  but  in  vain.  Sac.  Tmnncript,  ¥vh.  I, 
iWl;  Oct.  14,  1850;  U.  S.  (Jan.  Doc.,  Cong.  25,  Sess.  1,,  Sen.  Mis.  Doc.,  I,  4, 
i.;  Cal.  Jour.  Ah».,  1855,  451-5.  Two  other  hospitals  were  erected,  Pinv/. 
Sac.,  1853-4,  14-lG;  and  tlie  city  was  induced  to  build  one,  Itut  it  was  blown 
down  liefore  it  was  reaiiy  for  occupation,  and  a  less  comnto<liou8  cottage  !»'- 
eanu!  its  receptacle.  Sevnnil  minor  private  eatublishmcnts  existed.  Tlio 
patients  cost  the  city  in  Jan.  1851  $5  each  daily;  1^95,000  had  been  exitendc  I 
since  May  1850,  Sac.  Tmtm-tipt,  Fob.  14,  May  15,  1851;  May  29,  1850;  Tj.- 
/(«»('«  Notes,  301-2.  Official  reports  on  hospitals  at  Sac.,  in  Cal.  Jour.  .!>>., 
1862,  330,  400,  857;  Id.,  Sen.,  531-45,  647-9;  Hint.  Sac.  Co.,  49,  87,  wiili 
account  of  later  county  and  U.  R.  hospitals.  On  Aug.  24th  the  (Vd  FcUoui 
atlopted  by-laws  and  elected  A.  M.  Winn,  president.  List  of  mombei-x  in 
Sac.  Direct.,  1856,  p.  ix.  In  1850  the  Hebrews  formed  here  a  benevolent  asso- 
ciation, and  the  Sons  of  Temperance  a  division,  while  the  Masons,  already  in- 
formally autivu,  organized  tliu  Krat  lodge  on  Dec.  4,  1849.  Two  other  Indgci 
were  formed  in  1850,  as  well  as  a  grand  bnlge,  after  which  rapid  pntgresH  \\m 
made.  See  the  cliaptcr  on  society,  and  for  later  progress  of  orders  in  Sac. ,  //'«'. 
Sac.  Co.,  158  ct  soq.,  inuluiling  Templars,  Druids,  United  Workmen,  Kuiglit« 
of  Pytliias,  (icrmau  IteuevoK-nt  Soc.,  and  County  Piimeers. 

Tlie  cholera  began  its  ravages  on  Oct.  20,  and  ended  Nov.  12,  1850.  During 
this  time  the  mortality  was  201  lietween  Oct.  20th  and  31st,  and  247  l>etwtM'u 
Nov.  1st  and  11th,  of  which  choleia  and  filth  claimetl  nearly  all.  Sac.  Trmi- 
Hcript,  Nov.  14, 1850.  Tlio  S.  F.  Herald,  Nov.  I,  12,  1850,  rci^rts  25  deatlis  in 
24  hours,  and  20  in  48  hours.  At  I'lacerville  there  were  700  deatlis  iMitwccii 
Aug.  Ist  and  Nov.  12tli.     Sixty  were  buriitd  at  Sac.  on  Nov.  1st,  many  lol. 


SICKNESS  AND  FLOODS. 


4fi3 


lowing.  Cuhrr's  Direct.,  79.  One  fifth  of  thoM  who  romained  i**  Sao.  dieil, 
», ,H  Wiuana,  Slat.,  MS.,  21-2;  Pae.  NeuM,  Not.  1,  4,  ISfiOt  Sae  Dinvt , 
ls:>:t,  35-7;  Sac,  lUtut.,  18-10;  Crarp't  StaL,  MS.,  1-2;  CaL  Owrwr,  Oct.  2», 
«tc.,  1850;  /Viy'*  Fricfa,  MS.,  8.  Only  Mine  2,500  {wople  remained  in  tlie 
city.  For  later  health  and  climate  reporta,  see  Loijan't  Meiiie.  Tojtoi/.,  1851),  8; 
Siiit^/er'a  Mori.  Tabiea,  6-7;  Alia  CnL,  Nov.  12,  1852.  On  Jan.  1,  1851,  thuro 
urnt  85  (tocton  here,  and  a  Medioo-Cliirurgicol  academy  met  in  May  1850. 
'I'hu  two  ceinettiries  were  heavily  occupied.  Sutter  gave  in  1849  ten  acre*  for 
oiiu.  Uuleafor,  Placer  Times,  Deo.  8, 1849;  May  8,  1850.  Henahaw.  Stat.,  M.S., 
fi,  liiiriud  the  first  body  here.  Stillroan  counted  800  burials  here  Itefore  the 
(holtra  l*n>ke  ont  The  Sac  Tramtrript,  Nov.  20,  18.*i0,  sUtes  that  out  of 
I  ,!Ni6  graves  more  than  850  dated  since  the  preoetUug  rainy  season.  For  later 
ceiiiuturios,  see  Hint.  Sac  Co.,  208. 

Tliiti,  however,  was  but  one  among  the  series  of  ordeals  through  which  the 
city  hiul  to  pass.  The  fimt  was  the  fioo4l  of  the  winter  1840-50,  which  had 
e:irly  prumouitioas  in  rains  soaking  the  frail  tent  buildings  and  making  th" 
country  ntads  so  lutd  as  to  stop  freight  teaou  in  nuuiy  directioiu,  anil  foniiig 
niiiiiT!!  to  seek  the  city  for  foo<!  and  nindicine.  Thti  rainy  season  began  Nov. 
'2il,  and  continued,  with  intermisoions,  until  the  middle  of  Deo.,  when  aHtorni 
wr«!cku<l  several  houses.  It  ended  on  March  22,  1850,  with  a  full  of  ov<t  ',M 
iiichuH.  llHnteU'a  Hec,  M.S.,  ii.  202-3;  Plater  Time*,  Deo  15,  22,  1849;  S-ic 
L'liioii,  .liui.  1,  1875.  Floods  had  occurred  in  1840-7,  and  Indian  traditions 
ri'fKrrt!<l  to  1825-6  and  1805  as  severe  seasons  By  Christmas  of  1840,  water 
covurt'd  the  lower  parts  of  the  city,  and  ferries  were  provided  for  several 
dtrautii.  On  Jan.  iHt,  tike  rains  stopjwd  and  the  water  receded  somewhat; 
but  on  Jan.  8th  it  1>egan  to  storm,  and  on  the  night  of  the  9th,  four  fifths  of 
th<!  city  lay  under  water.  The  second  story  of  the  City  hotel  was  entered 
from  tMMits,  Mrllimiug  Stitcheti,  MS.,  7,  and  a  steamer  |ta8seil  up  the  stret^tn. 
DrUimit  Lij'f,  291.  Boats  rented  at  9.'iO  por  hour.  The  city  hoMpital  w<u 
aluiuiloned  by  the  attendantH,  who  left  the  rescue  of  the  sick  to  citiscnx.  Sur. 
hirrd.,  18").3,  20-1;  Plact^r  Tiiiien,  Jan.  19,  etc.,  1850.  The  country  prcHent.-d 
.1  shiHit  of  water  for  miles  around.  Have  hure  an<l  there  a  knoll  or  riilgo,  and 
tlm  <l<ittingR  of  trees  and  houses.  Hundreds  of  animals  were  drowncil,  to 
HiiliM;i|uontly  taint  the  air;  some  lives  wi-re  loxt,  ami  an  enorm.-MiH  amount  of 
property  was  dostroycil.  Tlie  avoi'age  rise  of  water  within  tiic  city  was  4 
f.tt.  W'imuu'  St>U.,  MS.,  9-14;  Abi  Cni,  and  Cnl.  Courier,  Jon.  14.  I8.'i0; 
hit.  A'mm,  Jan.  5-20th.  <iolil  Hakes  appcare<l  after  the  wattr  rtceiliMl.  Con- 
m>/w  Stat.,  MS.,  5;  liirhartlwnit  Kxyer.,  MS.,  2.16.  By  Feb.  2.1,  $2<M),(M)0 
M'ure  promisetl  for  a  luvue,  citixens  and  local  authnritivs  e(H>i>eratiag.  Pliftr 
Tiiiw*,  Fob.  2,  etc.,  18.')0.  In  March  ami  April,  (biinuiing  effortx  sav)>il  the 
city  from  another  ovcrllnw.  <SVic  Tratmrrijd,  A|)r.  26,  1850.  On  Apr.  !K>th, 
ixNiplu  voted  to  appropriate  $2.'>0,000  for  the  work.  Pne.  Xno*,  May  .t,  1850. 
ltl)egan  Sept.  10th,  and  progresHcd,  duMpite  the  duulining  cuthiiHiaum  and 
Lu'k  of  funds,  under  tlie  management  of  J.  H.  lianlenlxTgh.  Ytt  it  proved 
uttt'liiHH  against  later  floo«ls,  and  vastier  lalntm  were  rc<iuire<l.  Tlie  Icvfc  w.is 
{I  miles  in  length,  beginning  at  the  highlands  near  Brighttm  anil  running  to 
the  mouth  of  the  American  River,  at  a  height  of  3  feet.  Thence  abmg  the 
Sacramento,  it  was  raised  to  G  feet,  and  even  20  feet  near  Suttervillc.     Over 


CITY  BUILDING. 


.  ■•!     : 


120,000  cubic  jranU  of  «»rtli  were  umnI  for  the  uinlianknieiit;  cnat,  tMH.nn. 
H<ie.  ntiint.,  IN;  Cuitrr's  Ihnrt..  80-1;  S.  F.  Pkaifune,  Sept.  le,  Deo.  31.  IV4I; 
a.  f.  JieraU,  Oct  Iti,  1850.  Wa^^oa  |76  a  tnuitth.  S>u:.  Tnumeript,  8«pt.  3U, 
I8S0. 

After  this  caina  the  aquatter  riot,  long  brewing  under  the  tlirectioii  of 
unpriiiui|ilu<l  men,  who,  on  tlio  aaaumiitiitn  of  a  flaw  in  Suttur'a  tillo,  Mnigla 
to  wrest  unoGcupietl  lota  front  him,  anil  mora  eitpecially  from  ■|>e(nilat(int. 
On  the  firat  bl<HMly  encounter,  however,  with  the  reHoluto  oitiwnii,  in  Aiit;ii>t 
1830,  the  orgacixation  of  Miuatters  gave  away.  It  hiwl  Iieeu  uufortuiiutL'  m 
iti  aitaociation  with  crimiuaU,  aa  well  aa  with  the  lawloaa  elument,  winch 
during  the  autumn  of  IH49  had  tiegun  to  rise,  and  whicli  in  ISRl  provokol  a 
purifying  vigilance  movuuient.  Axido  from  the  diaonler  and  bUNMUIiutl,  it 
injured  the  city  by  shaking  conlidencu  in  titles,  and  the  flood  and  incnawd 
taxation  cansMl  a  dvpremion  in  real  uHtate,  which  full  from  an  inflated  valiu- 
tion  of  nearly  |8.000,000  in  18uO  to  kss  tlian  $5,000,000  in  1852.  T)iu  o.a- 
■i'i|Uont  la|wo  of  mortgages  ami  eflTi'ct  of  over-speculation  precipitutt-d  in 
August  ami  Hvpteniltur  1850  the  financial  criHis  involving  thu  leading  Uiiiki 
and  merchant*. 

Tilt*  revival  of  business  in  Uie  spring  had  sustained  values  for  a  tiiiif,  Imt 
as  mort);age  foreclosure*  followed  one  u|>on  the  other,  emiiarrassment  spriuil, 
t^ll  in  Aug.  ami  8t>pt.  1850  tlie  chief  Iwnkers  cloHod  their  doorH,  hoHilud  liy 
Iktrton,  Lir4>,  Baker,  A  Co.,  who  rttpreHontvd  over  a  million,  foUownd  liy 
llunk-y,  McKnight,  k  Co.,  an<l  Warltiws  k  Co.,  and  by  a  numlier  of  inir- 
rliants.  Siu.  Tnttuirriyt,  May  i29,  1850,  names  Hunsley,  Merrill,  ami  King 
among  the  Icatling  luukorH.  Notwithstanding  the  increaaing  exiMuiau  of  tliv 
i-ity,  with  more  sulMtantial  buildings  and  a  larger  population,  pro|tfrty  aHxi-iw- 
inonts  rose  very  slowly  to  somewhat  over  f7,000,000  in  1857,  declining  onve 
more  gni<lually  to  ^,40(t,(MN)  in  1807,  without  just  cause,  for  in  1872  thiry 
jumited  to  nearly  $l(>,UOO,WIO. 

llie  early  days  s4ion  inwsoI  away  when  a  man  might  leave  his  Img  of  p>M 
anywhere  with  coniidence,  as  Little,  SUtt.,  MS.,  5-0,  liaraton,  8ltit.,  M.S.,  W, 
glowingly  relate.  In  tlie  autunm  of  1849  an  organized  banil  of  thievca  Wiu 
raiding  in  the  city,  an«l  aftiT  tliis  rei>orts  of  robberies  are  freipient.  I'litrrr 
7'inuui,  Nov.  17,  24,  1849;  Jan.  5,  Feb.  Iti,  Apr.  13,  May  8,  20,  1850.  A  duel 
is  recorded  in  N.,  Oct  13,  IS49;  Pttr.  Xrim,  May  3,  1850,  etc. 

On  May  8th  a  nightwat<;h  of  10  men  was  ordercil  to  lie  established.  Sue. 
Traniieri]4,  June  29,  1850.  Tlicre  hod  Itet-n  a  prison  brig  and  a  military  coin- 
Itany  since  Nov.  1849.  Phrer  Timm,  Nov.  24,  1849;  May  22, 1850;  *«<•.  DirrH., 
1871,  05.  The  flrst  trial,  of  1'.  R  Pickett,  for  justiiiablu  homicide,  took  pl.xe 
Jan.  1849;  thu  flnit  criminal  conviction  of  a  thief,  on  the  recorils,  Nov.  8,  IHt'J. 
The  crimin;il  court  of  the  iirst  instance  was  organizeil  in  Nov.  7,  1849,  with 
\V.  R  8liannou  for  judge.  Sm.  Hrr.  Crim.  ('om-t.  His  ap|H>iiitniant  is  dated 
Aug.  Ist  The  Iirst  civil  suit  was  tried  by  a  jury  of  six  in  Sept.  1849,  before 
the  Krst  magistrate,  J.  S.  Tliomas,  apiM>intcd  on  Sept.  21st.  Snr,  Rfc.  PmrrtiL, 
38;  U.  S.  Qot>.  Doe.,  Cong.  31,  Seas.  I,  H.  Ex.  Doc.,  17,  p.  8:{2-4  Grand  jury 
rcitorts  in  Plaerr  Ti»u»,  Jan.  19,  May  17,  Nov.  10,  1850.  On  May  0,  W:*\ 
Thonwa  opened  the  ilistrict  court.  By  Oct.  there  were  some  4.'iO  cases  on  tl>« 
ducket  SiK.  Tnuurrij4,  Oct  It,  1850.     For  tlie  court  of  sessions  Swift  aiid 


LAW  AHS>  OOVERNMENT. 


4M 


('.  F.  Ij<H-kctt.  were  on  May  18th  eleututl  aMoviaUMl  Juntices,  Willi*  preaiiluig. 
I'lK-rr  Tiiiir»,  May  20,  ItCiO.  Williit  Maa  county  ju<lge,  ami  liit<l  i>ih-iiu)1  hia 
ii)H't  ul  uourt  May  0,  IS.'iO,  tsailing  aUo  the  proltato  court  of  tliu  ituuie  data. 
Till-  cliarter  of  Feh.  IHrK)  prtiviiloil  for  a  rtworiler'a  ami  |N>lic«  t-ourt  to  th« 
t'\.  Iimiiiii  of  juHtiuoM  of  the  ii«a«;e.  Thuxo  court*  were  iut!ut)iic«!<l  to  gruatar 
a>'tivity  hy  the  vigilance  committee  of  ISril,  which  in  AugUMt  coiniM-'Ueil  the 
liaiiuiii^  of  two  niunlitrvrs,  nml  ititulf  lynchml  their  reapitotl  |Nirtn»r.  The 
(ir>t  lynching  Imil  Imjimi  etToctcil  hore  on  Jan.  2(Sth,  of  the  niur«l«n-r  Koe. 
(  rniiiiuil  (li'tJiiU  for  tlie  year  with  account  of  (triiton  hrig,  iu  Sue.  Tntmirrijd, 
V  I.,  jr..  28,  Juno  15,  IST.I;  S.  F.  Pirayintt,  F.I..  27,  1851;  AU^i  CnL,  Fel>.  20, 
J.iii.-  '-'H,  July  n,  1H51;  Sac.  lUmt.,  20;  S.  F.  Ihmhl,  Sept.  2.1,  1H.-.I;  CtiL 
i'''Hrirr,  Nov.  3,  IH51.  List  of  criniea  and  executioiu  in  Suf.  Krrtml,  May  30, 
IsT.t;  .I//.I  r'.if..  May  9,  June  17  18,  1852;  Jan.  27-00,  Feb.  22,  Apr.  21,  May 
I  \n^.  \'.\,  S»!pt.  1,  1S5.H;  and  18.H-8I5,  poiwim;  S<u;  Union,  etc.;  llUt.  Sur.  Co., 
1. 1  rt  K('<|.  Sept.  1854  wiM  nuirlcud  )>y  a  Chineiiowar.  Sue.  lllunl.,  24.  In 
l^.'>*l  till!  vigilance  committee  stirred  the  courtM  antsw  to  promptneMit,  ami 
(I  ..n<l  tliu  city  of  many  diareputalde  charavtent.  Fupultr  TrUmiiaU,  thia 
iM'ri<  s,  poHHiin. 

Ill  .April  1840  the  OHpiratiouH  of  Sattramento  loared  aUtve  the  iiiniple 
air  ilili'  government,  enuuuiting  from  the  fort,  to  that  of  a  ciHle-forming  capital 
fiT  till'  valley.  The  legiHlut<irii  choMon  to  realize  the  pnitemtion  declared  with 
l.iii'l.ilili'  }{ihh1  Reiixe  that  the  exiHting  a«lmini>*tration  wan  aulKcicnt,  yet  the 
^iilHTiiattirial  onlcr  for  local  electioiiH  in  AugUMt  led  then  to  the  iiiNtallation  of 
a  I  ayuiitamicnto,  with  Stout  aitd  Huiwetpiently  Winn  for  preiit,  Thoniaa  and 
/.  liiri^kielieingmatlu  1  >it and  2d  uiog^HtrateH,  and CriMhy  prefect.  <'rtnil>y'»!iUU., 
MS  .  .V>  <);  Pinter  Timt»,  Aug.  II,  \M9,  etc.  In  the  autumn  of  IK48  Frank 
iVitcM  and  John  S.  Fowler  had  l)een  choaen  iinit  and  iiecond  alcaldot,  ut  the 
fort,  to  replace  Sinclair  and  McKinntry.  The  ftiUowing  apriiig  Fowler  waa 
kitni-vdcil  liy  II.  A.  Schoolcraft,  lately  awddier.  Vnlxtuml  J)i>c.,  44,  M  2.  (>n 
A;<ril  :ti),  1849,  a  nu>venient  waa  made  hy  the  diatrict  emhraccd  lietween  the 
S  K-r^tiiieuto,  the  Sierra  Nevada,  and  the  CoitunuioM  to  entahliah  civil  govern- 
ni>  rit  alter  the  American  form.  A  maMS  meeting  held  at  the  end»aruu4h;r<i  waa 
fiilliiwed  l>y  an  clecti(ui  of  a  legiiilature  of  eleven  niemlierH,  einiM)Wered  to 
e;i:u't  LiwH  for  the  city  and  <liHtrict.  The  eleven  elected  and  Hworn  in  were 
.I'llut  .Mi'lKiugal,  liurtim  I^e,  John  S.  F<iwler,  Peter  Slater,  Henny  Cheever, 
■I  I  IK'S  King  of  Wm,  Samuel  Brannan,  M.  M.  Carver,  Chariot  IS.  Southard, 
\V  M.  CariHsnter,  and  William  I'ettit.  Pl)tcer  Timr,t,  May  5,  I.S49.  Their 
il<'<  Urttion  that  no  formal  law8  or  increased  HtatT  of  otIicialH  were  wanted  iu 
til  It  ciinimunity  wim  approved,  and  Henry  A.  Schoolcraft  ami  A.  .M.  Turner 
*<'i"'  clio.sen  alcalilu  and  aheritr  rcMpectively. 

Still,  tliiM  did  not  wholly  conform  to  the  American  idea  of  the  neceaMity  of  a 
griiwin}{  ]Mtpulation,  and  no  a  charter  won  adopted  in  l)ctol>er.  The  inentinia- 
lil>'  privilege  of  wi<ler  govi^nuiient  tliUH  conferred  wan  promptly  aeteil  u|M>n  liy 
the  creation  of  a  hoMt  of  oHiciaU  correMiMmding  to  the  proM|ieelive  greatneMof 
tli>-  city,  and  the  council  <luly  impremted  the  aci|uiHition  Ity  a  heavy  Nchedule  of 
tixi'K  to  meet  the  laviMh  lUMignment  of  luilarieii,  ThiH  application  of  civic  honor 
«  14  lianlly  exitected,  and  a  new  charter  waa  quickly  draughted  to  check  the  ex- 
triviigauce;  hut  the  sweeta  of  oliice  proved  too  tempting.    luatead  of  diniiniah- 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


S  m  12.0 


M 

2.2 


1.8 


1-25      1.4    jl.6 

M 6" 

► 

Photographic 

Sciences 
Cbrporation 


23  WESV  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTEt^.NY    14580 

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>> 


456 


CITY  BUILDING. 


'.'   !> 


:¥ 


ing  expenses,  the  new  council  increased  salaries  lieyond  the  limits  of  the  total 
taxation,  and  helped  to  create  a  debt  of  nearly  $400,000.  The  lesson  was  not 
wasted,  for  a  reincorporation  took  place  in  1851,  with  more  secure  restrictioiu 
to  promote  economy!  The  exposed  situation  of  Sac.,  and  its  f'ut  growing  im. 
portance,  demanded  extraordinary  expenses  for  street  improvements,  levees, 
public  buildings,  fire  department,  and  so  forth,  which  despite  a  taxation  of 
$5.35  per  $100,  of  which  more  than  half  for  local  purposes  besides  heavy  license 
rates,  increased  the  debt  to  $1,400,000  by  1855,  after  which,  however,  the 
addition  was  slight. 

The  first  charter  had  been  defeated  in  Sept.  by  the  gamblers'  clique,  but 
adopted  with  an  amendment  on  Oct.  13th,  by  809  votes  against  613.  Text  of 
document  in  Unbound  Doc.,  338.  The  council  then  passed  ordinances,  PUuer 
Times,  Dec.  15,  1849,  and  created  a  host  of  officLils  at  salaries  ranging  from 
$25  a  day  to  $200  per  month,  not  forgetting  to  allow  their  own  members  $100 
per  month,  to  which  end  a  heavy  schedule  of  taxes  and  licenses  was  issued, 
charging  $50  per  month  to  dealers,  auctioneers,  markets,  hotels,  gambling- 
tables,  and  lower  rates  for  certain  other  businesses  and  entertainments.  This 
feature  tended  to  render  the  charter  unpopular,  and  two  others  were  draughted 
from  the  legislature  on  Feb.  27,  1850,  embracing  one  favoring  tlie  popular 
party,  which  limited  taxation  to  $100,000,  and  the  total  debt  to  the  annual 
revenue.  Yet  the  first  step  of  the  city  fathers,  with  H.  Bigelow  as  first  elected 
mayor,  was  to  assign  for  salaries  alone  $118,000,  of  which  committeemen  re- 
ceived $25  a  day,  councilmeu  double  their  former  pay,  the  four  chief  officials 
$5,000  or  $6,000  a  year  each.  The  sick-fund,  the  levee,  and  the  squatter  trouble 
each  absorbed  about  $100,000  during  the  year.  Details  of  election  and  acts 
in  Placer  Tit>ie8,  Feb.-Apr.  1850.  Sac  Transcript,  started  in  April,  came  in 
time  to  record  these  doings.  Upfuim's  Notes,  278-99,  is  especially  full  on  the 
subject.  Also  Crary'f  Stat,  MS.,  2.  Text  of  charter  in  Cat.  Statutes,  1850, 
479.  In  ''larch  1851  the  city  was  reincorporated.  Id.,  1851,  654,  under  more 
secure  limitations,  which,  with  amendments  in  1H.''^.  etc.,  Sac.  Union,  March 
9,  Apr.  10,  1855,  continued  in  force  till  1858,  ^he  consolidation  act  com- 

bined the  city  and  county  governm.ents.  Tli  led  to  give  satisfaction,  and 
in  1863  the  city  was  reincorporated  substantially  under  the  former  charter. 
In  1874  the  limits  were  reduced  on  the  north.  List  of  mayors  in  Sac.  Secord, 
June  3,  1885;  acts  concerning  city  in  HitteU's  Codes,  ii.  1820;  A  Ita  CaL  and  Sac. 
Union,  passim.  The  council  of  1851  found  a  debt  of  some  $379,000,  partly  in 
unpaid  interest  at  from  3  to  20  per  cent  a  month,  which  was  funded  at  one  per 
cent  per  month.  Salaries  were  reduced,  but  notwithstanding  the  tax  rate 
aforesaid,  whereof  2}  for  local  purposes  of  $7,000,000,  the  debt  had  increased 
to  fully  $1,400,000  by  May  1855,  after  which  the  addition  was  chiefly  through 
unpaid  interest.  The  act  of  1872  to  provide  a  sinking  fund  proved  the  best 
remedial  measure  for  the  low  credit  of  the  city,  the  bonils  being  frequently 
rated  below  20  cents  on  the  dollar.  In  1880  the  funded  debt  amounted  to 
$1,560,000,  plus  $854,000  for  accrued  interest,  etc.  The  county  debt  was 
somewhat  over  $600,000  at  6  per  cent.  See  above  journals;  Sac.  Directorus, 
1853,  1871,  etc.;  Hist.  Sac  Co.,  130  et  seq.;  Burnett's  Rec,  MS.,  ii.  283,  etc. 
Early  critical  reviews  of  finances  in  Sax:.  Transcript,  Fob.  1,  28,  June  1,  1851; 
Placer  Times,  March  21,  28,  18.52;  AUa  CaL,  June  1,  1853;  Sac.  U<uon,  Apr. 
7,  1855;  Jan.  3,  Oct.  7,  1856,  etc. 


FIRE  AND  FLOOD. 


457 


So  far  the  city  had  been  spared  the  fire  scourge,  which  devastated  nearly 
every  town  in  early  days;  but  it  came  on  Nov.  2,  1852;  and  as  if  to  condone 
for  previous  forbearance,  it  swept  away  more  than  two  thirds  of  the  builiUngs, 
together  with  several  lives,  the  loss  being  estimated  at  fully  $5,000,000. 
C'alituriiia  energy  manifested  itself  as  usual  in  rapid  rebuilding,  and  the 
adoption  of  remedial  measures,  by  giving  prominence  to  brick  walls,  by  erect- 
inir  .substantial  water-works,  which  moreover  provided  a  handsome  revenue, 
ami  by  increasing  the  efficiency  of  the  fire  department.  So  effectual  were 
these  precautions  that  the  only  subsequent  conflagration  of  note,  in  July  1854, 
iuvolved  less  than  half  a  million  of  property.  The  suffering  entailed  by  the 
great  fire  was  augmented  by  a  fresh  inundation  in  Dec.  and  Jan.,  even  more 
extensive  than  tlie  former  overflow,  though  less  disastrous,  owing  to  timely 
warning,  and  to  the  limited  field  for  ravages  left  by  the  flames.  The  agricul* 
tural  districts  this  time  suffered,  from  Shasta  to  San  Diego,  with  the  loss  of 
cattle,  crops,  and  improvements  mounting  into  the  millions.  Sacramento 
hiistened  to  fortify  her  levees,  but  not  until  after  the  flood  of  1861-2,  involv- 
ing the  destruction  of  about  $3,000,000  worth  of  property,  was  it  given  a 
height  and  strength  which,  together  with  a  gradual  raising  of  the  street 
grade,  provided  an  effectual  relief. 

The  fire  damage  prior  to  1852  is  scarcely  worth  the  enumeration.  The 
first  was  inflicted  Sept.  13,  1849,  on  a  hay  stack.  Plwer  Times,  Sept.  15, 
1S49.  On  Apr.  4  and  Nov.  9,  1850,  respectively,  about  half  a  score  of 
houses  were  consumed,  valued  together  at  $100,000.  Id.,  Apr.  6,  1850; 
Pac.  News,  Nov.  13,  1850;  Upham'a  Notes,  289-91,  The  Tehama  theatre 
suffered  a  $20,000  loss  on  Aug.  13,  1861.  Alta  Cal,  Aug.  15,  1851.  This 
fortunate  escape,  however,  was  offset  in  the  great  fire  of  Nov.  2,  1852,  when, 
as  before  mentioned,  the  estimated  loss  was  some  $5,000,000.  Democ.  Suites 
Jour.,  Nov.  15th,  gives  a  list  not  quite  complete  aggregating  this  figure. 
'Hie  fire  originated  in  a  millinery  store  about  11  p.  H.,  and  was  swiftly 
carried  around  by  the  strong  wind  prevailing.  Only  one  church  escaped, 
and  very  few  of  the  noteworthy  edifices.  Fully  six  persons  perished. 
Details  in  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  4,  etc.,  1852;  AUa  Cal,  Herald,  and  Times,  Nov., 
etc.,  1852;  Burnett's  Rec,  MS.,  ii.  283-4;  Winawt'  Stat.,  MS.,  22-3.  Over 
1,600  buildings  were  destroyed,  AUa  Cal.,  Nov.  12th;  and  this  being  at  the 
lieginning  of  the  rainy  season,  the  suffering  was  increased,  especially  as  a 
severe  flood  followed,  so  that  provisions  became  scarce.  However,  by  Dei-.  3d 
over  760  buildings  were  up.  Sac  lUitst.,  21.  More  attention  was  given  to  brick 
structures,  of  which  the  city  had  in  1854  about  600,  against  2,000  frame 
houses.  Reconstruction  was  promoted  by  the  shipment  of  buildings  from 
.S.  F.  Kniijkt's  Stat.,  MS.,  12-13.  An  appropriation  of  $125,000  was  matle  for 
M-ater- works,  which  were  completed  on  Apr.  1,  1854.  By  1856  over  8  miles 
of  pipes  had  been  laid.  Siu:.  Direct.,  1856,  13-14.  Mistakes  and  improve- 
ments raised  the  expenditure  on  this  branch  by  1880  to  over  half  a  million, 
but  it  gave  revenue  as  well  as  safety.  Appropriations,  and  subsequently 
loans,  were  made  for  the  fire  department,  the  first  company  of  which  hail  organ- 
ized on  March  20,  1860,  after  six  weeks  of  agitation.  Placer  Times,  March  23, 
1850.  Its  progress  is  exhibited  in  the  directories.  It  did  good  service  in 
checking  many  a  threatening  disaster,  such  as  the  fire  on  July  13,  1854, 


m 


458 


CITY  BUILDING. 


which  reduced  200  buildings,  valued  at  ovor  $400,000,  Alta  Cal,  July  14-17, 
1854:  and  on  July  3,  1855,  loss  $75,000,  chiefly  among  Chinese.  After  tiiiD  no 
extensive  fires  took  place  till  one  iu  1874-5,  which  did  not  destroy  over  $10(),()00. 

Water  here  was  worse  than  fire.  Ou  March  7,  1852,  after  two  days  of 
heavy  rain,  the  levee  gave  way,  trees,  houses,  and  bridges  were  ingulfed,  ami 
the  city  was  once  more  flooded.  But  the  respite  afforded  by  the  levee  gave 
time  for  removing  property,  and  the  rise  was  not  equal  to  that  of  ISoU,  so 
that  the  daiiiiige  during  the  four  days  of  its  duration  proved  comparatively 
small.  Burnett's  Iter..,  MS.,  ii.  283-7;  AUaCal,  March 8-14, 1852;  S.  F.  Herald, 
ill.  Ou  Dec.  19th  another  break  occurred,  inundating  the  business  section,  Imt 
doing  little  injury.  On  Jan.  1,  1853,  however,  the  heaviest  flood  of  all  took 
place.  The  rainfall  for  the  season  exceeded  the  36  inches  of  1850  by  a  frac- 
tion only,  but  the  river  rose  22  feet  above  low-water  mark,  and  tlie  waters 
stood  2  feet  higher  in  the  city,  but  it  quickly  receded  and  did  far  less  dam- 
age, partly  because  the  recent  conflagration  left  little  to  raid  upon.  DotaiU 
in  Sac.  Illust.,  7,  20-2;  Sac.  Direct.,  of  1853  and  1871;  Alia  Cal,  and  S.  F. 
Herald,  Dec.  11,  1852,  to  Jan.  1853.  Additional  work  was  put  upon  the  lovee, 
anil  the  necessity  l>ecame  apparent  that  the  grade  must  be  raised.  Sac.  Union, 
March  13,  Oct.  27, 1855.  Between  1854-61,  the  city  escaped  aquatic  disasters, 
but  the  rainfall  for  18(il-2  came  once  more  within  a  fraction  of  the  dreaded 
36  inches,  and  after  a  slight  precursor  on  March  28th,  the  floo<l  on  Dee.  9, 
1801,  broke  through  the  levee  with  such  fury  as  to  sacriflce  several  lives,  and 
ravage  the  now  built-up  and  beautified  city  iu  a  hitherto  unparalleled  degree. 
Loss  estimated  at  $3,000,000.  On  Jan.  9,  1862,  there  was  a  recurrence,  and 
again  iu  Feb.,  with  a  rise  of  waters  fully  equal  to  the  highest;  but  the  eiirso 
of  waters  proved  of  short  duration  in  the  now  securely  established  capital. 
Ill  1878  the  city  was  seriously  threatened,  but  escaped  with  slight  damage. 
8ee  journals  of  the  period.  The  constant  improvement  of  the  levee,  and  with 
a  southern  addition,  left  Sacramento  finally  securely  intrenched  within  a  tri- 
angle 12.i  miles  long,  28  feet  above  the  zero  low-water  mark,  and  in  part 
above  the  high-water  mark  of  1867.  In  1868  a  canal  changed  the  outlet  of 
the  American  River,  the  most  threatening,  a  mile  northward,  thus  reducing 
the  danger  while  extending  the  city  limits.  CaL  Jour.  Sen.,  1859,  932. 

The  double  misfortune  of  1852-3  shook  the  faith  of  many  in  the  city,  and 
several  influential  traders  cast  about  for  another  site;  but  it  was  not  easy  to 
move  a  commercial  centre  once  established,  and  the  energy  of  the  early  re- 
builders  shamed  the  wavering.  This  perseverance  was  in  1854  rewarded  by 
the  location  here  of  the  capital,  for  which  Sacramento  was  well  fitted  by  her 
central  position  and  prominence.  The  legislature  opened  its  sessions  on 
March  Ist,  at  the  court-house,  which  served  the  purpose  until  the  complutiuu 
of  the  capitol  in  1809. 

For  a  long  time  the  cities  bordering  on  the  bay  held  the  advantage  iu 
legislative  taste.  The  backward  condition  of  Vallejo  in  1852  brought  the 
chambers  to  the  more  commodious  Sacramento,  CaL  Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  77C, 
and  her  hopes  ran  high;  but  Benicia  interposed,  and  only  in  1854  were  her 
offers  of  the  court-house  and  a  block  of  land  accepted.  The  governor  and 
oflicials  arrived  on  Feb.  28th,  the  legislatuie  opened  on  March  1st,  and  soon 
after  the  supreme  court  was  obliged  to  acquiesce  and  leave  San  Jose,  for  whiuh 


GROWTH  OF  SACRAilENTO. 


459 


it  hold  out.  A  part  of  the  extravagant  fund  levies  of  1850  hail  gone  toward 
tho  court-house,  which  was  completed  iu  Dec.  1851.  Burnt  iu  July  1854,  it 
was  rebuilt,  with  jail  attached,  for  nearly  $200,000,  and  occupied  by  the  legis- 
lature in  1855-6.  View  in  Sac.  fllitnt.,  25.  A  special  capitol  building  was 
agiuted  in  185C.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  6,  17,  185'i,  properly  l>ogun  in  ISCd,  but 
CDinplutcil  only  in  1869,  at  a  cost  greatly  exceeding  the  original  estimates,  as 
usual,  and  oa  shown  elsewhere. 

Tho  dignity  of  state  capital  gave  new  life  to  Sacramento,  whose  fortunes 
were  still  further  advanced  the  following  decade  by  tho  concentrating  of  the 
railrnad  system  at  this  point.  Her  growth  is  instanced  by  the  assessment  on 
real  estate,  which  rose  from  $5,400,000  in  1854,  when  2,500  buildings  were 
counted,  to  over  $13,000,000  twenty  years  later.  By  1880  the  population 
liad  risen  to  21,400. 

Iu  1853  the  busmoss  section  was  ordered  to  be  fiilVy  planked  and  provided 
with  sewers,  a  work  which  cost  $185,000.  Ten  years  later  a  drainage  canal 
was. added,  which  assisted  to  reclaim  much  swamp-land.  Cal.  Jour.  Ass., 
18lir)-(5,  091-2.  A  large  portion  of  the  city  was  gradually  raised  to  high 
gradu,  two  feet  above  the  highest  water  mark,  thus  afifording  double  protec- 
tion against  floods.  In  1854  a  gas  company  was  formetl,  and  tho  first  street 
lainp.s  were  lighted  a  few  days  before  the  Christmas  of  1855.  S.  F  Bulletin, 
Doc.  15,  1855;  Sac.  Union,  ul ,  etc.  Projects  for  street  railways  began  in  1861, 
and  took  actual  though  scarcely  remunerative  form  in  1870.  An  omnibus  ran 
to  tho  fort  in  1850.  Placer  Times,  May  8,  1850.  The  grant  of  swamp-land 
assisted  in  proouring  for  the  city  the  privileges  of  a  railroad  centre  for  the 
state.  Iu  social  and  industrial  features  lie  further  indications  of  a  progress 
wiiicli  by  1854  was  marked  by  the  existence  of  2,500  buildings,  and  which 
ill  course  of  years  practically  absorbed  outlying  towns  like  Sutterville,  and 
sites  like  Webster  and  Boston.  The  latter  had  been  founded  on  tho  opposite 
American  bank  in  1848  by  J.  Halls,  Lieut  Ringgold,  and  H.  Grimes,  and 
lots  were  offered  in  AUa  Cal.,  Dec.  15,  1849;  Buffuma  Six  Mo  ,  153;  Colton's 
T/iire  Years,  417.  It  no  longer  exists,  says  Sac.  Transcript,  May  29,  8ept  30, 
1850.    Webster,  near  by,  had  faded  by  May.  Id.,  May  29,  1850 

The  churches  of  1880  had  grown  from  the  unpretentious  organization  in 
184!)  of  five  leading  sects.  Religious  services  were  first  held  in  March  1849 
by  J.  W.  Douglass,  and  shortly  after  by  Williams  and  Woodbridge,  all  pres- 
bytoriaiis.  In  May,  Grove  Deal,  and  subsequently  Roberts,  opened  for  the 
iiictluHlists,  and  Benton,  in  July,  for  the  cougregationalists,  M'hile  Cook  and 
suhsc(iucntly  0.  C.  Wheeler  appeared  to  baptists.  Denominational  organi- 
zation began  in  the  following  month.  The  methodists  provided  the  first 
regular  service  and  house  of  worship,  and  the  episcopalians  claimeil  the  first 
regular  minister  and  church,  the  Grace  dating  from  August,  under  Mines,  the 
cougregationalists  following  in  Sept.,  the  inethodista  organizing  in  Oct.,  and 
tho  baptists  in  Nov.  After  this,  progress  became  substantial,  with  special 
teiniilcs  and  an  increase  of  congregations  African  methodists  l>egan  ser- 
vices in  1850,  catholics  the  same  year,  Hebrews  iu  1852,  disciples  of  Christ 
and  (Gorman  methodists  in  1855,  Lutherans  and  Mormons  in  1865,  unitarians 
in  181)7,  adventists  in  1872,  united  brethren  in  Clirist  in  1876  Suu<lay- 
schools  flourished  early  in  1850    Pac.  News,  Aug.  1,  1850;  see,  further,  the 


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460 


CITY  BUILDING. 


chapter  on  churches.  Hayea'  Cat  Notes,  i.  47,  60-1;  Sac.  Dired.,  1S53,  3, 
1856,  etc.  Culvers  Direct.,  77-82,  differs  on  the  order  of  organization.  Sni-. 
Union,  Dec.  16,  1862;  Jan.  1,  1864,  Jan.  29,  1878,  etc.;  WilUams'  Rer.,  Ms., 
12;   Willey's  Thirty  Years,  39;  Sac.  lUust.,  30-2;  Plttcer  Times,  July  25,  \m. 

In  1849  began  likewise  the  teaching  of  children,  but  public  schools  Mere 
not  opened  until  1854,  after  which,  however,  they  went  rapidly  forward 
Notwithstanding  state  laws  for  establishing  public  schools,  school  coininiii- 
sioners  were  not  created  here  until  1853,  and  only  on  Feb.  20,  1854,  did  they 
open  the  first  public  school,  with  a  male  and  a  female  teacher,  50  boys  and  40 
girls  attending,  a  number  which  fast  increased  beyond  accommodation,  so 
that  more  schools  had  to  be  opened.  In  July  1854  there  were  2G1  piiiiils, 
the  private  schools  claiming  250.  The  board  of  education,  organized  in  Nov., 
made  estimates  for  schools,  $3,860  for  rent,  $9,600  for  salaries,  including 
county  schools  within  the  city.  The  first  common-school  house  was  duili- 
cated  Jan.  20,  1855.  There  were  then  414  pupils,  though  578  had  applied  for 
admission.  In  1856  out  of  970  registered  children  494  attended;  exptnaea 
$22,962.  Colored  and  night  schools  were  added  in  due  time,  and  a  high 
school  since  1856,  German  being  taught  also  in  the  grammar  school.  The 
private  schools  of  1849  were  begun  by  C.  T.  H.  Palmer  in  July,  who  was 
succeeded  by  Benton  in  Oct.  or  Dec.  in  Shepherd's  building  ou  I  street.  In 
1850  several  were  opened.  See  further  my  chapter  on  education;  llayM  Cut. 
Notes,  V.  60;  Sac.  Illust.,  27;  Placer  Times,  Oct.  13,  1849;  HM.  Sac.  Co.,  Ill 
et  seq. ;  Sac  Direct.,  1853,  etc.;  Sac.  Union,  1854  et  seq.,  passim,  at  end  of 
terms. 

Newspapers  date  their  useful  career  from  April  1849,  with  the  Plietr 
Times,  and  found  in  this  political  hot-bed  a  field  so  promising  as  to  iuducu  a 
most  prolific  issue  of  rivals,  in  rapid  succession,  though  short-lived.  The 
Placer  Times  was  issued  April  28,  1849,  by  £.  C.  Kemble  &  Co.,  at  the 
fort,  13  by  18  inches,  printed  with  old  Alia  type.  It  quickly  rose  from  a 
weekly  to  a  daily,  and  in  June  1851  it  consolidated  with  the  Sacramento 
Transcript,  which  dates  from  Apr.  1,  1850.  It  moved  to  S.  F.  in  1852,  and 
was  soon  absorbed  by  the  Alta.  On  Oct.  30,  1850,  the  squatters  started  the 
SeiUera  and  Miners  Tribune,  and  on  Dec.  23d  appeared  tlie  Sac.  Index,  as  au 
evening  paper,  both  ephemeral.  The  strongest  of  all,  the  Sac.  Union,  was 
begun  in  March  1851  by  striking  printers,  with  the  well-known  Morse  as 
editor.  It  was  absorbed  in  1875  by  the  Record.  The  Democratic  State  Jour- 
tuU  of  Feb.  5, 1852,  survived  till  1858.  A  host  of  more  or  less  successful  jour- 
nals appeared  after  this,  including  by  1880  some  40  dailies,  2  dozen  weeklies, 
and  several  others.  See  the  chapter  on  literature;  Sac.  Co.  Hist.,  93  et  seq.; 
Sac  Directories,  etc.  Of  directories,  the  first  appeared  in  January  1851,  a 
thin  12mo  pamphlet  with  little  more  than  the  names  of  residents.  Collec- 
tions of  books  and  newspapers  are  found  among  several  societies. 

A  cognate  and  conspicuous  feature  is  the  state  library,  with  its  extensive 
collection,  and  the  free  library,  which  in  a  measure  reaches  back  to  1850, 
when  the  Mercantile  Library  Assoc,  was  formed  with  a  nucleiu  of  bocpk^; 
but  it  perished  with  the  fire  of  1852.  In  1857  it  was  revived  as  the  Sac.  Lili. 
Assoc.,  whose  collection  in  1879  became  the  nucleus  for  a  free  library.  Meaii- 
M-hile  the  Odd  Fellows  formed  a  library  in  1855,  and  the  state  library  rose  to 
become  a  brilliant  feature. 


COMMERCE  AND  INDUSTRIES. 


461 


Tlie  old  rowdy  gambling  spirit  gave  way  before  the  growing  influence  of 
the  home  circle,  and  social  reunions,  with  a  preference  for  musical  and 
atliletic  entertainments  rather  than  dramatic,  although  Sacramento  boasts  of 
having  iu  Oct.  1879  given  the  first  regular  theatrical  performance  in  the 
state.  The  first  theatre,  the  Eagle,  was  opened  informally  on  Sept.  25,  1849, 
l)y  the  Stockton  Minstrels,  Placer  Time*,  Sept.  29,  1849,  and  by  a  regular 
dramatic  troupe  on  Oct.  18th,  with  the  Bandit  Chief.  Id.,  Oct.  18.  It  did  not 
pay.  The  Tehama  was  inaugurated  in  April  18o0,  and  burned  in  Aug.  1851. 
Tlie  contemporary  Pacific  could  seat  1,000  persons.  Rowe's  circus  opened 
liere  iu  May.  In  Sept.  1850  rose  the  American,  with  Booth,  sr,  as  manager. 
Tlie  tiro  of  1852  made  a  sweep  which  left  room  for  the  Sacramento  theatre  of 
Marili  185.3,  the  Edwin  Forrest  of  Oct.  1855,  which  in  18G0  became  a 
iiiL'lodeon,  the  National,  later  Metropolitan,  of  Aug.  1856,  which  in  later  years 
was  the  only  theatre  of  the  city,  the  Academy  of  Music  of  1868  failing.  See 
the  eiiaptcr  on  drama  for  references;  also  Massett's  DrifUiuj,  135-6,  which 
claims  hi.s  concert  on  Apr.  22,  1849,  as  the  first  public  entertainment  here. 
Plnrer  Times,  Apr.  22,  1850;  Sac.  Rec,  Dec.  1,  1869;  Sac.  Bee,  June  5,  1876; 
Snc.  Direct.,  1856,  pp.  12-13;  Taylors  Ehlorado,  ii.  29-31;  Upftam'a  Notes, 
201  et  seq.  Of  three  musical  soeieties  the  first  was  organized  in  1855. 
A  race-track  was  formed  in  1850,  and  a  Jockey  Club,  with  daily  races, 
say.s  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.  14,  1851.  The  city  council  of  this  year  forl>ade 
hiill-iights,  Id.,  Oct.  14,  1850,  which  usually  took  place  between  bears  and 
l)ulls.  Yet  a  bear-fight  is  recorded  in  1856.  Haye-a'  Cal.  Notes,  i.  277.  Rifie 
and  atldetic  clubs  won  favor.  Journals  of  July  1-5, 1850,  indicate  elaborate  en- 
tertainments for  the  national  birthday.  The  entries  of  sailing  crafts  numliered 
in  IS.'iG  nearly  700,  with  a  gradual  increase,  only  of  small  craft,  however,  for 
sua-going  ships  soon  confined  themselves  to  the  bay.  The  chief  distributing 
agi.'nts  in  early  days  were  pack-trains  and  teams,  which  in  1855  numbered 
7lH),  and  absorbed  about  $3,500,000  in  freights.  Tlie  trade  of  the  city  then 
amounted  to  $6,000,000  a  month.  Railroads  now  began  to  curtail  this  means 
of  transportation,  as  well  as  the  stages,  which  in  1856  covered  24  main  routes 
witli  over  200  coaches  and  wagons.  By  1853,  however,  the  steamboats  con- 
ducting the  river  trafiic  numbered  25,  with  a  tonnage  of  5,075  tons,  valu'  d  at 
.somewhat  over  $1,000,000.  MosVi  of  them  were  absorbed  by  the  Cal.  S. 
Navig.  Co.,  which  added  boats  of  from  1,000  to  1,600  tons.  In  1867  there 
Were  31  steamers.  Their  competition  afforded  comparatively  little  room  for 
saihng  vessels,  and  larger  ones  soon  stop[)ed  within  the  bay,  but  sloops  and 
scliooners  kept  a  large  share  of  the  traffic,  their  entries  increasing  from  246  in 
1S51  to  ()81  in  18o6  and  953  in  1859.  Tlie  greater  part  of  the  gootls  brought 
hy  them  were  transmitted  to  the  interior  by  teams,  which  in  1855  numbered 
700,  receiving  $3,500,000  in  freight,  assisted  by  several  stage  lines,  for  which 
Sacramento  was  the  centre.  In  1853  these  lines  consolidated  with  a  capital 
of  §7<30,000,  embracing  in  1856  over  200  coaches  and  wagons,  with  1,100 
hor.ses,  which  covered  24  main  routes,  traversing  daily  nearly  1,500  miles. 
The  telegraph  opened  here  in  1853.  In  18.")5  the  monthly  trade  of  the  city 
was  estimated  at  $6,000,000  upon  a  capital  of  $10,000,000,  the  monthly  re- 
leipt  of  gold-dust  being  $3,000,000,  and  the  manufacturing  outturn  $^100,000. 
'ihe  financial  crisis  this  year  at  S.  F.  found  here  a  serious  retlection,  although 


I:'- 


mm 


ni' 


|'.i 


46a 


CITY  BUILDING. 


the  traces  were  soon  effaced.  For  further  and  more  (general  account,  see  the 
chapters  on  commerce;  also  Merc.  Qaz.,  yearly  end  review  of  AUa  CuL,  etc.; 
///.,  March  31, 1853;  Sae.  Transcript,  Feb.  14,  1851;  5ac.  Union,  Nov.  24, 1855; 
Sac.  Illust.,  27,  etc.;  Wheaton'a  SUU.,  MS.,  8-0.  As  the  centre  of  distribution 
for  the  valle} ,  the  city  became  noted  for  its  superior  hotel  accommodatiuu. 

The  manufactaring  resources  of  the  city,  which  in  1855  were  estimated  to 
produce  $300,000  a  month,  gained  in  proportion  to  the  trade,  with  aid  notably 
of  lumber,  flour,  and  woollen  mills,  foundries,  breweries,  and  fish,  pork,  and 
fruit  curing.  Several  industries  were  started  by  Sutter,  as  already  related, 
including  a  pretentious  flour-mill  at  Brighton,  which  was  never  completed. 
In  1850  two  such  mills  were  established  at  Sacramento.  Several  otliers  fol- 
lowed after  the  fire  of  1852.  In  1855,  there  wer3  six,  with  a  capacity  of  585 
barrels  a  day.  The  spring  of  1850  saw  here  the  foundry  known  as  the  C'al. 
Steam  Engine  Works.  The  Eureka  was  established  in  Sept.  1851,  which  in 
time  yielded  to  the  Union  of  1857.  The  Sacramento  opened  in  Oct.  1852, 
Anderson's  boiler-shop  in  1853,  and  several  more  after  1857.  P.  Kadcll  be- 
gan brewing  in  1850.  Seven  rival  establishments  appeared  during  the  follow- 
ing 30  years,  besides  distilleries,  producing  in  1879  over  half  a  million  gallons. 
A  soda  factory  started  in  1849.  A  number  of  brick-yards  succeedeil  Zius' 
pioneer  kilns,  and  bricks  were  shipped  in  1851-2.  Wagon-shops,  which  rank 
among  the  earliest  industries,  numbered  in  1858  fourscore.  Fish-curing  be- 
gan in  1851,  and  four  years  later  three  establishments  employed  therein  from 
100  to  200  persons.  Pork-curing  opened  successfully  in  1853,  and  of  late 
years  fruit-curing.  Saw  and  planing  mills  and  sash  factories  were  cstablisheil 
in  and  after  1852.  A  pickle  factory  started  in  1852,  and  in  1856  soap  was 
made  on  a  large  scale.  A  regular  tannery  early  succeeded  to  Sutter's  primi- 
tive vats,  and  potteries  date  since  1851.  Among  other  later  industries,  the 
Woollen  nulls  of  18G8  take  prominence.  For  additional  information  on  the 
early  condition  of  the  city,  see  notably  Sac.  Transcript,  May  15-June  IE,  1851; 
Placer  Times,  Sept.  15,  1851-2;  Bauer's Stai.,  MS.;  Oartms' Early  Days,  MS., 
20-1;  Wilson's  Travels,  MS.,  29-31;  Onmshaw's  Nar.,  MS,  20-3;  Player- 
Frowd's  Cal,  10-14;  Hancock's  Tlurtc?n  Years,  MS  ,  120;  Fay's  Facts,  MS , 
7-8;  Burnett's  Rec,  ii  29et8eq.;  Robinson's  Part.,  108-42;  Hayes' Cal  Notes, 
V.  61,  etc.;  Sac.  Co.  Hist.,  passim,  which  contain  much  compiled  material  of 
value.  I  have  also  consulted  the  archives  in  the  county  clerk's  ofhce,  the 
courts,  and  state  library.  In  the  Sac.  directories  there  is  much  histor}'.  In 
Ciilfer's  Directory  appears  some  important  information.  John  F.  Morse  gives 
forty  pages  in  the  Sac.  Directory  of  1853-4,  published  by  Samuel  Colville,  the 
only  good  early  sketch  of  the  city,  and  which  has  constituted  the  groundwork 
of  all  the  directory  histories  succeeding  it.  To  the  sketch  of  Morse,  Kobt-rt 
E.  Draper  made  important  additions,  which  appeared  in  the  directory  issues 
of  succeeding  years.  In  the  Sac.  Directory  of  1871,  Daniel  J.  Thomas  throws 
together  100  pages  of  'History  of  Sacramento.'  To  a  certain  extent,  direc- 
tories, like  newspapers,  constitute  first-class  historical  material.  After  1 852, 
a  directory  was  issued  annually.  Sac,  Illustrated  is  the  title  of  a  papi  .•• 
bound  4to  of  36  pages,  published  at  Sac.  in  1855,  and  which  comprises  in 
elaborate  history  of  Sac,  bringing  it  down  from  the  conquest  by  Cortex' 
Although  depending  mainly  on  Morse's  account,  it  is,  nevertheless,  a  valuable 


MARYSVILLE. 


468 


contribution.  Barber  and  Baker  are  the  authors  as  well  aa  the  engravers  and 
niililishers.  Illustrations  are  given  of  Sutter's  Fort  in  184(j;  tlie  onibarcadern, 
summer  of  1849;  Sac.  in  1855;  Sac.,  winter  of  1849;  J  street,  1st  Jan.,  18.')3; 
Sac,  winter  1853;  Suttervillo,  Washington,  beside  many  views  of  buildings 
anil  looahties.  Further  Sac.  history  may  be  found  in  Capron'a  Cal.,  91-3, 
102;  Plujer-Frowd's  Six  Months,  10-14;  Taylor's  Eldorado,  i.  219-20,  22.3-4; 
Ldl'iCaL  III.,  131-3;  Mattheimotia  Cal.  Affairs,  MS.,  1-2;  Curre/s  Incidents, 
MS.,  7;  Moore's  Pion.  Ex.,  MS.,  3,  8;  Barnes'  Or.  and  Cal.,  MS.,  14. 


Tlie  most  prominent  town  north  of  Sacramento,  since  1849-50,  was 
Marysville,  founded  by  C.  Covillaud,  at  the  head  of  steamboat  navigation  on 
thu  river.  This  advantage,  together  with  proximity  to  the  rich  mining  dis- 
tricts along  Feather  and  Yuba  rivers,  gave  this  place  the  lead  over  a  host  of 
rival  aspirants,  after  the  eclipse  of  Vernon,  at  the  mouth  of  the  f^eather. 
By  Feb.  1851  Marysville  stood  incorporated  as  a  city,  and  faced  unflinchingly 
thu  customary  affliction  of  California  river  settlements  in  the  charge  of  fires 
and  Hoods.  Progress  continued  throughout  the  fifties,  after  which  the  de- 
cline in  mining  had  its  effect,  especially  when  the  railroad  began  to  abstract 
traile.  Agricultural  interests  have,  however,  interposed  a  check,  coupled 
with  bright  promises  of  a  partial  revival. 

On  the  site  of  Marysville  stood  originally  New  Mecklenburg,  a  trading 
post  of  two  adobe  houses  erected  by  Theodore  Cordua,  a  native  of  Mecklen- 
burg, who  had  leased  the  tract  from  Sutter  for  19  years  for  a  stock  rancho.  A 
sloop  maintained  frequent  communication  with  Sutter's  Fort  and  Verba  Buena. 
In  Oct.  1848  he  sold  half  his  interest  in  the  rancho,  and  in  his  own  grant 
stretching  north  of  it,  to  Charles  Covillaud,  a  Frenchman,  his  overseer,  for 
$1'J,500,  and  three  months  later  the  remainder,  for  $20,000,  to  M.  C.  Nye 
and  W.  Foster,  his  brothers-in-law.  This  new  firm  opened  stores  at  different 
mining  camps,  Nye  staying  at  New  Mecklenburg,  which  now  became  known 
as  Nye's  rancho.  In  Sept.  Covillaud  bought  the  entire  real  estate,  only  to 
admit  three  other  partners,  J.  M.  Ramirez,  J.  Sampson,  and  T.  Sicard,  under 
the  firm  of  Covillaud  &  Co.  In  the  spring  of  1849  the  town  of  Vernon  had  been 
founded  at  the  mouth  of  Feather  River,  the  supposed  head  of  navigation,  but 
witli  tlie  rise  of  water  toward  the  close  of  the  year,  experiments  proved  that 
the  Yuba  moutli  could  claim  this  advantage.  Encouraged,  moreover,  by  the 
congregation  here  of  miners  during  the  winter,  Brannan,  Reading,  and  Cheever 
liad  since  July  sought  to  plant  an  entrepot  opposite  in  Yuba  City.  With  this 
double  incentive  Covillaud  &  Co.  engaged  A.  Le  Plongeon,  later  explorer  of 
Yucatan,  to  lay  out  a  rival  town  under  the  similar  name  of  Yubavillo.  Both 
places  were  trumpeted  abroad,  and  lots  freely  sold;  but  the  latter  site,  being 
more  accessible  to  the  rich  Yuba  mines,  soon  took  the  lead,  and  by  the  l)egin- 
niug  of  1850  boasted  a  population  of  300.  Advertisement  in  Placer  Times, 
Jan.  19,  1850.  On  Jan.  18th,  Stephen  J.  Field,  who  had  just  come  up  to  act 
as  agent  for  the  firm,  was  elected  first  alcalde,  assisted  by  J.  B.  Wadleigh,  with 
T.  M.  Twitchell  for  sheriflf,  replaced  by  R.  B.  Buchanan,  and  with  a  council. 
All  official  duties  were  left  to  Field,  however,  who  promoted  local  interests  by 
obtaining  a  perfected  title  to  the  land  from  Sutter,  by  taking  prompt  steps  to 
suppress  cattle-stealing,  as  per  notices  in  /(/.,  Feb.  2, 1850,  and  by  overcoming 


I 


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iiji 


4G4 


CITY  BUILDING. 


Hijuatter  intruRions.  Cnl.  Courier,  Aug.  26,  1850.  Stimalant  was  given  liy  tlie 
arrival  at  this  tiiiio  of  the  ateambuat  Lawrence  witli  cargo  and  iiaH.>tuii;;rri(, 
and  the  establishment  of  regular  communication  with  Sac,  with  the  liel))  of  tlie 
P/uKnic,  Liiidd,  and  other  boats.  MarysvHle  Directory,  1855,  p.  iv.-v.  Fri'i(r|,t 
8  cents  a  ]  r)und,  fare  $25.  JlntrhiwjH'  Mnij. ,  iii.  348.  Thus  assured,  the  u.iinu 
of  Yubaville — with  the  suggested  Sicardovaand  Norwich — was  exchangcil  fi,r 
Mafysville,  in  honor  of  Covillaud's  wife,  Mary  Murjjhy  of  the  Uonner  party. 
Biirnett'ii  Hfc,  MS.,  i.  381;  Quiglei/'n  fri^/i  liacn,  211;  Jialloii's  Aduen.,  MS,  •.1>. 
The  Ijeat  accounts  of  the  founding  are  in  Fieltl'n  liemiit.,  20  et  seq. ;  Yii'di  i',>. 
Hist.,  33  et  se(i.;  Delano's  Life,  28(!;  Cronhij'n  Stat.,  MS.,  27-8;  WarreuM  hu4 
aiul  Foam,  14(5-7;  S.  F.  Herald,  Oct.  16,  1851.  Among  the  pioneers  wi're 
J.  Crook,  E.  (iillespio,  f}.  H.  Boach,  Al.  Kerchner,  D.  C.  Brenham,  Coltdii, 
Parks,  and  Fisk.  The  first  frame  liousu  waa  brought  up  by  Aycra  and  Colliy. 
By  the  middle  of  Feb.  1850  the  inliabitants  were  placed  at  500,  and  the  tlimt- 
ing  population  at  1,000.  Over  350  lota  had  been  sold  by  March.  Among 
leading  business  Iioiihos  were  Low  k  Bros,  Cook,  Baker,  k  Co.,  J.  (<.  Fall 
&  Co.,  Ford  &  (Joodwin,  Ba))!j  &  Eaton,  Eaton  &  (rreen,  Treadwell  k  Co., 
Packard  &  Woo<lrHff,  and  J.  H.  Jewett.  The  first  religious  services  were 
held  by  Washburn,  who  kept  a  store.  Comments  in  Wocxl's  Pioneer,  SU-ilO; 
MarysvHle  Dir.,  1855,  p.  viii.  In  April  the  Sac.  Transcript,  Apr.  26,  18,"»(), 
enumerates  150  structures  besides  tents,  with  a  hospital  nearly  compluteil; 
700  votes  were  tlien  cast  hero  for  county  officers.  The  Marystille  Hinilit 
began  its  issue  on'  Aug.  6,  1850.  In  this  month  there  were  25  vessL-lH  :it 
the  levee.  Directory,  p.  x.  The  fall  in  the  water  level  interrupted  navigutioti, 
with  recourse  to  stages  and  mule  train,  to  the  consternation  of  many  inves- 
tors and  to  encouragement  of  rival  towns  like  Eliza,  Plumaa,  Yeazie,  Hamilton, 
Linda,  Featherton,  Yalcston,  whicli  aspired  to  at  least  a  share  of  trade.  But 
in  Nov.  the  Gov.  Dana  reopened  the  river  route,  and  the  lighter  steamers  of 
later  years  overcame  the  difficulty.  Thus  reassured,  a  charter  was  somewhat 
hastily  aiiopted  Dec.  17th,  with  great  enthusiasm.  On  Feb.  5,  1851,  Field 
assisted  in  the  legislature  to  incorporate  the  city  of  Marysville.  Text  and 
discussion  in  Cat.  Statutes,  1851,  550;  1857,  40,  257;  1860,  78;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen., 
1851,  p.  1828,  1851;  later  modifications  in  Id.,  1855,  p.  877;  Cal.  Statut-.i, 
1855,  321;  HiUeWa  Codes,  ii.  1653.  The  first  mayor  was  S.  M.  Miles;  there 
were  8  aldermen.  Officials  in  Marysville  Manual,  85-6.  Miles'  impeachment 
in  Turner's Impeacfiinent,  45;  Id.,  Stat.  Further  danger  threatened  the  rising 
settlement  in  several  disastrous  conflagrations,  the  first  on  Aug.  31,  1851, 
which  destroyed  buildings  in  the  business  portion,  with  a  loss  of  half  a  mil- 
lion dollars;  the  second  on  Sept.  10th,  loss  $80,000.  Rebuilding  was  prompt, 
however,  and  steps  were  taken  for  a  fire  department,  which  succeeded  in 
checking  subsequent  fires,  till  1854,  when  two  severe  ravages  took  place,  iu- 
volving  $400,000.  The  next  large  fire  happened  in  1850,  loss  $145,000,  after 
which  only  smaller  raids  occurred.  Alia  Cal.,  Sept.  2,  11,  1851;  Nov.  9,  185-'; 
May  26,  July  29,  1854;  Sept.  7,  1856;  Placer  Times,  Sept.  15,  1851;  Marys- 
ville Herald,  being  their  main  source;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Sept.  8,  1856,  etc. 
Water  and  gas  contracts  in  1855.  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  15,  1855.  Floods  also 
brought  their  effective  lessons.  Trailitionary  inundations  were  spoken  of  by 
Indiana,  wherein  entire  villages  had  been  8we])t  away,  and  in  184&-7  an  over- 


STOCKTON. 


4U 


flow  took  ]iIaco.  Marysville  Buffered  little  iii  the  wet  winter  of  1849-r)0,  but 
ill  18.J12  i).'<  four  freshets  oaine  iMjtWueu  Nov.  and  March,  cauaiiig  great  hwa. 
Tilt!  <'ity  grade  was  raised,  and  later  a  levue  constructed.  AUit  (At/.,  Jan.  5, 
IS-VJ!  S.  t\  III  raid,  March  31,  Apr.  1,  1853;  YufmCo.  Hint.,  C7-9;  Mnryitv. 
Dirictoi'ji,  lKr)8,  p.  X.  Tiie  subsequent  rise  of  waters  therefore  did  no  harm 
except  iu  18U1-2  and  1806,  and  notably  in  1875.  Iho  city  flourished  with 
thu  iniiiuM,  and  the  census  of  1852  assigned  her  a  population  of  4,r)00,  includ- 
ing no  doubt  a  Hoating  mass.  U.  S.  t'e.iutuH,  Seventh,  982.  The  proportion  of 
iiiitioiialitius  is  indicated  by  the  death  list,  embracing  92  Americans,  39  Mexi< 
uaiiH,  1(>  Frenuhmen,  and  a  small  scattering  of  others.  The  numlier  of  brick 
lioiiMos  increased  from  two  in  1851  to  49  in  1855.  Tlie  first  directory  appeared 
ill  Aug.  1853.  In  1855  the  population  had  reached  nearly  8,000,  with  prop- 
erty  iuiHesacd  at  1^1,320,000,  a  funded  debt  of  $100,000,  besides  $23,000  fcrip; 
taxes  $2.05  per  $100.  Marymille  Dir.,  1855,  p.  xiii.;  F.  F.  Lnw,  Slat.,  MS., 
G-7.  Low,  established  here  since  1850,  opened  a  bank  after  the  great  crisis  of 
1S,V».  lUivihnw's  Eventn,  MS.,  G;  Bauer's  Stat.,  MS.,  5-G;  Sac.  Union,  July  13, 
Nov.  15,  1855,  etc.;  view  in  Pict.  Union,  Jan.  1856;  Marymlle  Appeal,  Jan. 
14,  18(».");  July  2,  1870;  Hutchimja'  May.,  iii,  347-8.  Previous  to  1860,  when 
counting  1,881  votes,  it  ha<l  attained  to  the  third  place  in  the  state,  but  the 
(lucliue  of  mining  and  the  trade  absorbed  by  the  railroad  caused  it  to  fall  be* 
himl,  until  by  1880  the  population  was  little  over  4,300. 


Corresponding  to  Sacramento,  which  forma  the  main  depAt  for  the  north- 
ern half  of  tlie  great  valley,  Stockton  taps  the  southern  half,  sustained  by  the 
ailditional  advantages  of  being  the  head  of  summer  navigation  on  the  San 
Joaquin.  An  appreciation  of  these  features  led  to  its  founding,  by  Charles 
M.  Weber,  as  early  as  1847,  and  the  gold  excitement  gave  so  deci.  ive  an  im- 
pulse that  by  1849  the  isolated  rancho  had  sprung  into  a  tented  town  of  a  thou- 
sand inhabitants,  swelled  by  a  still  larger  floating  population,  and  with  a  trade 
rapidly  increasing  in  response  to  the  unfolding  mining  region;  facilitated  on 
the  one  side  by  regular  sail  and  steam  communication  with  San  Francisco,  and 
on  tlie  otlier  by  wagon  and  pack  trains  by  the  hundred.  As  a  winter  station 
for  miners,  it  partook  of  the  stirring  phases  of  life  characterizing  the  metrop- 
olis at  this  period,  with  gambling  and  drinking  houses,  dissolute  and  criminal 
excesses.  In  1850  it  became  the  county  seat  and  an  incorporated  city,  and  iu 
tliu  following  year  the  state  insane  as^^  um  was  placed  there  about  the  time  of 
a  great  conflagration  which  swept  away  half  the  city.  Since  then  the  agri- 
cultural development  of  the  fertile  valley,  with  the  aid  of  irrigation  canals, 
Bwamp-land  reclamation,  and  railroad  construction,  have  sustained  the  steady 
prosperity  of  the  place. 

Pounded  in  1847,  by  Charles  M.  Wel>er,  under  the  name  of  Tuleburg,  and 
laid  out  by  J.  O'Farrell,  the  spot  was  also  known  as  New  Albany,  after  the 
birth-place  of  Weber's  partner,  Gulnac.  Stockton  Indep.,  Oct.  13,  1866.  It 
met  with  little  success  till  the  gold  discovery  opened  fresh  prospects.  After 
a  trip  to  the  mines  with  the  Stockton  Mining  and  Trading  Company  which 
he  had  here  organized,  Weber  returned  in  Sept,  1848  to  open  a  store,  and  to 
establish  the  place  as  an  entrep6t  for  the  southern  mines.  Lying  intermediate 
between  these,  and  along  the  accepted  route  through  Liver^ore  Pa«8  tQ.  them 
Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    30 


a  4 


MS 


CITY  BUILDING. 


h' 


I'd 


And  to  tSacramento,  as  well  as  at  the  head  of  luminer  navigation  in  tliu  San 
Joaquin  River  on  Stockton  or  Mormon  Slough,  it* position  wati  assunil.  Iq 
the  following  spring  it  was  laid  out,  reiiurveyod  by  Major  Haniinoni),  aii<l 
given  the  more  pretentious  name  of  Stockton,  after  the  commodore.  Suttluni 
flocked  in  and  round  the  few  tule  houses,  and  the  one  wooden  buildiu),'  of  thu 
autumn  of  1848 — which  some  call  Bussell's  Tavern — sprang  quickly  a  U  iitcil 
town,  with  a  permanent  population  in  the  following  year  of  l,<)00,  lM-si<leMa 
still  larger  floating  mass  of  passengers  for  the  gold  region,  of  viHitiii^  ami 
wintering  miners,  and  passing  traders.  This  floating  population  Upliuiii, 
Noleit,  237,  estimates  at  2,000.  In  April  1850  some  2,0:)0  or  3,00()  \mu\\t 
landed  here  en  route  for  the  mines.  Among  the  first  settlers  were  W.  Max- 
well, Jos.  Bussell,  for  a  while  the  only  married  man,  Ja>  Siruy,  Stockton,  I). 
Whitehouse,  N.  Taylor,  f>.  G.  Belt.  Stockton  ImUp.,  May  25,  1875;  Slitrkfon 
Herald,  May  25,  1875.  In  Aug.  1849,  Taylor,  EUorwlo,  i.  77,  found  25  ves- 
Bvls  in  the  port;  a  firm  <loing  business  to  the  extent  of  $100,000  lia<l  just 
l>ought  a  lot  of  80  feet  for  ^,000,  and  erected  a  $15,000  claplH)ard  lioiise. 
Buffum'a  Six  Mo.,  155;  Lnrkins  Doc.,  MS.,  vii.  92;  Ptic.  Neum,  Jan.  1,  lS."iO. 
Irregular  plan,  says  Hall,  Son.,  MS.,  21-1;  Willey'g  Pera.  Mem.,  MS.,  %;  .\lUi 
Cat.,  June  14,  1849;  Miaeel.  SM.,  MS.,  21.  Yet  only  2  or  3  w-kmUq 
houses.  Staple's  Stat.,  MS.,  9;  McCracken'a  Portland,  MS.,  1-2.  "  Hea.l  of 
navigation."  SuUons  Expei'.,  MS.,  1;  Finillny'a  Stat.,  MS.,  1-2;  Grimxhnw^i 
Nar.,  MS.,  38.  The  early  whale-boiits  communicating  with  Yerba  Buena  li;ij 
been  replaced  by  schooners,  two  owned  by  Hawley,  Oftaerv.,  MS.,  5,  ami  these 
were  soon  supplanted  to  some  extent  by  steamboats,  of  which  the  first  to 
arrive  here,  in  Aug.  1849,  was  the  Merrimac,  San  Joaii.  Co.  IILU.,  23,  foUowbd 
by  the  Capt.  Sutler — the  first  according  to  Tinkham,  Hi»t.  Stockton,  318— tlie 
El  Dorado,  Wm  Rohiiuion,  Maiipona,  Mint,  and  Manael  White.  Several  ocean 
vessels  of  light  draught  were  brought  up  and  abandoned,  from  which  mate- 
rial was  obtained  for  building  a  sloop  as  early  as  May  1850.  In  later  years 
ship-building  was  constant  here.  The  traffic  by  water  in  early  days  \v;is 
mainly  in  the  nature  of  imports,  which  by  1855  had  grown  t«  such  an  extent 
that  over  2,800  tons  were  at  times  landed  in  a  single  week,  Sac,  Union,  July 
25,  1855;  while  export  proceeded  c  'efly  by  wagon  or  prairie-schooner  trains. 
In  the  autumn  of  1850  were  count  d  70  teams  and  over  200  pack-mules  on 
the  road  between  Stockton  and  the  Stanislaus.  S.  F.  Picayune,  Seyt.  ID,  ISoO. 
Each  team  carried  from  5,000  to  6,000  lbs.  In  Dec.  1852  the  freight  to  So- 
nera was  jaO  per  cwt.  Alta  Cal.,  Nov.  25,  Deo.  8,  1852;  Dec.  7-8,  185C. 
Stages  had  been  started  in  1849  to  Calaveras  by  Raney.  Taylor's  Eldorado,  i. 
79,  75.  Ferries  were  doing  a  good  business  on  the  San  Joaquin  at  $2  for  a 
mounted  man.  CaL  Courier,  Sept.  9,  1850;  Sac.  Union,  Sept.  22,  Oct.  1*2,  17, 
1855.  Seven  stages  leave  daily.  S.  F.  Herald,  June  16,  1851.  In  1856  a 
little  flour  and  some  hides  shared  with  gold  and  passengers  the  return  ship- 
ments. In  1851  steamboat  competitors  offered  free  passage  to  S.  F.  Sac. 
Transcript,  Jan.  14,  1851.  A  new  steam  line  was  proposed  in  the  Stockton 
Item,  Jan.  8,  1855.  As  a  resort  and  winter  station  for  miners  life  displayed 
itself  in  varied  phases,  with  drinking  and  gambling  saloons  in  full  blast,  and 
with  a  criminal  admixture  that  gave  the  vigilance  committee  of  1851  no  small 
work.     Two  men  were  hanged  as  early  as  1849.  Tmkham's  HieL,  135  et  seq.; 


PLACERVILLE. 


407 


ition  in  tliu  San 

tlainiiionil,  aiiil 
imlore.     Suttlurs 
11  liuililin^'  (if  thu 
quickly  a  tinted 
l.tKK),  iH'sjiltH a 
,  of  viHitiii;;  ami 
ulation    Uiiham, 
or  3,000  iitoj.lc 
■  were  W.  Max- 
ey,  St<x;kt(iii,  I), 
»,  1875;  Stfifkton 
7,  found  25  v<;s. 
00,000  ha.l  just 
ilaplHmnl  iiouse. 
ws,  Jan.  1,  I8.'i0. 
1.,  MS.,  %;  AWi 
2   or   3  W(>(Mlen 
1-2.      "  Head  of 
1-2;  Grinis/iiunn 
'erUa  Buena  liad 
IS.,  5,  an<l  the.sc 
lich  the  first  to 
Ut.,  23,  followed 
ocktoii,  318-tlie 
Several  ocean 
om  which  mate- 
In  later  years 
early  days  w;w 
such  an  extent 
'uc.  (Iiiion,  July 
ichooner  trains. 
pack-mules  on 
Sept.  10,  18:K). 
freight  to  So- 
)ec.  7-8,  1850. 
>rs  Eldorado,  i. 
uin  at  $2  for  a 
22,  Oct.  12,  17, 
In  1850  a 
e  return  ship- 
to  S.  F.  Sac. 
1  the  Stockton 
life  displayed 
full  blast,  and 
1851  no  small 
U,  135  et  seq.; 


jI. 


ritrn-  Timet,  Apr.  13,  1850;  Nov.  30,  1851;  Wndnoortlt  (2(1  alcalde  in  1849), 
in  r/;/.  Com.  Muu.,  MS.,  26;  Untmund  Dor.,  MS.,  49;  Pac  Xewn,  Nov.  20, 
|M»;  Fob.  10,  1851;  Alta  Cni,  Feb.  26,  Juno  27,  1851;  Juno  23,  1854;  Oct. 
1,  |8.')5.  In  Feb.  1850  the  town  became  the  county  seat  for  San  Joatjuin,  and 
on  .Inly  23d  it  was  incorporated  as  a  city,  Sam.  Purdy  being  chosen  the  first 
mayor.  The  7  aldermen  chosen  were  soon  after  increased  to  11.  IlittrU'it 
rfx/rw,  ii.  1587;  reincorporation,  in  Cnl.  Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  779;  /(/.,  St>duti's, 
1857,  133,  197;  1859,  72;  1869-70,  24,  587;  1871-2,  557,  695;  Storkton  Indej>., 
JiiiHt  24-5,  1880.  The  preceding  alcaldes  were  G.  G.  Belt,  the  first,  Reyncdds, 
unil  Ben.  Williams,  the  latter  first  county  judge,  nono  of  them  worthy  men, 
■ays  Tiukham,  Hut,  131,  136,  145.  They  ha<l  latterly  been  aided  by  a 
council.  Finances,  in  Altn  CVi/.,  Due.  12.  1852.  This  indication  of  stability 
increaaud  settlement,  and  the  Pitc.  New*,  May  17,  1850,  speaks  of  some  200 
houses  going  up  within  a  few  weeks,  brick  buildings  beginning  in  1851; 
yet  the  court-house  was  not  erected  until  1854.  The  channel  was  bridged,  a 
newsi)aper api)eared  on  March  16,  1850,  in  iho  Stockton  Weekly  '}"■■.■  ■',  followed 
in  June  by  the  Stockton  Journal. 

In  the  same  year  school  and  church  buildings  rose,  the  presbvtcrian  lead- 
ing, ill  May,  although  teaching  and  preaching  had  flourished  since  1848-9. 
.Stockton  Herald,  Juno  28,  1870;  Id.,  Iiulep.,  Sept.  18,  2  1875;  Aov.  16, 
IS78;  WooiW  Pioneer,  21-8,  91-2.  An  abode  was  also  provided  for  Tlu.lia; 
and  with  tS'it  '  ,ie  state  insane  asylum  was  established  here.  Outlii  '^  in  Cnl. 
Jour.  Sen.,  18V/,  ap,  ix.  The  position  exposed  it  to  overflow  ,  winch  dur- 
■'"  the  first  years  made  the  spot  a  mud-hole,  -^oiiWa  Stat.,  MS.,  2-3;  Mc- 
iJaiikl'n  Early  Days,  MS.,  17;  and  in  Dec.  1852,  especially,  did  much  diiniagu, 
the  water  rising  20  inches  higher  than  ever  before,  and  carrying  ofif  the  bridge 
and  tire-engine  house.  S.  F.  Heraltl,  Dec.  22,  1852.  Of  fires  it  had  the  usual 
experience,  the  first  notable  one  being  on  Dec.  23-4,  1849,  and  the  heaviest 
on  May  6,  1851,  which  destroyed  half  the  city,  with  a  loss  placed  at  over  a 
n)illion  dollars,  100  firms  suffering.  Pac.  News,  Dec.  27,  1849;  Little's  Fire- 
man's Book,  70;  Sac.  Transcript,  May  15,  1851;  Alia  Cal,  May  8-9,  1851; 
Sac.  Union,  Aug.  1,  1855;  June  19,  1856.  The  fire  brigade  started  in  1849, 
developed  by  the  following  year  into  a  regular  department,  as  described  in 
SnnJoaq.  Co.  Hist.,  9  et  seq.  View  and  description  of  Stocktoa  in  1854. 
PiH.  Uttion,  Apr.  1854;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  27,  1862.  The  Stockton  Directory, 
1850,  places  the  property  value  at  $2,616,000.  By  1877  it  had  risen  to  $17,- 
00U,0OO,  debt  ^^00,000.  By  1870  the  population  stood  at  10,000,  after  which 
the  increase  was  slow  for  a  time.  Orrs  Stockton,  3-25;  Stockton  ludepend., 
1801-79,  passim;  Id.,  Herald,  May  17,  1878. 

Among  mining  towns  Placerville  presents  a  striking  illostration  of  their 
vicissitudes  and  evolution.  It  sprang  into  existence  as  a  rich  camp  in  the 
middle  of  1848,  and  gained  early  in  the  following  year  unenviable  notoriety  as 
the  scene  of  the  first  mob  tribunal  of  flush  times,  together  with  the  significant 
appellation  of  Hangtown,  which  still  clings  to  it.  As  a  '  dry  diggings '  it 
fluctuated  with  the  seaaona,  between  winter  flowing  with  water  and  pros- 
perity, and  aammer  drought  with  dulness  and  dv^artures.  The  opening  of  a 
canal,  however,  ohaiaed  fortune  for  a  time  to  the  spot,  and  raised  it  to  the 


.:[.    I' 

4\'  ; 


■'■'       ! 


,1 IV  :  !  I 


468 


CITY  BUILDING. 


rank  of  a  leading  mining  centre  and  incorporated  city.  In  1856  it  began  to 
sink  with  the  declining  gold-fields,  weakened  moreover  by  a  conflagration 
which  then  swept  ni  nost  the  entire  city.  After  being  substantially  rebuilt, 
it  received  temporary  solace  in  becoming  an  entrep6t  for  the  Washoe  mines, 
changing  meanwhile  into  a  staid  agricultural  town  with  the  dignity  of  a 
county  seat.  Discovered  in  the  summer  of  1848  by  the  mining  party  of  Bay- 
lor, Sheldon,  and  McCoon,  farmers  of  the  Cosumne,  it  became  shortly  after 
known  as  Old  Dry  Diggings.  The  first  store  is  said  to  have  been  started  by 
Beaner,  and  Mrs  Anna  Cook  claims  to  have  been  the  first  white  woman  on 
the  spot.  During  the  wintev  Oregonians  formed  the  leading  American  cle- 
ment, but  Latin  nationalitieH  were  prominent,  streaked  with  criminals,  and 
outrages  became  so  glaring  as  to  rouse  the  former  to  hold  the  first  popular 
tribunal  of  flush  times.  Several  robbers  were  caught  and  flogged,  and  three 
of  them  hanged  to  the  nearest  tree,  whence  the  unsavory  name  of  Hangtown. 
The  legislature  of  1830  gave  recognition,  however,  to  the  neater  appellatidu 
of  Placerville,  to  the  exclusion  of  Ravine  City,  suggested  by  the  irregular 
site  and  by  the  Ravine  designation  of  several  parts  of  the  camp.  Another 
cloud  long  obscured  it  in  defective  land  titles.  Concerning  names  and  thiir 
origin  I  refer  to  my  Popular  Tribunals,  i.  144,  etc.;  Balhu's  Adven.,  MS., 
22;  Colenum's  Slat.,  MS.,  10;  BorthwicVs  Cal,  103;  Grimshaw'a  Nar.,  MS., 
1-2;  Buffum'8  Six  Mo.,  83-4;  Rosa'  Nar.,  MS.,  12-13;  Sayvoard's  Pioiiea; 
MS.,  7;  Sac.  Record,  March  6,  27,  1875;  July  7,  1877.  By  the  following 
season  the  rich  surface  was  considered  as  worked  out  by  many  of  the  early 
'cream-skimmers,'  and  in  the  early  summer  of  1850  the  place  bore  a  subdued 
appearance,  with  the  main  street  almost  abandoned,  says  a  writer  in  El 
Dorado  Co.  Hist.,  209.  Although  this  appears  to  be  an  exaggeration,  it  is 
certain  that  the  great  overland  migration  of  that  year  selected  there  the  chief 
halting  station  and  gave  it  a  sudden  bound,  with  a  population  in  Oct.  of 
2,000.  S.  F.  Picayune,  Oct.  21,  1850;  Cal.  Courier,  Aug.  21,  1850;  Sac.  Tniii- 
jrript,  Aug.  3D,  1850;  Feb.  1,  1851.  During  the  winter  miners  were  again 
-.lakiug  from  $8  to  more'than  $200  a  day.  Kalloch,  a  baptist,  and  father  uf 
)an  Francisco's  socialistic  mayor,  founded  the  first  church  in  the  spring  of 
1S50.  Again  came  a  spell  of  dulneas,  partly  as  a  natural  reaction  upon  the 
'  ite  rush  of  prosperity,  partly  due  to  the  inactivity  enforced  by  the  summer 
brought  at  dry  diggings.  The  South  Fork  canal  was  started,  however,  to  sup- 
ply the  want,  and  this  brought  about  a  greater  run  of  good  fortune  than  ever 
before,  with  the  rank  of  a  leading  mining  town.  The  population  increased 
until  in  1854  it  polled  the  third  highest  vote  in  the  state,  1,944,  following 
8.  F.  and  Sac.,  and  encouraged  the  building  of  two  theatres,  the  first  opened 
in  1852.  Between  1853-5  a  fire  department  was  organized,  and  saw  and  flour 
mills,  brick-yards,  and  foundries  sprang  up.  On  May  13,  1854,  it  was  incor- 
porated as  a  city,  with  six  alderman.  Cal.  Statutes,  1834,  74,  199;  1857,  3.*, 
244;  1859,  419;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1854,  597;  HUteira  Codes  Cal,  ii.  1431;  Od. 
Jour.  Asa.,  1856,  447-55,  902;  and  for  mayor,  Alex.  Hunter,  who  had  opened 
the  first  banking  and  express  office.  With  1856,  however,  the  weekly  gold 
harvest  of  6,000  or  8,000  ounces  began  to  decline,  and  on  July  6th  came  a 
conflagration  which  swept  nearly  the  entire  town,  with  damages  estimateii 
at  a  million.     Three  months  later  upper  Placerville  was  similarly  devastated. 


SONORA. 


Am  Cal,  Apr.  17,  July  7,  11,  1856;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Apr  18,  July  7,  10,  11, 
1851).  The  decline  ia  iniuing,  not  having  yet  become  very  marked,  the  inhab-  . 
itaiita  resolutely  proceeded  to  rebuild,  aud  in  a  substantial  manner,  which 
liutukuned  strong  faith.  The  Sac.  Union,  July  30,  1855,  indeed  sang  its  peon 
as  tlie  destined  golden  city  of  the  Sierra.  See  also  Id.,  Jan.  30,  Apr.  11, 
Junu  1,  July  9,  Sept.  10-11,  Oct.  10,  1855.  Rich  gold  layers  were  found  in 
ct'llnia.  This  enterprising  spirit  was  not  altogether  wasted,  for  in  1857,  after 
many  vain  efforts,  the  county  seat  waji  transferred  hither  from  Coloma,  and 
justly  so,  considering  its  greater  importance  and  morn  central  position.  A 
period  of  revival  came  with  the  development  of  the  Washoe  mines,  which 
made  Placerville  a  lively  supply  and  way  station  until  the  railroad  from  Sac. 
drew  its  foreign  trade  away,  and  threw  it  back  upon  its  local  resources, 
which  was  viniculture  and  cognate  industries,  to  which  irrigation  has  lent 
stability.  A  branch  railroad  sustains  it  as  the  chief  commercial  town  of  the 
county.  See,  further,  in  Hist.  El  Donulo  Co.,  12;  Hawley's  LaJce  Tahoe,  MS., 
2.    The  population  stood  in  1880  at  1,950. 

Sonora  was  remarkable  in  early  days  as  the  centre  of  the  southern  mining 
regiot),  and  for  its  at  one  time  preponderating  Hispano-American  element 
by  wliich  it  was  founded,  the  name  being  given  by  the  Sonoran  diggers  who 
first  camped  here.  Anglo-Americans  quickly  assumed  the  control,  however; 
not  without  an  aggressiveness  which  led  to  many  race  dissensions,  which  re- 
duced the  population  from  5,000  in  1850-1  to  abo»t  3,000.  For  these  the  city 
goveruineut  adopted  in  1851  soon  proved  too  heavy,  suffering  as  it  was  from 
theefTect  of  several  disastrous  fires;  and  so  the  administration  was  transferred 
iu  1855  to  a  board  of  trustees.  As  elsewhere,  agriculture  has  gradually  in- 
creased to  counteract  the  decline  of  former  resources,  aud  even  to  warrant 
reincorporation. 

The  name  Sonora  Camp  was  given  in  the  middle  of  1848,  partly  to  dis- 
tinguish it  from  the  adjoining  Jamestown  and  Wood  Creek,  or  American 
camps.  Among  the  first  settlers  were  C.  F.  and  T.  Dodge,  and  R.  S.  Ham, 
the  latter  chosen  first  alcalde  that  same  autumn,  and  succeeded  by  Jas  Frasier. 
In  L'nbouiid  Doc.,  MS.,  13,  £.  T.  Dummett  is  mentioned  as  alcalde  in  Sept. 
1849.  S.  JoaS  Pioneer,  July  28,  1877.  Its  rich  gold-fielils  attracted  miners 
rapidly,  tntil  it  surpassed  every  other  camp  iii  1849,  with  a  population  of 
5,U0O,  and  attendant  life  and  revelry.  The  enforcement  of  the  foreign,  miners' 
tax  ui  the  following  year  roused  the  foreigners,  and  although  blomlshed  was 
avoided,  many  of  them  were  driven  out  to  swell  the  robber  hordes  which  sub- 
sequently gave  so  much  trouble  to  the  vigilance  committees  and  authorities. 
Jour.  Com.,  July  29,  1850;  AviUi,  Doc.,  225;  Son.  Democ.,  Oct.  9,  23,  1875, 
with  docs;  Placer  Times,  Jan.  15,  1852;  AUa  Cal.,  March  16,  June  18,  July  3, 
Stilt.  19,  1851;  Cal.  Courier,  July  22-9,  Aug.  2,  1850;  S.  F.  Herald,  June  1, 
4,  July  9,  1850.  Concerning  condition  of  town,  Borthwick'a  Cal.,  316,  329; 
Poc.  News,  May  8,  Sept.  11,  Nov.  2,  1850,  with  allusion  to  a  saw-mill.  One 
etiVit  of  the  tax  was  to  drive  avmy  half  the  foreign  miners,  Hayes  Minimj,  i. 
.'<•'(:  I)ut  the  population  rose  by  the  winter  to  3,000,  at  which  figure  it  long 
remaineil.  Capron,  California,  100,  estimates  it  at  4,000  in  1854.  Scurvy 
had  committed  great  havoc  during  the  preceding  winter,  especially  among 


?l 


''i'i 


470 


CITY  BUILDING. 


I'  :     J, 


%  !■ 


r'i 


lit 


n  i 
ill  :i  1^ 


the  Mexicans.  The  community  accordingly  combined  on  Nov.  7,  1S49,  to 
establish  a  hospital,  and  the  appointment  of  trustees  for  this  suggested  tlio 
desirability  of  extending  the  organization  into  a  town  government,  with  an 
unpaid  council  of  seven,  C.  F.  Dodge,  alcalde  at  the  time,  being  chosen  mayor. 
A  survey  and  plan  of  the  town  formed  one  of  its  tasks.  With  the  forniatiun 
of  the  county  in  the  spring,  this  bo<ly  ceded  its  power  to  a  miners'  justice  of 
the  peace,  R.  C.  Barry,  chosen  in  May  1850,  Sonora  being  made  the  county 
suat.  In  the  following  May  it  was  incorporated  as  a  city  with  two  aldennen, 
headed  by  Dodge  as  mayor  for  two  consecutive  terms.  This  system  proving 
expensive,  however,  a  simplified  charter  of  1855  vested  the  government  in  a 
l)oard  of  five  trustees,  with  merely  municipal  power.  Cal.  Statutes,  1851,  p. 
375-9;  1854,  p.  208-11;  1855,  p.  35-7;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1851,  p.  18.'{5;  1855, 
p.  879;  III.,  Ans.,  1856,  p.  952.  Reincorporation  followed  later.  Sta/utes, 
18G2,  228;  1877-8,  23,  59(i.  The  public  burden  had  been  aggravated  by  three 
devastating  fires,  besides  minor  outbreaks,  the  first  in  the  autumn  of  1849, 
which  swept  away  nearly  the  entire  canvas  and  brush  town;  the  second  on 
June  18,  1852,  which  destroyed  its  most  valuable  sections,  with  a  loss  of 
45700,000;  the  third  on  Oct.  4,  1853,  of  half  this  extent.  AUii  Cal.,  June  '_'0-l, 
Aug.  20,  Oct.  6-7,  1883,  places  the  former  loss  at  fully  a  million,  and  hints  at 
incendiarism.  Flootb  occurred,  although  doing  little  damage.  Id.,  Jan.  8, 
1853;  S.  F.  Herald,  June  20-1,  1852;  Oct.  6-7,  1853;  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  27, 
1856.  Borthwipk,  Cal.,  347-52,  refers  to  the  rapid  rebuilding.  The  Soiinni 
Ilirald  was  issued  on  July  4,  1850,  followed  in  1852  and  1854  by  two  other 
journals,  notably  the  Union  Democrat.  In  the  same  year  religious  congrejja- 
tions  were  formed,  the  catholics  being  here  foremost,  with  the  first  church  of 
adobe.  A  few  manufactures  followed  Charbouielle's  first  saw-mill,  and  grad- 
ually agriculture.  View  and  description  in  Pict.  Union,  Apr.  1854;  S.  Jn'i'i. 
liepuh.,  Sept.  25,  1852;  Sonant  Ihraltl,  Dec.  9,  1854;  Sac.  Union,  Jan.  10,  May 
2,  July  4,  Aug.  6,  Oct.  13,  22,  Nov.  3,  20,  1855;  Jan.  10,  March  11,  Apr.  M, 
June  10,  Oct.  1,  13,  27,  1856;  AUa  Cal.,  S.  F.  Bulletin,  about  same  date;  Tu- 
olumne Independ.,  Jan.  13,  1877,  etc.     The  population  by  1880  stood  at  1,4'.H). 

Of  marvellous  growth  was  Nevada  City,  which  bounded  upward  within 
a  few  months  from  a  mere  camp  to  tlie  foremost  mining  town  in  ]8.~>0,  the 
centre  for  some  12,000  miners,  overrtowing  with  bustle  and  revelry.  The  iii- 
sutticient  rains  of  the  following  winter  produced  a  reaction,  but  ditches  being 
constructed,  a  revival  took  place,  attended  by  ground-sluicing  and  drift-dig- 
ging on  an  extensive  scale.  The  discovery  of  quartz  veins  lifted  expectation 
to  such  a  pitch  as  to  cull  for  a  city  cliarter;  but  this  new  form  of  mining  not 
being  understood  liere  at  tlic  time,  the  bubble  burst  and  retrenchment  became 
the  order.  A  steadier  development  followed  imp^  oved  methods,  and  in  1 850 
the  city  was  able  to  cast  tiie  third  highest  vote  in  California.  While  con- 
tinuing to  rtourish,  sustained  by  good  veins  and  the  dignity  of  the  county 
seat,  it  was  soon  to  lie  surpassed  by  the  contemporary  nnd  adjoining  settle- 
ment of  Grass  Valley,  the  chief  quartz  mining  locality  in  California.  Tliu 
development  of  the  latter  has  been  less  spasmodic  and  checkered,  from  the 
nature  of  the  main  resource,  and  it  differs  from  most  mining  towns  in  not  lin- 
ing defaced  by  unsightly  excavations  and  denudations  pertaining  to  placers. 


NEVADA  AND  GRASS  VALLEY, 


471 


The  houses  lie  scattered  over  extensive  undulating  hill  slopes,  in  the  midst  of 
orchanls  and  flower-beds,  presenting  a  moat  picturesque  appearance. 

The  tirst  cabin  near  the  site  of  Nevada  is  attributed  to  J.  Pennington, 
1 .  Cross,  and  W.  McCaig,  in  Sept.  1849.  In  the  following  mouth  A.  B.  Cal«l- 
well  orected  a  log  store,  after  which  the  Deer  Creek  Diggings,  a«  they 
were  called  from  the  stream  tributary  to  Yuba  River,  received  the  na:iie 
of  CaUlwell's  upper  store.  The  field  proved  rich,  and  rumors  spreading 
of  the  many  fortunes  dug  out,  a  rush  of  gold-seekers  ensued  in  the  spring, 
until  the  number  at  one  time  gathered  within  a  circuit  of  seven  miles  waa 
Lvstiiiiatuil  at  from  15,000  to  35,000,  with  150  stores,  14  hotek,  2  ho;ipitaLi, 
church  and  school,  and  a  city  population  equalling  that  of  Sac.,  writes  tlie 
S<i<:  Tninscirpt,  Jan.  14,  1851;  Oct.  14,  1850.  Some  4,000  or  5,000  in  tlie 
vicinity,  says  Cal.  Courier,  July  13,  1850.  Over  400  houses.  Id.,  Oct.  14;  S. 
F.  I'Uwjwie,  Sept.  14,  1850;  Piic.  News,  Oct.  22,  1850.  With  2,000  inliabi- 
taiits,  and  a  dozen  camps  around  with  8,000.  Shinua  Alining  Camps,  210. 
Tlius  it  sprang  up  the  foremost  mining  town  within  a  few  months;  as  the 
Trait.fi-njt  expresses  it,  with  2  or  3  saw-milla  and  clapboard-men  busy  prc- 
jKiriiig  building  material;  with  churches  and  schools;  Sanjent,  in  Gnus  VaL 
Itir.,  1850,  22-3,  with  bull-ring  and  gambling-houses  far  surpassing  its  head 
town  of  Marysville  in  riches  and  revelry.  The  winter  of  1850-1  proving  dry,  a 
tU'iiressing  reaction  set  in,  capped  by  a  disastrous  incendiary  fire  of  Marcli  1 1, 
IS.')  I,  which  reduced  Iialf  the  place  to  ashes,  with  a  loss  of  half  a  million  dollar.-i. 
Alli  ('ill.,  March  14,  1851;  S.  F.  Picayune.  Dane,  Fireman,  71,  pbces  the 
loss  at  Si, 200,000.  But  just  then  began  a  revival,  based  chiefly  on  quartz  dis- 
coveries anil  aided  by  the  completion  of  the  first  ditch.  Rock  Creek,  nine  miles 
l<iug,  a  stupendous  enterprise  for  vi;at  time.  The  dififerent  methotU  of  wat'hin;^ 
Were  extended  by  ground-sluicing,  and  drift-digging  became  a  leailing  feature, 
notalily  at  the  suburb  Coyoteville,  so  named  from  the  coyote  mining  there 
fdlhiwcil,  where  the  population  centred  for  a  time.  Evidences  of  prosperity 
were  the  appearance,  in  April  1851,  of  IVie  Journal  newspaper,  and  the  con- 
struction of  a  special  theatre.  Tiien  came  brick  buildings  and  a  foundry  and 
other  industries.  In  March  1850  an  alcalde  had  been  chosen  in  the  person  of 
St<unps,  the  tirst  married  settler,  also  a  sheriff,  and  the  name  of  Xevaila  ap- 
plied from  the  snowy  range  above.  In  May  tliis  official  body  gave  place  t<» 
a  justice  of  tlie  peace,  the  eccentric  Olney.  With  the  revival  in  Itwl  an  in- 
teresteil  cliciuo  rushed  lor  a  city  charter,  with  ten  aldermen,  atul  M.  F.  Hoit 
lor  mayor,  Cal.  Utatuti's,  1851,  339,  but  the  collapse  of  the  quartz  exeittunent, 
resulting  in  a  large  tlecreaao  of  population,  led  to  an  application  for  the  rcpe;il 
of  the  charter.  The  debt  so  far  incurretl,  $8,000,  was  left  unsettled  for  Litk 
of  fuiuls.  A  new  and  les-i  expensive  incorporation  of  1853  being  set  a.>u\i-  by 
the  courts,  another  city  organization  was  efiected  in  1850.  Id.,  1850,  210-  I'J; 
(.,/.  Jour.  Sen.,  1851,  p.  1829;  1852,  p.  709;  1850,  p.  900.  See  aL,o  /./., 
lloKse  and  Assembly.  Three  heavy  contlagrations,  of  July  19,  1850,  which 
swept  away  the  business  section,  with  a  loss  exceeding  a  million  dollars  and 
ten  lives,  and  of  May  23,  1858,  and  Nov.  8,  1803,  covering  nearly  the  same  dis- 
trict, but  with  a  loss  of  only  ^30,000  and  ^50,000,  S.  F.  liuUelin,  July  21-3, 
ISoO,  Alta  Citi,  etc.,  proved  temporary  checks  to  progress.  In  1854>  the  city 
ca.st  the  third  Iiighest  vote  in  California.    The  development  of  quartz  mining, 


m 


»  j 


472 


CITY  BUILDING. 


1 

i 

1 

iiii 

and  the  prestige  of  the  county  seat,  served  to  sustain  the  city.  In  ISlM  a 
gas  company  was  formed.  The  chief  trade  was  with  Sac.,  with  wliiuli  a  rail- 
road opened  in  1876,  but  this  city  had  meanwhile  absorbed  much  of  Nevada':! 
entrepdt  traffic  in  the  country  by  means  of  her  main  line  eastward.  Fur  fur- 
ther account  of  progress,  I  refer  to  sketches  in  Orasa  Val.  Directory,  185(5,  15 
et  seq.;  Nevada  Co.  Directory,  1867,  73  et  seq.;  Newida  Co.  Hint.,  78  et  seii.; 
Sic.  Union,  Nov.  28,  1854;  July  12,  26,  Sept.  1,  21,  29,  Nov.  22,  1855;  Sept. 
19,  Dec.  10,  1856,  etc.;  AltaCal.,  Sept.  13,  1856,  etc.;  Nevada  Heraiil,  Aug. 
28,  1879.  The  census  of  1880  assigns  a  population  of  4,022,  the  township 
standing  fully  1,000  behind  Grass  Valley. 

Oregonians  appear  to  have  begun  mining  in  1848  at  Grass  Valley,  but  the 
lirst  cabin  is  attributed  early  in  1849  to  Saunders,  Taylor,  and  Broughton, 
and  the  first  store  in  Dec.  to  J.  Rosiere;  yet  Morey  claims  the  first  store  in 
(rrass  Valley  proper,  in  the  summer  of  1850.  The  main  pioneer  settlement 
rose  in  Boston  Ravine.  The  quartz  discoveries  of  June,  and  especially  of 
Oct.  1850,  attracted  wide  attention;  and  the  same  year  a  stamp-mill  was 
erected  and  a  ditch  begun,  while  a  justice  of  the  peace  was  chosen  in  the 
person  of  Jas  Walsh,  who  in  the  preceding  summer  had  built  the  saw-iuill. 
By  the  following  March  150  buildings  were  counted.  Pac.  Nevm,  Apr.  2',\, 
1851;  a  church  was  founded,  followed  by  a  school  early  in  1852.  A  year 
later  a  journal  appeared,  then  came  brick  buildings,  which  grew  in  favor 
after  the  bitter  experience  of  Sept.  13,  1855,  when  300  structures  were  swept 
away  by  fire,  involving  a  loss  of  about  $400,000.  Sac.  Union,  Sept.  15,  '2'2, '_'!», 
1855;  AltaCal.,  Sept.  15,  1855;  July  21,  1856;  Grass  Val.  Union,  Sept.  IS, 
1873.  The  population  then  numbered  3,500.  After  a  failure  in  1855,  it  was 
in  1861  incorporated  as  a  modest  town,  with  five  trustees  and  some  officials 
Amendments  followed  in  1866  and  1870.  See  Cal.  StattUcn,  1801,  153,  1803^, 
57  In  1862  emphasis  was  given  to  its  progress  by  a  gas  company.  Just 
then  the  mining  excitements  in  the  adjoining  territory  of  Nevada  cast  a  sjicll 
liere  as  in  many  another  place,  but  this  lifted  in  1864,  after  which  the  town 
steadily  increased  in  prosperity  until  it  surpassed  all  others  in  the  county. 
Y\iTt\ie:T  <\stBi\\»  in  Bean's  Directory  qf  Nev.,  185  et  seq.;  Grass  Val.  Dinrfoni, 
1861,  etc.;  Nevada  Co.  Hist.,  63  et  seq  ;  MisceL  Hist.  Pap.,  pt  xxxiv;  (irnin 
Val.  National,  March  28,  1868,  and  other  numbers;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Apr.  25, 
1868;  Dec.  1,  1855,  etc.;  N.  Y.  Times,  Nov.  10,  1868;  S.  F.  Herald,  Aug. 
21,  1852;  frequent  notices  in  Alia  Cal ,  and  Sac.  Union, 

In  Benicia  is  presented  a  town  which  rose  as  a  rival  to  S.  F.  prior  to  the 
gold  discovery,  on  the  strength  of  its  superior  advantages  in  possessing  a  tine 
harbor  at  the  head  of  ocean  navigation,  and  nearer  to  the  gold-fields,  a  l)ua\i- 
tiful  and  salubrious  site,  and  a  position  central  and  of  easy  access  to  tributary 
rivers  and  valleys.  Encouraged  subsequently  by  becoming  the  military  and 
naval  headquarters,  and  the  depot  of  the  Pacific  Mail  Steamship  Company, 
the  population  rose  by  1850  to  1,000,  the  place  obtaining  the  dignity  of  city 
and  county  seat.  Aspirations  as  a  metropolis  were  crushed  in  1849,  when 
the  inflowing  fleets  cast  anchor  and  discharged  their  passengers  and  mer- 
chandise at  the  city  near  the  Gate;  but  in  1853  bright  visions  rose  anew, 
when  the  legislature,  then  in  session  there,  formally  declared  it  the  seat  of 


BENICIA  AND  VALLEJO. 


473 


government  These  hopes  were  clashed  in  the  following  spring  by  the  removal 
of  tiiat  body  to  Sac. ;  a  blow  followed  by  several  others,  until  the  declining 
coiniiiunity  had  to  renounce  even  the  title  of  city  as  too  burdensome. 

Tiie  founding  and  progress  of  Benicia  up  to  the  gold  excitement  in  1848 
ar«  fully  related  in  my  preceding  vol.,  Hint.  CaL,  v.  670-4.  The  place  then 
boiistt'd  nearly  a  score  of  buildings,  with  200  lots  sold,  and  a  special  alcalde, 
H.  t'odpcr  The  gold  fever  carried  away  the  population,  but  restored  it  richly 
laden,  with  hopes  in  the  future  revived  by  the  action  of  Com.  Jones,  who 
early  in  1849  sounded  the  harbor  and  brought  up  his  fleet,  led  by  the 
Soiitliiiiiipton,  after  which  the  western  bay  adjoining  was  named.  Soon  after- 
wanl  (ti^n.  Smith  selected  a  site  on  the  Suisun  side  for  barracks,  arsenal,  and 
quartermaster's  stores,  and  Benicia  was  recognized  as  the  military  iind  naval 
hea(l<niarters,  as  Taylor,  Eldorado,  i.  216,  observes.  Shermans  Mem.,  i.  68; 
Liiii-iii's  Doc,  MS.,  vii.  39  et  seq.  The  P.  M.  S.  Co.  established  its  shops 
and  (lejiot  here  in  1850,  with  wharf  improvements,  and  a  growing  bencfieent 
outlay  for  lalxir  and  supplies.  During  the  preceding  year,  several  early  river 
stcanilioats  were  put  together  and  launched  here;  tlio  regidar  steam  traffic 
between  Sac.  and  S.  P.  made  this  a  halting-place;  the  old  ferry  across  the 
strait  was  speedily  provided  with  steam  power;  and  in  1850-1  some  three 
score  of  vessels,  mostly  lumber-laden  and  deserted,  gave  a  busy  aspect  to  the 
ancliorage.  All  tliesc  promising  features  tended  to  bring  in  settlers,  until  the 
population  in  1850  had  risen  to  1,000,  including  the  garrison,  and  50-vara  lots 
were  selling  at  from  $500  to  ^,000,  says  BuflFum,  Six  Mo.,  149-50.  The 
Phrer  Timi:%  Feb.  1850,  allows  only  40  houses  and  230  souls;  but  the  .S'.  F. 
Pidvyinie,  Nov.  30,  1850,  concedes  over  100  houses,  with  a  presbyterian 
church,  founded  in  Apr.  1849,  a  masonic  hall,  used  partly  for  court-house,  a 
largo  liospital,  an  eflfective  windmill  for  supplying  water.  Tustinn  Rec,  MS., 
written  for  me  by  one  of  tlie  first  settlers.  During  the  year  ?40,000  was 
expended  for  public  works,  yet  leaving  a  debt  of  only  §13,000.  Sac.  Tran- 
script, Feb.  14,  1851.  This  expenditure  was  greatly  promoted  by  tlie  new 
dignity  of  Benicia  as  an  incorporated  city,  by  act  of  Marcli  27th,  ( 'td.  StatiUex, 
1850, 119,  and  as  county  seat  for  Solano.  The  first  miiyor,  Jos.  Kearney,  was 
assisted  by  a  council  of  six  without  pay;  property  taxes  not  to  exceed  one  per 
cent.  Amendments  in  Id.,  1851,  348,  and  later;  HUtelVs  Coden,  ii.  1670.  The 
Bciiiciii  dazette  appeared  in  1851,  and  a  state-house  rose  in  1852,  together  with 
a  ycning  ladies'  seminary.  Vallejo,  Doc.,  MS.,  xiii.  299.  Such  were  the  mod- 
est yet  not  insigniticatit  results  of  the  efforts  which  a  few  years  Itefore  sought 
to  wrest  the  metropolis  rank  from  S.  F.  Benicia's  failure  was  due  greatly  to 
the  worse  than  lukewarm  attitude  of  Larkin,  one  of  the  founders,  and  CJwin's 
opposition  in  congress,  which  prevent  ^d  Benicia  from  becoming  a  port  of  entry. 
The  S<ir.  '  "ript,  Sept.  30,  18;iO,  sneers  at  the  pretension.  The  legislature, 
liy  aet  ot  Mivy  18,  1853,  declared  it  the  seat  of  government.  Cid.  Statutes, 
l.S.");t,  ;W0.  For  grants  and  steps  in  connection  therewith,  see  Cal.  Jour.  Sen., 
1S53,  (;:U),  055-6,  Apr.  27;  AltaCai,  Feb.  2,  5,  10,  185.1,  etc.;  CaL  Cnmp. 
Liiii'x,  ]8.')0-3,  930.  But  the  high  hopes  were  quickly  dashed  to  the  ground, 
for  on  tlio  following  March  1st  the  legislature  suddenly  flitted  to  Sac.  This 
blow  was  followed  by  others.  A  railroad  project,  the  Marysville  and  Benicia 
of  185:?,  failed.     Five  years  later  the  county  seat  was  transferred  to  Fairticld, 


I 


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il 


474 


CITY  BUILDING. 


and  later  the  P.  M.  Co.  transferred  its  shops  to  S.  F  In  1859  the  charter 
was  repealed  as  too  expensive,  and  the  government  was  vested  in  a  l)oar<l  of 
trustees,  with  the  task  to  pay  off  the  debt  of  #100,000.  which  was  slowly  ac- 
complished with  real  estate,  at  a  tenth  of  the  price  once  ruling.  It  bccuine 
later  quite  an  educational  centre,  especially  for  female  colleges.  Fernandez, 
CaL,  187;  AUa  Col.,  May  14,  June  11,  1855;  June  3,  July  29,  1856;  July  15, 
1871;  Solano  Co.  Hist.,  146  et  seq.;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Nov.  9,  Dec.  3,  17.  1855; 
June  9,  1877;  July  16,  1880;  Woods'  Pioneer,  34-6;  Pkt.  Union,  Jan.  1855, 
with  view;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1853,  630;  BartleU'a  Nar.,  ii.  12;  Capron's  dtl., 
94;  Ukinh  Democ.,  Jan.  6,  1878;  Solano  Co.  Atlas,  11;  Vtdlejo  Chron.,  Dec.  27, 
1877,  etc.;  Willeya  Pers.  Menu,  97;  Benicia  TrUmne,  March  21,  1874;  Id., 
New  Em,  Dec.  6,  1879,  etc.     Tlie  census  of  1880  gives  a  population  of  1,7W. 

One  cause  for  Benicia's  decline  lay  in  the  proximity  of  Vallejo,  a  town 
founded  in  1850  for  a  state  capital.  This  project  failed,  but  the  establish- 
ment four  years  later,  on  Mare  Island,  of  a  navy -yard  by  the  federal  govern- 
ment, gave  fresh  impulse  to  the  place.  While  possessing  advantages  »iinilar 
to  those  of  Benicia,  it  possessed  a  still  better  harbor,  deeper  and  with  close 
access  to  the  shore,  and  commanded,  moreover,  the  river  outlet  of  the  fertile 
Napa  Valley,  and  later  it  aspired  to  become  the  railroad  centre  for  at  leatit 
the  northern  side  of  the  bay. 

Vallejo's  sympathy  for  Benicia  cooled;  and  in  the  state  senate  in  185U  lie 
was  o^ien  to  plans  for  increasing  the  value  of  his  property  here.  The  selec- 
tion of  a  site  for  a  permanent  seat  of  government  engaged  the  attention  of 
speculators,  and  he  resolved  to  strive  for  the  prize  by  proposing  to  found  tlie 
town  of  Eureka  at  the  mouth  of  Napa  Creek,  and  offering  the  legi^ilature 
therein  15(J  acres  for  public  building  sites,  and  §370,000,  within  two  years, 
for  buildings,  $125,000  being  for  a  capitol.  Memorial  of  Apr.  3,  1850,  in 
CaL  Jour.  Leijis.,  1850,  498-502.  This  bid,  eclipsing  all  others,  was  accepted 
by  act  of  Feb.  4,  1851.  Cal.  Statutes,  1851,  430;  rejiort  of  committee,  Cid. 
Jour.  I/ouse,  1851,  1423.  Previous  to  this  the  name  of  Vallejo  had  been  sub- 
stituted for  Eureka.  Cal.  Pioneers,  pt.  iii.  12.  Pending  the  acceptance.  Sur- 
veyor Whiting  had  laid  out  the  town,  and  its  prospects  inducetl  several  set- 
tlers to  build.  More  than  one  hotel  rose,  and  Major  Hook  was  chosen  justice 
of  the  i)eace.  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.  14,  March  14, 1851,  exaggerates,  saying  that 
sonic  threescore  houses  were  projected,  and  dozens  of  men  daily  on  the  way 
thither.  Advertisements  in  Pac.  News,  Aug.  22,  1850;  Cal.  Cdfiri<r,  July  .'U, 
1850.  S.  F.  Picayune,  Dec.  28,  1850,  commends  the  place,  although  '  no  town 
exists  there.'  The  fact  was  that  owing  to  the  lukewarmness  of  Vallejo's 
associates,  his  own  lack  of  business  tact,  and  the  machinations  of  his  oppo- 
nents, the  place  had  not  caught  the  public  fancy;  and  when  tlic  legislature 
openetl  the  third  session  here  on  Jan.  5,  1852,  it  presented  a  most  primitive 
and  forlorn  condition.  The  $125,000  capitol  so  far  was  a  rather  insignilicant 
two-story  building,  with  a  drinking-saloon  and  skittle-alley  in  the  basement — 
the  third  house,  as  it  was  ironically  called.  Placer  Times,  Jan.  15,  1882.  Dis- 
appointed, the  legistators  hastened  away  the  following  week  to  the  more 
comfortable  and  attractive  Sac.  Driven  hence  by  a  flood  in  March,  the  con- 
sideration was  brought  home  to  them  that  Vallejo  still  remained  by  popular 
vote  the  capital,  until  the  founder  failed  to  comply  with  his  bond.     Report 


OAKLAND. 


478 


of  tlie  committee  in  Col.  Jour.  A»».,  1852,  600-2;  Cnl  Statutes,  1852,  128. 
Till'  archives  aiid  state  oflSciaU  having  accordingly  been  ordered  back,  the 
legislature  again  opened  its  session  at  Vallejo  on  Jan.  3,  1853.  The  place 
hail  ni)t  iiiiprovetl  meanwhile,  and  the  prospects  appearing  hopeless,  Vallejo 
petitioned  for  release  from  his  bond,  pleading  that  the  former  removal  of 
the  gnvcrnment  had  contributed  to  defeat  his  plans  for  fulfilling  it.  /(/., 
18.'):{,  Mo;  CaL  Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  788,  5<)3;  Id.,  1853,  6(51,  etc.  This  was 
agrw^il  to,  and  the  following  month  saw  the  legislature  once  more  on  the 
wing,  to  alight  a  while  at  Benicia,  whither  it  was  followed  by  a  largo  propor- 
tion of  tho  settlers,  incluiling  stores,  leaving  the  rest  stranded.  Vallejo  tlieu 
soUl  the  site  for  $30,000  to  Lt-gov.  Purdy  and  others,  but  owing  to  their  fail- 
ure with  payments  it  was  reconveyed  to  Vallejo's  associates.  The  town  had 
still  aspirations,  as  the  natural  port  for  the  fertile  valley  of  Napa,  and  as  a 
site  for  the  U.  S.  navy-yard  and  naval  depot.  The  latter  project  was  enter- 
taiiioil  in  1849,  Sherman  »  Mem.,  i.  G8,  and  in  1852  decided  upon.  Mare  Island, 
lying  in  front  of  Vallejo,  and  so  named  after  a  mare  which  there  swam  asliore 
from  a  wrecked  ferry,  it  is  said,  was  accordingly  purchased  for  the  government 
in  1853  for  $83,000;  the  price  in  1850  being  $7,000.  Possession  was  fciken  in 
1854.  Two  years  later  found  a  floating  dock  and  a  basin  in  operation,  with 
numerous  shops  and  magazines,  which,  together  with  the  later  stone  dock, 
costing  over  a  million  dollars,  gave  employment  to  a  large  force  of  men,  all 
deiiending  on  Vallejo.  The  town  aeconlingly  began  to  prosper;  wharves 
were  built  to  accommodate  the  growing  traffic,  a  ne'vsjwper  appeared  iu  1855, 
and  in  1856  the  survey  was  extended  to  one  league;  yet  the  place  prudently 
denied  itself  the  expensive  dignity  of  city  until  1866-7,  when  Ihe  iidtabitants 
numbered  some  3,000.  CaL  SUttuteM,  1865-6,  147,  431;  1867-8,  618;  1871-2, 
o()(),  757,  1048;  see  Solano  Advert.,  Dec.  1868-May  1809;  Vallejo  C/iroii.,  March 
-June  1871;  and  the  special  pamphlets.  Resources  qf  Vallejo  a.ml  Prospects  of 
Vitllijo,  1871;  also /Jo/»i«o  Co.  HIM.,  88,  184,  et  seq.;  Willci/'s  Pers.  Mrm.,  96 
-7;  Hiltell's  Res.,  411;  Cat.  Pioneers,  MS.,  pt.  iii.;  AUa  CaL,  Jan.  4,  1853,  etc.; 
JlittiU'n  Code,  ii.  1603;  Solano,  Future  qf  Vallejo. 

Martinez,  opposite  Benicia  on  the  river,  is  a  historic  town  of  growing 
prosperity. 


The  beautiful  plains  and  slopes  of  the  contra  costa  had  not  failed  to  strike 
favorably  the  many  projectors  of  metropolitan  cities,  but  tlie  extreme  shal- 
lowness of  the  water  interposed  a  decisive  objection.  When  the  prospects  of 
iS.  F.  stood  assurctl,  however,  the  advantages  of  this  tract  for  suburban  sites 
at  once  became  apparent,  and  in  1850-3  the  greater  portion  of  the  Peralta 
grant,  from  Point  Isabel  to  San  Leamlro  Bay,  was  bought  by  diflerent  specu- 
hitor.s,  yet  not  until  the  most  desirable  section  of  Oakland  had  been  occupied 
liy  s([uatters,  who  were  mainly  instruniental  in  giving  a  start  tu  the  place  and 
procuring  town  and  city  charters.  With  the  location  here,  iu  tiie  latter  part 
of  the  sixties,  of  the  overland  railroad  terminus,  which  brought  superior  ferry 
facilities,  a  great  impulse  was  given,  followed  by  the  acquisition  of  the  county 
seat,  and  all  the  conveniences  to  be  expected  of  a  city  ranking  next  in  popula- 
tion to  S.  F.,  although  of  subordinate  importance.  The  rush  of  8i|uatters, 
which  in  1850  set  iu  for  Oakland,  was  headed  by  the  lawyers  A.  J.  Moou  and 


■» 

,'  ■  i 

Mi 

1 

I.    :    '' 

llMi 

I-; 


I;  •ill 


llir. 


■f\:J: 


476 


CITY  BUILDING. 


Horace  W.  Carpentier,  and  E.  Adams.  Heedless  of  the  remonstrances  of  the 
Puralta  family,  to  which  the  grant  belonged,  they  seized  even  upon  the  cuttle 
and  tinilM^r.  Finally,  when  pressed  by  the  sherifif,  Moon  arranged  for  a  luatie, 
and  on  the  strength  of  it  was  laid  out  the  town  of  Oakland,  so  nanivil  from 
the  trceti  growing  there.  Meanwhile  Carpentier  used  his  ofiicial  position  to 
inano-uvre  the  passage  of  an  act  of  incorporation  May  1852,  Cal.  Jour.  Ann., 
1852,  846,  /</.,  Statutes,  303,  little  Buspecte<l  by  the  other  squatters,  and  then  to 
gain  from  his  associates  a  concession  of  the  water-front,  on  condition  of  erect- 
ing a  school-liouse  and  three  wharves.  This  deed  was  subhccpiently  hotly 
contested,  especially  when  the  question  came  up  for  means  wherewith  to  gaia 
railroad  termini  and  other  progressive  adjuncts.  In  18(37-8  a  compromise 
was  eifectud,  imder  which  concessions  were  made  to  the  city,  in  the  8au 
Antonio  water  channel,  with  a  frontage  between  Franklin  and  Webster  sta, 
and  grants  to  the  Western  Pacific  R.  R.  Co.  of  500  acres,  a  share  going  to  tlie 
S.  F.  and  Oakland  R.  R.  Co.,  both  later  merged  in  the  Central  I'ueiHc.  Th'! 
rest  of  tlio  lantl,  aside  from  two  reservations  by  Carpentier  and  Merritt,  was 
conveyed  to  the  Oakland  Water  Front  Co.,  half  of  whose  50,000  shares  of 
stock  belonged  to  Carpentier,  with  E.  Adams  as  partner,  20,000  sliarcs  to 
Stanford,  and  5,000  to  Fclton.  The  title  of  Peralta  in  the  city  lamls  had 
been  settled  by  the  sale  in  March  1852  of  the  squatted  part  for  .?10,(M)0  to 
Clar  and  others;  tli:^  Temescal  tract  was  sold  in  Aug.  1853  for  $100,000,  with 
certain  reservations  to  Hammond  and  others,  J.  I>.  Peralta  selling  another 
tract  on  the  north  for  $82,000.  The  squatter  cloud,  nevertheless,  hung  over 
the  city  until  18G9,  when  a  compromise  was  effected  permitting  o)itstandiiij{ 
claims  to  be  bought  at  nominal  rates.  Notwithstanding  this  drawback  great 
progress  wiis  made.  Alta  CaU,  1852;  Oakland  Tribune,  Oct.  9,  1875;  I'ltaliumi 
Crescent.  Nov.  18,  1871;  Sta  Jiosa  Democ.,  March  13,  18G9;  Sac.  Union,  Oct. 
30,  185U.  In  early  times  large  numbers  of  wild  cattle  roamed  here,  which  led 
to  til''  establishment  of  tanneries  and  regular  slaughter-yards  for  the  .S.  V. 
market.  Matthewsons  Stat.,  MS.,  3.  An  occasional  steamboat  service  was 
soon  replaced  by  a  ferry,  tlie  Hector,  followed  by  the  E.  Corninij,  of  tlie 
Contra  Costa  Ferry  Co.  Alameda  Gaz.,  May  31,  1873;  Herrkk's  Slat.,  MS., 
3-4.  The  first  public  school  was  organized  in  1853,  at  the  corner  of  Market 
and  Seventh  sts,  about  the  same  time  that  H.  Durant  opened  the  Oakland 
College  School,  preparatory  to  the  College  of  Cal.,  which  was  incorporated  in 
1855  and  organized  in  18ti0,  to  merge  before  the  end  of  the  decade  into  the 
University  of  Cal.  Braytona  Report,  in  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1865-6,  ap.  viii.  30.')- 
402.  Regular  religious  services  are  claimed  to  have  been  begun  by  S.  B.  Bill, 
presbyterian,  in  March  1853,  at  the  comer  of  Fourth  and  Clay  sts,  yet  preacli- 
ers  had  visited  the  place  previously.  The  first  church  was  erected  in  the 
sanie  year  by  catholics,  favored  by  the  large  Mexican  element.  Oaklaml  Trnn- 
script,  Jan.  1,  1877.  The  baptists  followed  in  Dec.  1854,  under  E.  (i.  Willis. 
A  Sunday-school  had  been  started  in  Apr.  1853  by  the  presbyterian.x.  U. 
Journal,  Oct.  13,  1867.  In  March  1854  the  belief  in  prospective  greatness 
was  proclaimed  by  the  incorporation  of  the  place  as  a  city.  Cal.  Statuten,  1S.")4, 
46,  52.  Carpentier  managed  to  get  himself  elected  the  first  mayor.  The  re- 
ported votes  nund>ered  368,  whicli  seems  excessive  for  the  place  at  tliat  time, 
as  the  census  of  1860  allows  only  1,543  inhabitants.     His  message,  reproduced 


BROOKLYN  AND  ALAMEDA. 


477 


in  0.  Tramcript,  Jan.  23,  1S76,  refers  to  eflforta  for  planting  hero  the  state 
cnpitol.  The  A  lamedn  Express  was  by  this  time  issued,  autl  in  the  autumn  of 
1S.")4  fnIloweJ  the  Contra  Costa,  the  issue  of  Jan.  5,  1855,  l>eing  no.  17.  Onk- 
1(111(1  Ilcmld  began  as  a  weekly  Jan.  4,  1855.  In  1807  came  gaH  and  water 
worka.  C.  Costa  Water  Co.  Rules,  1-12;  Oakland  and  Alanieda  Water  Co.,  1- 
8.  With  the  settlement  of  land  titles  and  the  location  of  the  terminus,  dur- 
ing tlic  following  two  years,  foreshadowetl  already  in  the  mayor's  message  of 
18,')4,  a  decided  impetus  was  given  to  the  place,  with  a  more  direct  ferry  con- 
nuction  snou  after,  over  the  West  front,  with  bridge  and  solid  bank,  instead  of 
fdUowing  the  creek  route.  By  1870  the  population  had  risen  to  10,5U0,  strong 
enoiigli  to  Ijcgin  the  struggle  in  earnest  for  the  county  seat,  which  was  won  in 
1874.  Tlie  a89e.s.sed  value  of  property,  rated  in  18()(}-7  at  $l,4:t4,000,  8too<l  a 
decade  Inter  at  $24,000,000,  and  by  1880  the  census  showed  more  than  34,500 
iiilialtitants,  including  Brooklyn,  with  all  the  appurtenances  of  a  well-regu- 
lated city,  and  with  certain  harbor  advantages,  procured  by  deepening  the 
outUt  of  San  Antonio  Creek  through  the  mud  flats,  and  protecting  it  with 
rublile  walla.  Additional  details  in  Terminus  o/ R.  R.  System,  7-46;  Oakland 
Dinrlnrici,  passim;  Jlist.  Alameda,  187C,  443-57;  Id.,  Atlas,  15-22;  Or. 
Skrtrlie.%  MS.,  3,  etc.;  Cat.  Jour.  Sen.,  1871-2,  353,  etc.;  Qiiiijley's  Irish  Race, 
4S4-9;  Onklaml  Review,  Dec.  1873,  9-16,  etc.;  Hayes'  Amj.,  i.  456;  S.  J. 
Pioneer,  Aug.  4,  1877,  and  frequent  scattered  accounts  and  items  in  daily 
journals,  as  Alta  Cat.,  Dec.  19,  1854;  Feb.  1,  1855;  Aug.  9,  18G3,  etc.;  Sac. 
Union,  Sept.  17,  1855,  etc.;  Oakl.  AVi/w,  Feb.  4,  1874,  etc.;  S.  /'.  Chron.,  Nov. 
22,  1879;  OakL  Tribune,  Oct.  9,  1875;  Oakl.  Transcript,  Jan.  2,  1871;  Jan.  13, 
1877. 

Hie  adjoining  trio  of  towns  were  properly  extensions  of  one  settlement, 
and  Brooklyn,  as  lynig  in  the  rear,  sought  in  time  annexation  to  the  leading 
city,  notwithstanding  the  promising  features  of  a  more  rolling  surface  an<l  its 
esteemed  hotels.  Alameda  gained  an  additional  advantage  as  a  bathing 
resort,  and  with  the  aid  of  an  extra  railroad  and  ferry  accommo«lation  is 
advancing  rapidly  as  a  rival  of  Oakland.  Berkeley  possesses  a  yet  tiner 
position  in  some  respects,  and  a  large  number  of  homestead  builders  gathered 
round  the  nucleus  formed  early  in  the  seventies  by  the  transfer  hither  of  the 
state  university,  and  by  the  establishment  of  factories  in  the  western  section, 
on  the  bay  shore. 

Brooklyn,  which  in  1872  was  annexed  to  Oakland,  as  its  east  suburb,  was 
a  landing  in  1849  for  lumber  cutters  in  the  redwoo<ls  five  miles  inward.  The 
dwelling  of  the  Peralta  brothers  stood  near  by,  and  a  Frenchman  kept  a  dairy 
ahout  Clinton  point  for  a  time.  Early  in  1850  the  brothers  Patten  secured  a 
lease  of  the  site  for  farming,  covering  at  first  150  acres,  and  extended  shortly 
after  to  about  treble  that  number.  In  1852  C.  B.  Strode  of  tlte  law  firm  of 
Jones,  Tompkins,  and  Strode,  bought  from  Peralta  the  section  between  Lake 
Merritt  and  Sauzal  Creek,  some  6,000  acres,  extending  to  the  hills,  and  gave 
the  Pattens  a  share,  M.  Chase,  who  had  been  hunting  on  the  site,  joining 
tiiem  to  lay  out  the  town  of  Clinton,  round  the  Patten  cabin  up  Third  av. 
and  Ninth  st.  Washington  plaza  received  a  flag-pole  in  significance  of  its 
new  importance,  and  Washington,  later  East  Twelfth  st,  was  graded  to  the 
ravine  at  Commerce  st  and  planted  with  cotton woo<l  trees.    In  1853  D.  S.  Lacy 


478 


CITY  BUILDING. 


!iU!i, 


mi 

10 


iMt 


opentd  a  atore  at  East  Twelfth  at  and  Twelfth  av.,  ami  the  following  yctr 
the  tiiwti  aaaociateg  erected  a  $GO,000  hotel,  which  was  destroyed  \>y  liru 
within  a  few  weeks.  Meanwhile,  in  1851,  J.  B.  Larue  had  squatted  imruat 
the  ravine  and  started  a  store  at  the  San  Antonio  landing,  where  he  Hul»te- 
quently  constructed  his  wharf,  and  a  settlement  gradually  rose,  which  was 
known  as  San  Antonio,  after  the  channel  and  rancho.  Early  house-huiMere 
are  named  in  Hint.  Alameda,  1876,  402-3.  In  1866  the  two  places  were  con- 
solidated and  called  Brooklyn,  at  the  instance  of  Eagar,  who  had  arrived  Mith 
many  pioneers  in  the  ship  of  that  name,  and  thought  that  the  appellation 
corre8pon<led  well  to  the  spot  in  its  relation  to  the  Pacific  metropolis,  wiiich 
was  similar  to  that  of  the  Atlantic  Brooklyn.  In  1860  the  population  of  tlie 
district  was  placed  at  1,341;  incorporation  was  put  on  in  1870,  inchicUnii,' 
the  cluster  of  houses  north-eastward,  known  as  Lynn,  from  the  shoe  fa<  tory 
eiUhlished  there  three  years  hefore.  Cal.  Statutes,  1869-70,  680-93.  Stttlt- 
oient  had  been  favored  for  several  years  by  the  land  troubles  of  Oakland,  with 
which  it  shared  in  the  picnic  excursions  from  S.  F.  since  Lamey's  steam  ferry 
began  its  trips  in  1858.  Hopes  were  also  raised  by  the  temporary  loc^uion 
here  of  the  county  seat  during  the  four  years'  struggle  for  it,  but  the  more 
conveniently  situated  Oakland  was  advancing  with  such  strides  Litoly  us  to 
leave  Brooklyn  behind,  anc'  its  people  voted  in  1872  for  aimexation.  lu 
vote  in  1876  barely  exceeded  650.  Brooklyn  Journal,  Sept.  9,  1871,  etc.;  JJU. 
Alam.,  1876,  461-7;  Id.,  Atlas,  22-3. 

Alameda  may  be  regarded  as  a  sister  town  of  Brooklyn  in  their  relation  to 
Oakland,  although  it  gained  several  advantages.     It  was  known  as  Bolsa  ilc 
Encinal,  or  Encinal  de  San  Antonio,  and  belonged  to  A.  M.  Feral ta.     It  w:u 
held  under  lease  by  Depachier  and  Lemarte  early  in  1850,  when  the  iutcri'itt 
tekeii  in  Oakland  called  attention  to  this  adjoining  tract.     W.  W.  Chipman 
and  G.  Auginbaugh,  who  had  subleased  the  section  fronting  on  S.  LeauJro 
Bay,  then  stepped  forward  and  bought  the  peninsula  for  §14,000,  selling  half 
to  Mintum,  Foley,  Hays,  Caperton,  McMurty,  and  H.  S.  Fitch.     The  latter 
had  lately,  after  a  failure  to  buy  Oakland,  made  a  semi-contract  for  Alameda, 
only  to  be  forestalled.     As  auctioneer,  he  sold  the  first  lots  of  the  tract 
laid  out  in  old  Alameda  under  his  supervision.     The  first  settlements  were 
made  near  High  st,  and  ferry-boats  began  running  to  Old  Alameda  Point,  tiic 
first   regular  boats   being  the  Bonita  and  the  Banger.     Incorporation  \v:ts 
effected  in  April  1854,  when  the  peninsula  contained  little  more  than  100  iulial)- 
itants,  and  it  was  expected  that  the  name  borrowed  from  th€  county  would 
influence  settlers.  Cal.  Statutes,  1864,  76;  Id.,  Jour.  Ass.,  650;  Alta  Cal.,  IVc. 
30,  1854;  Sac.  Union,  Nov.  8,  1854;  Alam.  Encinal,  Sept.  8,  1877.     Soon  after 
Encinal  was  laid  out  in  the  centre  of  the  peninsula,  and  Woodstock  at  the 
point;  yet  progress  was  slow,  with  few  industries.     A  tannery  was  establisliud 
in  1852.  Matthetosotis  Stat.,  MS.,  3.     A.  A.  Cohen  bought  lots  in  1858  and  1>c- 
gan  to  foster  the  place,  establishing  a  superior  ferry,  which  yielded  in  1874  to 
a  railroad  via  Oakland,  across  San  Antonio  channel,  supplemented  soon  after 
by  a  special  ferry  and  railroad.     A  wagon  road  was  made  over  the  tongue 
of  Luid  to  Brooklyn  in  1854,  and  ferries  had  run  from  Hebbard's  wharf  in 
the  channel,  and  from  West  End,  after  1856.     In  1872  the  entire  peninstda 
was  united  under  a  town  charter.  Cal.  Statutes,  1871-2,  276-81;  1877-8,  89, 


SOUTH  TO  SAN  DIEGO 


470 


etc.;  HIH.  Alameda,  1876, 469-74;  Id.,AtlM,  23-4;  Oakland  and  Alamedn  Wider 
Co.  I'rii.'qifrlw,  1-8.  The  advance  of  the  town  was  from  1,5(50  inhiiMtants  in 
1870  t<i  'i.TCK)  in  1880.  The  Alameda  Pout  appeared  .in  18G9,  the  tirst  news- 
paiicr,  and  was  replaced  in  Nov.  1869  by  the  Alameda  Encinal. 

l>(iiiiiiigo  Peralta  was  interested  in  that  part  of  his  father's  tract  lying  be- 
viiihI  tlif  village  of  Temescal,  tne  term  for  Indian  baths.  Ho  sold  it  in  1853  to 
Hall  McAllister,  R.  P.  Hammond,  L.  Herrmann,  and  J.  K.  Irving.  The  con- 
(litioiii  were  somewhat  ambiguous,  and  not  until  more  than  a  score  of  years 
later  waM  the  clou<l  lifted  from  the  title.  It  remained  a  slighted  fanning  re- 
gion until  the  choice  of  a  salubrious  and  attractive  site  for  the  state  univer- 
sity fill  in  181)8  upon  the  spot,  which  was  aptly  dedicated  to  the  name  of  the 
prelate  philosopher.  The  construction  of  buildings  and  laying  out  the  200 
acrus  of  ground,  as  well  as  work  on  the  adjoining  Deaf,  Dund>,  and  Blind 
Ao  l>i'»t  ^'th  its  tiO  acres,  begun  in  1868,  brought  settlers  for  a  town;  yet  pre- 
vious to  1874  not  a  dozen  houses  were  within  half  a  mile  of  the  grounds. 
Anions;  the  first  occupants  were  Shattacic,  Hillegas,  andG.  M.  Blake.  Wit)i  the 
opcuinj,'  of  the  university  in  the  summer  of  1873,  Univ.  Cat.,  Report  187'2-.l,  the 
intiux  of  residents  increased,  and  by  1877  the  Berkeley  Advocate,  Oct.  13,  1877, 
])ec.  11,  1879,  etc.,  claimed  nearly  2,000  inhabitants,  with  over  200  houses 
round  the  university  in  1879.  In  April  1878  the  town  was  incorj)or;i,ted,  in- 
cluding tlie  settlement  on  the  bay,  a  mile  and  a  half  away,  known  as  West 
Berkeley,  or  Ocean  View  and  Delaware-st  station,  which  had  sprung  up  under 
railroad  influence  as  a  manufacturing  site,  embracing  the  California  Watch 
factory,  the  Standard  Soap  Co.,  etc.  A  ferry  ran  to  this  point  until  increased 
railroad  facilities  with  both  sections  absorbed  the  passengers.  Tlie  Deaf 
Asylum,  burned  in  1875,  was  rebuilt  in  1877-8.  Scattered  references  in  the 
daily  8.  F.,  Oakland,  and  Berkeley  journals. 

The  mania  for  city  building  extended  from  the  great  bay  and  its  tribu- 
taries throughout  the  state,  in  the  north  guided  by  the  rise  of  mining  districts 
and  the  gradual  expansion  of  lumber  and  farming,  for  which  places  like  Red 
Bluff,  Chico,  Yreka,  and  Petaluma  sought  to  become  centres,  while  parts  like 
Crescent  City  and  Eureka  aimed  to  supply  a  range  beyond  the  county  limits. 
In  the  south,  likewise,  several  old  pueblos  roused  themselves  early  from  their 
colonial  lethargy  to  assume  civic  honors  under  Anglo-Saxon  energy,  anil  to  open 
their  ports  or  establish  new  landings  for  the  prospective  world  traffic,  but  the  de- 
lay of  the  agricultural  era,  upon  which  they  depended,  caused  a  relapse.  Rail- 
road enterprise  marks  the  revival  under  which  towns  like  Modesto,  Merced, 
Visalia,  Bakersfield,  HoUister,  and  Salinas  sprang  into  prominence,  often  at 
the  expense  of  older  places,  although  several  of  these  not  only  shared  in  the 
advance,  but  maintained  the  local  supremacy  due  to  a  judicious  selection  of 
site,  as  San  Jose,  San  Luis  Obispo,  Santa  B&rbara,  and  San  Buenaventura. 
Among  the  most  pretentions  of  southern  towns  is  Los  Angeles,  whose  history 
has  been  fully  detailed  in  previous  volumes.  San  Diego,  the  oldest  of  Cali- 
fornia settlements,  languished  till  the  close  of  the  sixties,  when  transcontinen- 
tal railroad  projects  gave  it  life  and  hope,  based  on  the  possession  of  an  impor- 
tant terminus,  and  of  the  only  other  fine  harbor  besides  that  of  San  Francisco 
on  the  coast,  and  with  a  constantly  growing  reputation  as  a  health  and  pleas- 
ure resort. 

The  eagerness  to  found  commercial  centres  in  1849-M  ronaed  the  ambition 


CITY  BUILDING 


.*!: 


m 


of  01(1  San  Diogo,  and  lotl  it  to  aMUine  the  dignity  of  an  incorimratcd  cit>  in 
liCiU.  Cal  Statuten,  IS50,  121.     To  this  it  was  stimulated  l>y  rival  i>n>j<,u, 
which  in  couniu  of  tinio  dotted  the  entire  buy  ahoro  with  prosiNJct'Vti  tnwiiM. 
ForuMoeiiig  tho  need  for  a  ahore  settlement,  the  alciildo  ha<l  in  ^«ept.  lS4i) )»  ^uii 
to  sell  lots  at  La  I'laya,  and  here  a  certain  trade  sprang  up.  lhyr»'  Miir.,  44. 
Federal  otUcers  interfered,  claiming  the  place  for  military  purposes.     Kiport 
ill  S.  Difijo,  liryt  Land,  1-0.     Speculators  accordingly  turned  tiicir  atttntion 
to  the  south  of  the  pueblo,  and  obtaining  a  grant  of  land  in  March  IS.V),  on 
condition  of  building  a  wharf,  they  laid  out  New  San  Diego.     W.  Davis  lent 
his  foetering  aid  in  18.'>I,  and  throe  government  buildings  and  a  few  ilwcUinga 
rose  behind  the  wharf.     Kven  a  journal  api>oarcd  for  a  time,  the  Jfi-rulil,  of 
Judge  Ames;  but  southern  California  fell  into  neglect  and  the  town  flt(><»l 
still,  unable  to  count  in  1807  more  than  a  dozen  inhabitants.     Then  appvarol 
A.  K.  llorton,  who  purchased  for  ^,700  about  five  quarter-sections  «if  tlio 
present  main  site  of  tlio  new  city,  on  the  bay  shore,  Saviiije's  <\>U.,  MS.,  iv. 
285,  laid  out  the  a«ldition  named  after  him,  built  a  wharf  to  deep  water,  ami 
on  the  refusal  of  tho  coast  steamer  to  call,  ho  in  18()9  ]>laced  tho  IV.  Tiilx-r  on 
the  route  to  S.  F.,  in  opposition,  at  low  rates.     Four  miles  Itelow  on  tliu  Imy 
National  City  was  laid  out  by  the  Kiml)all  brothers,  and  com|>ctition  ran  lii^li. 
Settlers  began  to  come  in,  lots  sold  rapidly,  and  buildings  went  up  in  all  dine- 
tions,  tho  proprietors  applying  their  gains  to  building  and  other  improvement.'*. 
In  1870  San  Diego  claimed  a  population  of  2,300,  with  over  900  houses.     Tlie 
catholics  ha<l  a  church  since  1858,  tended  by  Pa«lre  J.  Moliner.     In  1808  thu 
episcojtalians  organized  under  S.  Wilbur,  and  in  18(i9  methotlists,  Imptists  with 
the  first  tomplo,  and  presbyterians  followed  the  example.    In  1870  the  new  oity 
procured  a  decree  transferring  the  archives  from  tho  old  town,  which  wax  effcet- 
ed  in  1871,  after  a  struggle,  and  the  old  pueblo,  which  had  so  long  reigned  in 
mediocre  triumph  over  its  rival,  fell  into  decay.     The  records  of  its  doiiij.'s  sinci' 
1848  are  given  in  San  Diego  Arch.;  I/ayes'  San  Diego;  Id.,  Misc.,  44  et  »in[. 
Its  charter  was  repealed  in  1852,  and  20  years  later  the  new  city  assumed  in- 
coqwration  garbs.  CaL  SUitutes,  1852,  305;  1871-2,  286-95;  1875-6,  800.     TV.o 
Masonic  order,  dating  here  since  1853,  moved  over  in  1871,  preceded  tlireo 
years  on  the  new  site  by  the  Odd  Fellows.     In  1873  the  place  was  maiU'  a 
port  of  entry,  and  the  Panam4  steamers  cheered  it  with  their  calls.     Prof. 
Davidson  assigned  22  feet  to  the  bar  at  the  mean  of  the  lowest  low  water. 
Two  journals  Hourished.     The  delay  of  the  promised  railroa4l,  upon  wliich 
all  holies  rested,  interposed  a  check  on  progress,  but  its  completion  gave  fre^ii 
impube  to  the  city,  upon  which  the  claims  of  National  City  aa  the  real 
terminus  had  little  e£fect.     In  1882  almost  100  vessels  entered'from  domestic 
ports  and  99  from  foreign  ports,  paying  $203,160  in  duties  on  imports.     A 
chamber  of  comme 'ce  was  organized  in  1870;  water  and  gas  were  intro<luceil; 
and  between  1878     id  1888  real  property  advanced  in  price  in  some  instance:) 

old.     Detaib  of  progress  in  Bancroft's  Pera.  Obnerv.,  MS., 

tas,  326-8;  Hayes'  San  Diego,  i.-iv.,  passim;  San  Difjo, 

,  Index;  Savage's  CoU.,  MS.,  233  et  seq.;  South  TraM- 

,  <«  Difgo  News,  Id.,  Union,  scattered  articles,  notably 
,  1876;  Feb.  22,  1877;  Oct.  17,  1878;  also  S.  F.  journals; 
1.,  1-50;  Hist.  San  Bern.  Co.,  184-8;  Cal.  Agric  Soc, 


from  ten  to  twent> 
9,  etc. ;  Bwling's  j 
Arth.  II.,  passim; 
cont.  R.  R.,  Mem.;  , 
June  26,  1873;  July 
5(1(1  Diego  City  It\foi 


li   , 


Trans.,  1878,  272;  If   4,  381,  etc.;  San  Diego  Com.  Lands,  1-5. 


CHAPTER  XTX. 

CAUKOKNIA   IN   COUNTItX 

AFKAIKS  rNPKU  TIIK  HlsrANO-("AI.lFlHtMAN.S— CoMIXn  OK  TIIK  An«1I,0-AMF,UI- 
I'ANS  -Kl,  IVlllAlMi,  ri-ArKK,  S.  ..AMKNTd,  YlllA,  \N  l>  ( H'llKIt  ('iMNIIKS 
NiiKIll    AND   S»)L  Til — TllKIK  OkIUIN,    1.NUL'.STKIK8,   WkaLTII,    A.Nl>   ritlHi- 

liKS.S. 


In  ^Foxican  times  sottlemoiits  were  almost  wholly 
n  stricted  to  the  coast  vallt^vs  south  of  San  Franeiseo 
J»av,  with  a  jiredilection  for  the  oraiin'o-|>erfimir«l 
iroioiis (tf  Saiitii  Biirhara,  Los  Angi^les,  and  San  Dic^'o. 
The  JInssians  had  ohtaini'd  a  footing  on  the  eoast 
.iKove  A[arin,  as  a  branch  station  foi  their  Alaska  fur 
tradiiiLj;  and  the  attempt  roused  the  California  au- 
tlidiities  to  ])laee  an  advance  jjfuard  in  the  vicinity,  first 
at  San  Kufael  and  its  branch  mission  of  Solano,  and 
Mil»s((|ui'ntly  at  the  military  })ost  of  Sonoma,  to  allirm 
tlu'ir  ])osse8sorv  rii'hts.  In  the  forties  Anijlo-Saxon 
iiiimiijjrants,  adding  their  nun)ber  to  the  Mexican  occu- 
|taiits,  extended  settlement  into  the  valleys  north  of 
the  bay.  With  the  conijuest  population  began  to 
unavitate  round  this  sheet  of  water,  as  the  centre  for 
trade,  a  sprinkling  penetrating  into  San  Joarpiin  Val- 
liy  and  up  the  Sacramento.  The  eti'ect  ef  Marshall's 
discovery  was  to  draw  the  male  inhabitants  from  the 
coast  to  the  gold  region.  Many  ri'Ujained  in  the  greac 
California  Valley  and  became  traders  and  town- 
Ituildcrs;  some  continued  to  roam  along  the  Sierra 
slope  as  gold-diggers. 


:+?;*. 


Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    31 


481 


482 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


pA    ff 


The  Americaix  South  Fork,  aa  nearest  the  point  of  distribution,  at  Sacra- 
mento,  and  carrying  wi*b  it  the  prestige  of  the  gold  discovery,  long  attractc  d 
the  widest  current  of  migration.  A  just  tribute  to  fame  was  awarded  to 
the  saw-mill  site  at  Coloma,  the  first  spot  occupied  in  the  county,  in  1817,  by 
making  it  a  main  station  for  travel  and  the  county  seat  for  £1  Dorado,  and 
so  remaining  until  1857,  after  which,  the  mines  failing,  it  declined  into  a 
small  yet  neat  horticultural  town.  The  saw-mill,  transferred  to  other  bauds 
by  Marshall  and  Sutter,  supplied  in  1849  the  demand  for  lumber.  The  tirst 
ferry  on  the  fork  waa  conducted  here  by  J.  T.  Little,  a  flourishing  trailer. 
LUlle's  SUU.,  MS.,  3.  And  E.  T.  Rann  constructed  here  the  first  bridge  in  the 
county  early  in  1850,  for  $20,000,  yielding  a  return  of  §250  a  day.  Par.  Nniu, 
May  29,  1850.  Population  2,000  in  Oct.  1850.  S.  F.  Picayune,  Oct.  21,  1850; 
Barstow'a  Stat.,  MS.,  1-4;  Shermans  Mem.,  i.  64;  Placer  Times,  July  28,  1849; 
Apr.  29,  1850;  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.,  March  14,  1851.  View  in  Pict.  Uidnn, 
Jan.  1,  Apr.  1854;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Sept.  9, 1857;  A'tt<?.  Union,  Oct.  20, 185(5;  Plnee,- 
mile  Rep.,  Feb.  28,  1878.  Incorporation  act  in  Cal.  SUitutes,  1858,  20". 
Marshall,  the  gold-finder,  gained  recognition  a  while  in  the  adjacent  petty 
UnioTitown,  first  called  after  him.  Tlie  early  drift  of  miners  tended  along 
Webber  Creek  toward  Placerville,  which  became  the  most  prominent  o{  EI 
Dora<lo's  towns,  its  final  county  seat  and  centre  of  traffic.  Southward  rose 
Diamond  Springs,  which  strove  for  the  county  seat  in  1854.  It  was  almost 
destroyr'  by  fire  in  Aug.  1856.  •  Loss  $500,000,  says  Alta  Cal.,  Aug.  7,  1S5G. 
Lately  louuded,  observes  Sac.  Transcript,  Nov.  29,  1850.  Camps,  etc.,  in 
chapter  on  mines.  Mud  Springs,  later  El  Dorado,  was  incorporated  in  18.')'), 
Cal.  Statues,  1855,  116;  1857,  7;  with  great  flourish,  and  disincoi-pora ted  in 
1857.  Several  small  towns  rose  on  the  divide  southward.  Above  the  Soiitli 
Fork  sprang  up  notably  Pilot  Hill,  or  Centre ville,  which  claimed  the  first 
grange  in  the  state.  Then  there  were  Greenwood  and  Georgetown,  both  of 
which  aspired  at  one  time  to  become  the  county  seat.  The  former  was 
named  after  the  famed  mountaineer,  though  first  known  a.s  Long  Valley, 
Lewisville,  etc.  Georgetown,  begun  by  Geo.  Ehrenhaft,  Ballou's  Adrnu, 
MS.,  22,  hail  in  Dec.  1849  a  tributary  population  of  5,000.  AUa  Cal.,  Deu. 
15,  1S49;  Cal.  Courier,  July  12,  1850.  It  was  nearly  destroyed  by  fire  in 
1856.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  July  7,  10,  1856.  Latrobe  rose  on  the  Placerville  K.  U. 
route. 

In  1857  an  effort  was  made  in  vain  to  form  Eureka  county  from  the  north- 
em  half  of  El  Dorado.  Nearly  every  surviving  town  in  the  county  owes  its 
beginning  to  mining,  although  so  large  a  proportion  now  depends  solely  ou 
agriculture  and  trade.  Many  had  early  recourse  to  these  branches  for 
supplying  a  profitable  demand,  potatoes  being  scarce  and  high.  With  the 
decline  of  mining,  however,  involving  the  death  of  so  many  camps,  the  \ital- 
ity  of  the  larger  places  declined,  and  by  1880  less  than  11,000  remained  of  a 
population  which  during  the  fifties  exceeded  20,000.  But  fanning,  and 
notably  horticulture,  stepped  in  to  turn  the  current  into  a  channel  of  slow 
though  steady  revival,  still  assisted  to  some  extent  by  quartz  and  hydraulic 
mining.  The  census  of  1880  assigned  to  the  county  542  farms,  but  an  improved 
acreage  of  only  69,000,  valued  at  $1,181,000,  witli  §482,000  worth  of  produce, 
and  $^-.!>J7,000  of  live-stock,  the  total  assessment  being  $2,312,000.     Farniing 


EL  DORADO  AND  PLACER. 


483 


mtion,  at  Sacra- 
!,  long  !ittract('d 
wa&  awarded  to 
inty,  in  1847,  liy 

El  Dorado,  ;iiid 
declined  into  a 
d  to  other  luiiuls 
nber.  The  lirst 
uriahing  tradrr. 
rst  bridge  in  tlie 
day.  Par.  iS'-  i/k, 
e,  Oct.  21,  1850; 
■s,  July  28,  1849; 
V  iu  Pict.  Ciiinn, 
20,  1850;  Pliccr- 
utes,  1858,  2(r. 
!  adjacent  petty 
!ra  tended  along 
prominent  of  Kl 

Southward  rose 
.  It  was  almost 
:/.,  Aug.  7,  1S5(). 

Cfimps,  etc.,  iu 
•porated  in  18.")5, 
uincoi-pora  ted  iu 

.bove  the  Soutli 
claimed  tlie  first 

•getown,  both  of 
e  former  was 
Long  Valley, 
•aUou's  Adivn., 

Alia  CaL,  Deo. 
»yed  by  fire  iu 

llacerville  K.  R. 

from  the  nortii- 
pounty  owes  its 
penda  aolely  on 
branches  for 
gh.  With  tiie 
|mpa,  the  vital- 
remained  of  a 
farming,  and 
Einnel  f>f  slow 
land  hydraulic 
it  an  improved 
(th  of  produce, 
Farming 


had  its  Vjginning  here  in  1849-50,  when  potatoes  were  first  planted  by  tha 
Hodges  brothers,  on  Greenwood  Creek,  near  Coloma.  Grain  and  general 
farming  engaged  the  attention,  in  1851,  of  many  about  in  Garden  and  Green- 
wood valleys,  and  around  Centreville.  By  1855  about  8,000  acres  lay  enclosed, 
nearly  half  being  under  cultivation;  there  wore  3,000  fruit-trees,  and  as  many 
vines,  3,000  head  of  cattle,  half  as  many  swine,  and  some  1,300  horses  and 
mules.  Forty  saw  and  one  flour  mill  had  been  erected,  and  5  tanneries,  3 
hreweries,  15  toll-bridges,  all  attended  by  numerous  teams  for  traffic.  Soott 
lia<l  a  shingle  machine  in  1847  at  Shingle  Springs.  Several  stage  lines  ^^'ere 
running  since  1849. 

The  adjoining  county  of  Placer,  created  in  1851,  chiefly  out  of  Yuba,  had 
a  section  of  purely  agricultural  land,  which  was  occupied  shortly  before  the 
conquest  by  settlers  who  raised  wheat  and  planted  fruit  before  the  gold  ex- 
citement came  to  interrupt  them.  For  list  of  early  settlers  in  this  and  other 
parts  of  central  and  northern  California,  I  refer  to  the  opening  chapter  of 
this  volume,  and  to  the  preceding  volumes,  for  general  progress  of  settlement 
before  1848.  It  is  said  that  a  crop  of  wheat  was  put  in  on  Bear  River  by 
Johnson  and  Sicardin  1845,  and  that  Chanon  helpeil  Sicard  to  plant  fruit-trees 
the  following  season.  Peaches,  almonds,  and  vines  from  San  Jose  followed 
ill  1 848,  and  later  oranges.  The  peaches  brought  high  prices  at  the  gold-fields. 
Mundenhall  planted  Oregon  fruit  at  Illinoistown  in  1850.  //ii<.  Placer  Co., 
2.S9-40.  After  1849  several  imitators  appeared,  and  in  1852,  679  acres  were 
under  cultivation,  yielding  1$20,000  in  produce,  chiefly  barley;  tlicro  were 
3,5{)0  head  of  8t>ck;  one  third  consisted  of  hogs.  Yet  only  a  small  fraction 
of  the  population,  10,784  persons,  was  then  engaged  in  farming,  and  of  .?l',000,- 
000  invested  capital  over  two  thirds  was  in  mining  and  one  seventh  in  trade. 
Of  the  population,  6,602  were  whito  males,  343  females,  3,019  Chinese,  730 
Indians,  the  rest  foreigners.     See  Cal.  Cenxm,  1852,  30-1. 

By  1855  there  were  143  improved  ranchos,  after  which  a  rapid  increase 
set  in.  Good  markets  were  found  among  the  numerous  mining  camps  along 
tlie  American  forks  and  intervening  divides,  among  which  Auburn  rose  to 
the  county  seat  and  sustained  itself  as  leading  town.  It  occupied  a  beautiful 
sjjot,  and  later  it  became  a  h'salth  resort.  Mines  were  opened  there  in  1848, 
and  it  was  one  of  the  best  sustained  of  the  placers.  Population,  Oct.  1850, 
1,51)0.  S.  F.  Picayune,  Oct.  21,  1850.  Was  county  seat  of  Sutter  before  1861. 
Suffered  severely  from  fireio  1855,  Sac.  Union,  June  6,  9,  Aug.  4-6,  1855,  and 
in  1859  and  1863.  Placer  Co.  Dtrec,  1861,  7.  Incorporated  in  1860,  and  dis- 
incorporated  7  years  lator.  Cat,  SUitutci,  1860,  427;  '807-8,  555.  Nearby 
Copeland  established  one  of  the  earliest  ranchos.  Dutch  Flat  was  the  trading 
centre  of  1849,  and  in  1860  it  polled  the  largest  vote  in  the  county,  over  500. 
Incorporated  in  1863,  disincor}>orated  three  years  later.  Id.,  1863,  255;  1865- 
0,  10;  Dutcti  Flat  Forum,  March  8,  20,  1877  Forest  Hill  and  Iowa  Hill  long 
held  the  lead  in  the  eastern  a<  ^tiou.  They  sprang  up  like  magic  after  the  gold 
development  of  1853,  Id.,  43,  and  overwhadowed  Elizabethtown  and  Wis- 
consin Hill,  as  Forest  Hill  did  Sarahsville  or  Bath,  assisted  by  its  cement  de- 
posits. Illinoistown,  first  called  Alder  Grove  or  Upper  Corral,  and  Yankee 
Jim's  were  prominent  in  early  days,  owing  to  their  rich  diggings.  The  latter 
was  named  after  Jim  Goodland,  says  Balloua  Advent.,  MS.,  22,  though  the 


4S4 


CAUFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


Pliicer  Dirtrtory,  1861,  12-13,  gives  the  honor  to  the  Sydiieyito  Jim  Roliinsoti, 
M'lio  was  hanged  for  hone-stealuig  in  185*2.  The  plucu  suffered  severuly  from 
lire  iu  1852,  AUa  CaL,  June  Iti,  1852,  yut  quickly  rivallud  again  iu  sizu  any 
town  in  the  county.  Gilbert  brothers  woru  among  the  first  settlers.  Oiihir 
■WM  snstained  by  horticulture  and  quartz.  In  1852  this  was  the  large»t  iiLuc 
in  the  county,  the  vote  being  500.  Gold  Hill,  n«ur  by,  was  of  secondary 
importance.  See,  furtlier,  under  mining;  Sac.  Tnw»mj)t,  1850-1;  Piicvr  Co. 
Director!/,  1861,  9,  200,  et  seq.;  DfUck  FUit  Enquirer,  Oct.  9,  1802.  Michigan 
Bluffs  and  Todd  Valley  were  long  prominent.  The  railroad  built  up  a  nuin- 
bur  of  stations  betweeu  Cisco  and  Rocklin,  notably  Colfax  au  I  Lincoln,  tliu 
former  aided  by  the  narrow -gauge  line  to  Nevada,  and  transferred  from  KI 
Dorado  the  transit  business  with  Washoe,  and  the  emigrant  route  so  long 
striven  for  in  vain  by  Placer.  In  1852  a  roatl  was  coiistmctetl  to  \Vii.>ilinu 
Valley,  from  Yankee  Jim's,  for  $13,000,  but  failed  to  secure  traffic.  Plactrit 
larger  area  of  tillable  soil  saved  tliis  county  from  sharing  in  the  decadence  of 
EI  Dorado,  and  its  foothills  became  celebrated  for  their  salubrity  of  cliinat(; 
and  viticultural  advantages.  The  population  in  I860  was  13,270,  and  iu  1880 
14,200,  the  gains  in  the  west  balancing  the  eiistern  losses.  Its  total  asae.s.s- 
niuut  ranged  then  at  more  than  $5,774,000,  of  M'hich  $1,885,000  covered  the 
value  of  514  farms,  with  9618,000  in  produce  and  $379,000  iu  live-stock. 


Sacramento  county,  which  occupied  the  fertile  bottom  Indow  tliese  two 
n)ining  counties,  benefited  by  their  demand  on  traffic  and  productions.  It 
stood  prepared  for  both  as  the  site  of  the  key  to  the  valley,  the  capital,  M'liich 
remained  throughout  the  great  entrepot  and  tlie  most  promising  manufactur- 
ing place.  Sutter's  efforts  from  1830  in  planting  fields  and  originating  ilitfcr- 
ent  industries  encourage<I  a  number  of  others  to  follow  his  example,  and  to 
establish  ranchos,  at  least  along  the  great  bay  tributaries.  CaL  Censun,  IS.")'.', 
8,  31-2.  Of  nuuiufactures  Sutter  had  before  1848  established  tanneries, 
flour  and  saw  mills,  the  latter  not  completed.  There  was  a  brick^yard  us 
early  as  1847  at  Sntterville,  and  a  grist-mill  on  the  Cosunuies.  'llie  incipient 
industries  at  Sutter's  Fort  and  on  the  Cosumnes,  checked  l)y  the  gold  din- 
covery,  took  shortly  aft«r  firmer  roots,  and  in  1850  two  flour-mills  ojwned  at 
or  near  Sacramento,  brick-making  was  resumed  in  1840,  machine-shups 
started  the  year  after,  and  iu  1851  a  number  of  new  and  rival  branches  fol- 
lowed. 

On  the  American  main  river  lay  three  notable  grants;  on  the  Cosumnes 
Daylor  and  Sheldon  ha«l  half  a  dozen  assistants  and  neighbors;  and  on  Dry 
Ci'jek  and  the  Mokelunme  wero  sevenil  more  settlers,  all  of  them  ready  to 
welcome  those  who  after  1849  prepared  to  retire  from  mining  and  join  in 
agricultural  pursuits  so  favorably  begun.  The  couuty  was  accordingly  creil- 
ittid  already  in  1850  with  over  2,000  acres  of  improved  land,  live-stock  valued 
at  $1 15,000,  aud  fully  as  much  more  in  pro<Iuce,  namely,  improved  acres  2,044, 
with  implements  valued  at  $2,250;  about  800  horses  aud  nmles,  7,000  cattle, 
aud  2,000  sheep  and  swine;  over  10,000  bushels  of  wheat  and  l>arley,  and 
$41,000  worth  of  gar<len  pro<luce  besides  hay.  17.  S.  Cengun,  18.'>0,  976-8.  By 
1852  the  live-stock  ha<l  iucrease*!  to  a  value  of  $300,000,  and  the  agricultural 
products  to  over  $1,000,000;   of   cereals  there  were   over  180,000  buskeU, 


SACRAMENTO. 


485 


rliiiny  Parley.  Invested  capital,  $8,000,000.  For  these  products  the  castirn 
lionler  of  the  couiity  provi(lc<l  early  outlets  in  a  numlM-r  of  niiuiug  camps; 
(ifveral  shipping;  poiuta  for  surroundiug  farms  rose,  as  Freciiort,  built  up  liy 
the  Freeport  R.  R.  Co.,  which  proving  a  failure,  reduced  the  town  from  SIH)  or 
MM  iiihiibitants  to  a  mere  handful.  Tlien  there  were  Conrtlantl,  Isleton,  whi-re 
later  rose  a  Inset-sugar  factory,  and  Walnut  fJrove,  the  railroa*!  rovivinx 
otiiers,  while  adding  to  their  number,  as  Arca«Ie,  Florine,  Hlk  (imve,  and 
<ialt  Brighton,  the  site  of  Sutter's  mill,  moved  later  toward  the  railroa<l; 
Niirristowu,  or  Hoboken,  a  mile  southward,  the  old  site  having  a  oloudtMl 
title,  Ihutera  Stat.,  MS.,  9-10,  aspired  after  the  Sac.  disasters  of  IS-Vi-.l  to 
U^conie  'CB  successor,  but  fiuled  away  like  a  tlrcam;  Folsom,  fonn<led  in 
1S,V>ag  tlie  terminus  of  the  Sac.  Valley  railroad,  Itecame  a  stage  hea4kjuart<.-r.s, 
mill  .-io(}uired  a  reputation  for  its  granite  quarries  which  promote*!  the  e.stiib- 
lishment  here  of  a  branch  prison.  <rranite  was  the  tirst  appropriate  name 
iiiU;rtaiueil,  but  tlie  intluence  prevailed  of  I'apt.  Fnlsom,  who  nianipulate<l 
till'  Leideadorff  grant  covering  this  point.  This  title  hail  so  far  prevented 
tarlier  attempts,  since  1852,  to  make  available  the  water-power  of  the  pl.tce. 
/'()/.«);«  Trleiiriij>/u,  .March  10,  18(iG;  March  2G,  1870,  etc.  This  journal  in  itself 
ilhistrates  the  progress  of  the  place.  See  also  Sac  Uttion,  •T.-u>.  22,  March  13, 
.\l.r.  4,  9,  Oct.  31,   1860,  etc.;  S.  F.  BitUetin,  Aug.  23,  1856;  Alia  Cat,  Jan. 

iM,  I8r>(>. 

The  county  early  demonstrated  the  superiority  of  farming  over  mining  as 
n  wealth-producing  pursuit,  for  within  a  few  years  the  valne  of  its  farms 
aliiiie  surpassed  the  combined  totid  assessments  of  the  two  adjoining  mining 
I'Dimties,  as  did  its  population  in  number.  The  census  of  I88<l  placed  the 
population  .34,390,  with  1,100  farms  valued  at  |tl2,.^')0,000,  with  $2,488,000  in 
]>riHlui-e,  and  ^,240,000  in  stock;  total  assessment,  lK18,41(i,000.  Sec  theseo- 
tiim  al>out  Sacramento  city  for  other  information. 


Tlie  rich  bai-s  of  Yuba  River  filled  the  hanks  so  rapidly  with  camps  that 
till!  ciuinty  of  this  name  had  to  be  further  divided  in  April  1851  to  form 
.Ncva<la,  of  which  Ncvatla  City  became  the  seat,  as  the  most  central  of  the 
prominent  mining  towns.  Orass  Valley,  to  the  south,  was  then  only  alM>ut 
to  open  the  quartz  veins  which  soon  lifted  it  to  the  most  populous  place  in  the 
county,  and  Hough  and  Ready,  which  lay  too  far  wostwar*!,  was  alrcaily  de- 
clining. This  place  was  founded  in  the  autumn  of  1849  by  the  Rough  an<l 
ItciulyCo.,  so  named  after  (ien.  Taylor,  and  headed  by  Capt.  A.  A.  Townscnd. 
The  Riiiulolph  Co.  soon  joined.  In  Jan.  1850  Mi.s-sionary  J.  Ihiideavy 
lirought  his  wife  and  opened  a  sahmn.  In  Feb.  H.  Q.  RoImtIs  st-irt«sl  the 
first  regidar  store.  By  April  a  populous  town  had  risen,  which  by  t)ct.  jwdli-d 
nearly  1,000  votes,  and  claimed  the  leading  place  in  the  county.  It  hail  3  or 
4  eiiinpactly  built  streets,  and  altout  4,000  or  (3,000  tributary  inhabitants 
.s:iy  the  Sat:.  Tnutscript,  Oct.  14,  1850,  CnL  Courier,  Dec.  2.'>,  I8.V),  and  S.  F. 
Piriignne,  Oct.  21,  1850.  A  vigilance  committee  was  fonne^l  t«i  govern  the 
town,  insure  its  safety,  and  promote  the  location  here  of  the  county  seat  Tlie 
drought  of  the  winter  1850-1  proved  a  serious  blow,  and  the  town  was  almost 
desertetl,  but  ditches  being  intrtxluced,  a  decided  revival  t«¥»k  pl.icc.  A  tire  of 
.hine  1853  destroyed  twoscore  buililings,  valued  at  ^(30,000,  Altn  Cal.,  June 


486 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


ii 


1 
i  < 


H\    I. 


«!■) 


30,  1853,  and  another  in  1859  reduced  it  to  a  petty  hamlet.  Grass  VnUnj 
JJii-ectory,  1856,  44-5;  Nevada  Co.  Hist.,  89-91;  Id.,  Directory,  18«7,  359-1)1. 
Nevada  aud  Graaa  Valley  are  described  elsewhere,  and  camps  are  noted  uuilur 
mining. 

Little  Fork  rose  to  prominence  in  1852  on  the  ftrength  of  a  rich  giavcl  de- 
posit, which  long  sustained  it.  It  was  mined  in  1849,  founded  in  1850,  hud 
over  600  inhabitants  m  Sept.  1852.  Id.,  367-8;  Nev.  Gaz.,  Dec.  18,  18(;9. 
Burned  in  1878.  North  Bloomfield  throve  on  similar  resources  in  1855  and 
revived  in  1867.  This  place  was  opened  in  1851  as  Humbug  City,  after  the 
creek,  had  400  inhabitants  in  1856,  declined  a  while  after  1867,  had  1,200  in- 
habitants in  1880,  together  with  Malakoff.  The  flourishing  Indian  Camp  of 
1850  remains  now  as  Washington.  Yon  Bet  sprang  up  in  1857,  and  absorlied 
several  surrounding  camps,  such  as  Ued  Tog  and  Walloupa.  Its  name  wa» 
due  to  the  frequent  and  emphatic  *  you  bet '  expression  of  a  pioneer  resident. 
Woods'  Pioneer,  97.  North  San  Juan  proved  the  staiichest  town  in  the 
north-west  section,  with  a  tributary  population  of  nearly  lyOOO  in  1880.  Near 
by  lay  Birchville,  Cherokee — with  400  inhabitants  for  a  long  period — French 
Corral,  and  Sweetland,  which  have  fairly  sustained  themselves,  with  300  or 
400  inhabitants.  At  the  northern  border  is  Moore  Flat,  with  a  pox>ulation 
of  500  in  1880.  Orleans  Flat,  originally  Concord,  surpassed  it  till  1857. 
Eureka  South  revived  in  1866  with  quartz  developments.  In  the  east  is 
Truckec,  founded  in  1863-4  as  a  railroad  station,  becoming  a  flourishing 
centre  for  lumber  and  ice,  later  aspiring  to  the  dignity  of  seat  for  a  nuw 
county.  Truckee  River  was  named  after  an  Indian  with  a  corrupt  French 
api>ellation.  S.J.  Pioneer,  Oct.  5,  1878;  Bern  SUir  Journal,  May  1815;  S.  Raf. 
Herakl,  May  20,  1875.  Truckee  was  applie<l  to  the  strange  gait  of  the  Indian, 
writes  a  pioneer  in  Sta  Cruz  Times,  Aug.  6, 1870.  Called  Cobum  Station,  after 
the  proprietor  of  a  saloon.  Rebuilt  after  the  fire  of  1868,  the  name  preserved 
in  the  creek  was  applied  to  it.  Nevada  Scraps,  386-90. 

The  copi)er  excitement  of  1865-6  raised  a  crop  of  ephemeral  towns,  of 
which  Spenceville  alone  survived  as  a  little  village.  For  references  to  early 
towns,  see  Gal.  Courier,  Oct  16,  Dec.  25,  1850;  Larkiit's  Doc.,  vii.  174;  Nev. 
Co.  Hist.,  60  et  aeq.;  Alia  Cal,  July  11,  1853;  July  15,  Aug.  21,  1854;  Sac. 
Union,  1854etseq.;  Gntss  Val.  Directory,  1856,  14,  89,  etseq.;  Ballou'sAdven., 
MS.,  26;  Nev.  Co.  Directonj,  1867,  396. 

Boca  was  built  up  by  a  brewery  company,  and  several  towns  have  been 
revived  to  some  extent  by  manufacturing  enterprise,  one  source  for  which 
exists  in  the  forests.  Saw-mills  were  started  as  early  as  1849-50  near  and  at 
Grass  Valley,  and  by  1852  $129,000  was  invested  in  this  branch  alone  in  the 
county.  Mining  employed  about  $4,500,000,  chiefly  in  quartz  operation.-). 
Agriculture  flourished  under  the  general  proHperity,  and  in  1852  some  1,500 
acres  M'ere  in  cultivation,  yielding  nearly  15,000  bushels  of  grain  and  10,000 
bushels  of  potatoes,  the  most  favored  of  esculents  in  early  days.  The  live- 
stock numljered  14,000.  The  farming  capital  was  placed  at  $113,000,  and 
that  employetl  in  trade  at  $370,000.  Cal.  Census,  1852,  29-30;  Nev.  Co.  Hist., 
167-70.  In  1855  the  cultivated  acreage  amounted  to  4,300,  and  the  fruit- 
trees  numbered  3,200,  according  to  an  official  report  which  appears  incom- 
plete.    The  many  toll  roads  and  bridges  established  since  1850  gave  stimu- 


YUBA  AND  SUTTER. 


487 


Ills  to  trade.  The  second  newspaper  in  the  mining  districts  was  issued  at 
Xi;v  ada  in  1851.  A  branch  railroad,  narrow  gauge,  was  begun  in  1875.  See 
Id.,  123  et  seq.  Quartz  and  other  resources  have  helped  to  sustain  the  popu- 
lation at  the  high  fij^ure  of  20,800  according  to  the  censua  of  1860,  with  prop- 
urty  iisaeased  at  $6,920,000,  of  which  $818,000  was  represented  by  35C  farms, 
with  $271,000  in  produce  and  $188,000  in  live-stock. 


Yuba  county  presented  a  favorable  combination  of  mining,  forest,  and 
fariiiing  tracts,  the  latter  so  attractive  as  to  invite  since  1841  a  number  of 
settlers  along  the  main  Feather,  Yuba,  and  Bear  rivers,  and  Honcut  Creek. 
T.  Cordua's  rancho,  commanding  the  outlet  of  the  camp-speckled  Yuba,  sug- 
gested the  trade  centre,  which  rose  here  in  1849  under  the  name  of  Marys- 
villu,  as  explained  elsewhere.  For  early  settlers,  see  the  opening  chapter  of 
this  volume.  Good  prospects  led  a  number  of  speculators  to  plant  rival 
towns  to  bid  for  the  trade,  such  as  Yuba  City,  Plumas,  £1  Dorado,  Eliza,  and 
Fuatherton  on  Feather  River,  Kearney  on  Bear  River,  and  Linda  on  the  Yuba, 
liusiiles  Yeazie,  Yatestown,  Hamilton,  and  Nicolaus,  most  of  which  places 
failed  away  or  lingered  as  petty  hamlets;  for  Marysville  commanded  the  sit- 
uation, and  despite  her  lateral  position  she  became  seat  of  government,  which 
before  1851  stood  between  Butte  and  El  Dorado,  Placer  and  Nevada  being 
si.'gregated  in  1851,  and  Sierra  in  1852,  partly  owing  to  the  distance  from 
Marysville.  Plumas  was  founded  by  Sutter  and  Beach  some  15  miles  below, 
and  Fcatherton  by  Covillaud  the  same  distance  above  Marysville;  but  like 
Kearney  and  El  Dorado  they  obtained  no  practical  existence.  Placer  Timet, 
Mareh  30,  May  3,  1850;  Sac.  Trat^script,  Apr.  26,  18,50;  Pnc.  Xew«,  May  27, 
1850;  AUa  Col.,  May  27,  1850.  Eliza,  founded  by  the  Kenneljec  Co.,  Id., 
Cal.  Courier,  July  11,  1850,  Bauer,  Shtt.,  MS.,  5-6,  subsided  gradually,  as  did 
Limla,  named  by  Rose  after  the  pioneer  steamer.  Camp  Far  West  on  Bear 
liiver  was  a  military  post  abandoned  in  1852.  Fredonia  lay  15  miles  1>elow 
Marysville.  .Sac.  Tramcript,  Apr.  26,  1850.  Among  mining  camps  Park, 
Knse,  and  Foster  bars  stood  prominent,  together  with  the  adjacent  Timbuctoo 
iiud  Smartsville,  and  Frenchtown  to  the  north,  each  of  which  at  some  time 
claimed  a  population  of  over  1,000,  except  Smartsville,  which  dates  only 
from  1856,  founded  by  G.  Smart,  and  Frenchtown,  started  by  Vavasseur. 
Origin  of  Timbuctoo,  in  Marynville  Appeal,  Jan.  16,  1873.  Brown  Valley 
became  conspicuous  in  1863  for  quartz  resources,  which  failed  to  realize  expec- 
tations, while  Camptonville  sustained  itself  as  the  centre  of  a  rich  gravel 
tielii.  Brownsville  sprang  up  in  1851  round  a  saw-mill,  and  became  known  as 
an  educational  and  temperance  town,  and  Wheatland  was  laid  out  in  1866  as 
a  railroad  station,  to  become  a  flourishing  shipping  place,  with  a  population 
of  030  Ijy  1880.  References  to  early  settlements  in  Ballou's  Adven.,  MS., 
25-6;  Yuba  Co.  Hint.,  passim;  also  in  Sutter,  Placer,  and  Nevada  histories, 
and  Placer  Times,  Oct.  27,  1849. 

Notwithstanding  the  early  establishment  of  ranches,  live-stock  appears 
alone  to  have  received  attention  previous  to  1850,  when  grain  crops  are  first 
recorded  by  J.  Morriet,  Bryden,  and  Piatt,  the  former  bringing  cattle  in 
1S4!).  The  census  of  1860  has  no  figures  for  Yuba,  yet  CaL  Cemtus,  1852,  54- 
0,  shows  so  remarkable  an  advance  as  to  be  doubtful  in  this  respect.     The 


' 


488 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


I, 
■lit 


melons  raised  are  placed  at  1,000,000,  the  barley  crop  alone  is  estimated  at 
over  312,000  bushels,  and  wheat,  etc.,  add  20,000  bushels.  See  also  YhIki 
Co.  Hint.,  46,  79,  89,  99.  In  1852,  7,000  acres  were  rcjKirted  niuler  cultiva- 
tion, while  the  live-stock  numbered  over  10,000  head.  Invested  capital, 
exclusive  of  real  estate,  amounted  to  (4,500,0(X),  of  which  2,UIM),0()0  was  in 
trade,  and  two  per  cent  in  18  saw  <nills  and  one  flonring  mill,  the  first  f>aw- 
mill  dating  from  1849,  at  Moore's  on  Bear  River,  which,  in  1854,  was  chaiit^ud 
to  a  grist-milL  Id.,  39,  60-71,  places  the  Bnckeye  Mill  at  Marysville,  of  1S')S, 
as  the  earliest  flour-milL  A  tannery  and  foundry  are  ascribed  to  this  town 
in  1852.  The  saw- mills  produced  9,000,000  feet  for  the  year.  Marys ville 
had  a  newspaper  in  1850.  Under  the  gradual  change  in  leading  resources, 
farms  figure  here  at  a  larger  value  than  in  any  of  the  preceding  counties, 
and  to  them  is  mainly  due  that  the  population  has  so  very  nearly  sustained 
itself  at  the  early  number,  decliniu^^  only  to  11,280  in  1880,  from  I3,G70  in 
1860.  The  farms  in  1880  nunibvretl  515,  value<l  at  $2, 197,000,  with  ;^24,UU0 
in  produce,  and  |429,000  in  live-stock;  total  assessment,  ^,293,000. 


I 


'i 


Sutter  forms  the  only  purely  agricultural  connty  on  the  east  side  of  the 
valley.  The  earliest  occupant  was  John  A.  Sutter,  who  here  estaldisheil 
Hock  Farm  in  1841.  He  was  soon  joine<l  by  several  settlers,  notably  Nioolaus 
Altgeier,  who,  incitetl  by  the  rush  for  town  sites,  ex(>anded  his  hut  and  ferry- 
landing  into  a  trading  post,  and  half  a  year  later,  with  the  begimiing  of  18<'>(), 
laid  out  Nicolaus.     Lot  advertisement  in  Placer  Times,  Feb.  16,  1850.     In 

1851  the  name  was  applied  to  the  township.  StiUer  Co.  Hist.,  '.lz  et  suq.  It 
had  2  dozen  houses  in  April,  acconling  to  Sac.  Trantcript,  Apr.  26,  Nov.  14, 
1850;  CtiL  Courier,  Aug.  7,  Oct.  16,  1850;  Alta  CiiL,  May  27,  1850;  Siitln- 
Banner,  Apr.  15,  1867.  Tapping  as  it  did  Bear  River,  and  being  accesitiMe 
at  low  stages  of  water  by  steamboats,  it  became  for  a  time  the  county  seat, 
and  managed  to  maintain  a  certain  prominence  as  a  sliipping  place.  The 
head  of  navigation  hail  at  first  been  limited  to  the  mouth  of  Feather  River, 
and  here  accordingly  the  town  of  Vernon  was  laid  out  as  early  as  tlie  spring 
of  1849.  It  gave  great  promise  and  obtained  for  a  time  the  county  seat;  but 
declined  through  the  overshatlowing  influence  of  other  apper  towns.  It  was 
founded  by  I.  Norris,  F.  Bates,  and  E.  O.  Crosby.  Some  say  G.  Crosby,  and 
substitute  B.  Simons  for  Norris.  Pac.  Xetps,  Dec.  6,  1849;  Bufftmig  Six  Mo., 
153.  Officials  of  1849,  including  Alcalde  Grant,  in  Unbound  Doc,  MS.,  58-9; 
CoUona  Three  Years,  416;  FieUVs  Rem.,  19-20;  Kirtpntriek's  Jour.,  MS.,  34. 
Fremont,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  Sacramento,  rivalled  it  for  a  time.  Sac. 
Transcript,  Apr.  26,  1850.  In  the  summer  of  1849  Vernon  hatl  600  or  700  in- 
habitants, but  the  flood  of  1849-50  frightened  them  away,  says  Crosby,  SUit., 
MS.,  27,  one  of  the  founders.  The  steamer  service  which  at  this  time  ex- 
tended to  Marysville  gave  the  real  blow.  Tlie  county  seat  was  here  in  1851- 
2.  Yuba  City,  with  similar  pretensions  and  in  anticipation  of  Marysville,  Wiis 
founded  in  August  1849,  by  S.  Brannan,  P.  K  Reading,  and  H.  Cheever, 
under  a  grant  from  Sutter.  Advertisements  in  Placer  Times,  Aug.  25,  184'J, 
Apr.  1850.     But  the  advance  of  Marysville  acted  against  the  place,  and  in 

1852  it  had  a  population  of  only  120,  with  15  to  20  dwellings,  one  hotel,  and 
about  6  shops.  Armstrong's  Exper.,  MS.,  10,  by  one  of  first  residents;  AUa 


SIERRA  AND  BUTTE.  489 

C'll,  Jan.  25,  1830,  etc.  Pm.  News,  Apr.  27,  May  27,  1850,  lauds  her  pros- 
j)fctr(,  which  were  fosteretl  by  a  ferry;  80  or  90  houses  and  more  preparing, 
Ka\s  Siir.  Tmnsrrijit,  Apr.  26,  1850.  Further,  in  SuUerCo  Hint.,  37,  99,  etc.; 
S'k:  Union,  Jnly  21,  1855,  etc.  Yuba  City  was  opposite  the  mouth  of  Feather 
KiviT,  but  tlie  superior  site  and  progress  of  Marysville  undermined  the  for- 
intr,  and  after  1850  the  place  declined.  In  1850,  however,  it  was  niatle  the 
riiunty  seat  for  Sutter,  and  licgan  to  recover,  attaining  finally  a  population  of 
alxnit  C(X).  It  was  incorporated  in  1878.  Previously  tliu  county  liad  among 
other  seats  Auburn,  which  in  1851  was  surrendered  to  Placer,  and  first  Oro, 
wliiih  proved  a  paj)er  city.  It  was  founded  in  the  winter  of  1849-50,  by  Gen. 
(iii'iii,  '2  miles  above  Nicolaus.  It  attained  only  to  one  hoUHC.  ('<(/.  Courier, 
Oct.  1(5,  1S.")0,  etc.  Two  stations  opened  later  along  tlie  railroad,  and  Merid- 
ian was  among  the  petty  places  started  on  the  banks  of  the  .Saorami-nto.  Soe 
Siilfcr  Co.  Hixt.,  92-7,  for  settlers  after  1849,  wlien  town  building  and  trathc 
attracted  a  gomlly  number.  For  previous  data,  see  the  opening  cliapter 
of  this  vol.  The  county  lay  away  from  the  beaten  paths  of  traffic  that  might 
have  raised  larger  towns,  and  with  hardly  any  resources  to  encourage  manu- 
factures. Half  of  the  few  enterprises  starte<l  were  failures,  like  the  brewery 
opcaeil  in  1850  at  Nicolaus,  the  sorghum  and  castor-oil  mills  of  1803-7,  and 
even  Clianom's  grist-mill  on  Bear  River.  The  county  did  not  possess  a 
newspaper  of  its  own  before  1807.  It  was  purely  a  farming  district,  in  which 
grain  was  raised  as  early  as  1845,  chiefly  on  the  east  side  of  iY-ather  River, 
to  supply  Sutter's  Russian  contract.  See  Sutter  Co.  Hist.,  83.  Yet  owing 
to  tlie  golil  excitement,  the  U.  S.  Ceiimui  of  1850,  977-9,  reports  only  200  acres 
iiiiprnvod  land,  yielding  chiefly  {H)tiitoes,  but  with  implements  valued  at 
81v),()00,  and  farms  at  §100,000;  live-stwk,  3,500  head.  In  18.V>  there  were 
1.4()0  acres  in  cultivation,  yiebling  over  50,000  bushels,  mainly  barley.  Live- 
stock alwut  7,000  head.  Only  §3,000  are  given  as  invested  in  trade.  Cnl. 
Ci'ii.tii>i,  1852,  50.  Vines  had  already  l)een  planted  at  Hock  Farm.  It  depends 
wholly  upon  its  fertile  farms,  placed  by  the  census  of  1880  at  581,  the  value 
being  .^'>,  172,000,  with  $1,526,000  in  produce,  and  $511,000  in.  live-stock;  pop- 
ulation 5,160. 


It  is  an  appropriate  name,  that  of  Sierra,  for  a  county  occupying  as  it  does 
the  sunuiiit  of  the  Nevada  range,  with  too  limited  an  extent  of  soil  in  the 
siiiall,  scattered  valleys,  and  too  severe  a  climate  to  accpiire  any  considerable 
proininence  in  agriculture,  or  to  sustain  the  large  influx  of  population 
brought  by  the  early  gohl  rushes.  The  Cat.  CenniM,  1852,  44-5,  records  168 
acres  under  cultivation,  yielding  chiefly  vegetables;  live-stock,  400  head; 
cajiital  invested,  $475,000,  largely  in  mining.  By  1880,  there  were  15t!  farms, 
valued  at  $453,000,  with  $2.")2,0!K)  in  produce,  and  $140,000  in  stock,  other 
]iroperty  being  assessed  at  $1,000,000.  Of  manufactures  little  beyond  saw- 
mills found  encouragement,  the  tirst  by  Ihirgan  l)eing  in  1850,  at  Washing- 
tonville.  Crayford  and  Cheever  started  anotlier  in  1851,  above  Downieville; 
in  I  K.')2  two  were  added.  Tlie  population  declined  from  11,390  in  1800  to 
<),()20  by  1880.  At  Downieville  wjw  built  a  foundry  in  18.")5,  and  two  brew- 
eries in  1854  and  1861.  While  occupied  by  miners  in  1849,  the  Gold  Lake 
excitement  of  the  following  year  furnished  the  main  influx  wiiich  lifted 


490 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


Sierra  to  a  separate  county  in  1852.  The  seat  at  Downievillo  was  foutuleil 
in  February  1850,  and  well  sustained  by  extensive  mining  resources.  Its 
originators  were  W.  H.  Parks,  Mayor  WniDownie,  after  whom  it  was  nameil, 
and  who,  after  discovering  gold  at  Yuba  forks,  and  opening  a  rich  regimi, 
met  with  reverses  that  changed  only  in  British  Columbia  and  Idaho.  IIhUqu'h 
Adven.,  MS.,  22;  Mitiern  Mag.,  i.  8;  Kane,  in  Mi»cel.  SUU.,  MS.,  9.  The  pliue 
grew  rapidly,  claiming  a  tributary  population  in  April  1850  of  5,000,  wliii'li 
is  doubtful,  and  polling  1,132  votes  in  1851,  and  possessing  a  journal  in  18.)'2. 
BarsUrw's  SUU  ,   MS.,  2,  7;  Sac.    Traru)cri}>t,  Aug.  30,   1850.     On  Feb.  '2\, 

1852,  it  was  nearly  levelled  by  fire,  loss  fully  $600,000.  Alia  Col.,  Feb.  24, 
Dec.  29,  1852;  Pl<icer  Times,  i'eb.  29,  1852;  S.  F.  Herald,  id.  The  follow- 
ing  winter  brought  destitution  from  interrupted  traffic.  Hayes'  Cat.  A'Dlm, 
iii.  64.  Another  severe  fire  occurred  in  Jan.  1858;  yet  it  recovered  rapidly, 
and  was  incor])orated  in  1803.  Cat.  Statutes,  18()3,  70-8;  Plumas  Co.  Hkt.,  4.^(1- 
65,  483;  YuUa  Co.  Hist.,  41;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  May  26,  1860;  Nov.  3,  1879.  The 
census  of  1852  gave  it  a  population  of  810,  which  has  increased  consiileralily. 
Howland  Fl.at,  in  the  north,  retained  some  of  its  old  prosperity,  but  the  adja- 
cent St  Louis,  laid  out  in  1852,  declined  a  few  years  later,  as  did  Forest  City, 
in  the  south,  while  Sierra  City,  which  lingered  in  early  years,  acquired  per- 
manency after  1857.  St  Louis  began  in  1850  as  Sears'  Diggings;  its  vote  w<m 
398  in  1856;  burned  in  Sept.  1854,  and  July  1857,  latter  loss  $200,000.  For- 
est City  prospered  between  1852-6  as  Brownville,  Elizaville,  and  finally  in 
1853-4  as  Forest  City.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  3,  1860. 

With  its  large  expanse  of  rich  valley  land,  Butte  county  attracted  settlers 
as  early  as  1844-5,  and  was  largely  parcelled  out  in  grants,  whose  doubtful 
titles  for  a  time  clouded  progress.  The  rise  of  Marysville  gave  the  ineeiitivu 
in  1850  for  founding  here,  as  the  higher  prospective  head  of  navigation  or 
points  of  distribution,  a  number  of  towns,  of  which  several  remaine<I  on  papiM-, 
and  a  few  others  rose  only  to  be  hamlets.  Among  the  latter  were  Yatcstowu 
and  Fredonia,  faci.ig  each  other  on  Feather  River;  Veazie  below,  and  Troy 
and  Butte  City,  the  latter  surviving  on  the  Sacramento.  The  most  prom- 
ising among  them  was  Hamilton,  which  gained  the  county  seat  from  Bidwell 
Bar  in  Sept.  1850,  and  did  fairly  well  for  three  years,  partly  on  the  strength 
of  gold  discoveries  made  since  1848.  Half  a  dozen  houses,  and  some  shanties, 
says  Cal.  Conner,  of  Oct.  16,  1850;  <S'.  F.  Picayune,  Dec.  11,  1850.  Its  decline 
is  described  in  S.  Josii  Pioneer,  Nov.  21,  1877,  the  place  being  finally  rediutd 
to  a  solitary  house.  Bidwcll  Bar,  which  was  also  mined  in  1848,  flouriitliud 
in  a  richer  field  until  1855.     It  claimed  a  tributary  population  of  2,(MM)  in 

1853.  The  population  in  1850  while  county  seat  was  600.  It  was  almost 
totally  burned  in  1854.  Alta  Cal.,  Aug.  3-16,  1854;  BuUe  Record,  Oct.  -24, 
1874;  Delano's  L{/'e,  255.  It  recovered  in  part,  on  the  strength  of  being  the 
county  seat  since  1853.  Presently  became  apparent  the  superior  advantage 
of  the  adjacent  Oroville,  which  assumed  rank  as  the  leading  mining  town  and 
head  of  navigation.  With  a  vote  of  1,000  in  1856,  and  a  tributary  population 
of  4,000,  it  wrested  from  its  rival  the  county  seat,  and  assumed  the  rank  of 
an  incorporated  town.  Two  years  later,  a  disastrous  fire  followed  in  the  vaku 
of  diminishing  gold  resources;  but  with  the  extension  hither  of  the  railroad. 


PLUMAS. 


481 


by  w.iy  of  Marysville,  the  decline  was  checked.  Mined  in  1840,  Oroville  was 
kudwii  in  1850  as  Ophir,  rising  to  proiiiinunue  in  1852,  and  in  1855,  to  avoid 
confusion  with  the  Ophir  of  Placer  co.,  the  name  was  changutl  to  Oroville. 
BnA;  in  Aniutrow/a  Exper.,  MS.,  1«;  Puc.  Monthly,  xi.  83.'l-4.  The  firo  of 
Jiilv  1)^58  swept  away  the  business  blocks,  loss  nearly  $400,000.  This  pro- 
motLil  disincorporation  in  1859.  Cal.  SUituten,  1857,  77,  291,  etc.  Yet  pro- 
grixsivc  enterprises,  in  bridges,  water-works,  etc.,  continued,  and  the  railroad, 
wliich  readied  here  in  18ti4,  was  aided  by  the  town  with  $200,000  in  bontls. 
DetiiilM  in  Butte  Co.  Hint.,  232-45;  Id.,  IlluH.,  17.  Notices  in  liar.  Union, 
Sipt.  2(5,  Nov.  15,  25,  1855;  Jan.  4,  May  8,  June  9,  Sept.  27,  Oct.  1,  'IW,  Nov. 
II,  'n,  185G;  S.  F.  Bullefm,  Apr.  30,  Oct.  27,  1856;  AUn  Val,  Sept.  24,  1850. 
Westward  lay  Thompson  Flat,  which  had  500  inhabitants  in  I8.'>4,  but  Ihj- 
jTiiii  to  decline  in  1846.  The  still  nearer  Long  Bar  was  before  1852  the  lead- 
ing settlement  for  a  time.  Orovilk  Jiecord,  Oct.  21,  1871,  etc.;  Id.,  Mercury, 
Aug.  (i,  1880. 

Meanwhile  Bidwell  took  advantage  of  the  turning  flood  to  found  a  town 
in  liStlO  upon  the  rancho  obtained  by  him  previous  to  the  gold  discovery, 
IhtJieil  on  growing  agricultural  interests.  The  place  was  called  I'liiuo,  after 
tliu  ereek  on  wliich  it  was  located.  E.  A.  Farwell  had  selectetl  tliis  site  in 
]843  for  a  rancho,  which  was  occupied  a  year  later,  while  W.  Dickey  took 
ui)  tliu  north  side  of  the  creek  Chico.  Bidwell  obtained  Farwell's  grant  and 
liuilt  a  house  in  1849.  After  this  it  became  a  mail,  stage,  and  voting  station, 
anil  farms  sprang  up  around  it.  In  1864  it  had  a  population  of  500,  and  began 
during  the  following  decade  to  manotjuvre  for  the  county  seat,  or  for  the  seat 
(if  a  special  county  to  be  called  Alturas.  This  failed;  but  the  construction  of 
tlie  Oregon  and  Cal.  R.  R.,  which  reached  here  in  1870,  and  long  matle  it 
]iraotieally  tlie  terminus,  gave  so  great  activity  that  the  tow^n  was  in  1872 
incorporated  as  a  city.  Cnl.  StattUen,  \9i7\-2,  11,248.  Two  Hourishing  suburbs 
arose;  gas  was  introduced;  and  several  mills  and  factories  started.  liiiltf  Co, 
lIutL,  222-32;  Id.,  Illml.,  15-16;  Chico  Enterprise,  Oct.  17,  1873;  Dec.  31,  1875, 
etc.;  Id.,  Record,  July  15,  1876,  etc.  Agriculture  and  stage  and  railroad  traf- 
fic gave  rise  to  several  villages  an<l  stations,  such  as  Gridley,  Daytuii,  Nelson, 
ami  Nord.  Then  there  was  Biggs,  wliich  became  the  third  town  in  the 
county.  Among  mining  camps,  Cherokee,  to  the  north  of  Oroville,  became 
tlie  ccutre  of  hydraulic  operations,  Magalia  held  sway  beyond  Biingor  in  tlie 
south,  and  Forbestown  in  the  ciist.  As  Mountain  View,  or  Dogtowii,  Mag- 
nolia was  in  1855  one  of  the  leading  points  in  Butte;  in  1880  it  had  only  200 
inhabitants.  Story  of  its  name  in  Northern  Enki-prixe,  Veh.  7,  1873.  Forbes- 
town  was  settled  in  Sept.  1850  by  B.  F.  Forl)es,  and  became  in  1853  second 
only  to  Bidwell,  claiming  1,000  tributary  population;  300  in  1880.  Account 
in  S,  Jose  Pioneer,  Jan.  12,  1878.  Inskip  was  a  lively  place  in  1850,  with  5 
hotels.  Enterprise  revived  with  quartz  mining.  Coal  and  otlier  resources 
tended  to  advance  the  county,  which  found  good  markets  in  the  niiiiiug  re- 
gions of  Idaho  and  Nevada.  While  her  own  mines  were  still  extensive  th« 
main  reliance  was  agriculture.  In  1852  more  than  2,000  acres  were  in  culti- 
vation, yielding  some  36,^P0  busiiels  of  grain,  and  the  live-stock  exceeded 
!t,0()0  head.  Over  $380,000  were  invested  in  other  branches  than  mining, 
such  as  14  saw-mills.  Cal.  Ceiutus,  1852,  13-14.     By  1855  the  live-stock  had 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES 


nearly  trebled,  and  so  the  acreage  in  grain,  while  vines  and  fruits  were  fa«t 
increasing.  The  census  of  1880  assigns  it  a  population  of  18,7'JO,  with  <.m 
farms  valued  at  ^,010,000;  produce,  92,881,000;  live-stock,  $828,0l)0;  tnul 
assessment,  910,743,000.  In  live-stock  it  outranked  all  the  counties  uortli 
of  Sao. 


The  headwaters  of  Feather  River,  embraced  by  Plumas  county,  owed 
their  occupation  chiefly  to  the  Oold  Lake  excitement  of  1850,  which  fmiinl 
an  unexpected  realization  at  the  rich  river  bars.  Among  the  prominent 
camps  were  Onion  Valley,  La  Porte — on  Rabbit  Creek,  by  which  name  it  was 
first  known — Jamison  City,  and  Quincy,  the  last  so  named  after  the  lUiiioji 
home  of  H.  J.  Bradley,  the  earliest  and  loading  hotel  proprietor  here,  whd 
also  secured  the  county  seat  for  it  in  1854,  although  it  had  as  yet  only  a  few 
houses.  This  dignity,  together  with  a  superior  site,  enabled  it  to  wrext  one 
a<lvantage  after  another  from  the  adjoining  Elizabethtown.  It  obtained  a 
journal  in  1855.  A  severe  fire  of  Feb.  28,  18G1,  retarded  its  progres.-*,  l>ut 
only  for  a  time;  it  had  already  secured  the  prejiniinence  which  remained  witli 
it.  Elizaliethtown,  or  Betsyburg,  sprang  up  in  1832,  but  began  in  1855  tn  de- 
cline under  the  overshadowing  influence  of  Quincy.  Northward  were  Tavlor- 
ville  and  Greenville,  the  latter  fostered  by  promising  quartz  interests.  Rut 
while  rich  on  the  surface,  the  extent  of  the  g(dd  deposits  proved  insutiieiiut 
to  maintain  more  than  a  limited  number  of  settlements,  and  the.se  only  of 
minor  rank.  Ttiis  applies  also  to  agricultural  interests,  which  were  restricted  ti> 
a  series  of  small  mountain  valleys,  while  saw-mills  figured  as  the  oidy  other 
conspicuous  industry.  After  a  season  of  whip-sawing,  the  first  mill  wa.s  luiiit 
at  Rich  Biir  in  1851.  A  grist-mill  was  erected  in  American  Valley  in  I8,')4, 
and  another  in  Indian  Valley  in  1856,  thrashing-machines  an<I  saw-mills  beiii;,' 
by  this  time  in  both.  P.  Lassen  is  credited  with  the  first  vegetables,  in  18.') I, 
and  grain  was  first  sown  in  1852,  by  Boynton,  whose  Stal.,  MS.,  2"5,  contains 
much  valuable  information  on  early  days.  Copper  and  coal  promised  to  add 
to  unfolding  wealth.  For  reviews  of  progress  and  resources,  see  surveyors' 
and  assessors' reports  in  CaL  Jour.  Sen.,  as  1859;  Plumas  National,  Jan.  9,  lSt>8; 
Aug.  3,  1872,  etc  ;  Plumas  Ot  Register.  A.  P.  Chapman  and  Turner  brotliers 
figure  among  the  first  actual  settlers  of  Sierra  and  American  valleys,  and 
J.  B.  Gough  of  American  Valley.  A  population  which  in  1860  stixxl  at 
4,363  had  by  1880  increased  only  to  6,180,  with  assessed  property  vahied 
at  $2,100,000,  of  which  $973,000  represented  the  value  of  236  farms,  with 
9424,000  in  produce. 

The  limit  of  settlement  prior  to  the  gold  discovery  lay  within  Sliasta 
county,  which  for  a  time  embraced  the  region  north  of  Butte  and  Pluinas, 
and  P.  B.  Reading  ranked  as  the  farthest  frontierman.  Upon  his  raneho 
was  located,  in  1850,  the  county  seat;  but  the  rapid  influx  of  miners,  after  the 
prospecting  parties  of  1849,  called  for  the  formation  of  several  counties,  as 
Tehama,  Siskiyou,  and  in  due  time  Lassen  and  Modoc,  with  new  seats.  Tliat 
of  the  curtailed  Shasta  was  conferred  upon  the  mofe  central  town  of  the  satne 
name,  which  in  the  midst  of  the  richest  mining  field  of  this  region,  supide- 
mented  by  a  wide  farming  range,  maintained  the  lead  from  1851,  overshadow. 


SHASTA  AND  LASSEN. 


{n<;  Reading's  rancho,  which,  oloae  to  the  south  Imrder,  lapsed  into  a  mere  ham* 
It't.  Koiiiling  himself  started  iu  1849  The  iSpriug's  or  Heading's  Upper  Spring, 
wliicli  Miioii  aftur  was  renamed  Shasta.  In  March  1851  it  had  three  hotels,  3 
Dinitliii!!*,  etc.  S<w,.  Traiiwript,  March  14,  1851.  It  was  severely  ravaged  hy 
tirt's  ill  Dec.  1852 and  June  1853,  the  luttor  involving  a  loss  of  nearly  8*2i'tO,000. 
AW,  Ctl.,  Dec.  15,  1852;  Juno  17-18, 1853;  S.  F.  Herald,  id.  In  1854  it  liad 
1,500  iiihab.  Catron  a  CnL,  98-9;  SuUer'n  Itew.,  MS.,  72,  132;  Lane'n  Nurr., 
MS.,  III!  -8;  R&uliuij  Trulep.,  Apr.  17,  24,  1879,  etc.;  Sluuta  Cnurier,  March  17, 
Oct.  'JO,  1877,  etc.  The  census  of  1880  gives  it  a  popul.  of  448.  The  camps 
Brijjgsville  and  Horsetown  were  eclipsed  by  the  rise  of  the  later  agricultural 
tuwa  i)f  (.'ottonwood.  Even  the  nante  of  Reading  was  confounded  liy  t!io 
adjacent  Fort  Redding,  the  bulwark  against  Indians,  subMequeiitly  reproduced 
ill  tliu  railroad  station  of  Redding.  An  act  in  Cal.  Statutes,  1873-4,  32,  cliunged 
lluilding  to  Rcntling,  yet  the  maps  retain  the  former  name.  Northward  lie 
only  I'etty  villages,  way-stations  for  transmountain  traffic,  farming  centres 
and  mining  cauipa,  Dogtown  on  the  main  Sacramento  1)eing  one  of  the  most 
niirtlierly  camps  in  Shasta.  Millville  received  its  name  from  tlie  first  grist- 
mill ill  this  county,  of  1854-5.  Population  doubled  from  4,170  in  1870,  to 
!l,4!K)  in  1880,  although  with  an  assessed  property  of  barely  ^2,000,000.  The 
county  is  too  mountainous  to  compote  with  the  agricultural  districts  of  the 
main  Sac.,  although  it  excels  in  timber  resources,  so  that  its  544  farms  of 
1880  embraced  79,000  improved  acres,  valued  at  ?;l, 343,000,  with  ^23,000 
ill  produce  and  $.S8<5,000  in  stock.  CnL  Jour.  Sen.,  1856,  Apr.  14,  22-3,  «1,  etc. ; 
(\il.  ."it'itiUcM,  1852,  307;  Or.  Sk-etches,  M.S.;  AlUi  Cal.,  Oct.  12,  25,  Nov.  8,  1852; 
Aug.  28,  1854;  March  9,  Aug.  5,  13,  Dec.  7,  1856;  Aug.  13, 1857;  March  3,  10, 
Sept.  13,  ]8.-)9,  etc.;  Sac.  Union,  May  22,  July  17,  Aug.  1,  28,  Sept.  24,  Oct. 
".,  L*--' n,  1855;  Apr.  9,  22,  May  6,  Sept.  12,  Dec.  10,  1856;  Oi-erlaml,  xiii.  342- 
i)0;  Slitixtn  Courier,  March  17,  1877;  Dec.  7,  1878,  etc.;  Readinij  Indep.,  Apr. 
17,  'J4,  1879;  Sha»t(i  Co.  Circular,  1-34. 

llastwurd  Shasta  extends  beyond  the  curving  Sierra  range  into  the  alkali 
and  sage-brush  plains  of  Lassen.  This  forbidding  feature,  together  with  hos- 
tile Indians,  operated  against  settlement  in  this  county,  and  the  early  immi- 
grant.s  who  skirted  the  western  end  saw  no  inducements  even  in  Shasta. 
Ik'sides  the  trappers,  Fremont,  Greenwood,  and  other  explorers  may  have 
skirted  Lassen  county.  Lassen  passed  through  it  in  opening  the  Pit  River 
rutito  uf  1848.  Prospectors  penetrated  this  region  iu  1851,  and  assisted  in 
opening  the  Honey  Lake  route,  and  diverting  immigrants  to  the  upper  Sacra- 
mento. The  first  recorded  land  claim  was  taken  in  1853  by  Isaac  Roop,  of 
Nevada  gubernatorial  fame,  who  in  1854  built  a  cabin  where  Susanville  rose 
1  iter,  ])riiiging  supplies  for  emigrants  and  miners.  Lassen,  Meyerwitz,  and 
Lynch  were  among  the  early  settlers.  I/ist.  Plumas,  LoMnen,  340-4.  Miners 
drifted  across  from  the  south,  and  undertook  in  1856  to  proclaim  here  a  new 
t  Tpitory,  Nataqua,  'woman,'  extending  between  long.  117°-20°  and  lat. 
.SS.l''-42°,  on  the  ground  that  Honey  Lake  lay  east  by  the  Sierra,  and  conse- 
quently beyond  the  Cal.  border,  Roop  and  Lassen  were  chosen  recorder  and 
surveyor,  the  only  officials.  Alta  Cal.,  May  20,  1856.  This  embraced  Carson, 
which,  however,  as  the  most  populous  section,  assumed  the  lead  for  forming 
Nevada  Territory,  the  Honey  Lake  settlers  yielding  in  1857,  and  objecting  to 


494 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES 


tlie  effortH  of  Plumas  to  claim  the  region.  Tlie  act  creating  Neva<la  Territory 
ill  18(>1  cm1>race<l  Honey  Lake,  antl  Stiaaiivillu  liecanie  theaeatof  [.aku  cniinty, 
reiiaiiiod  Hoop  in  1H(>2,  aftur  the  provisional  governor  an<l  aubHiMiuuiitly  np. 
roHontativu.  By  thua  attaching  themavlvus  to  Carson,  and  l>econiing  iiuludt'il 
ill  Hoop  county  of  Nevada  Territory,  they  rouaed  the  Plumas  othciuU  to 
a^tiert  tluar  claim  to  tho  control,  and  long  disputes  followed,  attoiiilol  liy 
l>l<>oil)thed  ill  1803.  The  result  waa  a  survey  which  proved  the  district  to  jur- 
tain  to  Ciil.,  and  in  order  to  prevent  further  diasention  it  was  crvattil  ,i 
special  county  in  the  following  year.  Citl.  SUtUtUt,  I8C4,  act  Apr.  1;  /</., 
18ti5-G,  4.">:};  1871-2,  88t>;  HiUelVs  Code*,  ii.  1708,  for  lioundary  chaiigen;  /'.  a. 
Stntute^,  Cong.  43,  Seas.  2,  497;  AUa  CnL,  Feb.  8-May  18()3,  etc.;  IfU.  Pin. 
VKiK,  300  et  seq.  Suaanvillo  sustained  itself  a^  the  seat  and  leading'  tnwii,  ^ 
it  had  been  for  Hoop  county.  It  was  called  Hooptown  for  a  whilu  in  is,")7. 
Population  of  its  township  in  lov,.,  the  largest  943;  with  a  journal  from  ISiJ,"). 
This  was  in  tho  richest  part  of  Honey  Lake  district,  which  formed  the  only 
extensive  .igricultural  tract.  Though  small,  the  county  contained  a  Ltr^e 
nuiii1)er  of  farms,  largely  devoted  to  stock-raising,  with  sevenil  viUa^^os, 
as  Jainesvillo  and  Milford,  dating  from  1850-7,  and  Long  Valley.  Wliilu 
pbicer  iniiung  never  assumed  any  proiiortion,  quartz  mining  was  proiuisiii^', 
although  later  restricted  to  Hayden  Hill,  in  tho  north-west,  furwhicli  HiiluT, 
nwir  Pit  River,  was  tho  supply  station.  The  population  grew  from  l,U'J7  in 
1870  to  3,;U0  in  1880,  with  property  assessed  at  $1,230,000,  of  which  s|,i;{j,. 
000  represeiiteil  3:58  farina,  with  ;^33,000  in  jiroduce,  and  §.512,000  in  utock. 
Ltuuu-iiVn.  Ili'-juitrr,  188^,  etc.;  AUa  Cal.,  Juno  7,  ISrHJ;  Apr.  iH),  1,S.'>7;  Sue. 
i'liioii,  Aug.  25,  18.-)7;  July  27,  Oct.  10,  1872;  S.  F.  BuUeti,,,  Apr.  1885;  C  <. 
S/irit  TiiiKH,  Dec.  25,  1877;  S.  F.  Times,  May  10,  June  12,  1808;  GoUl  lldl 
ycir.i,  Sept.  23,  1880. 

The  northern  regions  of  Shasta  county  were  entered  by  miners  in  1S,")0  Iiy 
Way  of  'I'l-inity  ami  Klainatli  rivers,  and  rich  diggings  were  found,  notably  in 
Scott's  Vallciv,  named  after  J.  \V.  Scott,  who  located  himself  on  Scott  Har  iu 
July  or  Aug.  1850.  Gov.  Lane  of  Oregon  was  prol)ably  the  first  regular  pros- 
pector near  Yreka,  while  Rufus  Johnson's  party,  which  i)enetratetl  from 
Trinity  to  Yreka  Creek  in  Aug.  1850,  following  in  his  tracks,  had  been  pros- 
pecting the  eastern  districts  during  July. 

So  largo  an  immigration  set  in  that  winter,  from  the  south  as  well  as  from 
Oregon,  that  the  section  Mas  in  March  1852  formed  into  a  separate  county 
by  the  name  of  Siskiyou.  The  seat  was  assigned  to  Yreka,  whose  exceeilingly 
remunerative  flat  deposits,  opened  in  March  1851,  within  a  few  weeks  trans- 
formed tlie  first  tents  into  an  important  town,  first  known  as  Thompson  itry 
l>ig!5'iiigs,  then  with  a  slight  ehangc  n  location,  as  Shasta  Butte,  and  tliis 
clashing  with  the  lower  Sliasta,  Yrc'ia  was  adopted,  together  with  the  county 
seat,  the  name  being  a  corruption  .<f  Wyeka,  whiteness,  the  Indian  term  for 
the  atljiujent  snow-crowned  Shasta.  Heam'a  Sketches,  MS.,  5;  Ynka  Unim, 
June  5,  1809;  Hayes'  Cal  Notes,  iii.  69;  Beadles  WiUls,  396.  Howe  and 
Burgess  brought  the  first  goods.  Lockhart  was  prominent  in  informally  lay- 
ing out  the  town  in  Aug.  1851.  Some  ascribe  the  first  house  to  Bolus  and 
Dane.     A  aeries  of  lirea  began  iu  Juue  1852,  and  culminated  iu  July  4,  1S7I| 


SISKIYOU,  KLAMATH,  AND  MODOC. 


49S 


when  one  third  of  the  town  wu  burneil,  loaa  $250,000.  AUa  Cal,  Juno  22, 
1X.VJ:  Jan.  14,22,  1853;  May  15,  June  I.  1854  (1om«150,0U0);  Aug.  10,  Nov. 
<l.  KS.VS;  Uct  26,  1859;  Oct  24,  18ti3.  Othor  details  are  hero  given,  such  aa 
tliu  ititroiluction  of  gas  in  Due.  1859.  The  place  haa  had  a  nowspajMir  sinco 
I  sX\.  The  town  waa  incorporated  in  1854,  but  not  legally,  and  was  rectified 
liy  act  of  1857.  CaL  SUUutes,  18.'>7,  229.  It  declined  after  18.57,  with  the 
iiiiiii'M,  but  still  held  the  lea4ling  place  in  the  county.  Ant/wHi/'H  Hem.  SiMk., 
MS.,  'J-fi,  11,  25;  Yrfka  Jmrmtl,  Feb.  17,  1870;  SMiyoft  Co.  Aifaim,  MS.,  3-5; 
Ynbi  Union,  June  ^.  1809;  BriMnto*  lieneounlers,  MS.,  9-11;  A'dc  Union,  Aug. 
II,  is,-).-);  Feb.  2G,  Apr.  28,  May  30,  June  8,  Dec.  23,  18.j6;  Feb.  2,  1859,  etc.; 
S.  F.  liuUetin,  Nov.  17,  Deo.  22,  1858;  Bancroji'a  Journey,  MS.,  34.  Popul. 
in  LSSO,  1,059. 

Tlio  fertility  of  Shasta  Valley  has  compensated  for  the  decline  of  iligginga. 
Ill  tliu  adjoining  Scott  Valley,  Fort  Jouea  actpiirod  the  supremacy.  This  place 
w.is  I'diiiidoil  in  1851  as  Whculock'a  trading  stiitiou,  and  later  ealbid  Scottsbiirg, 
iilsii  Ottitiewa,  and  in  18ti0  adopting  the  name  of  tlie  military  post  cstabliMhud 
lu'iv  ill  1H52.  It  was  incorporated  in  1872.  In  tliu  upper  part  of  the  county 
is  Ktiia,  with  360  inhabitants  in  1880.  It  rose  round  the  tlour  and  ttaw  iiiilla 
erected  in  1853-4,  and  alnorbed  Rough  and  l{«ady.  Most  of  the  early  min- 
h]<^  uanips  have  died  or  faded  away,  including  the  once  prominent  Dcadwood 
anil  Kiderville.  Bestville,  in  the  west,  waa  according  to  Anthony,  Hem.,  MS., 
;{-4,  the  earliest  town.  Mugginsvillc,  of  1852,  ha«l  tpiartz  and  otiior  mills 
witii  farming  and  sto*  k  ranges,  the  latter  rising  hero  into  prominence.  The 
ceiisUH  of  1880  credits  the  county  with  Ml  farms,  valued  at  nearly  $'2,000,000, 
witli  .S'^S, 000  worth  of  pro<luce  and  ^17,000  of  stock,  the  total  aascHsed  i>rop- 
orty  standing  at  ^,651,000,  among  a  population  of  8,610,  as  compared  with 
(i,S48  in  1870,  and  7,6*29  in  1860.  Hay  was  cut  in  18.'il,  and  farming  was 
tiiiik'rtaken  by  several  in  1852,  by  Boles  at  Yreka,  and  by  Heartsraud  and 
^^  liite  in  Scott  Valley.  Details  in  //«<.  SiJikii/oii  Co.,  192-209.  Several  saw- 
mills were  built  in  1852,  and  flour-mills  followed  in  1853  at  Etna  and  in  Quartz 
\-alley 


Tlie  year  1874  was  marked  by  the  annexation  of  a  part  of  Klamath  county 
ti>  Siskiyou,  and  the  segregation  of  the  valuable  eastern  half  to  form  Modoo 
ciiiiuty.  The  question  was  agitated  after  the  Lassen-Nevada  war  of  1863, 
anil  in  1872  a  concession  was  made  by  opening  court  at  Lake  City.  La-si^en 
county  objected  to  lose  any  part  of  its  meagre  population,  and  the  Siskiyou 
peo^ile  feared  the  predominance  of  the  latter,  if  added.  As  a  compronuse, 
-Moiloe  county  waa  created  in  Feb.  1874,  purely  out  of  Siskiyou,  and  tiie  Pit 
River  people  were  considered  by  placing  the  seat  at  Altnras.  Of  tlrj  assess- 
ment of  ^3,698,000  in  1873,  $1,105,000  was  assigned  to  Modoc,  which  issued 
botiila  for  $14,000  toward  debt  and  dclin(picut  list.  Concerning  formation 
ami  resources  of  both  counties,  see  Cal.  Stututcx,  1852,  307,  187.S-4,  passim; 
lliUdCs  Coile^,  ii.  1782,  1830;  Cal.  Jour.  A»».,  187.1-4,  439-40,  467;  S.  F. 
Ilrmld,  July  11,  1853;  Yreka  Union,  June  5,  1869,  etc.;  ScoU  Valley  Ntwn, 
Sept.  18,  Nov.  25,  1879,  etc.;  Sac.  Union,  Dec.  21,  29,  1857;  Nov.  17,  1858; 
Jan.  27,  ?■  b.  12,  Sept.  2,  Nov.  19,  29,  Dec.  H,  1.3,  24,  1856;  Apr.  26,  1873;  Aug. 
1,  Dec.  29,  1874,  etc.;  Alia  Cal.,  Aug.  6,  1857;  Oct.  20,  1858;  July  9,  1859; 


496 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  13, 1858;  June  3,  1859;  Aug.  29,  1881;  Colusa  Sun,  Feb.  2G, 
1876.  The  county  had  in  1880  a  population  of  4,400,  with  472  farms,  valucil 
at  $1,242,000,  which  also  represents  nearly  the  entire  assessment.  The  ^ini- 
duce  was  estimated  at  $398,000,  and  the  live-stock  at  $5G8,000.  Thiij  was 
mainly  a  stock-raising  region,  with  a  certain  proportion  of  farming  which 
found  .  market  in  the  mining  districts  eastward.  Alturas,  originally  i^nrris' 
Bridge,  dominated  as  county  scat  the  villages  on  Pit  River.  Applegato  hehl 
a  diminutive  sceptre  in  the  north-west,  and  Fort  Bidwell  rose  at  the  liead  of 
the  productive  Surprise  Valley,  commemorative  of  the  harassing  raids  and 
warfare  wliich  so  long  retarded  progress  throughout  the  north.  The  Modoc 
war  of  1873  was  the  last  serious  outbreak,  and  the  rapid  improvement  follow- 
ing upon  its  conclusion  was  especially  marked  in  these  two  counties.  For 
full  account  of  the  Modoc  war,  see  Hist.  Oregon,  and  Inter  Pocula,  this  series. 
Pit  River  was  so  named  from  the  trapping  pits  of  the  Indians. 


i 


i    A  ■ 


The  southern  part  of  Shasta  was  in  1856  segregated  for  the  formation  of 
Tehama  county.  Although  occupied  by  several  settlers  before  1848,  the 
district  received  for  some  time  little  addition  to  its  occupants,  owing  to  tlie 
strange  lack  of  gold,  although  bordered  on  three  sides  by  productive  nuuiiig 
districts.  It  became  evident/  however,  that  traffic  must  pass  this  way  for 
the  mines  east  and  northward,  and  in  1849  three  towns  were  founded,  two 
on  Deer  Creek,  which  survived  only  on  paper,  Danville  and  Benton.  Cul. 
Courier,  Oct.  16,  1850,  AUa  CaL,  Dec.  15,  1849,  and  founded  by  Sill  and  Leas- 
sen  respectively.  At  Lassen's  an  election  was  held  in  1850  of  alcaldes  for 
the  northern  district.  AUa  CaL,  Dec.  15,  1849;  Salinas  Imlex,  Dec.  3,  1S72. 
Thus  Tehama  received  a  decided  impulse  as  the  proclaimed  head  of  navij^a- 
tion.  It  became  a  lively  stage  town,  and  a  fine  farming  district  sustained  it 
until  the  railroad  came.  Its  prosperity  was  for  a  time  checked  by  the  ascuut 
of  a  steamboat  to  Red  Bluffy  which  began  to  rise  in  1850.  .The  Jitck  ILiys 
steamboat  came  in  May  1850  within  0  miles  of  Red  Bluff,  Placer  Tiiiie-'<, 
May  22,  1850,  where  Trinidad  City  was  consequently  laid  out,  though  failing 
to  rise.  Rod  Bluff  was  first  laid  out  by  S.  Woods  and  named  Leodocia,  it  is 
said.  The  first  settler  was  W.  Myers,  in  Sept.  1850.  Hist.  Tehama,  18-19, 
says  J.  Myers  erected  a  hotel  here  later  in  1849,  but  this  conflicts  with  the 
legal  testimony,  as  recorded  in  the  Red  Bluff  Oltserver,  Jan.  13,  1866,  etc.; 
Id.,  People's  Cause,  Nov.  23,  1878.  W.  Ide,  who  owned  a  ferry  some  distance 
above,  Myers,  Reed,  and  Red  Bluff  Land  Corp.,  all  made  surveys  in  1852-3. 
There  were  then  two  taverns  and  two  smithies,  and  in  June  1853  a'jout  100 
inhabitants;  yet  the  main  site  was  shifted  somewhat.  In  1854  it  claiine<l 
about  1,000  inhabitants,  and  in  1857  a  journal.  Improvement  was  steadily 
promoted  by  unfolding  agricultural  and  lumber  interests,  by  the  Sierra 
Flume  Co.,  and  by  the  railroail  which  reached  here  in  1872.  Incorporation 
act  in  CaL  Statutes,  1875-6,  637.  The  census  of  1880  accords  a  population  of 
2,103.  Sac  Union,  July  12,  1855;  May  6,  Sept.  1,  J856;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  May 
6,  1856,  etc.  It  had  few  rival  towns  within  the  county  to  compete  in  trade. 
There  were  villages  like  Grove  City,  Arca<le,  Paskeuta,  and  Gluason,  and  rail- 
road stations  like  Sesma,  detracting  rather  from  Tehama  in  the  south.  Tlic 
name  is  derived  from  a  striking  natural  feature.  Bancroft's  Journey,  MS.,  It>. 


TEHAMA  AND  COLUSA 


497 


'U  itli  a  large  fanning  conntiy  aroand,  with  wool  and  lumber  interests,  and 
as  a  I "lili'oad  station  and  county  seat,  Red  Bluff  became  the  leading  town  in 
the  iioitliurn  part  of  the  valley.  Agriculture  did  not  properly  sOart  up  till 
Ibo'J,  l>ut  it  advanced  with  rapid  strides  in  later  years,  and  became  the  great 
industry  of  the  county,  with  notable  branches  in  viniculture  and  stock-raising. 
SliL'tp  V  ere  largely  raised.  Gerke's  vineyard  was  one  of  the  largest  in  Cal. 
Aiadii.u'  early  farmers,  in  1852,  were  Nat.  Merrill  and  A.  Eastman  on  the  Moon 
rancl ic  1,  Wilson  and  Kendrick  on  Thomes'  Creek,  A.  Winemiller  on  Elder  Creek. 
Several  flour-mills  rose  in  1854,  on  Mill  and  Antelope  creeks,  and  at  Red 
Bluff.  Payne's  saw-mill  on  Mill  Creek  claimed  to  be  the  earliest  here.  The 
population  of  3,587  in  1870  increased  by  1880  to  9,300,  with  property  assessed 
at  S4,200,000.  Cal.  St'itutes,  1856,  p.  257;  1857,  p.  410;  18G3,  p.  492;  Jfiat. 
Ttlatuiii  Co.,  passim;  Tuxtins  SUU.,  MS.,  3;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  May  20,  1872; 
Sac.  Union,  Sept.  1,  Nov.  24,  1856;  Jan,  9,  1857;  March  20,  Dec.  14,  1858; 
Alta  <'<il.,  Nov.  17,  1857;  Oct.  29,  1858;  S.  F.  Call,  Nov.  30,  1870;  lied  Bluff 
Pcopti's  Cause,  Sept.  28,  1878,  etc 


The  western  side  of  Sacramento  Valley,  below  Tehama,  early  recom- 
mended  its  agricultural  beauties  to  the  ever-moving  current  of  miners,  lying 
as  it  did  so  close  to  their  path.  Tired  of  trampiilg,  stragglers  tlropped  l>ehind 
in  fa.st-j,'rowing  numbers  to  swell  the  lisi,  of  settlers  wlio  during  the  forties 
had  paved  the  way,  and  its  prospects  were  by  1850  deemed  sufficiently  prom- 
i.jiug  to  form  the  section  into  the  three  counties  of  Colusa,  Yolo,  and  Solano. 
According  to  the  census  of  1850,  Yolo  had  a  population  of  1,086,  due  greatly 
to  the  proximity  oT  Sac,  which  Solano,  a«  farther  from  the  mines,  claimed 
580;  Ctdusa  only  115.  By  1852  the  three  had  increased  to  1,307,  2,835,  and 
620,  respectively.  Dr  Semple,  who  was  still  struggling  to  create  a  metropo- 
lis at  IJenieia,  saw  in  tlie  Feather  and  Yuba  river  mines  an  opening  for  a 
great  entrepot  at  what  he  considered  the  head  of  navigation,  the  result  l)cing 
the  founding  in  1850  of  Colusa,  which  after  a  successful  struggle  with  the 
usurping  Monroeville  for  the  county  seat,  began  three  years  later  to  ailvance 
to  tile  leailing  position,  sastaiued  by  a  rich  district  and  by  way-trafhc.  The 
railroad  has  passed  lier  by,  however,  and  given  a  share  of  trade  to  several 
villages,  as  Arhuckle,  Williams,  Willows,  and  Orlaud.  C.  D.  Semple  at  his 
l)rotlier's  advice  bought  the  site,  though  at  first  locating  the  town  on  the 
wrong  spot,  7  miles  farther  up  the  river.  It  was  the  site  for  the  Colusi  raneha- 
rias.  lleeps  and  Hale  built  the  first  house,  a  hotel.  Dr  Semple  sent  up  a 
steamlwat,  constructed  at  Benicia,  but  it  proved  afaiKiro.  Cal.  Courier,  hej<t. 
13,  1850;  ColmaSun,  Nov.  3,  17,  24,  1860;  an.  3,  Dec.  5,  1874.  Green,  the 
etlitor,  and  Hicks  were  among  the  fii-t  occupants.  The  town  languisho<l, 
and  narrowly  escaped  the  sheriff.  La;k\ns  Doc,  vii.  384.  But  MonroeviUe 
being  defeated  in  its  usurpation  of  the  county  seat,  which  was  decided  for 
Colusa  by  vote  in  1853,  the  latter  l)egan  to  advance,  though  clieeked  by  a 
severe  tire  in  1856,  and  by  a  disputed  title  to  the  site.  The  place  became  in 
time  the  head  of  a  large  navigation,  obtained  a  journal  in  18tii»j  was  incor- 
porated, Cal.  Statutes,  1809-70,  309,  1875-6,  669,  and  had  in  18.S4  a  popula- 
tion of  1,700.  J/'-  Cal.,  May  18,  1852;  S.  F.  HeraUl,  Apr.  14,  1852;  Sac 
Union.  May  20,  '  ^  „.  6,  1856;  Jlist.  Coluaa  Co.,  66  et  Beg[.  Monroe  aoizedfor 
Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VL    82 


ill 


406 


CAUFORNIA  m  COUNTIES. 


his  rancho  the  connty  seat  in  1850,  and  retained  it  despite  judicial  decis- 
ions until  the  vote  of  1853.  Colusa  Annual.  1878,  66-7,  79-80;  Cat.  Cenm, 
lSo2,  p.  16;  Xortliem.  EnUrprise,  Nov.  20,  1870;  Cat.  Agrir.  Soc,  Tranmc, 
1874,  374-5.  Princeton  and  Jacinto  are  among  the  river  shipping  stations. 
College  City  is  so  named  after  Pierce's  Christian  college.  The  census  of  1880 
shows  1,073  farms  covering  753,600  acres,  valued  at  $16,440,000,  yioMini; 
?5,027,000  in  produce,  and  with  $1,411,000  in  V "e-stock;  population  13,120. 
In  1852  there  were  1,960  acres  under  cultivation,  proilucing  36,000  bu-shtla 
of  grair  A  beginning  in  farming  must  have  been  made  before  1848,  although 
stock-raising  was  then  the  aim.  The  Grand  Island  mill  was  built  iu  IS.VJ  as 
a  combined  saw  and  grist  mill.  HUt.  Colitna  Co.,  178  etc.  The  county  had 
valuable  copper  deposits.  Colusa  Sun,  Jan.  5,  1867;  Jan.  3,  1874;  Colusa  Co. 
Annwil,  1878,  4-13,  63,  etc.;  CaL  Agrie.  Soc.,  Trans.,  1874,  309-77;  CnL 
Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  748;  Id.,  Ass.,  1853,  698;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Nov.  23,  1857; 
Nov.  10,  1858;  Chron.,  Nov.  6-7,  21,  1875;  Jan.  26,  1880;  March  19,  1883; 
S'lc.  Union,  Sept.  26;  Nov.  24,  1856;  Oct.  5,  1858,  Dec.  7,  1872;  Jan.  31, 
May  22,  1873. 


Yolo  profited  by  its  proximity  to  the  valley  capital,  partly  from  the  ready 
market  found  for  pro<luce,  partly  from  the  additional  inducement  for  settlers 
to  form  tributary  villages,  such  as  Washington,  which  rose  opposite  to  Sac. 
as  a  suburb.  The  name  appears  to  have  been  suggested  by  the  adjacent 
Venion.  J.  McDowell  built  the  first  hut  in  1847.  He  being  killeil  in  1849, 
his  widow  laid  out  the  town  in  Feb.  1850.  Chiles,  who  started  a  ferry  liere 
in  1848,  !Uid  several  others  were  then  occupants.  It  figured  as  the  county  seat 
in  1851-7,  and  obtained  a  ship-yard  in  1855.  Early  notices  in  Sac.  Tmn.rrip, 
May  29,  Sept.  10,  1850;  Cal.  Courier,  July  26,  1850;  Pac.  News,  Aug.  22, 
1850;  S.  F.  Pieaijune,  Dec.  4,  1850;  Bauer's  Stat.,  MS.,  13;  view  in  Sac. 
Illiist.,  14;  West  Sliore  Oaz.,  24-33,  122-3.  It  aspired  at  one  time  with  a 
more  elevated  site  to  rival  Sac.,  but  sank  into  a  petty  suburb.  Above, 
facing  tlie  mouth  of  Feather  River,  Fremont  was  founded  in  Aug  184'J 
to  supplant  Vernon  as  the  head  of  navigation,  but  faded  fast  away.  It  was 
occupied  by  Jonas  Specht's  tent  store  in  March  1849,  and  surveying  began  July 
31st.  Hardy's  tule  hut  and  Lovell's  saloon  tent  were  then  the  otlier  haliita- 
tious.  It  grew  so  rapidly  that  a  council  was  chosen  on  Oct.  1st,  Placer  Tims, 
Oct.  6,  1849,  and  a  large  numl>er  of  miners  came  down  to  winter  here.  B.it  a 
ste-imboat  passed  by  this  supposed  head  of  navigation  to  Marysvillc,  and  a 
general  exo<lus  followed,  which  Jras  slightly  checked  by  nuiking  Fremont 
the  county  scat.  This  dignity  being  lost  in  1851,  the  town  speedily  di.s.'ip- 
peared  like  the  claims  of  its  namesake.  It  has  35  or  40  buildings,  says  Sue. 
Transcript,  Apr.  26,  May  29,  1850;  60  houses,  Id.,  Sept.  30,  1850.  'A  hard- 
looking  place.'  Cal.  Cottrier,  Sept.  13,  1850;  Cassins  Stat.,  MS.,  5;  Ltirkiu'i 
Z)m-.,  vii.  305;  Wooils' Sixteen  Mo.,  M;  West  Shore  Oaz.,  \Q-2(i.  Then  Cache- 
ville  rose  in  the  interior  to  wrest  the  county  seat  from  Loth,  to  be  in  its  turn 
vanquished  by  VVooilland.  T.  Cochran  settled  in  Cacheville  in  1849,  and 
built  a  hotel  at  the  creek  croasing;  raising  slowly  a  handet  known  for  a  while 
as  Hutton's,  which,  from  its  central  position,  wu  in  1857-61  chosen  the  seat, 
and  boasted  in  1867  the  first  journal  in  the  county. 


YOLvJ  AND  SOLANO. 


489 


H.  Wyckoff  opened  a  store  at  'Voodland  in  1853,  known  as  Yolo  City. 
Ill  l^'J')  it  l)ecame  a  P.  0.  under  tlie  name  of  '\Voo<lIaiid,  at  the  instauee  of 
F.  S.  Freeman,  the  successor  of  Wyckofif.  Railroad  projects  gave  it  impor- 
Uiice  after  1860;  iu  18(>2  it  acquired  the  county  seat,  and  reached  by  ISSO  a 
]io])uIatinii  of  2,257.  Reincorporation  act  in  CuL  SttUutes,  1873-4,  551.  The 
fortunes  of  the  county  have,  like  its  capital,  been  the  sport  of  grant  siteculators, 
iNiliticiana,  and  railroads,  the  latter,  owing  to  the  vast  swamp  borders  of  the 
river  1)ecoming  the  highways  for  traffic,  and  holding  sway  at  a  numlter  of 
stations  over  this  fertile  larming  district.  Dunnigan  was  settled  in  1852, 
auil  laid  out  in  1876;  Black  Station,  Davisvilk,  Winters,  and  Madiiton  mark 
the  railway,  the  last  laid  out  in  1877  as  the  terminus  of  a  branch,  absorbing  the 
e:irlit.'r  Cottonwood  and  Buckeye.  Langville,  founded  in  1857  as  Munchville, 
is  the  centre  for  Capay  Valley.  Knight's  Landing,  first  called  Baltimore,  dates 
fnini  1$49  as  a  ferry  station;  laid  out  in  1853,  aspiring  in  vain  for  the  county 
seat  Tlie  first  grain  crop  is  ascribed  to  W.  Gordon  in  1845.  With  1850 
farming  began  to  grow;  the  farms  then  l)eing  valued  at  $47,000,  with  $(i,5<)0 
vorth  of  implements,  and  7,000  head  of  stock.  The  crop  in  1852  embraced 
i:U,i)00  bushels  of  grain.  By  1880  there  were  929  farms  of  332,700  acres, 
liixl  at  $10,937,000,  yielding  $2,761,000  pro<luce,  and  with  $1,014,000  in 
liv  st(«k,  among  a  population  of  11,772.  Yolo  Mail,  Jan.  2,  23,  1879,  etc.; 
!;  ■  ^'liore  Giiz.,  17,  etc.;  Hi«t.  Yolo  Co.,  passim;  Sac.  Union,  Apr.  11,  1855; 
.'..ne  28,  Oct.  13,  28,  1856;  Oct.  13,  1857;  Sept.  23,  1868;  Nov.  6,  1872; 
June  14,  28,  July  12,  1873;  Feb.  28,  Nov.  28,  1874;  8.  F.  Call,  Bulktin, 
ihron.:  CaL  Jour.  Ass.    1862,  257. 


With  greater  independence  and  aspirations,  Solano  continued  in  a  measure 
to  strive  for  the  metropolitan  honors  to  which  it  seemed  entitled  by  a  position 
at  t)ie  head  of  bay  navigation,  and  at  the  outlet  of  the  great  valley.  Benicia, 
aa  the  first  point  to  rise  iu  opposition  to  S.  F.,  might  have  gained  the  vantage 
l<iit  for  the  sudden  transformations  of  1849.  The  early  prospects  sufficed  tu 
start  a  crop  of  town  projects  'arther  up  the  )my  and  its  tributaries,  as  shown 
in  the  opening  chapter,  embracing  in  this  county  Montezuma  and  Halo-Che- 
iiiutk,  while  westward  was  founded  Vallejo,  which,  though  failing  to  retain 
the  state  capital,  l>ecame  quite  a  town.  It  made  a  vain  effort  for  the  county 
seat,  n'hich,  aii>.r  hi-lng  secured  by  Benicia,  was  in  1858  transferre<l  to  the 
more  central  r^iirrield,  founded  for  the  purpose  by  R.  H.  Waterman,  who 
n inrd  it  at..'  -  hih  'if .  thp'.ace  in  Connecticut,  and  gave  ample  lantls  for  public 
liiiiMii  «;.'>.  J  'f.  L'iiion  erected  the  first  house.  The  plat  was  filecl  in  May 
lVi',1,  1'  <.;-ui(i :  ,r.  cWe  proximity  to  Suisun,  which  may  l»e  reganletl  as  its 
trailing  quar^'^r  ai  ^  mo  <  '<uportant  half,  and  the  chief  shipping  {K>int  of  the 
ciiiinty.  iSuisun  M-a^  incoi-porated  in  1808,  has  several  mills  and  warehouses, 
and  in  1880  a  population  of  550.  To  C.  V.  Gillespie,  Viij.  Com.,  M.S.,  .i,  is 
aiiorilied  ownership  of  land  here  abo  it  1850;  to  Jos.  Wing  the  first  house  on 
the  8j)ot;  and  to  J.  W.  Owens  and  A.  W.  Hall  the  first  store.  Buffum'n  Six  Mo., 
31;  S'lr.  Union,  Nov.  3,  1866;  S.  F.  BtiUetin,  Oct.  28,  1866.  The  name 
comes  from  the  tribe  once  roaming  here,  Suisun  Rejmb.,  Feb.  1,  1877;  SoUino 
R<-l>uh.,  Oct  28,  1876.  The  favorable  hydrographio  features  of  the  county 
afford  pror  mence  to  a  number  of  minor  landings,  as  Bridgeport,  which  al>- 


i  I 

1^  1 


I     I    •! 


,  I  :!l 


Mil 


ill- it 


500 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


sorheil  the  nnrly  Cordelia  of  18S3;  Denverton,  the  original  Nuraci's  Lauiling; 
Collinsville,  laid  out  by  C.  J.  Collins,  and  called  a  vhilo  Newport.  A  swiu. 
dling  project,  according  to  S.  F.  Bulletin,  May  I'l,  1.'57.  Near  the  sito  of 
Brazoria,  also  called  Sacramento  Brazoria,  and  H.Jo-Cheniuck,  which  Biilwell 
and  Hopps  sought  in  vain  to  found  prior  to  the  gold  excitement,  VnUjonunn, 
Marcli  22,  Apr.  5,  1348,  Rio  Vista  was  laid  out  by  N.  H.  Davis  in  18.")",  ami 
moved  in  1862  to  higher  ground.  Main  Prairie,  on  Cache  Slougli,  reailies 
the  very  centre  of  the  county,  but  has  been  overshadowed  by  the  railroad, 
with  such  stations  as  Dixon,  which  absorbed  Silvcyville  plating  from  lfS')2. 
Then  there  are  Elmira  and  Vacaville,  tlie  latter  laid  out  in  1851,  and  luuiiiid 
after  M.  Baca,  or  Vaca,  who  settled  here  early  in  the  forties. 

In  1850  the  farms  of  the  county  were  valued  at  §i;iO,000,  with  over  1,000 
head  of  stock;  by  1852  the  acreage  had  increased  to  5,950,  covering  5,<S00 
vines.  In  1880  the  farms  numbered  1,016,  valued  at  ^9,717,000,  with 
S«2, 706,000  worth  of  produce,  and  $900,0;K)  in  live-stock;  population  1S,470. 
Solano  lii-puh.,  Oct.  28,  1875;  AUa  Cal.,  Nov.  27,  185C;  Oct.  31,  18r)7;  Oct. 
28,  1861 ;  Jan.  8.  18CC;  July  23,  1807;  Sac.  Union,  Aug.  1-3,  Nov.  2;i,  W), 
1855;  Nov.  25,  S.7:  Dec.  14,  1858;  Aug.  23,  Oct.  9,  Dec.  18,  1809;  Jan.  7, 
1870;  Doc.  10,  i   ;  8,  15,  Feb.  22,  1873,  etc.;  also  S.  F.  Bulkli,,,  fall, 

C/iron.,  etc.;  Siiisiu  irm.,  1-15;  Cal.  SMiiU-k,  1852,  308;  1853,  20;  lS(il, 

12;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  16,. /-4,  607,  828,  ap.  no.  44,  73-4.  Carcpiin  means  sor- 
pent,  concerning  wliicli  Woodbridge,  Mess.,  Feb.  6,  18159,  gives  a  tradition. 
Benicia  Trilmne,  Dec.  13,  1873. 

The  northern  interior  of  California  was  first  explored  by  trappers  iluring 
the  earlier  decades  of  this  century,  while  the  coast  line  had  been  niappeil  by 
navigators  of  different  nations  since  the  sixteenth  century,  as  recorded  by 
names  like  Mendocino,  Trinidad,  and  St  Ceorge.  The  conciuest  by  tlio 
United  States  called  attention  to  the  resources  indicated  liy  them,  and  wiili 
extension  of  settlements  above  the  bay  of  S.  F.  came  the  project  fur  a 
commercial  metropolis  on  the  upper  coast,  probably  at  Trinidatl,  as  tlie  only 
harbor  marked  on  the  chart.  A  meeting  was  held  at  S.  F.  on  March  27,  I84S, 
to  make  arrangements  for  the  exploration  of  that  bay.  Cali/ornian,  March  '29, 
1848.  Sec  Hist.  Cal.,  i.  242,  and  Jfixt.  Nortlitoest  Coiutt,  i.-ii.,  this  aeries,  fur 
early  explorations.  The  all-absorbing  gold  excitement  intervened,  but  wlieii 
Reading  penetrated  to  the  headwaters  of  Trinity  River  and  found  wcaltli, 
which  in  1849  induced  several  other  parties  to  cross  the  Coast  Range,  the 
agitation  revived  for  an  entrepot  through  which  passengers  and  suiiiilics 
might  be  passed  into  this  region  by  a  nearer  and  easier  sea  route.  Trinity 
River  was  so  called  by  Reading,  in  the  belief  that  it  emptied  into  the  Trini- 
dad bay  marked  by  Spanish  explorers,  and  which  he  supposed  to  be  near  by. 
Indeed,  the  river  placed  here  by  the  same  old  navigators  might  be  this.  Sue 
this  report  and  allusion  to  the  trip  in  Placer  Times,  Aug. -Sept.  1849,  and  also 
the  chapter  on  mines.  Doubts  have  been  expressed  that  Reading  made  t\m 
journey  in  1848;  at  all  events,  this  became  the  objective  point  for  miners, 
traders,  and  town  speculators.  Two  parties  started  in  Nov,  1849  from  the 
Trinity  headwaters  to  find  the  mouth  of  the  river,  one  by  way  of  Sau  I'raii- 
Cisco  and  the  sea,  which  sailed  from  S.  F.  in  the  Cameo,  ou  T>oc.  9tli,  but  came 


TRINITY. 


Ml 


Nursd's  Laiuling; 
uwport.  A  swill. 
Near  tho  Kitu  of 
i;k,  which  IJiilwell 
incut,  VaUjoriiinii, 
)avi8  in  1857,  aiul 
e  Slough,  reailics 
I  by  the  railroail, 
lating  from  18')2. 
1  1851,  and  iiaiiiud 
s. 

0,  with  ovor  l,(tOO 
iO,  covering  5,800 

$9,717,0(K),  with 
)opulation  18,470. 
ct.  31,  1857;  Oct. 
1-.%  Nov.  a;,  33, 

18,  ISGi);  Jan.  7, 
.  F.  Bulkth,,  ( •,!/; 
8;  18.')3,  2(»;  lS(il, 
iircinin  means  sor- 
gives  a  traditiou. 


II 


Lh 


trappers  during 
)eeu  nuippod  liy 
as  reconlfd  by 
coiupiest  l>y  tho 
them,  aiiil  with 

0  project  fill-  a 
lidad,  as  the  only 

March 'J7,1S4S, 
ornian,  March  '29, 

,  this  series,  fcir 
•veued,  but  when 

1  found  wealtli, 
loast  Range,  the 
jrs  and  sujiplius 

route.  Trinity 
1  into  the  Trini- 
d  to  be  near  hy. 
;ht  bo  this.  Sue 
t.  1849,  and  also 
adiug  made  tliia 

int  for  Miiiicrs, 
1849  from  the 

,y  of  San  Fran- 

.  Otli,  but  came 


Ixick  without  news,  and  another  by  laud  westward,  under  Josiah  Oregg. 
A'Miiit  40  miners  who  lacked  supplies  for  the  winter  enlisted,  but  uuly  8 
gtartiil,  iuehiding  1).  A.  Buck  and  L.  K.  Wood,  the  latter  recording  the  trip 
i  I  notes  revised  by  W.  Van  Dyke  in  185(5,  and  published  by  him  as  editor  of 
]luiiil'"l'lt  Times  of  thao  year,  and  Feb.  7-14,  18(>3.  Wood  then  resided  in 
lliiiiildildt,  where  he  had  served  some  terms  as  county  clerk.  Testimony  in 
S.  /'.  HulUibi,  Fel>.  28-March  1872;  La  Moth,  Slat.,  M.S.,  2-11,  and  Van 
Dyke  subsequently  wrote  detailed  accounts  for  me,  SUit.,  MS.,  20.  The 
rcpni-t  was  I'cproduced  in  the  Eureka  West  Count  Si'jntil,  March  2l)-7,  1872,  in 
Oirrlinii/,  i.  144,  and  JlumlioUlt  Co.  Hint.,  83  et  seq.  See  also  Crotwie's  Cni, 
1<17.    Starting  on  Nov.  5,  1849,  from  Rich  Bar,  they  crossed  the  south  fork 


Humboldt  Bay  Reuiun. 

at  its  junction  with  tho  main  Trinity,  and  by  Indian  advice  struck  westward 
over  the  ridge,  reaching  tho  coivst  after  nnieh  trouble  at  Little  Uiver,  whence 
o:i  l)i'c.  7th  th(!y  gained  Trinidad  He.n',  called  l)y  tliem  (Iregg's  Point,  as  per 
iisciiiition  li'ft  tliere.  Turning  southward  tliey  nanie<l  Mml  River,  in  coni- 
iiie:ii(iration  of  the  leader's  temper,  and  coming  upon  Hundnddt  B;iy  on  |)ec. 
20,  1841),  they  called  it  Trinity.  T)iis  was  not  tlie  first  discovery  of  the  Iiay, 
ii'iwivir,  for  a  Russian  chart  of  1848,  l)ased  on  information  by  the  Uui>sian- 
.•\iiii  rican  Co.,  points  it  out  as  entered  by  a  U.  S.  fur-trading  vessel  in  18()G. 
Tho  Indian  name  was  Qual-a-waloo.  Dnmlsons  Directory  Pac,  73.     Buck, 


808 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


who  Bubsequently  founded  Bucluport,  was  tho  first  to  observe  it  on  the  pres- 
ent occasiuti.  They  camped  on  the  site  of  Areata,  and  celebrated  Christmas 
on  elk  meat,  after  which  Elk  River  was  named.  Eel  River  was  bo  called 
from  the  food  here  enjoyed,  and  Van  Duzen  Fork  after  one  of  the  party. 
The  party  now  dissented  and  separated,  Gregg  with  three  others,  after  vainly 
attempting  to  follow  the  coast,  drifting  into  Sacramento  Valley,  Gregg  ^)cri.^1i- 
ing  from  exposure  and  starvation.  The  others,  following  Eel  River  and  then 
turning  south-east,  reached  Sonoma  on  Feb.  17,  1850,  Woods  being  mutilated 
by  bears. 

The  explorers  by  sea,  after  announcing  the  discovery  at  S.  F.,  returned  by 
land  with  a  party  of  33,  and  in  the  middle  of  April  1850  laid  the  foundation 
f  1  r  the  towns  of  Bucksport  and  Union,  or  Areata.  Buck  was  afterward  drowned 
off  the  Columbia  bar  in  the  Oen.  Warren.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  loc.  cit.  Report  of 
wagon  party  in  Humboldt  Times,  i.  14,  Dec.  2,  1854.  Id.,  Apr.  15,  1876, 
defers  this  location  till  1851,  but  Woods  is  positive.  Union,  founded  on  Apr. 
2l8t,  was  regarded  by  most  as  the  only  good  site.  Others  hastened  to  gaia 
the  bay  by  sea,  and  during  the  spring  a  fleet  set  out,  headed  by  the  (jviko 
and  Laura.  Viryinia.  The  latter  was  the  first  to  enter  both  Trinidad  ami 
Humboldt  bays  early  in  ApriL  The  Cameo  failed  to  observe  the  latter,  l)iit 
gained  Trinidad  Head  and  landed  the  explorers,  who,  penetrating  up  tlie 
Klamath,  met  in  due  time  miners  descending  the  Trinity,  and  so  cleared  up 
t'>e  mystery  of  its  course.  Highly  elated,  they  founded  Klamath  City  on 
the  south  bank  of  this  river,  but  its  shifting  sand  bar  proved  insurmountalile 
for  vessels,  and  the  city  died.  The  Laura  Virginia,  under  D.  Ottinger  of  the 
U.  S.  revenue  service,  on  furlough,  after  anchoring  at  Trinidad  later  iu 
March  entered  Humboldt  Bay  on  April  9th,  and  assuming  it  to  be  his  discovery, 
he  applied  this  name  and  founded  the  town  of  Humboldt.  Lamotk's  Stat., 
MS.,  2-11,  by  a  member  of  the  expedition;  Ottinger's  report  of  April  '25, 
1850,  to  the  secretary  of  the  U.  S.  treasury,  republished  in  North  Indi-jtewt., 
1870;  statement  of  £.  Brown,  Ottinger's  partner,  in  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Feb.  'JS, 
etc.,  1872.  St  Blunt,  U.  S.  N.,  sailed  at  the  same  time  in  the  Andm,  but 
failed  to  find  the  eutrance.  His  boat  was  swamped  near  Trinidad,  and  five 
men  drowned,  incluiloig  lieuts  Boche  and  Browning,  U.  S.  N.  J.  M.  Uijir- 
son  arrived  early  in  April  at  Eel  River,  and  joined  a  whale-boat  crew  in 
founding  a  town  three  miles  up,  seeking  afterwards  to  direct  migration  this 
way  by  proclaiming  it  the  main  route  to  the  mines.  JfumboltU  Times,  Felt.  7, 
1863.  Shortly  before,  the  Gen.  Monjan,  fitted  out  by  Sam  Brauuan  and  his 
brother,  had  sent  in  boat  crews  which  named  tlie  River  Branuan,  and  tiien 
crossed  the  divide  to  Humboldt  Bay,  which  was  called  Mendocino.  There 
they  proposed  to  found  a  town  and  connect  it  by  a  canal  with  the  river,  ai  ter 
failing  to  agree  with  Parker  of  the  Jtis  R.  Whitinij,  concerning  a  share  iu  the 
town  founded  by  him  at  Trinidad.  Capt.  Warner  of  the  Isaliel  laid  out 
Warners ville  Apr.  10th,  adjoining  Parker's.  Tlie  pilot-boat  Eclipse,  Capt. 
Tomson,  arrived  at  Bucksport  early  in  May  1850,  with  24  persons;  and  a 
party  hea<lcd  by  Ryan  on  May  8th  located  Eureka,  the  first  camp  being  made 
on  the  spot  known  as  Ryan's  Garden.  Testimony  of  tlie  sun'ivor  Yoim^'  iu 
S.  F.  Bulletin,  May  17,  1S78.  Ryan  was  clio-sen  alcal.le.  Humfioldt  Ti.tii'.% 
Dec.  25,  1809,  etc.     Yet  Woods,  Van  Dyke's  Stat.,  MS.,  23,  West  Coast  Sijwil, 


HUMBOLDT. 


M.ircli  27,  1872,  Jan.  10,'1877,  mentions  that  Ryan  hadlieen  here  with  the  Gen. 
Monjiin,  and  that  about  this  time  the  Laura  Viryiiiia  crew  was  encamped  on 
this  point.  In  S.  F.  Call,  May  26,  1878,  Brett's  tent  is  placed  as  the  first  hab- 
iution.  Polynesian,  vii.  2.  Among  other  vessels  were  the  Cnli/ornia,  which 
hastened  back  on  March  28th  to  announce  tlie  discovery  of  Trinidad,  as  re- 
corded by  Gregg,  Paragon,  Sierra  Nevada,  Hector,  Patapnco,  Oalinda,  and  J/(i2- 
kro>i,  several  of  which  were  stranded  off  Humboldt  and  Trinidad;  Cameo  being 
duolured  lost  owing  to  a  somewhat  prolonged  absence.  As  the  news  came  of 
the  (lififurent  foundations,  the  press  fairly  teemed  with  glowing  notices  and 
prospectures  by  the  rival  projectors.  Instance,  Alta  Cal.,  Apr.  10,  May  27, 
ct  wi[.,  1850;  Pac.  Newn,  id.,  Apr.  2G,  May  13-16,  Aug.  22;  Cal.  Courier,  July 
1,  Aug.  5,  1850,  etc.     See  also  references  in  preceding  note. 

T.ie  earli-jst  site  on  this  upper  coast  was  that  of  Trinidad,  selected  during 
the  tirst  days  of  April  by  Captain  Parker  of  the  James  R.  WfiUimj.  It  was 
for  u  moment  oversliadowed  by  Klamath  City.  Another  river  city  on  the 
K.'l,  aii'l  a  project  at  the  south  end  of  Humboldt  Bay,  failed  to  asaunie  tangible 
form,  notwithstanding  the  glowing  notices  lavished  upon  tliem,  in  common 
with  the  rest.  Trinidad  acquired  the  lead,  soon  counting  30  buildings,  jtartly 
frr)iu  its  proximity  to  the  Trinity  mines,  which,  moreover,  procured  for  it  tlie 
Btiat  of  Trinity  county,  which  in  1850  was  created  to  embrace  all  this  newly 
exphired  region  west  of  the  Coast  Range.  It  received  furtlier  impulse  from 
tliu  (inld  Blufif  excitement  during  the  winter  of  1850-1,  which  drew  a  crowd 
of  adventurers  in  search  of  ready-washed  gold  from  the  ocean  bluffs.  Pnc. 
A'ai'.i,  May  16,  Feb.  26,  1850;  Alta  Cal.,  May  27,  1850;  March  5,  Apr.  29, 
June  14,  1851;  Sac.  Transcript,  Feb.  28,  1851,  reduces  the  population  to  2()0, 
but  other  accounts  place  it  much  higher.  Cal.  Courier,  Feb.  19,  1851.  But 
witli  the  rise  especially  of  Crescent  City,  and  the  transfer  in  1854  of  the  county 
8>;at  from  Klamath  to  this  rival  and  then  to  Orleans  Bar,  Trinidad  declined. 
Population  80,  says  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  7,  1856;  Alta  Cal,  Oct.  25,  1855; 
Wtat  Coast  Siymil,  Nov.  22,  '1871. 

Meanwhile  diggers  had  pushed  their  way  along  the  Trinity  and  northward 
to  Salmon  and  Klamath  rivers,  rendering  this  section  so  important  as  to  call 
ill  1851  for  the  creation  of  Klamath  county.  The  region  round  Iluiuboldt 
Bay  shared  largely  m  the  tratiic  with  the  Trinity  mines  and  revealed  such 
promising  agricultural  and  timber  resources  that  in  1853  Humboldt  couiity 
was  formed  out  of  the  western  half  of  Trinity.  Pac.  News,  Aug.  22,  1850, 
aUiiiles  to  garden  culture  round  Union.  In  1854  fidly  2,500  acres  were 
declared  in  cultivation,  while  stock-raising,  notably  for  wool  and  dairy  pur- 
po.ses,  fast  assumed  large  proportions,  especially  after  Indian  depredations 
ctased.  Eureka  became  tlie  centre  of  the  lumber  trade,  whicli  began  in  1^.50 
hy  the  export  of  si)ar8.  In  Aug.  1850,  according  to  the  IlutnlioUlt  Timi-s,  tlie 
Fniiirii  JIcli'H  brought  machinery  for  tlie  Pioneer  or  Papoose  mill  now  erected 
at  Kiircka  by  J.  M.  Etldy  and  M.  White.  Yet  another  statement  declares 
that  the  </.  li.  Whitiiuj  carrieil  away  the  first  cargo  of  piles  in  the  suiiiiiier  of 
1851.  Ryan  claims  his  mill  of  Feb.  1852  as  the  first;  be  might  say  the  first 
successful  mill,  for  the  former  of  1850  failed  after  two  years'  existence.  For 
])rogress,  see  Uii<t.  HumlioUH  Co.,  141-3.  Two  flour-mills  rose  in  1854,  on 
Van  I)uzen  Fort  and  at  Eureka.     The  seat  of  Humboldt  county  was  assigned 


604 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


to  Union,  a  town  prosperously  sustained  by  the  fanning  and  timber  rcaources 
of  Mad  River.  In  18i>4  it  had  12  or  14  storea,  and  justly  claimed  tliu  lead. 
In  ISiK)  the  name  was  changed  to  Areata,  which  soon  figuretl  as  au  iii('(>r))o- 
rated  town,  with  700  inhabitants  in  1880,  sustained  by  a  large  trade  witli  tlic 
Trinity  mines,  but  it  ranked  second  to  Eureka.  Alia  CaL,  Aug.  21,  1854; 
S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  7,  July  26,  1856.  The  success  of  Union  roused  tlie  jeal. 
ousy  of  Eureka  and  Bucksport,  the  latter  claiming  the  most  central  positidn, 
the  best  site,  and  the  harbor,  which,  indeed,  procured  for  it  the  port  of  tntry 
privilege — a  no  small  advantage,  considering  the  large  luinljer  trade  of  the 
bay.  For  the  11  months  ending  May  1854  there  arrived  in  the  bay  14.3  vls- 
sels,  witli  a  tonnage  of  22,000,  bringing  562  passengers.  Cmwt  Swvey,  1854, 
ap.  35;  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  34,  Sess.  1,  H.  Miss.  Doc.  85,  ii..  Pilot  bill; 
Ciil.  Jour.  Sen.,  1851,  1826.  In  1853  came  a  steam  tug.  The  Si-a  <?«{/"  was 
the  first  steamer  to  enter,  in  Sept.  1850.  Humlioldt  Tirnvs,  Apr.  15,  1876,  etc. 
The  shallow  bar  docs  not  permit  very  large  vessels  to  cross.  After  a  long 
struggle  marked  by  lavish  promises  and  stupendous  voting,  the  legislature 
transferred  the  dignity  in  1856  to  Eureka,  which  thereupon  incorporated, 
wrested  the  trade  from  Bucksport,  and  advanced  to  the  leading  position  in 
the  most  prosperous  county  on  the  northern  coast.  The  population  of 
Eureka  in  1880  was  2,639.  Hookton  and  even  Areata  became  tributary. 
owing  to  their  shallower  harbors.  During  the  year  ending  Nov.  1,  1877,  3i!9 
vessels  entered,  carrying  away  58,700,000  feet  of  lumber,  besides  spars  and 
farm  produce.  In  the  preceding  year  1,100  vessels  crossed  the  bar.  There 
were  then  7  saw-mills,  a  foundry,  and  two  breweries.  S.  F.  Call,  May  26,  1S7S; 
S.  F.  Pout,  June  14,  1877;  Cal.  Courier,  Aug.  5,  1850;  Cul.  Statnti-.t,  ISofl,  37, 
103-5;  1S59,  192-7;  1873-4,  91-2;  Snc.  Union,  Dec.  2,  1859;  Ifrndn/it  Jlnm- 
lioldt,  28-35.  The  population  of  the  county,  2,694  in  1860,  increased  by  1870 
to  6,140,  and  by  1880,  with  ad<lition  of  a  slice  from  Klamath,  to  15,512,  with 
property  assessed  at  §5,481,000,  whereof  $4,120,000  in  1,309  farms,  live-stock, 
and  farm  produce,  each  being  estimated  at  one  million.  C<il.  Slufnten,  1853, 
3.30;  1802,  6-7;  1871-2,  1007-8;  Went  Const  Shjnal,  June  25,  Oct.  1,  1873; 
Jan.  11,  1878;  Cal.  Spirit  Times,  Dec.  25,  1877;  Hawky's  Humlmldt,  1-42; 
S,  F.  Herald,  Jan.  31,  1852.  Scattered  notices  in  Snc.  Unwn,  Alta  Cul., 
S.  F.  Bulletin,  S.  F.  Call,  Pnci/c,  Aug.  6,  1874,  etc. ;  HumlmUlt  Times,  Jan. 
11,  1873;  Apr.  15,  1876;  Jan.  27,  Dec.  29,  1877;  May  11,  1878;  Aug.  28, 
1880,  etc.  This,  the  first  newspaper,  was  started  in  1854.  The  Eel  River 
farming  region  gave  rise  to  Rohnerville,  Hydesville,  and  Ferndale;  I'etro- 
lia  being  the  growing  centre  of  Mattole,  with  petroleum  wells,  Garber- 
ville  occupying  the  Eel  south  fork.  Two  military  posts  in  the  interior  point 
to  the  retarding  iuHucncc  of  untrustworthy  Indians  in  early  years. 


The  opening  of  mines  along  the  lower  Klamath  and  Smith  river,  and  the 
unapproachability  of  Klamath  City,  led  to  the  foundation  in  1853  of  Crescent 
City,  a  name  considered  in  Pac.  News,  May  2,  1850,  and  duo  to  the  crescent 
form  of  the  bay.  The  Paraijon  met  with  <lisaster  here  in  1850,  and  applied 
its  name  to  the  bight  for  a  time.  The  increase  of  prospectors  in  this  vicinity, 
and  the  failure  of  Klamath  City,  which  had  thriven  for  nearly  a  year,  /'(tc. 
AVws  Nov.  1,  1850,  Jan.  3,   1851,  Sac.   Transcript,  Nov.   14,   1850,  opened 


DEL  NORTK 


605 


fini'  jirdspecta  for  a  town  at  this  the  only  roadstead  above  Trinidad;  and  a 
coiii|>:iii>  headed  by  R.  Humphreys  and  J.  F.  Wendell  took  upland  herein 
]8.'r.',  jiiiil  in  Feb.  1853  laitl  out  a  town.  A  mill  was  erected.  S.  F.  Uimld, 
\\»\  -7,  June  h),  1853.  Tlie  title  was  not  confirmed,  but  tlie  council  Hubse- 
ntii'iitly  ])ought  it  from  the  U.  S.  So  rapid  was  the  growth  that  in  I8.'>4  it 
claiiiK'il  over  20U  houses  and  800  inhabitants,  with  a  journal,  and  wa.s  incor- 
p(.i;itod.  Val.  SUUutes,  1854,  33,  68;  Col.  Jour.  Am.,  1854,  t>58-9;  Id.,  Sen. 
Ifi.'i.'i,  ^77.  View  in  Pict.  Union,  Jan.  1855;  Del  Norte  Jfrrord,  June-Nov. 
ISSO;  Cirtii-riit  (itij  Courier,  Sept.  4,  1878;  Van  Dykra  SUU.,  MS.,  '23;  Altn 
Cdi,  Apr.  10,  1854;  Sept.  1,  1855;  Jan.  19,  June  29,  Oct.  17,  1^56;  Aug.  20, 
1S:)7;  I'Vb.  2,  Aug.  20,  1858;  Nov.  19,  1859;  May  27,  ISiW;  Apr.  1,  18G5; 
with  references  to  liglithouse  and  harbor  improvements;  also  Sac.  Union  and 
S.  /•'.  Bnllvtin;  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  41,  Seas.  2,  H.  Misc.  Doc.  02.  The 
county  st;iit,  won  from  Trinidad,  being  lost  by  1850,  it  agitiitod  for  a  separa- 
tion from  Klamath,  and  succeeded  in  obtaining  the  formation  of  Del  Norte 
county,  with  itself  as  seat.  Although  this  promising  period  Wiia  followed  by 
deilinu,  yet  its  possession  of  the  only  pretence  of  a  harbor  in  this  region,  to- 
gi'tluT  with  a  few  minor  industries,  manage  to  maintain  it  a.s  the  leading  sea 
town  north  of  Eureka,  notwitlistanding  the  meagre  mining  and  agricultural 
rt'Sdurces  of  tlie  county,  tiie  latter  consisting  cliielly  of  live-.stock.  '1  he  pop- 
ulation of  the  county  increased  from  1,993  in  1800,  aii'l  2,022  in  1870,  to 
2,584  in  1880,  with  jjropurty  assessed  at  ^96,000;  the  value  of  77  faniM  be- 
ing .S"i'.H),0(K),  yielding  $133,530,  while  the  live-stock  was  worth  $743,900. 
fill.  StiituU-M,  1857,  35-8,  102;  1858,  378;  Crenrent  Coiiriir,  Juno  11  et  seq., 
187'.t;  IM  NorU-  lirmrd,  July-Oct.  1880,  etc.;  Par.  liunil  y'/rw,  Sei)t.  18, 
1875,  etc.;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  1,  1870;  June  0,  1879;  S.  F.  Call,  May  4, 
187!t:  Jan.  0,  1S84;  ,S'.  F.  Cliron.,  Oct.  10,  1875;  Feb.  28,  1881.  Crops  were 
raisfil  in  Smith  Valley  in  1854.  and  a  flour-mill  rose  at  Crescent  City  in 
185(1,  a  saw-mill  being  there  in  1853,  since  which  time  4  more  liave  risen.  A 
sahiioii  cannery  was  athled.  The  first  important  point  in  tlie  county  was 
Hapjiy  Camp,  of  July  1851,  which  flourished  in  a  small  way  in  18S7,  being 
suiuiior  to  the  other  mining  camps.  On  Smith  River  rose  Altaville  and 
otlicr  villages,  which  partly  supply  the  Oregon  mining  field. 

A  still  poorer  section  was  Klamath  county,  which  by  the  segregation  of 
Di'l  Norte,  and  the  gradual  decline  of  the  Klamath  and  Salmon  River  mines, 
dt't'liiicd  to  so  small  and  barren  a  field  that  the  diminishing  population,  of  less 
tlian  1,700  in  1870,  began  to  complain  against  the  burden  of  a  soparate  admin- 
istration and  a  swelling  debt.  In  1874,  accordingly,  it  M'as  disorganized  and 
apportioned  between  Siskiyou  and  Humboldt,  both  Orleans  liar,  tlie  county 
seat  since  1856,  and  Trinidad  falling  to  the  latter,  with  §273,5(K)  of  the  .*001,- 
5(K)  assessed  property,  and  ^10,890  of  the  $23,950  ilebt.  Tlie  popidation  in 
18lJ0  was  1,800.  Siskiyou's  objections  were  with  difficulty  overruleil,  repub- 
lii'aiis  suspecting  a  democratic  intrigue  to  obtain  a  majority,  ''n/.  StutiiU'H, 
1851,  p.  1827;  1855,  p.  200;  1850,  pp.  32-3;  1871-2,  p.  1010;  18734,  ].[>.  :109, 
802,  755-8;  Van  Di/ke's  Stat.,  MS.,  5;  Attn  Cat.,  June  9,  18f4.  Klamath 
Kiver  has  here  little  farming  land,  and  the  Hoopa  Indian  reservation  absorbs 
tile  largest  tract  thereof  in  the  county.  Trinidad  depends  greatly  on  its  saw- 
mills.    Trinity,  with  a  population  tlireefold  larger,  long  depended  on  Uiining, 


i| 


i  ■>. 


806 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


for  ita  resourcefl  were  limited,  even  for  live-stock,  with  a  poor  outlet  for  tim- 
ber. Lathrop's  water-power  Haw-niill  of  1863  heada  the  liat;  by  1858  ulM)iit 
17  other  Biiiall  mills  had  been  added,  besides  three  flour-mills.  A  tannery 
existed  in  1856.  Agriculture  had  lieen  begun  in  1850  by  B.  Steiner,  near  tlie 
town  Iwaring  his  name  By  1880  there  were  142  farms  valued  at  $28.">,(K)(), 
the  produce  and  live-stock  being  estimated  at  about  $115,000  each,  wliilu  the 
assessed  property  of  the  county  stood  at  $868,000,  among  a  population  ol 
6,000,  grown  from  3,213  in  1870;  in  1860  it  was  5,125.  Among  the  nnnior- 
ous  early  uamps  Ridgeville,  Minersville,  Lewiaton,  Cafion  City,  Long  and  Big 
bars  continued  to  figure,  partly  owing  to  the  gradually  unfolding  ijuartz 
interests,  wliile  Weaverville  retained  the  prominence  as  county  seat  and 
centre  of  trade  which  a  rich  gold-field  procured  for  it  in  1850.  Both  Heading 
and  a  Frenchman  named  Orosa  are  said  to  have  mined  there  in  1849,  foUnued 
by  Weaver,  whose  name  was  applied  to  the  creek  and  consequently  to  the 
town.  By  1851  it  had  acquired  sufficient  prominence  to  rival  the  HunilioMt 
Bay  towns  for  the  county  seat,  and  obtain  it  after  some  trouble  in  1852. 
Herein  lay  one  cause  for  the  segregation  of  the  dissatisfied  Humboldt  countv, 
leaving  Weaverville  the  seat  in  1853  of  a  much  reduced  section.  It  met  with 
several  disasters  from  fire  in  1853-5.  AUa  Cai,  March  13,  1853;  Dec.  12,  18.">4; 
Oct.  1,  12,  1855;  Jan.  17,  1856;  Oct.  22,  1859;  Oct.  17,  18(50;  S.  F.  lf>r<il,l, 
March  13,  1853;  Sac.  Union,  Dec.  12,  1854;  March  1,  28,  May  10,  30,  Sept. 
10-14,  Oct.  11,  Dec.  18-19,  27,  1855;  Jan.  24,  Apr.  8,  Aug.  29,  Dec.  10,  1S5G; 
Sept.  23,  1858;  Aug.  17,  1859.  Yet  it  incorporated  in  1855,  and  continued 
to  prosper,  with  a  newspaper  from  1854.  For  a  time  it  was  rivalled  Ijy 
Riilgeville,  which  in  1856  claimed  700  inhabitants,  but  in  1858  only  one  fifth 
of  that  nuinl)er.  Caiion  City  also  declined  from  400  in  1855.  Yreka  L  nion, 
Feb.  1,  1879;  Weaverville  Jour.,  Feb.  25,  July  15,  1871,  etc.;  C'al.  SVitut-.t, 
1871-2,  766;  Coxa  Annals  qf  Trinity,  200  pp.,  the  last  a  rambling  yet  useful 
book. 


Tlie  current  of  settlement  which  penetrated  the  northern  districts  of  Cidi- 
forniu,  reenforced  by  sea-route  additions,  was  soon  met  by  another,  radiating 
from  Sonoma.  While  slow  to  appreciate  the  commercial  advantages  of  Sau 
Francisco  Bay,  the  gradual  expansion  of  ranches  directed  attention  to  the 
valleys  along  its  north  line,  and  in  1834  M.  (i.  Vallejo  established  a  mili- 
tary outpost  near  the  decaying  mission  of  Solano.  In  this  he  was  prompted 
by  political  aspirations,  and  other  personal  interests,  as  well  as  by  tlie  ailvis- 
ability  of  checking  the  encroachments  of  the  Russians,  who  for  tiiree  decades 
prior  to  1841  held  the  region  round  Bodega  Bay,  the  first  occupants  north  nf 
S.  F.  Under  his  protective  wing  a  number  of  followers  began  to  occupy  the 
fertile  tracts  adjacent,  until  the  sway  of  their  chieftain  in  1848  extended  to 
the  sliores  of  Clear  Lake  on  one  side,  and  on  the  other  to  the  ocean,  at  Wal- 
halla  River,  the  word  Walhalla  beiiig  a  corruption  of  Oualula. 

After  the  first  flush  of  gold  excitement,  the  advantages  of  Sonoma  county 
were  quickly  observed  in  its  varied  resources  and  proximity  to  the  metrop- 
olis at  the  Gate.  Farming,  which  had  been  started  by  the  Muscovites  decades 
before,  and  taken  up  at  the  mission  on  a  large  scale,  was  now  resumed  Uy 
different  settlers,  with  profits  greatly  eclipsing  those  of  the  gold-diggers. 


i'!!' 


SONOMA. 


607 


V(!;;(!ta1)le8  were  in  time  suppleineuted  by  grain  and  cattle,  and  later  viiiicul- 
tun:  l)los!Joiiied  into  a  luading  industry.  Fruit-treea  and  vines  were  planted 
hy  tliu  Russians  and  early  valley  guttlers;  three  grist-tnilla  rose  before  1849; 
vliilo  the  luxuriant  redwood  forests,  which  had  already  given  rise  to  two 
mills,  yielded  themselves  to  a  fast-developing  lumber  business.  Dawson  had 
opuucd  a  saw-pit  in  the  thirties,  in  imitation  of  the  Russians,  upon  whose  do- 
main ('apt.  Smith  erected  the  first  steam  mill  in  1843.  A  similar  mill  replaced, 
ill  1849,  the  water-power  mill  at  Freestone,  owned  by  Mcintosh.  Cal{fortiinn, 
Maich  8,  1848,  describes  the  saw  and  flour  mills  at  Bodega.  In  later  years, 
(jiiiokMilver  mining  employed  a  large  force.  These  different  industries  fostered 
a  triulu  facilitated  by  several  streams  and  inlets,  and  by  two  railroads,  one  of 
tlitMii  begun  before  1870,  and  tf)wns  sprang  up  in  profusion  round  mills  and 
stations  and  in  the  different  valleys.  But  the  centre  of  population  shifted 
wH^.st  and  northward,  and  Sonoma,  which  in  1848  figured  as  a  town,  and  con- 
8ei|uently  became  the  county  seat  in  1850,  declined,  and  tlie  political  sceptre 
wan  in  1854  transferred  to  the  central  Santa  Rosa,  then  only  a  year  old,  but 
rapidly  lifted  by  the  unfolding  agriculture  and  the  traffic  with  Russian  River 
to  lliu  leading  town  in  the  county.  Cat  Star  and  Call/omian,  of  Jan. -Feb. 
1848,  refer  to  the  flourishing  condition  of  Sonoma.  Larkin'n  Doc.,  vii.  200; 
('ill.  Pioneers,  7.  In  1848-9  it  became  an  entrepot  for  the  diggings.  Incor- 
|iorated  in  1850,  proposed  disincorporation  in  1852,  effected  in  tlie  following 
iltcatle.  Cat.  Statutes,  1850,  150;  18C7-8,  576;  Cat.  Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  781,  etc.; 
Aim  Cat,  May  23,  1851;  June  17,  1852;  Siic.  Union,  Dec.  31,  1850,  etc.; 
Mmitijomerif's  Remin.,  MS.,  5.  It  sported  a  journal  in  1850.  Sonoum  Democ., 
Nov.  23,  1878.  The  Carrillos,  who  owned  the  Santa  Rosa  country,  erected 
the  tirst  house  in  the  vicinity  in  1838-9.  In  1851  Mallagh  and  McDonald 
opened  a  store,  followed  by  A.  Meacham,  and  by  Hakman,  Hoen,  and  Hart- 
man.  The  town  of  Franklin  having  been  laid  out  in  1853,  under  the  agita- 
tion for  a  new  county  seat,  the  latter  traders,  in  conjunction  with  Julio 
I'arrillo,  followed  the  example  that  same  year  by  laying  out  Santa  Rosa — so 
naiiu^d  after  the  creek  and  rancho — a  mile  from  the  site  mentioned,  where 
L'arrillo  had  in  1852  built  a  residence,  and  N.  and  J.  Richardson  a  store  in 
iN'ili.  The  third  building  was  a  hall,  and  this  feature  assisted  greatly  the 
judicious  mana'uvres  which  in  Sept.  1854  wrested  the  seat  from  Sonoma. 
The  town  now  grew  rapidly  for  a  time,  was  incorporated  in  18(57,  anil  with 
tlio  arrival  of  the  railroad,  early  in  the  seventies,  bounded  forward  at  a  greater 
pact'  than  ever,  securing  gas  and  street-cars  by  1877,  and  several  niill.s  and 
factories,  and  in  1880  a  population  of  3,010.  Son.  Democ.,  Oct.  25,  1872;  May 
10,  1874;  June  10,  July  8,  1870;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  23,  Feb.  23,  1880;  AUa 
C'li,  Sept.  27,  1856,  etc.;  Hiit.  Son.  (1877),  20-2;  Id.  (1880),  386-441;  Cal. 
Juiir.  Ass.,  1854,  686,  etc.;  Cal.  SUitHtes,  1871-2,  02. 

Next  stands  Petaluma,  which  still  claims  preeminence  in  trade,  as  the 
head  of  navigation  in  the  valley.  It  was  started  in  1850  as  a  hunting  am! 
shipping  point  by  J.  Lockwood,  Linns  &  Wiatt,  Baylis&  Flogdell,  McRoynoidi 
■1  Hudspeth.  Soon  after  Keller  took  up  a  claim,  and  in  Jan.  1852  laid  out  a 
town  which  was  calleil  after  the  Indian  name  of  the  cfeek.  W.  D.  Kent  opened 
tlic  first  store  and  P.  O.  The  rapid  advance  was  marked  by  a  journal  in 
1855.  Cal.  Statutes,  1858,  148;  1859,  210,  396;  1867-8,  383,  783;  1875-6,  288, 


u . 


^! 


I' 


'  1 


i'\ 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


075.  Incorporation  occurro<l  in  1858,  when  tliu  ]Mipulatinn  wom  claitiu  <]  to 
exceuil  l.^UK);  f;:ts  wim  thuru  in  ISll.'i,  and  nuuiuroi'.'i  niiinufiuituriii^  iii<liiNti  ir« 
ill  l>S.S4)  iiMxiHtuil  ill  MUMtiiiiiin^' .'{,<'<*Jti  iiilialiitiints.  J'rt.  Anjiui,  Kuli.  '.I,  N'i>\.  Iii, 
1877;  Moulijomcnjn  /{ciiiiii.,  MS.,  4;  Sur.  L'liioii,  May  'iil,  IHT)*;;  aii<l  pn  I'.'.mg 
g  -nt-ral  rL-rLTunecH.  Thu  naiiiu  is  claimed  Ity  aoiiiu  to  l>v  a  corniption  nf  pua 
loina,  durk  hill,  from  early  hunting  incideuto;  but  niont  aMsign  it  to  an  Iuhmu 
■ourcu. 

In  the  nortliiTii  part,  on  RuHainn  River,  Healdaburg  hcIdHway  :ui  tlic  lore- 
most  incorporated  city.  It  was  founded  in  1S52  by  il.  O.  Heald,  on  Fiiili'g 
g.'ant,  a.i  HeaM'H  ntoru.  Its  growing  importoncu  caused  it  t«i  Im;  lai<l  mit  in 
1  C)7  asi  a  town,  henceforth  known  an  lleahUlnirg.  It  grew  rapidly,  suppinttil 
a  newtipaper  in  1S;H),  incorporation  in  18G7 — ainendeil  in  Cal.  Stutiifi'*,  l.sT.'t  4, 
6<>5 — and  in  1874  llourished  as  a  city.  Population  in  I8S0,  l.lXt.  Hfiiilshnnj 
EiiUrprUi;  Nov.  122,  1877;  /^/*».  R.  Flag,  June  1.3,  1878.  Healdsl)urK  wns  t.i- 
lowed  l)y  C'h)verdale,  long  the  terminus  of  the  railroiid.  Tlie  place  was  lor.itt  d 
ill  18.')li  by  Markle  k  Miller.  Population  4'M  in  1880.  Incorporation  ad  in 
Ctil.  SUUnti-K,  1871--,  1)5,  1G4,  5")0.  The  railroad  also  fostered  such  towns  ;w 
Fulton  and  Windsor,  while  Guorneville  long  led  the  numerous  milling'  cihiIim, 
including  Forrcstville,  Freestone,  and  Duncan's  Mill  and  liiHlcga,  tlic  .sev.  v.i\ 
sliipiiing  places  on  the  coaat,  as  Fort  Ross,  Salt  Point,  Fisherinan'.s  Hiy. 
Sebastopol  is  on  tiio  roatl  to  Bodega,  which  is  uaiiieil  after  the  ."<ii  inish  ex- 
plorer who  discovered  it.  See  Hint.  Soil.,  of  1877  and  1880,  for  detaiLs;  S"ii. 
Co.  Hvijisier;  CuL  Aijric.  Soe.,  Tittns.,  1874,  390  tt  si'q. ;  Prt.  CreiieeiU,  Jan.  'J,'), 
March  12,  1872;  .S'.  Ifom  Tinie«,  Aug.  9,  1877;  Jan.  31,  1878,  etc. ;  /'.  t.  <  \,ii,in; 
Apr.  5,  1877;  Jan.  31,  1S78,  etc.;  Son.  Democ.,  Jan.  6,  Feb.  17,  March  3,  ls77; 
Pel.  Argun,  Oct.  25,  1878;  June  27,  1879;  llvnliUhurg  Enterjtrio;  June  2(5. 
1879;  Allfi  Cot.,  May  24,  1850;  Aug.  1,  1853;  July  25,  1854;  Feb.  l(i,  S<pt.  '.' 
18.J7;  March  11,  Oct.  14,  1858;  Dec.  2,  1802;  Nov.  7,  18<>3:  Feb.  15,  Ki,  .1 
5,  Nov.  2,  1805;  Apr.  25,  18(18;  Oct.  30,  Nov.  4,  1872;  May  .3,  13,  1S74:  .  . 
S.  F.  Call,  liiUUtin,  Poxt,  Times,  Sac.  Union,  etc.;  CaL  SuUules,  18.')2,  SM',; 
185."»,  150;  H'ofw/.*' /'lOHwr,  214.  The  population  of  the  county  incrca.sccl  fidin 
5»k)  in  1850  to  2,208  in  1852,  11,807  in  18iiO,  and  25,920  in  1880,  with  •_'.--.•» 
farms  valued  at  $10,9.50,000,  proiluco  $2,740,000,  live-stock  §1,578,000.  In 
1852  it  raised  over  117,000  bushels  of  grain,  a  still  larger  quantity  of  potatoes, 
etc.,  and  18,000  head  of  stock. 

Tlie  large  northern  half  of  Sonoma,  to  Humboldt,  wa.1  in  18ri0  a'-  ^orded  the 
title  of  Mendocino  county,  although  subject  to  the  former  for  judicial  ami 
revenue  pur[>o8es,  the  population  being  then  placed  at  55,  and  in  1852  at  .'VS4, 
owning  3,300  bead  of  stock,  and  raising  barely  10,1)00  busheb  of  grain,  liy 
1859  the  population  had  increased  sufficiently  to  permit  a  separate  orgaiii/;i- 
tioii,  one  eighth  of  the  debt,  or  9^,532,  being  debit>;d  to  Mendocino.  The 
boundary  was  mo<lified  in  1860.  Cal.  Statutes,  18,")9,  407;  1871  2,  714,  7i''r». 
The  county  seat  was  jdaced  at  Ukiah,  the  centre  of  a  considerable  farming 
district  on  the  Russian  River.  Ukiah  was  first  settled  by  S.  Lowry  in  I  >5('), 
followed  by  A.  T.  Perkins  and  J.  Burton,  who  trailed  here.  When  chuscn 
county  seat  it  bad  a  population  of  100,  which  by  1880  was  937.  A  jounuil 
appeared  in  1800.     The  name  comoa  from  the  Indian  tnbea  once  occupying 


MKNDOCINO,  LAKE,  AND  NAPA. 


800 


till'  split.  IiiL'oriMiratum  act  in  Cul.  SUUulen,  \WtTt-6,  IG'J.  VjiA  liivor  etn* 
liriiTM  thu  otlior  fvrtilu  eoctinii,  which  however  falU  largely  witliiii  tliti  Iiulian 
ri'.si'i '^ 'itioii,  t)io  Hourcu  of  initch  «li«turl>aiico  in  thin  region.  Nuiiieroux  Hiniill 
Rtrt'.iiiiH  inturiiieiliiitc  along  thu  cooat  rciiilcr  accvHsililu  tlit*  ininieriou  foroHta 
w'liirli  form  the  cliief  industry  of  thu  country.  8aw-niilU  ami  sliipping  i>oiuta 
(lilt  till'  ciMiMt,  from  (iualula  northward,  with  thu  budiU  hut  proNiierouH  Muii< 
tloriiiii  City  in  thu  cuntru.  It  wiw  here  that  honuHt  Harry  .Meig^^x  Htarted  a 
mill  ill  l^'>'2.  Tlio  town  waa  laid  nut  in  1855.  Point  Arenas  and  Little 
K.vri'  lie  lielow,  and  Fort  Bragg  marks  thu  site  of  thu  reservation  placed 
herr  ill  early  yean*.  A  sccoad  mill  waa  started  in  1852  liy  UieliarilHon,  after 
Mliiili  they  inuruaaud  rapidly.  Sue  II 'mt.  Memlofinn  Co.,  141.  Hlue  Koek  and 
Calitii  form  euntrert  in  Eel  Uivcr  valley.  Little  Lake,  I'onio,  and  Caliietta, 
rise  ill  tlio  middle  of  the  county,  thu  last  I)eing  thu  only  rival  for  the  county 
geat  ill  IS.')!),  lielow  Ukiah,  Hopl.-iud  ia  thu  leading  village,  closu  to  which 
F.  Frli/  settled  alxmt  1844,  the  Hrat  occuiMnt  of  thu  country.  John  I'arkur 
i.H  saiil  to  have  Itecn  the  next  auttlur,  iu  1850,  on  WiUon  Creek,  near  Ukiah. 
Vet  this  year  thu  eenxua  creilita  the  county  with  2<)0  liiisheLi  of  corn  and 
Riiine  live-stock.  A  Hour-mill  waa  here  in  1858.  Li  1880  there  were  1)82 
farms,  valued  at  1^,451,000,  protlucu  and  livu-atock  each  Htanding  for  some* 
what  over  a  million,  and  thu  total  aasuaanient  at  J^,<.)7l>,000,  amoiif;  a  (lopu* 
lation  of  r.',800,  against  7,545  in  1870  and  .%9«7  in  1800.  Mvmh>f.  W.  Coiut 
Sin;  Die.  '2.">,  ."W,  1875,  etc.;  UkitUi  PrtM,  Jan.  21,  1881;  /^w.i.  li.  riuj,  Dec. 
:10,  I8(l'.l;  Nov.  22,  1877;  AlUiC-il,  Aug.  6,  1858;  Apr.  8,  May  lit,  July  31, 
Aii>;.  •-',  .'W,  1850,  utc.;.6\  F.  BulkUn,  Dec.  29,  185(1;  F.  I  .  8,  1857;  May  29, 
IS.VS;  June  20,  1862;  March  3,  Apr.  13,  1805;  Nov.  29,  Is/'J;  aHaoCaU,  Chron., 
etc. 


The  adjoining  beautiful  Lake  county,  formed  round  Clear  Lake  between 
two  lirauche.s  of  thu  Coiiat  Range,  had  been  used  aa  a  grazing  country  aince 
alioiit  1840,  and  received  in  1847  its  firat  permanent  occupants.  Stone  and 
Kelsey,  who  being  killed  by  Indiana  m  1849  for  tiicir  cruelty,  led  to  au 
aveiiuiiig  military  ex^tedition  in  1850,  under  Lt  Lyons.  W  Anderson,  who 
ill  b'.'il  occupied  and  named  Anderson  Valley  in  Mendocino,  is  said  to  have 
located  himself  and  wife  here  in  1848.  Hint.  Lake  Co.,  63;  Najxi  Hr(jiKU'r,  Feb. 
21,  1874.  llumoteness  and  fear  of  Indiana  delayed  further  settlement  till 
IH.'i.S.  After  this  thu  intlux  was  rapid,  and  in  1861  this  northern  di.strict  of 
Na[ia  was  formed  into  a  separate  county,  with  the  seat  at  Lakepurt,  on  the 
laud  of  Will  Forlwa,  thu  rirat  buainesa  occupant  l)eing  J.  Parrish.  Ctil.  Stat- 
iiU:i,  1861,  1865-6,  ap  69;  1871-2,  305,  903;  J/Utell's  Vo<l>a,  ii.  1706  A  news- 
paper was  started  here  in  1866.  Lakeport  became  in  due  time  thu  leading 
town,  although  not  until  after  a  close  struggle  with  Lower  Lake,  which  ob- 
tained the  seat  between  1867-70,  and  for  a  time  had  high  aspirations,  bused 
on  adjacent  miiiua  and  expected  factories.  First  house  here  in  1858;  tirst 
store  in  1860.  In  the  south  Middletown  rose  as  a  thriving  way -station,  and 
throughout  are  scattered  a  number  of  medicinal  springs  with  a  yearly  incruas'- 
iiig  attendance,  which  together  with  some  quicksilver  deposits  assist  to 
bring  revenue  to  a  county  otherwise  depending  wholly  upon  agriculture. 
Both  grist  aud  saw  milLi  are  recorded  iu  ISott.     H\e  population  increased 


M      i 


jri' 


|i",i 


I) 


510 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


irom  2.970  in  1870  to  G,600  in  lf<80,  possessing  512  farms  valued  at  SI, 81)2, 000, 
with  i>ro«liice  worth  $518,000,  and  live-stock  $288,000,  the  total  assussini  nt 
being  $2,177,000.  Cotton  has  l)een  raised.  Kclseyville  and  Uin»!r  Like 
became  thriving  villages.  Lakeport  Co.  Repl,  1-77;  Doi/non's  Bio'j.,  MS  ,  J  S; 
Ifint.  //ai«Co.,i)as8im;  Harper's  Mag.,  xlviii.  43-6;  Hayes' CaL  Not*n,  iii.  14.S; 
Lower  Lake  liulktm,  Dec.  1869;  Feb.  5,  1881;  Lakeport  Bee,  June  15,  ISTii; 
Jan.  4,  May  17,  June  14,  1877;  March  20,  1879;  Sac.  Union,  Oct.  «,  IS.V); 
June  3,  185<);  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  2B-8,  1803;  Dec.  22,  1809;  June  17,  1S70; 
Call,  Nov.  16,  1871;  Juno  25,  1876;  March  9,  June  24,  1879;  Alia,  etc. 

Napa,  the  garden  valley  of  California,  sharecl  quicKly  in  the  immigration 
drawn  by  the  venture  at  Sonoma,  and  early  in  1848  it  was  found  expedient  to 
lay  out  the  town  of  Napa,  at  the  head  of  navigation.  It  was  done  by  ( iri^'.iby 
and  Coombs,  at  what  was  known  as  the  embarcadero,  or  landing,  for  tlie 
produce  of  the  farms  and  mills  al>ove,  as  pointed  out  in  Cal.  Star,  Feb.  I'J, 
1848,  when  alluding  to  the  town  survey  lately  made.  The  Callf'orninn  of 
March  8,  1848,  was  puffing  it.  Cal  Pioneers,  10;  Nap<i  Begister,  June  23,  1S77; 
July  20,  1878.  In  April,  W.  F.  Swasey  and  C.  C.  Southward  prcijartd  to 
open  a  store.  CaL  Star,  Apr  1,  1848  Tradition  says  H.  Pierce  erected  the 
first  building  on  the  sitO;  fo.  a  saloon,  in  May,  it  is  added,  J.  P.  Thompson 
opening  the  first  store.  After  the  temporary  check  caused  by  the  gold  fever, 
it  gained  strength  and  obtained  a  population  of  300  by  1852,  a  journal  v.-ui 
sUrted  in  1856,  incorporation  followed  in  1872,  Cal.  Statutes,  1871-2,  1014, 
1873-4,  140,  with  gas  and  street-cars,  and  by  1880  the  population  had  ad- 
vanced to  3,730,  from  1,880  in  1870.  The  steair.'unat  which  since  18.')0  supple- 
mented sloop  traffic  w.i8  greatly  supplanted  by  tl>e  railroad.  T!;«  insane 
a-sylum  established  here  in  1872  proved  a  source  of  considerable  reven>;e. 
Tlius  as  centre  of  trade  and  the  county  scat,  NapcX  l)ecame  the  most  pop- 
ulous pl.oce  in  the  valley.  Next  ranked  St  Helena,  renowned  for  its  vine- 
yards, founded  on  Bale's  original  grant,  and  named  after  the  adjacent  mountaip, 
which  was  christened  after  a  Russian  woman.  Still  and  Walters  bi'ilt  the 
first  house  and  store  there  about  1851.  Kisteran<l  .Stratton  came  3  or  4  years 
later,  according  to  St  Helena  Star,  Feb.  12,  1876,  after  which  the  agriculture 
intc-  sts  increased.  In  1876  Si,  He'ena  was  incorporated,  Cal.  Stafuffn,  1875 
-6,  444,  l)on«ting  its  securing  a  newspaper  in  1874.  Population  in  ISHO,  \,'Mi). 
B(!yond,  Calistoga  figured  as  a  health  resort,  and  later  ao  the  terminus  for  tlio 
railroad,  which  gave  importance  to  several  other  agricultural  villages,  as 
Yountsville,  first  called  Sel>aatoi)ol,  but  renamed  after  Yount,  the  first  settler 
in  the  valley,  who  luilt  a  house  in  1836.  Monticello  w,i8  located  in  the  cen- 
tre of  Berrcyesa  Valley,  Wardner  in  Pope  Valley,  and  Knoxville  at  tiie  Ued- 
ingtim  quicksilver  mines,  which  were  at  one  time  a  profitable  industry. 
Calistoga  was  founded,  in  imitation  of  .Saratoga,  by  Sam  Brannan,  with  a 
large  exiienditure.  The  first  store  rose  in  the  town  pro^mr  in  186(J;  in  1871 
appeared  a  journal.  Napa  Re^ster,  March  24,  1877;  Player-Frond's  Six  .l/o,, 
60.  The  whole  valley  became  more  or  lean  interested  in  viniculture,  to  wliich 
Col  Haraszthy  here  gave  the  decisive  impulse  in  1858.  In  1881  over  11.000 
acres  were  devoted  to  this  industry,  bearing  about  1,000  vines  each,  the  yield 
in  1880  was  2,857,000  gallooa.  Hist.  Xapa  Co.,  181-227;  NajM  Co.  Illusl.,  6- 


MARIN. 


fill 


15.  Tlie  census  of  1880  enumerates  897  farms  valued  at  §7,515,000,  with 
I,rii.liHO  at  SI  ,581,000,  and  live-stock  at  $531,000.  lu  185*2,  250,000  Imshels  of 
j;i;iiii  wurc  raised,  largely  barley,  giving  work  to  many  mills,  of  which  several 
existed  prior  to  the  gold  excitement,  beginning  with  Yount's.  Ship-buildiiig 
(I:itrs  from  1841.  By  1S80,  the  population  hud  increaijed  to  13,230  against 
7,  KM)  in  1870,  nnd  2,110  in  1852,  the  latter  including  1,3.30  Indians,  ^'ajxt 
Lnwl  L'-.j.,  Imlrp.  CalltUxj.,  Aug.  20,  1879;  St  IMena  Slur,  Apr.  11,  1879; 
y„l>,i  Iliyi-'^lur,  May  2,  1874;  March  24,  1877;  July  1.3,  Nov.  23,  1878;  Apr. 
17,  188!),  etc.;  JSojxiRi'porter,  March  17, 1877;  June 27,  1879;  frequent  reports 
ill  Aha  Cal.,  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Call,  Sac,  Union,  etc 


( )ti  the  other  side  of  Sonoma,  which  l»efore  1 850 controlled  all  this  region,  pro- 
jects the  peninsula  of  Marin,  wherein,  at  San  Riifael,  missionaries  formed  tlu 
Spanish  pioneer  settlement  north  of  the  bay;  while  vessels  and  sailurs  resorted 
liefore  the  tliirties  to  Sauzalito,  the  site  of  Read's  cabin.  The  nature  of  the 
8iii[  and  climate,  and  the  proximity  to  San  Francisco,  fostered  vegetidde  gar- 
dening' and  pasturing,  so  that  the  county  may  bo  classed  as  a  vast  dairy  farm, 
with  centres  at  Tomales,  Olema,  and  other  points,  and  with  two  railroads  to 
a.>sist  a  fleet  of  small  craft  in  taking  its  produce  to  market.  Among  notable 
KetfUrs  in  1849-.W  were  memljers  of  tho  Baltimore  and  Frederick  Trading  Co. 
FiiitliiT  names  in  HUt.  Marin  Co.,  110-27,  384-8;  and  see  my  preceding 
v.!!<  It  counted  over  8,000  head  of  live-stock  in  1850,  with  a  population  of 
.S23  white  men,  which  by  1852  had  inerviased  to  over  800,  besides  218  In<Iian8. 
There  wi-re  tlien  4  saw-nulls  producing  9,000,090  feet  of  lumber,  beginning 
with  Read's  mill  of  1843,  followed  by  Parker's  at  Sauzalitc,  and  the  Baltimore 
Cn.'s,  both  of  1849.  The  population  grew  to  3,330  by  18(30,  and  to  1 1,320  by 
KSSO,  M-ith4S7  farms,  valued  at  $5,(594,000,  yielding  $1,(501,000  in  produce, 
and  with  $913,000  in  live-stock,  tho  total  assessment  standing  at  .§8,413,000. 
III.;  A  ItaCnl.,  Oct.  12,  18.')5;  Apr.  10,  No-.  10,  1807;  March  3,  1872;  An;,'.  2, 
1S74;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  23,  1858;  S.  F  Call,  Sept.  20,  18C7;  Aug.  11,  1871; 
July  20,  1872;  (Vowj.,  etc.;  Marin  Co.  Jour,  Feb.  2(5,  1880;  Cut,  Slatut<:t, 
ISJlS,  34;  18(50,  209-70;  1801,  351,  on  boundaries.  Taylorsville  l)ecame  noted 
for  its  paper-mill,  the  first  in  Cal.  Toniales  received  its  first  store  in  l!v52. 
Tlie  st;ite's  prison  at  Pt  Quiutin  presents  a  profitable  outlet  in  itself,  as  does 
the  h.irbor  of  Sau/^lito,  which  like  tho  more  important  county  sent  of  San 
Kafat.'l  figures  among  tho  summer  resorts  and  suburbs  of  tlie  metropolis.  San 
Ritfinl  Tocniii,  Jan.  17,  1879,  gives  a  history  of  San  Quiutin,  which  is  con- 
Hiilered  elsewhere  in  this  vol.  See  also  Piouei-r  Skfle/ifn,  iii.  Sauzalito,  from 
saiizid,  willow,  had  in  1849  three  houses.  Subsecpient  settlers,  in  Lnna-ifa 
Vnds,;  l')7-9;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Feb.  15,  1878;  Cil.  Dejit.  St.  Pup.,  Ben.,  iii.  40; 
Oifl'it  Cal.,  17.  San  Rafael,  as  a  mission  establishment  and  point  of  promi- 
nence, was  the  seat  of  an  alcalde  when  in  1848  a  town  was  laid  out.  Notice 
ill  (\il.  Star,  Apr.  29,  1848;  Gf/t's  Cal.,  13-27.  There  were  then  two  houses 
K'sitles  tho  mission,  Alcalde  Murphy's  and  Short's.  In  1850  the  first  store  waa 
ojieiied,  anil  several  houses  were  adtled.  Tlio  adjacent  prison  promoted  it 
by  iiicreasii.;.'  trafiic,  and  its  fine  climate  began  to  d.-aw  a  number  of  residents, 
until  the  population  by  1880  stood  at  2,270.  It  obtained  a  journal  in  18(51, 
oud  gas  and  other  improvements  came  iu  time.     Incorpuration  act  in  CaL 


1 


si 


512 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES 


Statutes,  1873-4,  111;  S.  R.  Herald,  Jan.  15,  1875,  etc.;  Hist.  Mann  To.,  .TJ2 
et  seq.;  Stir.  UkIoii,  March  1,  1870;  Leslie's  C'al.,  189-90;  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  li,, 
187?;  May  18,  187(5.  Ship-building  at  Boliuas,  watcr-worka  at  Sauailiti.,  aiul 
ti.sheries  ailil  to  tlic  resources.     Bolina»  is  s,  corruption  of  ballunais,  wluilus. 

Following  tlic  track  of  camp-building  miners  from  the  radiating  ceiitns  .it 
Sacraiiiento  and  Stockton,  we  find  them  crossing  the  dividing  ridges  of  the 
(.'osuiiines  to  till  ui>  first  Calaveras  county,  especially  along  the  rich  brainlics 
of  Dry  Creek,  paitiy  settled  Ijefore  the  gold  discovery.  Here  ruse  Aiiiadiir, 
Sutter,  and  Volc;iiio,  which  under  subsequent  quartz  developments  su»t;iined 
themselves  as  lio-.irishing  towns.  Volcano,  though  mined  in  1848,  a.s.sutncil  a 
settled  appearance  oidy  i;i  1850.  In  18^5  it  polled  1,110  votes,  an<l  boastud 
a  journal,  but  declined  after  this.  Amailor  Dispatch,  ^Marc'i  ."^O,  1872;  Taytor'a 
E.'dorniln,  i.,  cap.  12."?;  Connor  n  Cal.,  MS.,  2.  Sutter  Creek  became  an  iuuurpo. 
rated  town  in  l.^.'iil,  ami  had  mills  and  foundries  in  token  of  prosperity.  J^iok- 
sou,  after  being  for  a  time  county  seat  for  Calaveras,  became  the  seat  for 
Amador  when  tliis  was  organizeil  in  1854.  Jackson  was  called  Hotella.i  bj  the 
Mexican  miners  of  1848,  perhaps  in  humorous  commemoration  of  L.  TcUitr,  a 
settler.  In  Dec.  1850  it  had  nearly  100  houses.  Two  years  later  it  lo.st  the 
county  seat,  but  j.'ained  it  again  soon  after,  obtaining  g;ui-works  and  pnipre.^s- 
iag  Well,  though  ravaged  by  fire  in  18(52,  and  by  lloods  in  1878.  KarlJLT 
troubles  arc  rocordetl  in  Sac.  Union,  Aug.  25,  Sept.  18,  Oct.  1,  Dec.  22,  l>S.j5; 
Feb.  l.j,  Manli  19,  Oct.  11,  1550;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Au^.  2(5,  18(52.  Butte  City 
sought  at  one  time  to  rival  it.  Calaveras  bestowed  the  dignity  upon  ilnkcl- 
umne  Hill,  who.se  gilded  mountain  acquired  for  it  the  preponderating  inllu- 
ence,  until  in  l.'MiG  the  more  central  San  Andreas  gained  the  supremacy. 
Mokelunme  Hill  Injcame  prominent  in  1850,  as  described  in  S.  F.  I'icnniiiii', 
Oct.  17,  1850;  sutfered  severely  from  lire  in  1854;  Alia  Cal.,  Feb.  20,  .\iii,'. 
■  1—4,  1854;  S'ir.  I'liiiin,  .Sept.  15,  1855,  March  25,  Sept.  2,  Dec.  1(5,  1!S.",I),  and 
began  to  decline  in  the  sixties.  S.  J.  Pioneer,  Feb.  22,  1879.  San  Andreas 
was  laid  in  aslies  in  IS-IO.  The  name  should  properly  read  San  Ainlre.s. 
S.  F.  Bnllitin,  Feb.  2,  Sept.  2(5,  185G;  Sac.  Union,  Dec.  24,  1850.  Souths  aid 
Carson  and  Angel  hold  2M>sitions  corresponding  to  tlie  Volcano  (juart/  gnnip. 
Copperopolis  .sprang'  into  jtrominence  for  awhile  as  a  productive  copper  mine, 
about  the  same  time  that  silver  hnles  called  attention  to  the  higiier  ran^^es 
eastward,  and  proniptc'd  the  orgiui'zation  in  lSl54  of  Alpine  county,  with  the 
seat  at  Silver  Mimntain,  named  after  the  higliest  peak  of  the  county,  and  .sub- 
sequently at  Mailileevillc.  Its  hopes  in  these  deposits  met  with  meagre  reali- 
zation, and  its  lund>er  and  dairy  resources  languished  under  the  decadence  of 
Nevada,  as  its  ebii^f  market.  Its  population,  about  700,  in  IHOI)  owneil  ;i;{ 
farms  valued  at  $124,000,  the  totiil  assessment  being  !i,540,O(K).  Muni/or  A  lyii.i, 
Feb,  1880;  Alpiiw  Sifjnal,  May  7,  1879;  Gold  Hill  Xrws,  Aug.  9,  1875;  S.  /•'. 
Ti::if*,  July  9,  I-iliS;  Ciil.  St'ttuten,  1803-4,  445,  5(io,  with  incorporation  act  of 
Marlileeville.  The  first  settlement  is  place<l  at  Woodford's,  in  1855,  on  the 
immigrant  nmtu  from  Carson,  where  the  first  saw-mill  also  rose.  Aljiiiic 
Chron.,  Apr.-M.iy  1804;  S.  F.  liidl'thi.  May  9,  18J4.  Although  most  of  the 
mi'.iing  camps  of  C.daveras  and  Amailor  declined  after  a  bi-illiaiit  career,  agii 
culture  fiourishcd  i.i  many  svctiuus.  particulaily  iu  the  fertile  wcbtern  parts, 


CALAVERAS  AND  SAN  JOAQUIN. 


513 


rmind  towns  like  loue  City  ami  Milton.     Among  prominent  ancient  mining 
town-'  vere  Yeomet,  which  htid  a  promising  position  at  the  junction  of  the 
(.'ir-uiiiut  ;<  north  and  south  forks;  Mulutowii,  which  was  kept  up  a  while  I>y 
hyilraulic  mining;  Drytown,  which  received  its  final  blow  fix>ni  a  conflagra- 
tion in  18o7.     Fiddletown  grew  till  181)3;  Plymouth  1>cgan  to  gain  l>y  1873; 
LaiU'ha  Plana,  Htipportcd   by  bluff  mining,  boasted   a  jourual  and  claimed 
nearly  l.CMK)  inha1)itanta  in  lS(iO;  and  Murphy  flourished  in  1853.    Carson's 
Flat  \v;ui  the  great  camp  of  1851.   Taylor  s  Ehlorwio,  i.  22t>-31.     Copperopolis 
rose  in   18(!1,  and  shipped  in   I8C3-4  over  $I,GUO,000  net  via  Stockton.     lu 
ISTKX  'alaveras  stantls  cretlited  with  farms  worth  $70,800,  containing  $172,800 
Worth  of  live-stock,  and  $14,700  in  implements.     The  censu.-i  of  IS-SO  gives  it 
4.i7  farms  valued  at  .i?75(),000,  with  live-stock  $202,000,  and  pro.luce  $308,000, 
tlie  total  assessment  standing  at  §1,871,000,  yet  the  population  fell  from 
Itij^tll*  ill  I'SOO  mining  days  to  9,090.     Amador  did  I)etter,  for  her  larger  farm- 
ing area  embraces  531   farms,  valued  at  $1,481,000,  stock  $;?J0,000,  pro<luce 
S4.'>3,0;K),  total  assessment  §2,4()8,0l)0,  population  11,384.  Phirtr  Time*.  Feb. 
•J'.t.  lvV2;  i'ltlmftniH  ChroH.,  Sept.  1873;  Feb.    1877;  Stockton  Indfjt.,  March  7, 
1^77;  (itUivertM  Citiwii,  July  21,  Nov.  10,  Dec.  29,  1877;  AfoLrL  Chroiu,  Jam 
25,  1S79;  Amwlor  Times,  March  22,  1879,  etc.;  S.  J.  Pionetr,  Aug.  II,  1877; 
/AV.  Aiiuulor  Co.,  passim;  frequent  notices  in  Sac.  Union,  S.  F.  fall,  BuUftin, 
(l,n-i,.,  and  Alia  Cal.;  Cal.  SUUuU^t,  1854,  150;  1855,  315;  1J>57,  251;  1863,  2:n; 
Hiltfll'x  Voiles,  ii.  lC.il,     Lumber  was  cut  in  1840  for  a  ferry-Iio.it,  and  lone 
hail  a  saw-mill  in  1851.     Farming  was  carried  ou  before  the  gold  discovery, 
and  continued  more  extensively  in  1851-2. 


Tlie  trade  centre  for  these  as  wc^U  as  the  more  southern  counties  lay  at 
SttK'ktoii,  to  wliich  the  tratHc  of  the  early  gold  excitement  had  given  growth. 
\ti  success  brought  several  rivals  to  the  front  withirL  San  Joaquin  county,  as 
C'ai<toria  on  the  adjoining  slough,  San  Joatjuin  and  St.'inislau.<i  cities  which 
faced  each  other  at  the  southern  extreme,  and  Mokelumne  City  ncir  tiie 
nioiitli  of  the  Cosumnes,  but  their  aspirations  faileil  even  for  l>econiin_' suIh 
ordinate  points  of  river  distributi(m.     San  Joacpiin  was  started  in  IM'.*    /''/c 
Xrtrx,  >lay  2,   Aug.  28,  1850.     Castoria  was  laid  out  in  1850.   CuL  t'<mrirr, 
0.t.  1-.;,  Nov.  1,  1850;  Pac.  Xews,  Oct.  1,  IS.'tO;  A  I/a  Cal.,  Jan.  17,  is  -1.      It 
stniggled  till  1S."»3.     Mokelumne  City  was  opened  as  an  entrep<'>t  in  lt>5«i,  and 
sliNips  built  here  ran  direct  to  S.  F.     It  rose  to  poll  172  votes,  but  the  flood 
of  l>Mi2  so  ravaged  the  place  that  it  never  recovered.     SUani.slaus,  which  datc« 
from  tiie  Mormon  settlement  of  1840,  was  transferred  to  a  railroail  station. 
B'lfuiiiHSix  Mo.,  150;  Ifainli'i/'snUterv.,  .MS.,  fi;  S.  JoiUf.  A'jric.  Sor.,  Traiunc, 
iSiil,  1 1.").     Lockeford  -mA  Wiwdbridge absorbed  the  river  trade  of  the  .MokeU 
uiiine,  but  most  other  districts  became  tributary  to  railroad  stations  like  LtMli, 
La'throp,  Farmington,  and  otlier  places  thickly  sprinkled  in  this  agricultural 
re).non.     Wtjodbridge,  long  known  as  WckmI's  ferry,   w.ia  laiil  out  in  1859. 
Lickeiord,  settled  by  Locke  in  1855,  was  laid  out  in   1802,  M'hen  the  steam- 
Ixat  I'rrl  reached  tliis  point.    TInkham's  Stock/on,  14-10.     Farmington  was  the 
Oniion  nuicho  of  Theyer  and  Wells;  Lodi,  witli  flour  and  saw  mill,  started  in 
I'xiM.     Cn)p8  Were  raised  at  Farmington  in  1840-7.  near  Stockton,  anil  o.-i  the 
Stanislaus.     In  1850  farming  was  resumed,  and  by   1852  alwut  4,0J0  acrw 
IIisT.  Cal.,  Vi)|-.  VI.    SU 


'I    c 


514 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


were  cultivated,  yii'Ming  r20,()00  ImshuU  of  grain,  l)€8i(k's  vogetaMos.  Tu 
1880,  the  farms  mimhcrc-.l  ],100,  valuuil  at  §18,r)5:i,(K)(),  prmluco  ^,4-J(l.(i()(), 
livo-stock  1,:«X>,0(H);  i>oinilatioii  24,:U9  against  o.OL'y  in  18.V_>.  Swami.  1  i!i,l 
was  widely  reelaimeil.  Ship-lmililiug  and  wagon-making  date  from  hVnt  I. 
Timlier  wjis  lacking.  l>ouLdas  was  named  after  (Jen.  I)ouglii«,  and  Dent  :ittir 
(reii.  (rrant's  lirotlier-indaw.  McCollniiiH  CiiL,  38;  .S\  .Ani//.  Dinrtoi-'i.  \S'S, 
174-2.")1;  J/M.  S.  JiMiq.  Co.,  passim.;  S.  J,  f'ioneii;  Aug.  18,  1877,  etf. ;  Vax/.. 
ton  Iiuli'p.,  Mareli  17,  July  14,  1877;  Juno  22,  1878;  Sept.  11,  Dee.  2:\,  IST'.i; 
Full.  27,  1880,  iti'.;  Tiinlouine  /iii/cp.,  Feb.  1,  1870;  S.  J.  Merniiii,  Nov.  -JT, 
187'.>;  AUn  Vni,  March  21,  1851;  Aug.  II,  Jan.  10,  1<.»,  .July  9,  Aug.  11,  .S  pt. 
22,  185.'1;  May  21,  Dec.  2,  1854;  with  frequent  scattered  U'ttera  in  A/..  S.i<: 
Uiiiiw,  S.  F.  ItiilUthi,  since  1854;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1859,  Apr.  3,  40-3;  /./ , 
Ash.,  18(>0,  350,  37(>-80. 


lii; 


ti:'"- 


The  similar  a<ljoining  county  of  Stanislaus,  which  was  formed  in  I8.">4  au.l 
rose  to  liecome  a  li-adiug  wheat-proilucing  district,  was  scoured  hy  nniurs 
along  the  eastern  border,  since  1848,  where  a  few  began  to  settle  as  ferrynnii 
and  traders.  Among  them  were  (J.  W.  Hrancli  and  J.  Dii'kinsoii,  with  f.v- 
ries,  Dr  Strentg.l,  11.  Davi.s,  C.  Dalliw,  C.  W.  Cook,  J.  W.  Lfiird,  Jes.si-  Hill, 
and  others.  On  tlie  Stanislaus  rose  Knight's  Ferry,  laid  out  as  a  tnwii  in 
18.V),  and  becoming  tlio  county  se.it  for  a  time,  a,  dignity  held  prior  to  \SC-1 
»Hcci'.ssively  by  tliree  towns  on  the  Tuolumne,  tlio  e{)hiMneril  Adanisvillc  and 
Empire  City,  and  by  the  ujore  sukstantial  liii  (Jrange,  whieli  ro.st-  to  [iroiiii- 
nenco  under  a  mining  excitement  in  1854-5.  Knight's  Ferry  was  s\i]i|i(irti  d 
later  by  farming  interests.  Knight,  trajiper  and  exploring  gtiide,  optMiiil  the 
ferry  in  IS48-'.>.  After  his  deatli  it  passed  into  the  liands  of  the  brothcr^f 
Dent,  who  laid  out  the  town  known  for  a  time  as  I  K'ntvillc.  It  was  the  county 
seat  between  18t;2-7.  MhiCuL,  March  22.  18.')7;  Aug.  17,  1859;  Stt  Cniz  Tin. .. 
Marcli  5,  1870;  Srifnt.  Phmx,  Oct.  14,  1S71.  Adamsville  wa«  founded  in  l>»r.l 
by  I  >r  Adams,  and  Empire  City  in  1850.  I'ur.  Xo '.i,  May  2,  1S50.  Kini'ivc 
raiikril  in  1851  a-"  tlu-  army  depi'it  and  head  of  Tuolunnie  navigation.  I.a 
(iran-e  was  tirst  known  iia  Frendi  Camp,  from  French  miners  of  KH.VJ,  tlioiij^h 
worked  since  1849,  and  U'canie  a  Itmirisliing  M'ay-station.  It  declined  gnatly 
after  losing  the  seat.  The  tirst  settler  f>n  the  spot  was  Elani  Dye.  llii'in' 
Mhiiii.l,  i.  43;  S.  F.  liiillvHn,  Dec.  31,  1855;  Sm:  Uiiinn,  Nov.  3,  1S55.  .Ml 
€>f  tiu-se  towns  were  surpassed  by  tiie  more  central  Modcstn,  laiil  out  i;\  l~^Ti) 
under  railroad  auspices,  and  made  the  county  seat  in  1872,  with  gas,  .sevt  r.il 
mill.-*,  and  two  journals.  Storkfon  I iif/ip,,  Ih'C.  30,  1870;  .V.  /■'.  Cliron.,  .\\\;:  '•>, 
1884.  Turlock  and  Oakdale  becanu;  prosperous  stations,  the  latter  the  t.r- 
niiuus  for  many  years  of  the  Visaliaroiid,  with  phmgh  f.ictory,  etc.;  populatii'ii 
37t'>  in  1880.  Tuolumne  City  was  foniuled  in  IS19  near  the  inoutli  ot  iht; 
Tuolumne  River,  in  the  vain  hope  of  becoming  the  entrepot  for  tiii.s  stnam. 
It  was  laid  out  by  P.  Mcl>owcll,  but  coUapseil  at  the  tirst  low  water.  I'tnnr 
Tiiiii'x,  May  20,  18.50;  S.  F.  Ilenihl,  June  5,  1850.  Tlio  adjacent  <ira>>ou 
and  Hill's  Ferry,  the  latter  a  claimant  to  the  head  of  navigation  on  tin  S:m 
Joatpiin,  tended  to  undermine  it  (Jrayson  was  laiil  out  early  in  |S.">0  l>y 
A.  J.  tirayson,  a  pioneer  of  184tl,  ainl  llourished  with  tin;  aid  of  a  ferry.  .!'''» 
CiiL,  May  24,  bsrni     Two  lines  of  steamboats  touched  iiere.     In  lN-'2,  I'luil 


STANISLAUS  AND  MARIPOSA. 


515 


wmiii'.  of  which  Stanislaus  was  the  leatling  agricultural  section,  stocMl  cred- 
itiii  Aith  1,870  acres  iu  cultivation,  and  7,7(»  head  of  stock.  In  lS80the 
cfii, lis  gave  Stanislaus  ti!>'2  farms,  valued  at  S7,(>54,000,  nro«luce  ?!"J,  14:;,0(I0, 
li\r  stoik  .■i«1»it7,000,  iM)pulation  8,751  aj,'ainst  2,245  in  18«>0.  Mo-li-nto  Hfinil, 
Fill.  I^.S»»;  HUl.  SliiiiUlnm  Co.,  passim;  Altn  Col.,  Fib.  28,  18545;  Fcl>.  18, 
IsSi):  S,ir.  Uiiiniu  l>ec.  31,  18.5*5;  Oct.  28,  1858;  S.  F.  Call,  Jan.  10,  Feh. 
It,  Auir.  4,  1873;  /'ft<  Chron.;  Cat.  SMfntes,  18.54,  21 -t,  148-9;  1855,245. 
.\  iliiiir  iind  saw  uiill  startetl  up  at  Knight's  Ferry  in  185.3-4. 


Tlu"  jjroater  part  of  Stanislaus  pertained  <luring  its  first  years  a.s  a  little 
cstriini'il  section  to  the  nugj;et  rejjion  of  Tuolumne,  centrinj;  round  .Smora. 
li(acl(|uarters  for  the  southern  mines,  and  chief  battle-ground  of  the  antai.'o- 
instic  Litin  race  and  the  Anglo-Saxons.  This  rai-e-feeling  was  one  of  tiie 
j;poiiiiils  tor  tlie  futile  struiji^le  of  .Tanu'stown  to  gain  the  county  scat  from 
Siiii.'ra.  .laiiicstown  was  one  of  the  earliest  camps;  vote  20'.>  in  IS5.5,  when 
a  liic  ravaged  it.  Snr.  Union,  Oct.  4-5,  18.55;  f/ni/f^'  Sfhihiij,  i.  .'M.  The  ex- 
triiiii'  richness  of  this  district  gave  rise  to  a  larger  nund>er  of  prominent 
cainps  than  couM  be  found  on  a  similar  area  elsewhere,  many  of  wliich  main- 
tiiiu'il  respix'table  proportions  tt)r  a  long  time,  notably  Cobunhia,  so  named 
l.v  Maj.  Sullivan,  the  lirst  alcalde,  and  others,  in  April  KS.'H),  one  month  after 
till'  iiinning  of  tiiis  mining  ground  by  .1.  Walker  ami  party.  It  was  laid  out 
ill  \S'fl,  wlieii  its  tirst  newspaper  was  started.  It  was  nearly  dcstroycl  by 
lin.  .Inly  IS.Vl,  yet  incorporated  in  18.">t5.  Alt^i  Col.,  .Tuly  II  12,  1S."4:  .luiy 
1(1.  l.s.V.':  Tuolumne  /ikI-jk,  .Mareli  I87i»;  S.  F.  Iferol-l,  .luly  II,  18.54;  Oct. 
•J'.i.  iN'd;  populatiim  in  1 8.'>0  from  2.0110  to  .5,(KK).  IVorreii's  Dust,  14l>;  /'turr 
Tniin,  May  17,  1850;  5.  J.  J'ioiiifi;  Sept.  8,  1877.  View  in  Pirt.  CnioH, 
Apr.  Js.Vl,  Incorporation  act  and  repeal,  m  Col.  Stotutes,  IS,">7,  188;  |S(><I  ~\), 
4."^.  .lacksonville,  started  in  1849,  was  named  after  Col  .Jackson,  the  lirst 
>turik<'cper.  Womi'i'  Sirlven  Mo.,  121,  125;  I/iii/r,t'  Miniwj,  i.  42;  MrColluiii''< 
r,/.,  ;!S;  P,ic.  Xfwii,  l>ec.  29,  1849.  .Vmong  others  were  Chinese  Camp,  once 
(iiiUiii;;  ;j()0  votes,  Spriuglield,  Shaw  Flat,  wiiidi  in  I8,"i5  claimed  a  tidintary 
lu'liiilation  of  2,(K)0,  Yankee  Hill,  a  nugget  ground,  Saw  Mill  Flat,  where  the 
li.iiiilit  Marietta  iield  forth.  Scmthwiird  lay  Big  Oak  Flat  and  Carotte,  the 
InriiiiT  settled  in  18.)0  by  J.  Savage  /fo;/r.i'  Miuiioj,  i.  .'18.  A  gradually 
siil'lilaiiting  agriculture  came  to  relievo  others,  and  to  infuse  a  more  sedate 
tone  into  the  elements  so  deeply  tinged  by  i\w  gambling  spirit,  rnwilyism, 
ami  race-antipathy  of  early  digger  times.  The  first  orchard  is  ascriln-il  to 
W  .  S.  .Smart  at  Spring  (Sarden.  The  lirst  mill  was  Charbondle's  at  Sonora; 
li;.  ls.'>4  there  werj  24  in  the  county.  In  I8.S0  Tuolumne  had  721  farms, 
vilu.d  modcMdy  at  §1,0.54,000,  with  produ.e  .'^.T.Cl.lKM),  live-stock  .•?:5;{2,(NI(»: 
ti'i  il  assessment  ?1..59(),0(K),  and  a  popidation  of  7,848  against  1(5,229  in  18<»0. 
Tihdiiiinie  Co.  I>irirt.,  ',VA  et  seq. ;  Smi.  I'liioii  I>'iiior.,  M.ircli  17,  .\pr.,  .May, 
.Inly  28,  Sept.-Oet.   1877;   Tml.  Imtiy.,   Feb.    10,    iK-c.    17,    I.S77,   etc.:   V  i,-. 


'■„/„„,  Oct.  18,  1855;  Sept.  2.5-7,  Oct.  27,  Dec.  .10,  18.5(i.  etc.;  .Mto  Col.,  .Inly 
2;..  IS.-4;  Aug.  7,  J8.5t5;  Oct.  9,  18.57;  May  21,  18,59;  Aug.  6,  18(50;  May  '26, 
iNiT;  .V.  /'.  JJulUliii,  Aug.  (5,  185(5;  May  29,  1880. 

The  region  l»eyoml  Tuolumne  wns  opened  only  in  1849,  .T.  I).  Savatro  W-ing 
uul  lit  tliu  tirst  to  enter  and  to  establisii  a  trading  post,  while  Col  Freniout 


.   il 


! 


6IG 


CALIFORNIA  IX  COUNTIES. 


i   'l 


took  the  earliest  steps  toward  quartz  mining  upon  his  famous  grant,  naiiiod, 
like  tlie  county,  after  the  Kio  de  las  Maripoaas.  ltd  comparatively  iiuMgru 
placers  gave  aupitort  to  but  few  camps,  and  those  that  rose  in  early  days  owiil 
tlicir  existence  chiefly  to  quartz.  Their  fading  hopes  revived  with  the  di,-i.kp- 
jioarance  of  the  cloud  of  litigation  so  long  hanging  over  the  land.  Tlie  cnily 
town  of  note  l>esido8  Mariposa,  the  county  seat,  with  about  500  inhabitants 
and  2  journalH,  was  Coulterville,  with  its  orcliartU  and  vineyards.  Tlie  scenic; 
Wonders  of  the  Voseniite  Valley  drew  a  protitable  traffic.  In  1855  the  valliy 
Rt'C'titm  was  segregated  to  form  Merced  county,  with  the  county  seat  for  gome 
years  at  Snclling,  first  started  aa  a  mining  camp  and  way-station,  and  nami'd 
after  the  Snelling  family,  which  in  1851  bought  the  land  and  hotel,  the  tlrst 
in  Merced,  of  Dr  Lewis.  Tlie  ilisadvantages  of  the  county  seat  first  c)io8i'ii 
on  Turner  and  Osborne's  rancho,  on  the  Mariposa,  8  miles  from  Merced, 
caused  Snelling  to  lie  selected  the  same  year.  It  was  laid  out  in  ]8.')(), 
grew  rapidly,  and  obtained  a  journal  m  1802,  but  was  almost  destroyed  hy 
tlfKul  and  tlamc  in  18(>l-2.  In  1S72  it  lost  the  county  seat,  and  decliiu'd 
into  a  quiet  town.  S.  Jonq.  Arijiut,  June  18,  1870,  etc.;  Mereed  Rejmrtir, 
Nov.  1874.  Merced  was  laid  out  for  the  county  seat  under  railroad  aii- 
Bpiccs,  and  soon  acquired  the  leading  position.  It  was  surveyed  Feb.  1 87 J. 
Minturn,  Plainsburg,  and  Creasey  were  minor  stations.  Merced  Falls  tmce 
liMiked  to  its  water-power  for  a  future.  Hopeton,  below  on  the  Merccil, 
and  l>anibcrt,  Los  BaQos,  and  Central  Point,  were  lea4ling  villages  on  tlm 
other  side  of  the  San  Joaquin.  Homitos  gamed  mcorporation  privileges  in 
1S61.  Cat.  StattUen,  118.  The  rich  valley  land  was  not  subdivided  so  as  ti> 
receive  proi>cr  cultivation  and  development.  The  388  farms  mentioned  in  tlio 
ct-naiis  of  1880  embraced  656,700  acres,  valued  at  $4,820,000,  pnxluced  S88I.- 
OW),  live-stock  $824,000,  population  5,650  against  1,141  m  1860.  The  pojiu 
lation  of  Mariposa  decreased  like  that  of  most  mining  districts,  nundn'rin.; 
4.:{40  in  1880  against  6,240  in  I860,  its  small  valleys  containing  176  farms, 
valued  at$:)3l,000,  with  produce  at  $181,000,  and  live-stock  $168,000,  tli>- 
tt>t.il  assessment  rising,  however,  to  $1,21(5,000.  8.  F.  Herald,  Nov.  12,  IS.V.?; 
Al'ti  CitL,  Nov.  12,  1852;  Apr.  12,  1855;  Sept.  26,  ia">7;  Oct.  1,  16,  1S:.«; 
July  l.">,  1864;  June  6,  1867;  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  1,  Apr.  10-11,  Oct  5,  1S,V>; 
Jan.  23,  Feb.  22,  March  14,  Apr.  17,  May  13,  27-8,  Oct.  21,  Nov.  26-9,  Doc. 
I:J,  26-7,  1856;  Sept.  23,  1858.  Also  «.  /'.  Time^,  Bulletin,  Call,  Feb.  2, 
June  17,  Dec.  25,  1877;  Mntipom  Co.  Register,  Mariposa  Oaz.,  May  3,  187'.'; 
Sf'M-L-tnn  Indep.,  Sept.  19,  1870;  Oil.  Slntntes,  1855,  125-8;  IliUeWs  Coilrx,  ii. 
1778.  The  first  orchanl  and  vineyar'l  in  Merced  is  ascril»ed  to  H.  J.  Ostran- 
der,  and  the  first  alfalfa  and  well,  while  J.  (iritfith  in  1851  sowed  the  tirst 
field  of  wheat,  and  erected  the  tirat  grist-mill;  the  next  was  the  Nelson  uiill, 
at  Merced  Falls. 


i! 


Frcano.county  in  1866  wa«  segregated  chiefiy  from  Marii>o8a.  With  only 
a  narrow  fringe  of  mining  country,  and  with  a  vast  expanse  of  arid-looking 
plains  in  the  centre  and  west,  and  an  equally  unmviting  ruggetlness  along  tlio 
8ierra  slopes,  it  seemed  to  have  few  attractions  for  settlors;  and  indee<l,  dur- 
ing the  first  years  Indian  troubles  tended  to  repel  them,  so  that  occu[)ati(>u 
was  reatricteil  to  the  placers  of  the  north-east,  with  a  sprinkling  elsewhere  of 


TUL.VRE  AND  KERN. 


517 


stock-raisers.  In  time,  however,  it  was  found  that  with  irrigation,  for  which 
Hilvantages  were  nuuierouH,  the  soil  could  be  inade  exceedingly  pro<luctive, 
aiiii  tliis  of  the  most  a<i:«ured  character.  Yet  the  apx>l'^^tion  was  hardly  pos- 
.sil)lr  for  the  ordinary  furniers,  except  in  combination,  and  this  was  eflFectively 
aciiii-ved  by  colonies.  The  first  to  be  started  on  a  successful  biwis  was  the 
t'fiitral  (.'aliforiiia,  openeil  in  1875,  rouml  Fresno,  which  encouraged  others. 
hind  wiis  taken  mostly  in  20-acre  lots  for  viniculture,  until  this  hitherto  re- 
jMil.-sive  section  promised  t*»  liecome  one  of  tlie  most  flourishing  in  the  country. 
Till'  first  colony,  the  Alal>ania,  of  18«»8-9,  failed,  and  was  almost  abandoned 
l>y  Ks74,  liecause  it  ha«l  n«»t  l>eeu  started  right.  Tiio  HiH.  FremtoVo.,  Ill  "JO. 
tlcsorilK^s  the  progress  of  9  colonies  prior  to  1882.  The  San  Joaquin  and 
Kiii^s  Kiver  canal,  the  tirst  enterprise  on  an  extensive  speculiitive  plan,  takes 
its  >c)urce  at  the  junction  of  Kings  River  and  Fresno  Slough.  While  not  a 
(inaiii'ial  success,  owing  to  its  experimental  difficulties,  it  encouraged  other 
fiiiials  which  benefited  by  its  experiences.  M.  J.  Church  of  Fresno  has 
iliiiu'  much  for  irrigation,  while  B.  Marks  ranks  as  founder  of  the  lirst  sue- 
tissful  colony.  Fresno  City,  laid  out  in  1872,  by  the  railroad,  and  beooniing 
tilt'  county  seat  two  years  later,  owed  its  rapid  growth  greatly  to  these  colo- 
iiii's.  It  was  sur\'eyed  in  May:  the  first  store  was  opened  in  July-Aug.,  by 
l>.  Friilich;  journal  in  1874;  several  industries  started.  Rivenlalc  and  Wash- 
ington became  Jilso  thriving.  Frttno  FjrjHwtor,  Jan.  1,  10,  I87D;  A/.,  I'lynh., 
Maiih  1880;  S.  F.  Bulletiii,  Marcli  10,  1880.  It  re«luced  to  a  mere  sliadow 
MilliTton,  the  first  seat  of  justice,  which  hail  risen  upon  the  mining  caniii  of 
KootviUe,  and  wai:  )>artly  sustaineil  by  the  adjoining  Fort  Miller,  establislied 
.■\lir.  ISiJl  and  aliandimed  in  18«i3.  l!<H>tville  rose  under  its  wing  to  l>e  re- 
iiuiiu'd  Millerton,  obtained  a  journal  in  ]8r>(>,  and  had  I  b't  school  children  in 
ISTO.  After  1872  the  leading  people  moved  to  Frtisno.  The  first  saw-mill 
rnso  here  in  1854.  Madera,  .Selma,  and  Kingsburg  figure  among  the  stations 
wliii-li  alisorb  the  trade  of  tlie  county,  ]>artly  at  the  expense  of  earlier  towns 
likt'  Kingston,  which  hatl  its  lieginuing  as  Whitmore's  ferry.  YetCentrevillo 
holds  its  own  as  a  flourishing  way -station,  and  Coarse  (rolil  is  still  a  mining 
camp  in  the  north-east,  with  a  fine  slieep  region  ailjoiuing,  while  in  the  ex- 
tri'iiR'  west  New  Idria  is  sustaineil  by  imiKirtant  ipiicksilver  mines,  workid 
cliielly  by  Cornish  and  Mexican  miners.  I'anoche  Valley  northward  is  a  val- 
iialile  section.  Coal  and  ()etroleum  promised  to  swell  tlie  resources,  and 
<|uartz-milla  were  put  in  operation.  Fresno  Flat  wiis  sustained  by  several 
cairips.  Buchanan  rose  on  the  Chowchilla,  ou  tiie  strength  of  copper  deposits, 
wliioh  proved  unprofitable.  Although  Fresno  has  advanced  greatly  since 
Isso,  it  is  well  for  com|>ari8<>n  to  state  that  tlie  census  tlien  gave  it  U2<>  farms, 
value  1^,400,000,  prtxluce  :^78,000,  live-stock  $=1,570,000,  total  iwsessment 
$(i..r>4,000,  population  9,480. 


Tidarc  corrc6|ioud8  in  its  agi  icnltnral  features  to  the  preceding  county, 
wliilc  the  al>8ence  of  mineral  di-jmeits  is  compensated  for  by  a  largo  pnipur- 
tioii  of  forest  land,  provided  esitecialiy  with  oiik.  Irrigation  h.^  been  widily 
I'Xti'iideil  from  a  primitive  l>cginuiug  anterior  to  tiie  sixties,  one  of  the  canals, 
tile  TC),  having  a  wiilth  of  100  feet,  with  a  carrying  depth  of  four  feet.  Nif:;i- 
litrs  of  artesian  wells  insure  crops,  while  the  vast  area  of  marsh-laud  presents 


618 


CALIFORNIA  IN  t  OUNTIES 


nyy    ) 


a  fine  ran^e  for  hogs  and  other  atock.  Thosti  oilviiiitagt's  attnietc<l  mi  iminj. 
gnitioii  iK^fore  which  th(!  IiitliitiiH  of  the  ivm'rvation  faded,  and  tht.'  xdiur 
pliiiuii  were  tranafornied  into  Huiiling  faruia  and  vineyard)),  clutiterinj;  muud 
towns  like  Visalia,  the  county  neat,  wliiuh  fn)ni  a  pretty  lianilet  of  IM.'t'.t  pnsf 
to  an  imiKirtitnt  place,  and  the  rnpidly  devehiping  Tuhire,  The  wliite  |if(i|ilc 
niunl>ered  only  174  out  of  8,58*2,  aceording  to  the  census  of  liiVi.  Hy  l!S70 
the  population  increased  to  4,5:{^t,  and  hy  1S8<)  to  II, '281,  with  little  over  l(K> 
Indians.  The  farms  nundtered  1,1'J'),  value  ^<, 52*1,000,  pnxlueo  $7I'.MKHI, 
live-stoek  ^75,(MX),  totiil  iissessnient  I^'>,'2(t4,000;  hut  the  increase  siiu-i'  then 
hits  heen  ritpid.  The  first  settlement  in  tlic  county  is  ascrilti^d  to  Cainplicll, 
Pool,  &  (_'o.,  who  opened  a  ferry  on  Kings  River  in  the  spring;  of  IS'vJ.  .1//,; 
(•'(/.,  Oct.  17,  KS5'2;  Bttrton^  Hut.  'IhUare,  MS.,  ;{  et  »vi\.  N.  Vice,  the  Ti  xiiii 
liear-hunter,  settled  here,  and  aiilcd  hy  O'Neil  laid  out  tlie  town  early  in  N,iv. 
1852,  naming  it  after  himself.  A  niontli  later  it  claimed  over  liO  itdialMt.iiits. 
anil  gained  the  seat  of  government  in  1854  fr<>m  the  adjacent  WoihIvIIIi', 
wliieh  in  conseiiueuce  was  complett^ly  overshaiiowed.  A  mill  was  risiii^;  in 
IK'C.  1852,  a  journal  Wii»  started  in  18«>4,  and  hy  1880  it  had  over  1,400  inlmli- 
itaiitx,  with  gas  and  waterworks.  Altit  Col.,  Dec.  11,  1852;  J  tmjis  A  ujil  s. 
viii.,  100;  ViMilia  Ihltn,  Fel>.  14,  18(}(i;  Oct.  12,  I87r>,  etc.  IncoriMratiim  act 
in  ('((/.  StatuU'n,  187;V-4,  I'.tl.  (ioslicn,  Tiitton,  llaiiford,  and  liCni<K»rr  f:ist 
gaiueil  grouud.     The  tirst  saw-mill  was  started  in  I85t>  ou  Old  Mill  Ovek. 


The  Kern  River  mining  excitement  of  1854-5  did  nmch  for  this  regimi, 
promoting  tniHic  and  settlement,  and  hy  opening  .a  field  of  industry  in  tin; 
extriMue  south  of  the  valley,  which  in  I84H>  caiisetl  the  formation  of  Ketii 
county.  The  county  scjit  was  at  first  assigned  to  Havilali,  which  sprang  inti> 
prominence  as  a  (piartz  centre,  Buri>;i.ssing  the  Iiitlterto  leading  Kernvillt',  Imt 
with  the  exiMUsion  of  agriculture,  umler  irrigation  and  railroad  outlet,  the 
fertile  ilelta  country  westward  ac(|uired  a  Hnprenia<5y,  and  the  seat  of  gnvcrii- 
ment  was  transferred  to  liakerslieM,  which,  sustained  hy  the  railroad,  niailc 
rapid  pmgress.  Havilah  was  named  after  the  place  in  Oenesis,  M-herc  tlu' 
tirst  iUlusion  is  made  to  a  land  of  gohl.  liikerstield  was  foumled  on  tiic  trirt 
of  T.  Raker,  and  formed  a  thriving  village,  with  a  newspaper,  when  in  1^70 
some  speculators  sought  to  gain  possession  of  the  land  on  t^'chnical  groinuls, 
tiuuigh  in  vain.  Tli'.' county  seat  w;istransferre«l  in  1874.  Mojave,  Tt'lia>'li;i|ii, 
and  Pumpa  were  smui  among  the  rising  stations.  (Vi^  Jour.  Sm.,  1871  2.  .'>.'>l 
Although  a  nund>er  of  small  inviting  valleys  exist,  the  richer  level  tracts  aiv 
less  adapted  for  small  fiU'mers,  so  that  this  section  tlid  not  receive  the  .sjinu- 
e.irly  impulse  iks  the  districts  to  the  north.  It  had  282  farms  according.'  t<i 
the  census  of  1880,  valued  at  !Sl,027,tK)0,  pmduce  !6i54:i,(K»0,  live-stock,  ?sS.">l. 
000,  totiil  a.ssessmcnt  li^,(NI0,tM)0;  population  5,000.  Farming  early  assuiinii 
considerahle  proportions  in  the  rich  delta  region,  where  settlers  hegan  tn  n  ■ 
claim  liind  and  open  roa«ls.     Cotton  culture  has  lieeu  undertaken  since  I  NT  I. 


Beyond  the  Sierra  stretches  a  narn>w  helt  of  silver-hearing  country,  \>"r- 
deretl  on  one  side  hy  snow-cajiped  ]>eaks,  towering  I5.0(NI  tVet  into  the  doiiils; 
on  the  other  hy  forhidding  alkali  tiats,  arid  wiistes,  anil  vulcanic  tracts  niarl<''<l 
by  strange  contortions,  acrid  waters,  and  steaming  geysers.     The  discuvny 


MONO,  SAN  BERNARDINO.  AND  SAN  DIECO 


519 


nf  a  limitutl  plaucr  round  Moiiovillu  brought  a  iK)pulatioii  wluuh  in  I8(>1  led 
til  tlio  cruatiuii  of  Mono  county,  with  thu  avut  of  government  lit  Hrxt  at  Au- 
rora—but this  town,  describiid  in  Wiumohh  UmlU;  49-51,  wiia  soon  after  sur- 
rriiiU'rt'd  to  Neva<la — ami  then  at  Bridgeport.  But  Monovillu  faded  away, 
ami  l{ridgeiM)rt  yielded  the  supreniauy  to  B<Hlie,  famed  for  many  riuh  (|uartx 
niiiii's,  and  the  termiuus  of  a  railnKid,  which  skirts  the  lake  and  ajiproachea 
Ik'iitiin,  thu  next  town  of  importance,  an<l  deacrihed  in  Bfnton  MeHnetujer,  Fob. 
,s,  l.sT'J.  Leavitt's  lies  to  the  loft  of  the  northerly  PatterHou  mining  dixtrict. 
'I'lic  rise  of  Boilie  is  narrated  in  Wttmonn  Bodie,  •J'2()-5;  Bwlie  Sl<nii/ar<i,  May 
I.  Si|it.  "J.'J,  1878.  Tlie  region  scmthward,  early  traversed  by  cmi^'rants,  who 
ri'|Mirt<il  silver  in  1850,  and  entered  )>y  stockmen  in  tlio  beginning  of  the  ^lix- 
ti.'s,  revealed  similar  lodes,  which  on  trial,  proved  disapiKtinting,  and  le<l  to 
till'  failure  of  many  costly  mills,  and  the  decline  of  towns  like  Oweusville  and 
S,iri  Carlos.  They  served,  however,  to  attract  an  immigration  sutlioient  to 
^ive  Ity  1 8(t5  a  decisive  check  to  the  hostile  Inilians,  and  to  brini;  aliout  tlie 
iii'i.'anization  of  Iny<»  county  with  the  seat  of  government  at  Inde[)endencc. 
'Die  mining  interest,  centring  in  tlie  Kearsage  district,  was  8<mi:i  surpassed 
liy  tlie  agricultural  resources,  althougii  these  were  practically  restricted  to 
till'  narrow  valley  of  Owen  River,  while  tlie  more  sterile  Mono  was  content 
with  a  supplemental  stock-raising.  Inyo  was  by  thu  census  of  IS8()  given 
:.'4J  farms,  valued  at  JfTn.tKN),  proiliice  4(lil)5,00(),  live-stock  §i;:W,«KK»,  pi.pu- 
litiiiii  '2,t».'{0.  Mono  counted  only  (>4  farms,  value  $;W!).<)(I(),  produce  8181,- 
(NKI,  live-st<K;k  $I(K{,(MN),  yet  possessed  a  population  of  7,5(X),  altiiouuh  witli 
an  assessment  of  only  $*.Hi',l,U(H>  against  $l,.'i5H,(N>0  for  Inyo.  The  <  'arson  and 
t'olorado  K.  H.  helped  to  deveh)p  tliis  county.  The  rejiort  of  silver  by  emi- 
grants ]>assing  through  Inyo  in  185()  led  to  several  futile  expeditions,  and 
only  with  the  o|ieniiig  of  .such  mines  in  Nevada  did  real  pros^tecting  begin  in 
tins  region.  For  acc<miits  of  early  expeditiims,  settlement,  and  progress  in 
;lic  preceding  counties  of  Fresno,  Tulare,  Kern,  Mono,  and  Inyo,  see  Jiiyo 
/»■/.;*»„/.,  July  8,  ISTOi  AUi  Cal.,  June  '2,  Oct.  3,  17.  KS.V_';  July  U3,  Aug.  8- 
10.  Dee.  4,  1854;  .May  *J!».  Oct.  2,  '-"i,  Dec.  1'2,  1850;  S.  F.  Ilinild,  \h  :  10, 
IS.VJ;  Aug.  8,  Oct.  12,  I85:J;  Sur.  Uiiim,  S.  F.  Hullfliii,  Bixli,-  St<iwh>U, 
March  1.  1871);  Bfninn  J/c^t.,  March  22,  !S7!»;  liiilrjwmliw)'  Inile^t.,  July  12, 
S.pt.  I,  1879;  Fii-xiM  /;.(•;.(«.,  Nov.  27,  1878;  Jan.  1.  July  :«).  t)i-t.  8,  187it; 
Fi'siio  Ht-puli.,  Nov. -Dec.  1879;  BukernJivM  Cui,  June  8,  1870;  June  22,  187^; 
Kini  Co.  lit;ji»ter,  1880;  Fresno  Co.  Cirriiliu;  1882;  J/i.il.  Fnxm  Co.,  Id.,  Ke/ii, 
passim;  ^fl•l)llHin^n  ICarhj  />"//■*,  .MS.,  20;  Ihtrton's  l/iif.  Tiil'iir,  MS.,  H  e^  seq.  r 
C^d.  SliUnUx,  1852,  312;  185.j.  20:V.  1850.  I8:{;  1S.".8.  ati;  I8(>1,  2;<5,  500;  KSOH- 
4,  528-0;  1805,  »55,  790,  803;  1871-2,  891,  1006-8;  JiiUell's  Codes,  ii.  1739, 
1750,  17(J5,  1782,  1851 


Tlie  forbidding  featxircs  of  these  transmountain  counties  extend  to  the 
Lower  California  frontier,  over  the  greater  part  of  .San  liernanlino  and  San 
lijego  counties,  marked  esjiecially  by  sinks  and  deserts.  The  moisture-hideii 
winds  of  the  ocean  are  cut  oil"  by  tiie  intervening  ranges  to  enrich  the  western 
sli>lies.  ami  to  assist  in  making  them  a  semi-tropic  paradise,  the  home  ol  tlio 
orange,  the  olive,  and  the  vine,  with  the  b.ilmiest  of  climes.  Here  the  Hrst 
settlements  were  nuide  by  the  Mexican  inwanderers  of  a  century  m^o,  who 


020 


CALIFORNIA  IN  BOUNTIES, 


if:        i 


huddled  ronnd  the  coast-line  iniuiona,  which  Btrove  for  the  siibmiasion  nittuT 
tliaii  the  ulevatioii  of  the  aliorigiiieH.  The  ueglevt  autl  usurpation  of  the^u 
ciitabliHhineuta  waa  followed  by  the  entry  of  the  Anglo-Saxons,  who,  while 
iibitarbing  most  of  the  land  and  holdings,  applied  a  more  enurgt'tiu  Hpii-it 
toward  the  unfolding  of  hitherto  uluinbering  resourceit,  in  agriculture,  niiiu  .s, 
and  nutnufacturo.  The  Hisjiano-Califoniiaua  liad  been  indolently  content  to 
yield  all  this  beautiful  region  to  browsing  herds,  roaming  and  increa<iiu^  at 
will;  but  the  new-comers  gradually  drove  the  sheep  and  cattle  to  the  hill»,  au<l 
extended  tlto  potty  beginnings  iu  horticnllure,  fanning,  and  irrigation  to 
waving  fields,  lustrous  orchards,  and  vineyards,  with  widely  radiating  ciutals. 
They  studded  with  oases  the  unpromising  deserta  toward  the  Colorado,  an  I 
lield  forth  the  prospect  of  reclaiming  largj  tracts.  Tliis  reclamation  wa.4  ini- 
tiated in  one  direction  by  the  railroail  and  other  lines  of  tralTic,  whoso  sta- 
tions, with  attendant  wells  and  garden  patclies,  demonstrated  the  tninsforni- 
ability  of  tliese  solitudes.  Mining  aided  somewhat  in  the  same  directioa, 
by  calling  attention,  for  instance,  to  the  north-eastern  iKtrt  of  San  Iternardinn, 
and  by  opening  sevend  valleys  and  districts  in  the  ranges,  as  Julian  and 
Banner  in  San  Diego,  both  with  villages,  and  Stonewall  south  of  them,  M'liicli 
pro<luccd  nearly  $400,000.  Siiu  Bernardino  revealed  tin  at  Temeacal,  ainl  a 
little  gold  in  Holuond>e  and  Bear  valleys.  Then  there  is  Silverado  in  Lut 
Angeles  county,  with  several  silver  mines,  besides  the  golil,  silver,  coppii', 
and  coal  de|)osits  in  different  valleys  and  on  Sta  Cataliua  Island,  and  tlie  oil 
wells  of  Newhall. 

tireat  changes  also  took  place  in  the  urlian  settlements.  IncretiHcd 
wealth,  {Hipulatiou,  and  traflic  have  called  up  a  num1>er  of  stations  along  t'nu 
liighways  and  railroads,  and  shipping  places  along  the  coast,  supplemented 
by  bathing  and  wintering  resorts,  while  effecting  many  changes  in  the  old 
towns,  wherein  the  low  and  oblong,  though  tlazzling  white  aud  solid,  aiiolie 
dwellings  of  Mexican  days  and  occupants  stand  eclipsed  by  the  more  elegant 
antl  airy  frame  buildings  of  the  new  era.  Olil  San  Diego,  the  first  of  Cali- 
fornia foundations,  declined  into  a  dismal  hamlet,  presently  to  smUe  again 
under  the  oversliaclowing  iniiucnce  of  New  San  Diego,  which  from  among 
the  numerous  town  projects  dotting  tlie  l>ay  sprang  into  prominence  after 
1867,  to  Itecome  the  county  seat  and  port  of  entry,  with  brilliant  prositeets 
iKtsed  on  a  wonderful  climate  for  health  aud  pleasure,  on  the  tlevelopment  of 
field  products  from  lands  long  dormant  and  deemed  wortldess,  and  on  the 
command  of  the  only  gwKl  harbor  of  southern  California.  In  the  north,  Sa'i 
Luis  liey,  the  former  mission,  with  a  station  at  Pala,  continued  a  tribuUiry 
tra<Iing  jiost,  with  flour  mill.  Tomecula  1>ccame  the  prominent  (  Uttion  be- 
yond. Oceanside  was  established  as  a  resort.  San  Diego  county  in- 
creased in  population  from  2,000  in  1852,  whereof  three  fourths  were  ladian.s, 
to  over  8,000  in  1880,  with  696  farms;  acreage  69,000,  value  $2,87(J,00i», 
pr<Mluce  $.395,00),  live-stoek  $685,000,  some  of  which  items  may  be  increasi  il 
tenfold  for  1888.  San  Bernardino,  founded  in  1851  by  industrious  Mor- 
mons as  the  earliest  of  modem  California  colonics,  rose  as  the  seat  of  the 
largest  among  the  counties,  and  as  the  centre  of  its  limited  share  in  the  nar- 
row garden  region  on  tlie  coast.  About  303  Mormons  arriveil  liere  in  Juno 
1851,  under  the  leadership  of  Lyman  and  Rich,  intent  X):irtly  on  touudiug  a 


SAX  DIEOO,  SAN  BERNARDINO,  AND  LOS   ANCELES.      521 


way -station  f(>r  emigrantB  to  Utah,  hy  way  of  the  Paoitic.  They  Imught  the 
tract  of  Lugo,  the  ownur  of  the  alNindoned  iniuioii,  and  jiaid  for  it  within 
HJx  yt-.-ira.  Thu  town  laid  out  an  thuir  centre  in  1851  pnispered  h(»  well  that 
it  wiui  uhosou  as  the  seat  of  govvniment  when  the  county  wait  organixed  in 
IS.').').  Inuoqioration  followed  in  ISiU.  The  recall  of  thu  brethren  in  1857-8 
to  Itah  provt'd  a  blow,  resulting  in  diaincorporation  in  1861,  followed  by  a 
fresh  charter  in  1804.  Then  it  revived,  and  the  population  of  1,(370  in  1880 
jjn  w  rapi.Uy.  AUa  Cat.,  Oct.  31,  1851;  June  15,  July  20,  Sept.  19,  Oct.  25, 
1.S.VJ;  MillfHHuil  Stiir,  xiv.  491;  Frazer'M  S.  Bern.,  MS.,  26-«;  S.  Bern.  Timet), 
July  8,  1876;  JIM.  S.  Bern.  Co.,  84-5,  I22-.3;  Momwn  PoliUrn,  1-8;  Ilnyra' 
hiilliiim,  i.  68;  Id.,  S.  Bern.,  i.  {lassini;  Deaiin  SUU.,  MS.,  12;  Vischer'a 
CiL,  T.'M;  Prntt'M  AiOo/iioy.,  457-65;  Cal.  SUUtiteit,  1854,  61;  1861,  608;  18<i», 
3>'>;  18(;3-4,  08-70;  Codmana  Trq),  56-8.  The  mission,  live  miles  away,  w;is 
c(inv(.Tted  into  an  orange  grove.  Agua  Mansa  id  the  relic  of  a  New  Mexican 
('C1I0113'  of  1842,  and  Riverside,  one  of  the  llourishing  efforts  of  Anglo-Saxon 
ciili'iiixtition,  soon  became  famed  for  its  fruit.  The  latter  was  founded  in 
ISTO;  name  changed  from  Jurupa.  Ktivanda,  Redlands,  and  Ontiirio  are 
among  the  newer  colonies  wliich  have  helped  to  increase  the  population  of 
till!  county  from  3,990  in  1870  to  7,790  in  1880,  with  over  700  farms,  limited 
to  an  acreage  of  5.3,000,  but  valued  at  §3,346,000,  pro<luce  $4.30,000,  live- 
stock  !?397,0()0.  Its  earliest  resources  are  included  under  Los  Angeles,  from 
M'liii'h  it  was  segregated.  Agua  Manse  was  devastated  by  a  Hood  in  1862. 
Ilill't  Ileiiiin.,  MS.,  14.  Colton,  as  a  railroad  junction,  marks  the  promising 
('iitrepr>t. 

The  radiating  point  for  southern  California  since  Spanish  times  is  Los 
Angeles,  whose  prominence  stood  assured  from  the  first  by  thj  fertile  laiuls 
around,  presently  covered  by  orange  groves  and  gardens,  an«l  whose  not 
very  laudable  and)ition  has  lf>ng  been  to  liecome  the  seat  of  a  new  state. 
The  removal  of  the  capital  in  1847  to  Monterey,  the  original  seat  of  govem- 
iiii'iit,  was  a  cheek  to  these  pretensions,  which  seemed  to  have  left  its  spell 
for  some  years.  Nevertheless  the  city  was  incorporated  in  1850,  and  claimed 
i:i  i8,'>l  a  population  of  2,500.  The  increase  during  the  following  two  decades 
WM  little  more  than  double,  but  later  the  influx  of  Americans  as.sumed  large 
proportions,  promoted  by  the  expanding  fruit  culture  of  the  south,  and  the 
atteiiilant  railroad  discrimination,  until  the  census  figure  of  11,180  for  1880 
has  been  greatly  surpassetL  Cal.  SMutex,  1850,  155;  18.">6,  31;  duuiiitH  Stat., 
MS.,  18;  L08  An;/.  Directories;  Id.,  Arrh.,  iii.  391,  etc.:  Id.,  JIlnl.,  passim; 
/(/.,  Co.,  106-29;  McPhersouH  Los  Amj.,  42-7,  71;  llawleya  L<m  Awj.,  97 
et  seq. ;  Lou  Ang,  Ordin.,  1-39;  Ilaye  '  Anijelcn,  i.-xviii.,  passim;  /(/.,  So.  tid. 
P'lUt.,  i.-ii.:  sciittcred  notices  in  local  journals,  Neim,  Kxchamje,  Ifepub.,  SUtr, 
lliTuld,  and  Exyrem. 

Two  roiulsteads,  both  connected  by  railroads,  present  outlets  for  its 
tralfio,  one  at  S;uita  Monica,  known  chiefly  as  a  bathing  resort,  the  other 
at  ancient  San  Pedro,  supplanteil  by  the  modern  Wilmington,  which,  with 
lireakwaters  and  other  improvements,  endeavors  to  supply  nature's  omissions. 
A  giHtd  wharf  Wiis  constructed,  and  a  town  laid  out  by  Gen.  Banning  in 
IsriS.  AlUi  Cal.,  Oct.  8,  IS.'iS.  It  boasted  a  newspaper  in  1804,  and  was 
incorporated   in    1872.    Cal.    StiUtUea,    1871-2,    87,    108-16,    1049;    Bnnniwjs 


mmm 


CALIFOUNIA  IX  CJUN'TII-X 


■'sr 


1 1. 


!t.J. 


SeUL  qf  Wil.ii.,  MS.,  5  ctHCii.;  I/n/fn'  Wilmiwjt^m,  1  IW;  A/.,  An;/.,  v.  313 
et  Koij.  Suiitii  Mdiiiuu,  cMtaliliiiluMl  in  185.'),  i)ri>|if  rly  iuijnius  tliu  yoiiii^jur  tnid- 
iiig  town  (if  SantJi  Monica,  fiiunilcil  in  lt>75  liy  Senator  Joncit,  with  a  tlourix)iiii){ 
8tirt  Sill  Moiiirn,  'J'/ie  Cniiiimj  Clti/,  1-12;  Jlintnit'it  Ariz.,  IO-'22.  The  .li- 
Htnictinu  of  tlio  wharf  iitid  railrouil  intriguea  ruiluccil  the  {topulation  fully 
oni^  half  hy  I8.S(),  Imt  again  it  liTtol  its  IioikI. 

lit'low  li<!si  Anaiiuiin  hiniliag,  thu  Hhi|i|>ing  iilucu  fur  Anaheim,  a  Ivailin^ 
town  in  tilt:  county,  which  forms  a  Higaal  illustration  of  HUecuHiiful  co1omi/iii|{ 
<i  I  coiiporativo  itrinuiplc.t,  tho  forerunner  of  nia:iy  »iinilar  projects,  BU^i;gestcil 
no  lioulit  by  San  ]i>'i-uarilino.  A  ooiiii>any  of  (ler'nam,  cliitjfly  niocliuniis  of 
S.  I'".,  Huliscriheil  in  18.')7  to  lay  out  a  tract  of  I, 'JOS  acre*  in  vineyards,  with 
irrJ^^atiun,  fencing,  and  town  lots.  Tliu  uaniu  is  a  coni^Miunil  of  hciin,  hoiiu', 
and  Alia,  taken  troni  thu  ailjoining  river.  At  the  end  of  ihreo  years  ino>t  of 
tho  founders  came  down  to  take  ptMsession,  ami  with  mutual  aid  a  village 
sprang  into  existence.  lianlly  one  of  them  had  any  »'.\iK'riencci:i  viniculture, 
yet  tho  colony  prospered,  and  within  a  few  years  each  'JO-aero  lot,  with  town 
site,  costing  the  owner  on  an  aVi.Taye  less  than  $1,5<)0,  had  riseii  in  v.iliie  to 
$o,()l)0  and  $IO,(MM.  Nordhoff  gives  an  interesting  account  of  the  cidoiiy  in 
his  Comniun.  Sue.,  301-C;  AmUicim  lli-t.;  Altt  CiL,  Oct.  23,  Dec.  14,  lh.V.) 
The  lirst  house  w:is  huilb  l>y  1$.  Dreyfus  in  liviT.  The  town  was  incorporated 
in  1S70  with  a  population  of  880,  Cd.  SUttuU*,  IScJ'J-TO,  Gi»,  1871-2,  27:M, 
and  disincorporated  in  1872.  Ann/ieim  Oaz.,  1S70;  and  precdling  general 
references.  Other  villages  are  Downey  City,  formerly  Li<is  Xietos,  wiiidi 
alMorltecI  Oallatin  and  College  Settlement,  and  centre  of  the  oil  business,  tlie 
ancient  Sail  Oaliriel  mission,  tliu  I'asadena  colony  of  1873,  the  Ponioaa  of  l87-*i, 
Arte.iia  of  18ll'.),  Westminster  of  1871,  Tustin,  and  Compton.  8;inta  Ann, 
another  rising  settlement,  was  laid  out  l>y  W.  11.  Spurgeon  in  ISOU;  clai'-ied 
in  188;)  a  population  of  over  1,000,  and  sustained  two  journals.  The  old  mis- 
Kin. i  of  San  .luan  Capistrano  revived.  Thi.  large  islands  supplement  tlie 
rmges  f<ir  sheep  pastures.  Tlie  prominence  of  stock-raising  in  early  days  'h 
shown  in  my  preceding  vols.  The  census  of  18.")0  gives  Ltis  Angeles  county 
lOO.OiM)  head,  ami  an  improved  acreage  of  only  2,G.'>0.  That  of  1880  pl:uTs 
the  stock  at  about  the  same  value,  hut  the  farms  numliered  1,1)40,  valueil  at 
^12,0l)'.),0l)0,  with  .^l,8.i."),01)0  in  produce,  population  33,380.  The  mountainous 
S.i-.ita  Ikirliara  encloses  several  small  hut  alluring  valleys  with  a  climate 
that  attracts  large  numbers  of  health  as  well  as  home  seekers,  and  has  raise  I 
ancient  Santa  Barbara  city  to  the  foremost  rank  of  resorts.  It  was  incor- 
porated in  18.50,  etc.,  Oil.  Statitte.i,  1850,  172,  18til,  502,  187.3-4,  XK),  though 
termed  a  ciudad  long  before.  Sta  B.  Arch.,  viii.  2:iO;  Vitrher's  Pirl.  Cut.,  4I-'J, 
with  view;  Stu  B.  Imlcx,  Id.,  Prexx,  1876,  etc.;  UaytA  Mont.,  et  seq.  Its  lir-t 
journal  dates  from  1854.  Iinprovcjiients  of  the  harbor  occupy  much  atten- 
tion. Population  3,4I>0  b>  1880.  The  adjoining  mission  is  sustained  as  :i 
college,  and  Montecito  to  the  eiist  is  famed  for  its  large  graj*  vines  ami  ;il- 
mouds.  In  Santa  Inez  valley  the  Lompoc  colony  flourishes  as  a  champion  ui 
temperance.  This  place  was  laid  out  in  1874  and  obtained  .a  journal  in  187"i. 
The  colony  projects  of  the  Lompoo  Company  proved  a  failure,  Init  the  origiii:il 
owners  pushed  them,  and  the  place  claimed  a  population  in  1885  of  200  fami- 
lies in  the  colony.   Loinpoc  liccord,  Juno  5-19,  Sept.  11,  1880;  Siti  B.  Pri.<~, 


SOUTHERN  COAST. 


S23 


A|<r.  1,  1370.  In  Santa  Muria  tlio  towns  of  Gua(lalu{)«  and  Central  City 
xtripve  for  the  HuprtHuiicy.  They  were  foundi-il  in  IH7'2  and  187.'>,  rosjK.-ct- 
ivi'ly.  lliu  olilitvrution  of  Im  (iracioMa,  tlatini;  from  18(i8,  tlouritlieil  in 
|s77:  lint  thu  luud  title  being  contirnied  to  H.  M.  Nuwlmll,  it  faded  iiway.  It 
jidipr-t  out  one  iihaau  of  tlio  land-grant  troulilos,  which  have  rotardctl  Hettlu- 
iiii'iit  and  uaiiMid  much  crime  and  MiMMliilied — imitancu  the  rohhur  bandit 
iiiiiUr  Sol.  Pico  and  Powers,  and  the  Vi  lal  right.  Tlie  drought  of  18*{,'i-4  in- 
III.  ted  a  severe  blow  by  destroying  nearly  nil  tlio  cattle  while  directing  atten- 
tion to  horticulture  and  irri^'atioii.  In  187-  the  eaotern  Mootion  Hejiarated  tu 
fiiriii  Ventura  county,  with  tne  Huat  of  go\<-niment  at  the  misHi.Ji  of  San 
ISiU'iiaventura,  which  was  laiil  out  as  a  town.  J.  Arnay  sought  in  1H48  to 
tiiiiiid  a  city  near  the  mission,  but  it  languished  till  Waterinan,  Vassaidt,  & 
Co.,  who  then  controlled  the  laud,  ma<le  a  survey  in  IMi'J,  and  gave  m>  success- 
ful :iu  impulse  that  incoriMtration  followeil  soon  after.  Cnl,  StiUutin,  I8t».>-(i, 
L'Iti;  IH7S-4,  54;  87'>-*i,  b'M;  Vnitunt  Si/nul,  July  8,  1870,  a  journal  started 
ill  IS7I.  The  destruction  of  the  wliarf  in  1877  proved  a  check  on  progress. 
I'lipidation  l,!t70  in  1881).  A  promising  sliipping  point  at  Hueiieme  was 
established  in  1870  by  T.  K.  Itard,  and  marked  by  wliarf  ami  ligbtliouso. 
ropulation  l(J(i  in  1880.  Tlie  name  is  Indian.  A  rising  valley  town  w:is 
>.iiita  Paula,  whei  -  a  tlour-mill  wa<  founded  in  1870  by  lilanchard  and  Brad- 
ley, and  the  town  in  IS75.  Nordholf  is  a  health  resort  in  the  Ojai  Valley.  Near 
liy  are  promising  oil  dc[iosits.  The  census  of  18S0  assigns  the  county  a 
po[ndation  of  r>,070,  with  573  farms,  value  $2,734,000,  pnMluce  $(i4y,0<M),  live- 
stock jiSIJo.OOO,  while  Sta  Barliara  retained  a  population  of  9,500,  witli  713 
t'lriMsof  double  area,  though  valued  at  only  $>3,471,000,  produce  j'74t»,000, 
live-stock  $75l>,000. 

In  San  Luis  Obispo,  whose  rocky  barriers  turned  the  main  route  of  lantl 
tr.itlic,  the  early  missiim  intluence  lingers  in  many  of  the  settlements,  by  vir- 
tue of  restricted  choice  of  sites,  anti  in  the  later  county,  San  Luis  Obispo  town 
l)li)?(somed  into  its  administration  seat.  Although  existing  as  a  village,  it  was 
surveyed  for  a  town  site  in  1850,  incoriwirated  in  18.")(),  and  disincorporated. 
Cil.  StntiiteM,  1850,  3;);  18.-)8,  3%;  180.S,  21»3;  1871-'-',  2*J0,  4:M;  1875  0,  3i;i, 
3Sl.»;  ISS3,  31K);  Ccfyper^  S.  L.  '//,.,  12  .10;  Avilt,  Df>r.,  25  et  seq.;  S.  L.  Oh. 
Areh.,  2,  etc.  Population  2,240  in  1880.  Port  Harford  is  its  landing  for  the 
]ietty  settlements  to  which  this  hilly  district  is  so  far  restricted,  with  dairy 
and  stock-raising  as  the  predominating  iiidurttries.  In  rank  second  to  S.  L. 
Oliispo  stands  Caudiria,  which  originated  cluring  the  copiMjr  excitement  of  ISO,"}, 
assisted  by  quicksilver  in  1871,  aiiil  by  saw-mills.  San  Simeon,  a  whaling 
station,  shares  with  lyiffingwell's  wliarf  in  its  shipments.  Cayucos  and  Arroyo 
flraiide  are  other  landing-places.  San  Miguel  missi<m  lingers  a  nit!re  hamlet; 
El  I'aso  de  Koblcs  is  famed  fur  its  medicinal  springs.  The  county  has  in- 
creased in  population  from  5«X)  in  18.">2  to  1,780  i!»  1800,  and  y,l.")0  in  1880, 
with  832  farms,  value  $4,430,000,  produce  .*:925,000,  live-sttick  $1,139,000. 

Monterey  has  undergone  greater  changes.  The  fertile  valley  of  Salinas 
became  a  prominent  wheat-producing  section,  centring  in  the  town  of  S.ilinius, 
which  sprang  up  to  take  in  1872  the  county  seat  from  the  Mexican  capital  on 


824 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


!*i   ■ 


!!' 


i'  \  ■ 


(  .' 


the  t)ay,  leaving  it  to  decline  into  a  mere  aeaaide  resort  and  petty  ahippiu^r. 
point. 

A  wayside  hotel  was  opened  at  Salinas  in  1856  by  E.  Howe,  a  hanikt 
sprang  up,  and  in  1867  Ricker,  Jackson,  and  Sherwood  laid  it  out  as  a  central 
town,  which  was  incorporated  in  1874.  CaL  StatnUa,  1873-4,  242,  820;  1875- 
6,  94,  545;  Snlhias  Index,  May  1872  et  seq.;  Butler'a  Mont.,  24.  As  the 
county  seat  prior  to  1872,  Monterey  held  its  own  for  a  long  time,  with  incor- 
porated title.  Cal.  Stntuteit,  1850,  131;  1851,  367;  1853,  159.  Its  history  k 
minutely  recorded  in  Jfayea'  AfotUerei/,  passim;  also  Walton's  Monlnry;  Hoacli'a 
St  it.,  MS.;  ^font.  Arch.,  v.-xii.;  Ashley's  Doc.;  AmUi,  Doe. 

The  railroads  have  revived  a  numtior  of  stations,  such  as  Pajaro  and  Ca.s- 
troville  in  the  north,  the  latter  founded  in  1864  by  J.  B.  Castro,  and  securiii)^ 
a  journal  and  large  tributary  population.  Moss'  Landing  assists  as  a  near 
shipping-point  to  sustain  it  P&jaro  is  derived  from  Kio  Pijaro,  bird  river. 
Then  there  aru  Gonzales  and  Soleda<l,  the  ancient  mission,  to  the  south. 
Oonz.iles'  Slat.,  M.S.,  5-7,  named  after  this  writer's  family.  Beyond  tlie  Oavi- 
lan  range  lay  another  fine  valley,  whose  rapid  development  led  in  1872  to  tliu 
formation  of  San  Benito  county,  with  the  seat  of  government  at  the  recently 
founded  Hollister,  which  quickly  overshadowed  San  Juan  Bautista,  supremo 
since  Mexican  times.  Hollister  was  named  after  tlie  prominiuit  pioneer  of 
the  valley,  who  had  built  the  first  house  on  this  site  in  1862.  It  was  luiil  out 
in  18(>8  by  the  S.  Justo  Homestead  Assoc.,  and  stimulated  by  the  railway. 
Population  1,0.%  by  188();  J.  Watson  wosthefimt  settler  near  the  site,  in  18r>4. 
CaL  Sfatutfg,  1873-4,  675,  840,  refers  to  its  incorporation.  San.Tuan  Bautista 
changed  from  mission  to  pueblo  during  Mexican  rule.  Yet  it  still  figure  I 
with  a  iK>pnlation  of  480  in  1880.  Tres  Pinos  is  one  of  the  station:].  T!ic 
{Nipulation  of  the  county  was  5,.'>80  according  to  the  census  of  1880,  with  '>'.):{ 
farms,  acreage  36.'i,000,  value  $i3,ai6,(H)0,  pro<luce  $4.')0,0U0,  live-stock  §:{*.);,- 
000.  Monterey  stitod  assigned  a  imputation  of  11,300,  with  8.34  farms  of  los.s 
extent,  value  ^>,8ti.%<>00,  i>ro<luce  $1,784,000,  stock  $1,031,000.  In  185U  iU 
improved  acreage  stood  at  13,700. 


Still  richer  was  the  valley  of  Santa  Clara,  which  ranked  next  to  Los  An- 
geles in  early  days  for  density  of  settlements.  Its  centre  has  remaineil  at 
San  Jose,  for  a  while  the  capital  of  the  state,  aad  now  a  busy  yut  homelike 
ganlen  city  of  centennial  dignity.  It  was  incorporated  in  18.50,  and  reincor- 
porated. Citl.  SUUules,  1850,  479;  1857,  113;  1871-2,  33:1;  1873-4,  345,  IT,, 
7*>4.  Comments  on  its  selection  for  the  capital  city,  in  S.  F.  HertiUl,  Feb.  4, 
1851;  AlU;  Citi,  Dec.  24,  1850;  S.  F.  Piniytme,  Sept.  28,  1850;  T/.'.  foHrin: 
Tlie  loss  of  this  preeminence  checketl  progress,  yet  its  centennial  was  cele- 
brated under  glorious  auspices  in  1877.  For  8i>ecial  and  full  descriptions,  I 
refer  to  S.  Joiti  Arch.,  L.  Pap.,  (Hissim;  KaWa  Hint.  S.  Josi,  Stat.,  MS.,  by 
Belden,  the  first  nuyor;  Fernamln,  Doe.,  MS.,  Get  seq.;  and  <S.  J.  Pionnr, 
as  the  most  historic  among  its  journals.  The  former  Mexican  X)redomiuation 
hero  has  decline<l  to  a  small  section.  Population  12,570  by  1880.  The  mis- 
sion by  its  sitle  has  nobly  maiutainetl  iti  course,  now  m^  the  colle;ju  town  of 
Santa  Clara  and  suburb  of  San  Jose,  with  a  sliare  in  its  tra<le,  and  with  incor- 
poration honorj.  C<if.  Statutes,  1871-2,  tI51;  1856,  79;  population  i<ver  I!,  400 


^^^ 


MONTEREY  AND  SANTA  CRUZ. 


629 


i'i  1  't'tO.  nilroy  ranks  next  at  the  head  of  the  valley,  assUtcd  by  its  8pring<4, 
liy  railroad  tratiic,  and  by  tobbcco  manufacture  and  inillii.  The  tirat  hainlot 
li 'I'u  waa  San  laidro,  named  after  the  rancho  of  Orttiga,  into  which  family 
tliat  early  Scotch  pioneer  (>ilroy,  or  Cameron,  married.  It  gradually  came 
til  l)c  knnwn  after  this  settler,  but  in  time  settlement  shifted  over  round  the 
iiiii  I'staliliMhed  two  miles  o£f  by  J.  Houck  in  181)0.  This  was  formally  laid 
nut  ill  18ti8  by  Huber,  and  inco  -porated  in  1870.  CaL  Stittute«,  1869-70,  203; 
]H7l-'2,  1006.  Oas  followed  in  1871;  population  1,620  in  1880.  Oiiivy  Adm- 
oitf,  .Sept.-Oct.  1879.  The  S.  F.  Timet  of  Nov.  11,  1867,  si>eaks  of  its  pros- 
pix-tK.  Where  the  water-power  of  the  creek  lud  J.  A.  Forlxis  in  1850  to  build 
a  tlciur-Miill,  Los  Oatos  was  established.  In  1863  a  luniljcr-yard  was  added. 
Thu  arrival  of  the  railroad  in  1S77  gave  it  an  impulse  which  viniculture  has 
atlirined.  Near  by  lie  the  Saratoga  paper-niilU  and  springs.  Alviao,  once 
au  important  shipping-point  for  the  valley,  was  pushed  aside  by  the  railroads. 
It  was  laid  out  in  JH49,  with  a  treat  flourish,  having  projects  for  docks,  etc., 
by  .J.  D.  Hoppe,  I.  Burnett,  aiui  C.  Marvin,  and  named  after  the  Mexican 
laiiil-owner there.  Biiffum'sSix  Mo.,  164;  CoUohh  Three  Yearti,  418;  AltaCai, 
Dec.  15,  1849;  Pac.  Netm,  Dec.  25,  1849.  Wharves  and  wai  ehouses  appeared, 
and  incorporation  in  1852.  Cal,  S*ntute»,  1852,  222.  Swamp  land  titles  gave 
tnmlile.  It  retained  sufficient  trade  to  iigure  aaavillagr.  On  either  side 
are  tlie  stations  Mayfield,  Mountain  View,  and  Milpitat^.  The  quicksilver 
mines  of  New  Almaden,  the  mo.:t  productive  in  tlie  w  jrld,  8U.«tain  a  large 
villiige.  For  1865  the  yield  rose  to  47,194  flasks.  I later  it  was  little  over 
2(),<)0I).  The  county  ranks  among  the  leadin^j  »,'^ri' ultural  districts,  with 
1,4!>2  farms,  p^^cording  to  tlie  census  of  1880,  c(  <  ring  257,000  acres,  value 
$lo,.320,000  produce  $2,157,000,  live-stock  $9a8,000;  population  35,000, 
a^':lill!<t  11,900  in  1860.  In  1852  it  raised  570,000  bushels  of  ){rain,  ant) 
656,000  bushels  of  potatoes. 


The  adjoining  Santa  Cruz  presents  a  contrast  in  resources,  with  its  vast 
forests  of  redwood  and  water-power  along  ditfereut  streams,  which  fostered 
mills  ami  factories,  and  for  a  long  time  placed  the  county  next  to  San  Francisco 
ai  a  manufacturing  field.  Saw-mills,  tanneries,  ship-yards,  foundries,  existed 
on  a  certain  scale  prior  to  1849,  an<l  powdur-wurks  and  lime-kilns  were  added, 
together  with  some  mining.  The  census  of  1850  assigned  it  an  improved  acreage 
of  2,045.  By  1880  the  population  had  increased  from  1,220  to  12,800,  witii  584 
Ritialler  farms,  value  93,848,000,  pro<luoe  9726,000,  live-stock  |;2t>4,000.  A 
oonimodious  position  at  tiie  m'juth  of  Han  Lorenzo  Creek  assisted  Santa  Cruz, 
the  city  of  terraces,  to  remain  the  leading  town  and  seat,  sustained  greatly 
OS  the  nearest  seaside  resort  for  the  bay  dwellers.  Branciforte,  thu  earlier 
real  town,  was  merged  in  Sta  Cruz,  the  mission  settlement  Ixiforu  the  conquest, 
although  the  legislature  of  1850  considered  this  same  x>oint.  CaL  Jour.  Ho., 
]S.'ii),  1,3.%.  Population  3,000  by  1880.  A  similar  control  of  water  power 
oiiil  resources  made  Soquel  a pros|>erous  manufacturing  place,  while  tlie  valley 
tit  I'djaro  lifted  Watsonville  to  the  second  rank.  It  was  laid  o.it  in  1852  by 
il.  11.  Watson  and  D.  S.  (iregory.  (Jlouded  title  for  a  time  ohecl.ed  progress, 
1  t  this  Iteing  settled,  it  advanced,  was  incorporated  in  1868,  CaL  StitMen, 
\  >'',  8,  688,  obtained  gaa  and  water  works,  and  by  1880  a  jMipuLition  of  1,800. 
ll'<'<«onn7/f  Direct.,  1873, 5  24,  and  later.    Felton  has  saw-mills  and  limekilns. 


CALIFORNIA  IN  COUNTIia. 


1,  i 


9i;ii  ) 


The  development  of  San  Mateo  county  is  greatly  due  tn  its  proximity  to 
the  metropolis,  to  which  it  once  jMirtaiiied,  as  the  source  for  supplies  and  liito 
for  country  residences  and  resorts.  Upon  its  segregation  in  I806,  the  scat  of 
government  was  assigned  to  Belmont — where  Angelo's  hotel  formed  the  initial 
settlement  in  1850-1,  and  speedily  matle  it  the  resort  for  which  it  is  now  chitily 
famed — but  was  transferred  tho  same  year  to  Redwood  City,  whose  valualilu 
timber  land  and  water  route  to  tho  bay  obtained  for  it  a  predominance  wliirli 
the  rival  town  of  San  Ms'eo  sought  in  vain  to  overcome,  like  the  etill  lt;s« 
unsuccessful  Menlo  Park  and  KavenswmMl.  On  the  coast  is  a  farming  district 
supporting  two  small  towns.  Capt.  A.  Smith  built  the  first  house  at  Redwoixl 
City;  ship-building  began  the  same  year,  and  a  squatter  raid  u)>on  Las  PuI^ms 
rancho  in  1852  brought  population,  for  which  W.  Shaw  opened  the  first  store. 
Road  traffic  started  wagon-making;  mills  and  tamieries  followed.  In  1854  it 
was  l»ii1  out  by  J.  M.  Mezes  and  named  after  him,  but  tho  familiar  appelliitioii 
licdwoml  prevailed,  and  was  affirmed  by  the  charter  of  18<)7.  Cnl.  SlulHli.t, 
18457-8,  411;  1873-4,  940;  J.'eilmjotl  Times,  Jan.-March  1879,  etc.  PopuLitiou 
1,.380  iu  1880.  San  Mateo  was  founded  proiierly  in  18(!3  as  a  railroad  st-ktimi 
for  the  many  reside;  ts  who  had  their  villas  there,  and  wa.s  of  steady  growtl', 
partly  as  a  way-station  for  Pescadero.  In  1874  it  was  chosen  as  county  si'ut, 
but  liy  arbitration  the  dignity  was  retained  fur  RedwooiL  Munio  Park  Wius 
incorporated  in  1874.  Ravenswood  was  foumled  in  1853  as  a  sliippiag-]M)iiit, 
but  dr<ipj)ed  down  to  a  brick-yaril.  Pesca<lero,  a  popular  resort,  sigailics 
fishing-phuse;  Spanishtown  was  of  gra<luul  growth.  The  population  of  tlio 
Liiuiity  increiised  from  3,*2()0  in  18i!0  to  8,(>70  in  1880;  possessing  (3()9  farrtis, 
valued  at  ;?7,91G,000:  pro«iuce  $7H!,000;  live-stock  «!51 1,000.  Tho  saw-niiU 
industry  was  started  by  C.  Brown  just  prior  to  the  gold  excitement. 


Alameila  ranked  in  the  last  census  as  the  most  productive  agricultural 
county  on  tlie  coast,  yet  it  owes  nuich  to  its  positiim  on  the  bay,  ami  0-ik- 
liind,  tho  ollicial  head,  is  pnictically  a  ro»idonce  suburb  of  San  Franciscn, 
fitly  tho  ctniaort  with  balmier  air  and  Iteauty,  and  with  thrivh'g  oducatimiiil 
cstablish'iients.  When  the  county  was  organized  in  1853,  Alvar;Mlo  becaim- 
the  scat  of  government  as  the  most  ci.'ntrid  among  availab'e  scttlenient^i,  ainl 
v/it.  a  good  sliippiug-phice,  to  which  San  Jose  mission  ami  other  ^K)ints  were 
tribuUiry.  Cal.  SUUiiU*,  185.%  319;  1. 1.,  Joni:  Am.,  1853,  li'.hj,  099.  But  polit- 
ical induence  gained  the  pi  ivilogo  simiti  after  for  San  Leandro,  a  town  with 
similar  advantages,  but  more  attnictive  i;i  site  nud  appearance,  wliich  liad  to 
surrender  it  20  years  later  to  its  ^towerful  neighbor.  It  was  laid  out  in  1851 
as  New  Haven,  by  H.  C.  Smith,  wlio  as  aHseniltlyina:i  manteuvre<l  the  criM- 
tion  of  thi!  county  and  the  seat,  allowing  the  lieutenant-governor  to  rciuiiiic 
tlie  place  in  himor  of  the  Mexican  {-.x-governor.  It  grew,  embraced  Union 
City,  and  liecjime  the  jhief  town  of  tho  southern  section,  with  several  facto- 
ries. W'lmh.  liuU^p,,  Jan.  5,  1878.  In  1850  San  Leandro  contained  only  tlie 
resilience  of  J.  J.  Estudillo,  the  owner  of  the  tract,  and  a  8chool-liou.sc,  but 
agriculture  and  river  traflic  gave  it  iinpidsc.  It  gained  the  seat  in  1854,  but 
did  not  actiudly  obtain  it  till  185(i.  It  assumed  incorimration  honors  iu  1872, 
partly  to  strengthen  it-wilf  a^^ainst  Oakland's  stru^'glo  for  tlie  county  t'Ciit. 
This  dignity  was  litst,  yet  the  town  continues  to  prosper.  L'al.  UtaluUt,  1850, 


ABOUT  THE  BAY. 


527 


26;  1871-2,  4  a;  1873-4,  63.  Population  1,370  by  1880.  CoHtra  Costa,  i.  17. 
A  number  of  8<  natters  oa  Estudillo's  rancho  gathered  at  .Saii  Lorenzo  iu 
ls.ji'-3,  fonninj}  the  so-called  S(|uatterville  of  the  ceu8U»  report  of  1852,  ainl 
tlio  iiiaiitifacture  of  farming  iinpleiiieuts  was  started,  with  a  few  a4ljunctt)  in 
the  nliapc  of  hotels  and  shops.  W.  Hayward  settled  at  the  place  of  that 
naiiii:  iu  1S51,  and  soon  engaged  in  store  and  hotel  keeping.  G.  Castro, 
ontiiT  of  S.  Lorenzo  grant,  laid  out  the  town  in  1854,  applying  the  name  of 
his  tract,  which  did  not  long  prevail.  Tlie  railroail  <rave  it  new  life,  and  in 
lS7<i  it  received  a  charter.  It  has  two  Ijreweries.  '••;  ulatum  \.'2'M  in  1880. 
S.c  Ormjan  va  JlmjwariU.  The  adjoining  San  Lorenzo  faileil  t«i  grow,  l)ut 
liaywards,  with  its  fine  situation,  rivals  it,  and  in  the  south  the  railroads 
li.ive  lifted  several  stations  to  share  the  trade  with  earlier  villages,  an  Xiles, 
Siifi.'l,  I'leasanton,  first  ralleil  Alisal,  and  Washington  Comers,  the  List  tlie 
giipiily  111 '  je  for  San  Jose  mission.  Newark  overshailows  Centreville.  In 
tlio  east  Livermoru  holds  the  advantage.  A.  Ladtl  settleil  then-  in  I8*!.'t,  and 
liuilt  a  liotel,  which  liecanie  the  nucleus  for  Ladilville;  but  the  approach  nf 
the  railroiul  cause<l  W.  Mendenhall  to  lay  out  Livermore  half  a  mile  west- 
wanl,  am.,  this  gained  the  sroreniacy  and  was  incoritorated  iu  ISTO.  It  was 
ii;tiiie<l  after  li.  Livermore,  tier  of  the  grant,  wh<Kwr  adolie  duelling  i«to<Hl 
a  mile  ancl  a  lialf  northward.  <\il.  SttUute/i,  1875-0,  01.3.  I'opuLitKin  850  by 
ISSO.  The  ][iopulation  of  the  county  increased  from  8,930  in  l^.iO  to  G2,'.I80 
in  1S.S(),  with  property  iwsesse.l  at  ^2,822.(K)0,  of  whieh  .<iy..V_'7.<»iW  repre- 
8.iit.s  the  value  of  1,.'J2()  farms,  produce  §2,:W5,(»0(),  live-»t«H:k  ^WO.OiH).  Salt- 
works, jute  and  cotton  mills,  and  a  sugar  factory  tigun.-  anmn:;  the  industries. 
JViyond  tlie  range  northward  a  number  of  smuii  towns  nestle  in  the  valleys 
tiiixit'iry  to  the  bays  of  San  Pablo  and  Suisun,  Iteginning  with  Lifayette,  of 
anto-aurum  quietude,  founded  in  1847  by  E.  Hrown,  with  the  tirst  <.'rist-mili 
ill  tlie  county,  in  1853,  followed  by  Walnut  Creek,  Danville,  i'-nieord,  and 
nther  towns,  and  culminating  in  .Martinez,  which,  di.iapiMtinteil  in  its  aspira- 
tiiiii.s  like  the  opposite  licnicia,  had  to  rest  content  witli  the  p<Miti<>ii  ut  i»e.'ice- 
ful  county  seat  for  Contra  Costa.  It  was  laid  out  in  |.^9  by  W.  M.  .Smitli, 
a.i  agiiit  for  the  Martinez  family  owning  the  grant.  /.nrL-in'i  If-ir.,  vii.  I'M; 
Sn:  Tntmcriyt,  Nov.  14,  18.'(0.  N.  Hunsaker  erected  the  tir.>t  buil  ling,  and 
T.  .V.  Hrown  the  first  store.  In  liS.">(>-l  the  owner  i>f  the  Welcli  nineho  laiil 
iiut  a  l<ir;j;e  addition  to  the  prosi)ective  metropolis.  After  an  attempt  at  in- 
eurpiiration  in  1851  a  charter  was  obtained  in  1870.  Cat.  Sl-tt»ifs,  1875-0,  822. 
NVarehouses  ami  salmon  canneries  helpt:d  to  sustain  it.  The  entrv|K'<t  trade  of 
t!ie  valleys  was  largely  absorlmd  by  dilferent  shipping  (lointM,  a.^  Pujut  Pinole 
and  Port  Costa,  a  wheat-shipping  place  and  ferry  station  for  tin-  r.iilroad. 
iK-'pth  of  shore  water  caused  it  to  be  selected.  The  ferry  slip  w.-w  completed 
ill  ls7i>,  shipments  beginning  soon  after.  At  Pinole  ami  ri>u!id  the  point  are 
pow.ler- works.  The  inland  Pacheco,  on  Walnut  Creek,  with  wanii-iuscs  and 
l!«ur-mill,  was  laid  out  in  1800  on  the  strength  of  existnig  warehoiiues  and 
trade,  and  named  after  S.  Pacheco.  Aiitioeh,  the  seconil  town  ••:"  tin-  county, 
w;is  the  centre  for  the  fertile  Sau  Joaipiin  district.  It  w.%*  lir.-t  known  as 
S  iiith's  Landing,  after  J.  H.  and  W.  W.  Smith,  who  settle*!  there  in  1849, 
a. id  christened  AntiiK-h  in  1851.  In  1852  3  came  brick -makin;:  aad  a  store. 
It  grew  slowly  till  the  cjkiI  developments  gave  it  energy,  »ud  enabled  it  to 


CAUPORNIA  IN  COUNTIES. 


"iS    ' 


i.  i 


incorporate  in  1872.  Population  G20  in  1880.  Antioch  had  a  share  in  tiie 
trattic  of  the  coal-iniuing  villagea  of  Nortonville,  SonierHville,  and  JuiIsimi- 
vilie.  The  chief  delivery  statioua  for  these  important  mines  are,  howuver,  at 
Pittahurg  and  at  New  York,  which  was  started  with  great  flouriuh  early  in 
1840  as  a  rival  of  San  Francisco,  but  failed  to  rise  alwive  a  handet.  It  h.is  im 
intureHt  in  the  fish  canneries,  which,  with  powder-works,  figure  among  tliu 
supplementary  industries  of  this  cool  and  farming  county.  Tlie  ceuiiu.s  nf 
IS.'i'i  ascriltcs  to  it  317,()00  Imshels  of  grain,  So.iXM)  huuhels  of  ixitatooH,  ainl 
6l,(MX)liead  of  stock.  By  188U  the  population  hud  increased  from  2,780  to 
12,520,  with  885  farms  valued  at  |G,713,000,  produce  $1,377,000,  Bt<»  k 
^*i:i7,000.  Pittsburg  has  been  referred  to  as  Black  Diamond,  wliicli  propcily 
adjoins  it.  New  York  of  the  Pacific  was  laiil  out  by  Col  Stevenson  and  \V. 
C.  Parker,  and  surveyed  by  Gen.  Slieruian.  See  liis  Mem.,  i.  73-4;  Column 
Thrre  Yairft,  417;  Bujfums  Six  Mo.,  150;  Tnylor'/i  EUlortulo,  i.  217;  ii.  48; 
MfCollanin  Cal.  The  latter  two  scout  at  its  aspirations,  yet  Cat.  Coiirin; 
Nov.  2,  1850,  still  assumes  that  it  will  become  a  port  for  S.  Joiujuin  Valley. 
Members  of  the  Kennebec  Trading  Co.  Bcttle<l  here.  BoifiUoit's  SUU.,  MS.,  I; 
J/'iyfn'  Oriij.  Doc.,  3-4;  Frieinl,  1849,  ii.;  Pien,  Dot.,  i.  207.  Tlie  Smith 
brothers  built  the  first  house,  and  a  few  more  rose  upon  the  numerouH  lnU 
di-iposed  of  during  the  excitement  started  by  the  projectors.  AfttT  1850  it 
was  recognized  as  a  failure.     Two  canneries  were  established  there. 


'V\ 


;  fi 


CHAPTER  XX. 

MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 
1851-1887. 

The  Colonization  Ststkm— Land  Orant3  bt  Spaik  and  Mkxico— Infor- 
malities or  Title — Trkaty  Obligations  ofthr  United  Statf^ — Ef- 

KKCr  OF  TIIK  (tOLD  DlSCOVKRT — TlIK  SqUATTERS — REPORTS  OF  JoNES  AND 
HaLLECK— Dij*CU88ION8  IN   CoNORESS — FrAmONT,  BKNTON,  AND  (iWIN  — 

The  Act  or  1851 — Thb  Land  Commission — Proorkss  and  Statistk-ii 
or  Litkiation — Principles — Floating  Grants — Sitrvets — Fraudu- 
i.KNT  Claims — Specimen  Cases — Castillero — Fremont — Gomez — Li- 
MA.vTorR —  Peralta — Santillan — Sutter — Vallejo — Mlssion  Lands 
—  Friars,  Nkoimiytes,  and  Church  —  Pico's  Sales  —  Archbishop's 
Claim  -Pueblo  Lands — The  Case  of  San  Francisco — Statistics  or 
J  HiSO— Mohii.  c»  Squattbrism — Black  and  Jones — Attempts  to  Rfaipkn 
Litkiation — General  Conclusions — The  Act  o"  1861  Oppressivb  and 
Ruinous — What  should  have  been  Doni. 


('( 


The  subject  of  Mexican  land  titles  in  California  ia 
one  tliat  with  concise  treatment  might  fill  a  volume. 
Any  one  of  its  dozen  leading  phases  would  require 
iiiucli  more  space  than  this  chapter  affords.  Yet  I 
Ljivc  it  all  the  space  permitted  by  a  symmetrical  plan, 
taking  into  consideration  its  historical  importance  in 

tniparu^on  with  other  matters ;  and  I  try  to  present 
a  c'oinprohensivo  and  satisfactory  view. 

Tliu  annals  of  colonization  in  California  under  Span- 
ish and  Mexican  rule,  with  sufficient  explanation  of 
thi>  land-grant  system  at  successive  perio<ls,  are  given 
in  earlier  volumes.*     At  no  time  before  1846  had  it 

'  For  iiiBtmo.  to  Coin.  Rivera  y  Monca<U  in  1773  on  dintribntion  nf  laiiiln, 
N*'(^  i.  216,  Hint.  CaL,  thiHserioR;  on  puehlo  founding,  proKrata,  and  n:gulationi« 
<l"wii  to  1800,  i.  311-14,  3.StWJ,  'MA  M,  ;W8  »,  60:i-4,  5tt4-72,  tiOO-lJ.  gen.ral 
ri'iiiarka  on  tviiurc  of  lands,  with  nanieH  nf  early  grants  to  1800,  i  007-18,  00]  3, 
717;  on  ranchoH  of  1801-10,  ii.  111-1'A  146,  153,  I70-8t  on  grants  of  1811-20, 
Uin.  CAL.,  Vol.  VL    84  ( IW ) 


ill    I 


m 


t 


590 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


been  so  dif&cult  for  citizens  +<>  obtain  farms  as  for  tiio 
government  to  find  settlers  tor  its  lands.  The  orij^inal 
Spanish  occupation  of  17G9  was  a  colonization  scheme, 
the  presidio  being  a  temporary  device  to  protect  set- 
tlements during  the  process  of  development,  and  tho 
mission  another  expedient  to  fit  the  natives  for  settlers 
and  citizens ;  ultimately,  and  soon  as  was  vainly  hope(l, 
California  was  to  be  a  country  of  towns  and  farms 
occupied  by  descendants  of  the  soldiers,  civilized  In- 
dians, and  settlers  of  various  ract«  from  abroad,  the 
whole  a  community  of  tribute-paying,  God-fearin<j, 
S|3anish  citizens.  Three  pueblos  were  founded  as 
nuclei,  and  naturally  for  many  years  the  only  distribu- 
tion of  lands  was  in  the  form  of  town  lots;  but  after 
1786,  if  not  before,  the  governor  could  grant  ranchos. 
No  such  grants  were  made  before  1800,  though  fifteen 
or  twenty  farms  were  occupied  under  provisional 
licenses.  About  a  dozen  more  were  occupied  before 
1822,  the  end  of  Spanish  rule,  some  of  them  undir 
formal  gitints;  and  in  the  first  di'cade  of  Mexican 
indcpend  Tice  the  number  was  increased  to  about  fil'ty 
in  1832.  From  the  advent  of  Governor  Figueroa  in 
1833,  under  the  Mexican  colonization  law  of  1824  and 
the  reglamento  of  1828,  land  grants  numbered  on  an 
average  fifty-three  each  year  to  184G,  when  the  total 
immber  was  nearly  800.*  It  is  to  be  noted  also  that 
most  of  the  Spanish  grants  were  renewed  under  ^lex- 
iean  forms,  being  in  some  instances  conferred  on  tlic 
heirs  of  the  original  occupants. 

ii.  353  4,  37'').  :t83,  414-15,  including  decree  of  '13  nn  nMlnction  of  lands  to 
priviite  uwiu  rslii^);  grants  of  'Ul-SO,  ii.  54(>-7,  54>5-<>,  51h!--l,  GI:J-n>;  gen. 
account  to  '.'iO,  with  list  of  5(>  ranchoH,  ii.  601-5;  c«ilouization  law  of  '24  uiid 
reglamento  of  '28,  ii.  515-1(>;  iii.  34-5;  grants  of  '31-40  in  tliu  5  districts, 
iii.  eil-l'i,  «>:«-4,  055-6,  67G-8,  711-13;  grants  of  '41-5;  iv.  0*20-1,  0:«  .•, 
042-.1,  «:..V  e,  070-i;  grants  of  '40,  v.  619,  6'21-S,  6.*«,  037-8,  OSiMJO,  0(15. 
tMi'.>,  OT-'i;  also  local  aniiaU  of  tlie  3  pueMos,  passim.  The  references  to  L  0*>7 
-18  aiul  ii.  <i<il-5aru  of  chief  importance  for  prtiwtnt  purpoafi<. 

'  Thfse  tigurca,  taken  after  22  from  the  Land  Com.  record  in  l[offimtii'i 
Report-*  of  '02,  arc  only  approximately  correct,  as  nome  of  the  larger  rancluH 
were  present^^d  tu  tlte  com.  in  sevenu  sulMlivittiona.  Acconling  to  thin  li-^t, 
the  nunilH-r  of  grants  to  1800  was  13,  and  to  '22  was  27,  which  hgures  amount 
to  nothing;,  an  most  of  thu  Spanish  grants  were  renewed  in  Mi^x.  timeit,  ami 
prescntol  under  the  regniut,  whde  others  were  sultdividml;  uo.  for  "2:^-  :{2,  1 1 ; 
113.  2.'-.:  •:t4,  :«;  '35,  31;  '30.  37;  '.17.  27;  '38,  43;  "aO.SO;  '40,  37;  '41,01;  '\-l, 
61,  '4:1,  04;  '44,  122t  "45,  68;  '46,  87;  no  date,  20. 


PROCEDURE. 


631 


Under  the  Mexican  law  and  reglamenlo  any  citizen, 
native  or  naturalized,  might  select  a  tract  of  unoccu- 
pied land  and  apply  to  the  governor  for  a  grant.  His 
pttition  was  generally  accompanied  by  a  rude  map, 
or  dlserm,  and  was  usually  submitted  by  the  governor 
to  the  alcalde  or  other  local  authority  for  investiga- 
tion. The  alcalde,  after  consulting  other  persons  in 
case  his  own  knowledge  did  not  suffice,  if  he  found 
tlio  land  vacant  and  no  objection  to  the  grant,  re- 
turned a  favorable  inforvie,  or  report,  on  which  the 
governor,  if  satisfied  with  the  petitioner's  qualifications 
—including  citizenship,  character,  and  ability  to  utilize 
the  land — wrote  on  the  margin,  "Let  the  title  issue," 
jtassing  the  pa|ier8  to  his  secretary  of  state.  The 
latter  wrote  a  formal  grant,  with  a  borradi^r,  or  blot- 
ter copy,  the  former  of  which,  when  it  had  been 
sigTied  by  the  governor  and  recorded  in  the  Uyma  ik 
raziyu,  or  record  book — sometimes  by  literal  copy, 
sometimes  by  mere  mention — was  delivered  to  tiie 
jjjrantee,  who  if  he  had  not  done  so  before  took  pos- 
session of  his  land.  Meanwhile  the  petition,  diseno, 
infornies,  and  borrador  were  united  into  an  expedieidc 
niid  (li  posited  in  tlie  archives;  and  it  was  the  duty  of 
the  governor  to  submit  the  grant  to  the  assembly  for 
ap[)roval,  failing  to  receive  which  it  nmst  be  referred 
to  tlie  government  in  Mexico.  After  approval  the 
grantee  presented  his  tdulo  to  the  alcalde,  who  [)ro- 
rreded  to  put  him  in  juridical  j)osse8sion,  the  ceremony 
properly  including  a  kind  of  survey  and  fixing  of 
hounds.  Only  eleven  sciuare  leagues  could  be  granted 
to  one  man  or  one  family,'*  most  of  the  grants  being 

'  Provision  was  also  maiie  for  grautit  of  larger  tracts  to  etnprejinrio^,  or  jht- 
HiiiiH  I'liiitracting  t4)  estaliliah  a  oolnny;  which  gniutii  if  for  foreign  cohiiiii')) 
iiiust  lie  lU  I.  from  the  coatit  ami  '2t>  1.  from  the  frontier;  hut  there  were  no 
Hill  h  ^'HUitM  in  t'al.,  exempt  that  to  McN.imara  in  '4ti.  At  times  the  {Mttition 
fur  laiiils  was  nia<lc  through  the  prefect  or  Rubprefect,  and  not  directly  to 
tlie  uiiv.  By  a  spcoiid  onler  of  '45  Krauts  to  foreigners — not  enipresarios — 
or  the  ]H>rt8,  like  that  to  Smith  at  BtHlega,  muHt  not  be  made  witliout  anth. 
from  the  Mex.  govt.  As  the  restriction  of  cfxtst  grants  to  colonies  was  not 
quite  clear  in  the  law,  as  the  granting  of  mission  Linds  was  a^>parently  for- 
hiddcii,  and  as  most  of  the  Vn\.  grants  were  of  coiist  or  mission  lan^,  the 
aHueinlily  in  '40  by  advice  of  the  irnv.  voted  to  c<.>nHult  the  sup.  govt  on  thesic 
pointt),  sending  a  list  of  grants  already  made.  Ley.  Hec,  iii.  00-2.     But  the 


r  ' 


ii-  ' 


1: 


LI 


532 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


from  one  to  five  lei^ues;  and  the  conditions  of  occupa- 
tion witli  a  certain  amount  of  live-stock  and  of  build- 
ing on  the  land  within  a  year  were  generally  added 
to  the  grant. 

In  few  if  any  cases  were  all  these  formalities  com- 
plied with,  for  lands  were  plentiful  and  cheap,  and  tlio 
people  and  authorities  indolent  and  careless  of  details. 
The  main  point  was  to  get  a  titulo  and  to  settle  on 
the  rancho.  Quarrels  and  litigation  were  ctmfined  to  a 
few  boundary  disputes  with  the  missionaries  or  other 
neighbors,  generally  settled  by  arbitration.  Some- 
times there  was  no  diseno,  no  infonne  of  lt)cal  officials, 
no  approval  by  the  assembly.  Few  cases  were  sul)- 
uiitted  to  the  national  government.  There  was  usually 
no  formal  act  of  juridical  possession,  often  no  survey, 
and  never  a  careful  or  accurate  one.  Boundaries  were 
very  vaguely  described,  if  at  all  The  grant  was  for 
so  many  leagues  at  a  place  indicated  by  name ;  or  a 
certain  area  'more  or  less'  between  defined  natural 
bounds;  or  a  fixed  extent  to  be  located  within  certain 
larger  bounds,  the  surplus  being  reserved.  There 
was  no  definitely  pr^icribed  form  for  grants,  nor  was 
there  any  uniformity  of  conditions,  which  were  some- 
times omitted.*     Notwithstanding  the  apparent  irrogu- 

govt  never  disapproved  the  grants,  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  foreign  or 
cinprusario  grants  and  niiasiou  lands  needed  or  occupied  by  Ind.  or  churcli 
were  alone  referro<I  to  in  the  restrictions. 

*  Betiides  the  condition  of  occupatio;^  tiiere  was  attached  to  manjr  grants 
one  forbidding  sale  or  mortgage  of  the  lands.  This  was  sometimes  inMiMtcil 
on  by  the  CaL  govt  in  circular  orders  to  local  autliorities;  and  in  certain 
cases  individual  grantees  were  forbidden  to  sell;  but  while  the  authorities 
might  interfere  to  protect  family  rights  against  the  acta  of  an  improvident 
grantee,  there  seems  to  have  been  no  general  idea  that  a  grant  with  such  con- 
ditions was  invalidated  by  a  sale.  An<l  failure  to  comply  with  the  usual  con- 
ditions of  occupation,  building,  ete.,  suums  practically  to  have  invalidated  tliu 
grant  only  in  casus  where  abtuidoned  lands  were  denounced  and  regrauted  to 
auothur  party. 

Situs  needed  by  the  government  for  fortifications  or  other  public  uhcs 
were  reserved;  and  the  territorial  govt  had  originally  no  authority  to  grant 
coast  islands,  though  such  authority  was  given  in  '38.  The  gov.  had 
no  siKiuial  authority  to  recompense  public  services  with  land  grants  or  to 
sell  public  lands,  though  he  did  so;  and  indeed,  the  services  midit  naturally 
serve  as  grouncls  of  preference  in  making  regular  grants.  The  question 
whether  he  could  thus  exceed  the  111.  limit  in  payment  for  service  or  niont-y 
for  the  government  was  never  brought  up  during  Mex.  rule;  Ind.  were  on 
tlte  same  footing  as  others,  except  that  lor  lack  of  i^ualiticatious  they  liku 


ATTITUDE  OF  THB  UNITED  STATES. 


533 


larities  and  imperfections  of  land  tenure,  sometimes 
mentioned  and  deplored  in  official  communications 
even  to  the  extent  of  declaring  the  titles  technically 
illegal,  it  seems  clear  that  under  Mexican  law  and 
usaj^e  the  grants  were  practically  held  as  valid;  that 
is,  that  under  continued  Mexican  rule  the  governor's 
written  concessions  duly  recorded  in  the  archives,  not 
invalidated  by  regrant  after  abandonment  or  by  direct 
att  of  the  supreme  government,  would  always  have 
hren  respected  as  perfect  titles  of  owners! lip;  and  it 
may  be  added  that  when  by  increase  of  population 
accurate  surveys  should  have  become  necessary,  such 
survey,  notwithstanding  the  vagueness  of  original 
Itounds,  would  have  presented  practically  but  slight 
(lifiiculties.  To  the  last,  even  when  war  with  the 
United  States  was  imminent,  there  was  no  discrim- 
ination against  citizens  of  American  birth;  and  there 
were  no  fraudulent  grants,  tlie  only  probable  irregu- 
larities being  tlie  use  of  money  in  the  last  years  to 
oil  the  machinery  of  government  and  overcome  the 
Mexican  tendency  to  delay,  and  the  informal 
methods  of  Governor  Micheltorena  in  purchasing 
.support  from  Sutter  and  his  men. 

When  the  United  States  took  possession  in  184G, 
large  portions  of  the  best  lands  were  found  thus  occu- 
pied by  Mexican  grantees.  They  were  bound  by  the 
laws  of  civilization  to  say  nothing  of  promises  made 
by  Larkin,  Sloat,  and  other  officials  to  protect  all 
existing  property  rights;  and  the  obligation  was 
formally  renewea  by  the  treaty  of  1848.  That  the 
obligation  would  be  fulfilled  in  good  faith,  constant 
assurance  was  given  during  the  interregnum  of  mili- 
tary rule  by  the  governors  in  command,  who,  while 
permitting  the  distribution  of  town  lots  to  go  on  as 
before  under  the  municipal  authorities,  suspended  all 

others  in  like  circumatiuioea  coiild  get  but  small  lots,  and  on  account  of  their 
iK-culiiir  disposition  they  were  usually  deltarrcd  from  selling.  Acconling  to 
Lirkin's  corresp.  and  other  authorities  of  '4ft,  tl.OOO  per  league  was  the 
nuiximum  price  obtained  for  laud  sold  by  private  owners  down  to  date. 


KM 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


r  • 


ni 


V 


grantinj]f  of  new  ranchos,  and  wisely  directed  their 
ettbrts  to  a  maintenance  of  the  status  quo  and  the 
temporary  protection  of  prima  facie  land  rights,  witli- 
out  prejudice  to  an}'^  clsamant,  pending  action  by  tin; 
national  government.*  For  it  was  clear  to  all  tha< 
such  action  was  required.  Under  ordinary  circuin 
stances  the  treaty,  so  far  as  it  rt^lated  to  pn)pcrty 
rights,  would  have  executed  itself;  that  is,  the  Mexi- 
can land  titles  if  perfect  would  have  been  protected 
by  the  courts  like  other  rights  by  ordinary  methotls. 
But  it  was  known  that  the  surveys  at  least  were  at 
loose  ends,  and  believed  that  the  titles  were  in  other 
respects  by  American  standards  imperfect.  To  leave 
tiiem  to  their  fate  before  the  tribunals  would  result  in 
confiscation,  not  to  be  honorably  countenanced  by  the 
government.  Yet  as  to  the  nature  of  the  action  to 
be  expected  from  congress  there  was  much  uncir- 
tainty  in  official  circles,  amounting  to  anxiety  in  tlie 
popular  mind.  The  Californians  tried  to  hope  that 
their  rights  would  be  protected  in  a  liberal  spirit  of 
equity,  though  what  they  knew  or  thought  they  knew 
of  American  methods  was  not  reassuring.  Newly 
arrived  settlers  hoped  that  some  way,  technically  just, 
would  l)e  found  to  keep  a  large  portion  of  the  CixVi- 
fornian  acres  from  being  monopolized  under  Mexican 
grants,  real  and  pretended ;  for  it  was  felt  that  oppor- 
tunities for  fraud  were  abundant. 

The  discovery  of  gold  diverted  attention  for  a  time 
to  other  channels,  but  it  brought  to  California  a  horde 
of  treasure-seekers,  whose  presence  in  1849-50  re- 
newed and  intensified  a  thousand-fold  the  inti^rest  in 
lands.  In  another  respect  the  gold  craze  had  a  pccu 
liar  effect.  The  gold-hunters'  ideas  of  land  values 
rested  for  the  most  part  on  what  they  knew  of  lands 
at  Sacramento  and  San  Francisco ;  and  for  a  time  they 
were  inclined  to  picture  the  whole  extent  of  California 
as  a  succession  of  gold  mines  and  great  towns  with 

*8ee  uiiiaU  of  this  period  iu  the  last  chapter  of  vol.  v..  Hid.  CaL,  this 
•crieH. 


SQUATTER  KimS. 


fiSS 


lioro  and  there  a  patch  of  farming  land  worth  $1,000 
per  acre.  Had  it  been  realized  that  for  many  years 
ai^rieultural  land  must  be  dear  at  government  prices, 
tlic  prevalent  idea  of  Mexican  grants  would  have  been 
materially  modified  both  at  home  and  abroad.  Well 
iiii>^lit  it  have  been  also  in  many  respects,  hud  the 
<,'(>ld  been  found  elsewhere,  that  in  the  absence  of 
'Sutterism'  squatterism  should  have  had  no  raisoii 
d'etro  at  the  start.  Among  the  new-comers,  besides 
the  element  utterly  destitute  of  honorable  principle, 
there  was  another  and  strong  element,  m.'iiiily  from 
the  western  states  and  Oregon,  of  those  strong  in  the 
faith  that  by  the  'higher  law'  they  were  entitled  to 
lands  as  free  American  citizens,  to  whom  all  tliat  was 
Mexican  was  suspicious  and  mysterious,  not  to  say 
diabolic;  whose  limit  of  generous  equity  would  have 
been  to  permit  the  preemption  by  a  Mexican  grantee 
of  IGO  acres  adjoining  his  rancho  buildings.  Yet  these 
oloments  could  not  of  themselves  control  the  masses; 
besides  attacking  the  validity  of  Mexican  law  and 
Mexican  titles  in  general,  they  had  to  rely  or  affect 
roHance  on  the  plea  that  particular  titles  were  fraudu- 
lent, or  did  not  cover  the  land  claimed;  and  even 
then,  in  the  great  test  arising  in  connection  with  the 
squatter  riots  of  1850  at  Sacramento,  they  were  prac- 
ticMiliy  defeated  in  their  extreme  views  by  the  good 
sense  of  the  community.'     This  riot  and  other  similar 

'Nowhere  has  the  spirit  of  the  time,  with  the  views  actuating  land-hungry 
Aiiiuriuan  settlerb,  l)eon  so  admirably  presentetl  as  in  l>r  Koyce's  Si/uaUer 
Jiiitt  of ';')()  in  the  Overland  of  Sept.  '85,  and  in  the  same  author's  Cnl^f'nmia, 
M  hunt  ia  clearl v  set  forth  the  narrow  an*l  lucky  escape  of  Cal.  from  the  Sc^lU 
of  a  'uuivcTMal  B<iuatters'  conspiracy  '  auainKt  Mex.  titles,  if  only  to  fall  into 
tilt!  ('haryl)dis  of  'legalized  meanness 'l>y  which  the  titles  were  eventually 
'  settled.  'The  squatter  wants  to  make  out  that  Mtix.  land  grants,  or  at  the 
V(!ry  least  all  in  any  wise  iniporfuct  or  informal  grants,  have  in  some  fashion 
lapstMl  with  the  conquest;  and  tiiat  in  a  proiMjr  legal  sense  the  owners  of  these 
grants  are  no  better  than  squatters  themselves,  unless  congress  sliall  do  what 
tliuy  lioiie,  and  shall  pass  some  act  to  give  them  back  the  laud  that  they  used 
to  own  before  the  contiuest.  The  big  \Iex.  grant  was  to  them  (the  squatters) 
oliviously  an  un-American  institution,  a  creation  of  a  lienighted  (Msoplu.  What 
wax  tlie  good  of  the  conquest  if  it  did  not  make  our  enlightened  Amer.  ideaa 
paramount  in  the  country  ?  Unless,  then,  congress,  by  some  freak,  should 
ruxtore  to  these  rapacious  speculators  their  old  benighted  legal  status,  they 
would  have  no  land.  Meanwhile,  of  course,  the  settlers  were  to  be  as  well  off 
as  tlie  others.     So  their  thoughts  ran.' 


1136 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


■    1 

h 


''    V 


It' 


developments  receive  attention  elsewhere  as  part  of 
the  country's  annalu;  here  I  but  briefly  outhiic  tin; 
prevailing  sentiment  and  uncertaintv.  It  should  !)«; 
noted,  however,  that  this  spirit  of  MjuatteriHui  l»y 
no  means  ended  with  the  failure  of  its  more  radical 
meth(xl8,  and  the  action  of  congress;  but  it  extended 
throughout  the  whole  period  of  litigation,  having  a 
most  potent  influence  at  the  ballot-box,  injures,  and 
through  the  press.  Meanwhile  speculators,  and  espe- 
cially lawyers,  looked  with  much  complacency  on  the 
general  prospect. 

Before  action  was  taken  by  the  national  govern- 
ment, and  as  a  guide  to  such  action,  two  important 
reports  on  Mexican  land  titles  in  California  were 
obtained,  which  gave  on  the  whole  a  clear  idea  of  tlje 
subject,  both  containing  in  appendices  translations  of 
the  most  important  laws.  The  first  was  that  of  Cap- 
tain Halleck, dated  March  1, 1849,  a  report  which,  while 
accurate  and  comprehensive  in  a  general  way,  may  l»e 
said  to  have  magnified  somewhat  prospective  difficul- 
ties, suggesting,  whether  intentionally  or  not,  imper- 
fections in  most  of  the  grants  which  might  enable 
the  government  to  defend  itself  by  a  cautious  policy 
against  a  fraudulent  monopoly  of  all  the  most  valuable 
lands.^  The  second  report  was  that  of  William  Carey 
Jones,  dated  March  9,  1850,  at  Washington.  Jones 
was  sent  by  the  secretary  of  the  interior  as  a  confiden- 
tial agent  to  investigate  the  subject,  and  his  stay  in 
California  was  from  September  to  December  1841). 
Being  familiar  with  the  Spani.sh  language  and  legal 
usages,  aided  by  the  authorities,  and  having  the  bene- 

'  HaUeek'g  Report  on  Land  Titles  in  CaL,  in  'J.  S.  Govt  Doe.,  31st  Cong., 
Ist  Se«8.,  H.  Ex.  17,  p.  1 18-82.  Sent  by  ((ov.  ^.lason  to  the  adj.-gen.  at  Wa8h. 
April  13th.  The  report  was  devoted  by  iustruc.  to  3  topics:  Ist,  laws  ami 
regulations  for  granting  public  lands;  !2d,  tlie  mission  lands;  ainl  3d,  lands 
likely  to  be  needed  by  the  U.  S.  govt  for  'ortificationa,  etc.  The  author  x 
conclusions  were,  among  others,  that  no  grant  witbin  10  L  of  the  coast  wan 
valid;  that  none  was  valid  without  approval  of  the  Kwembly  or  sup.  govt; 
that  many  antedated  ffrants  were  believed  to  exist;  thkt  remaining  miiwioii 
lands  not  legally  sold  belonged  to  the  govt;  that  grants  to  lands  needled  by 
govt  at  8.  F.  were  probably  spurious  or  invalid;  and  that  Mex.  orders  to  grant 
coast  islands  did  not  include  '  bay '  islands. 


ACTION  OF  CONGUESS. 


517 


fit  of  Halleck's  work,  he  prepared  a  report  which  was 
It  iiiurkably  clear  and  complete  aa  a  gonoral  view. 
J  lilt  his  conclusions  were  much  more  rcasaurinj^  than 
tli<!  pur|vort  of  Halleck's — somewhat  too  reassuring 
for  credence,  or  at  least  favor,  in  either  Washington 
or  California.  While  admitting  the  current  belief  and 
probability  that  fraudulent  titles  had  been  made  since 
July  184G,  he  did  not  believe  such  to  be  many,  exten- 
KJve,  or  difficult  to  detect.  He  regarded  tlie  titles  as 
for  the  most  part  perfect  or  equitable,  that  is,  such 
as  would  have  been  fully  respected  under  continued 
Mexican  rule;  and  he  advised  that  for  the  best  inter- 
ests of  the  United  States  and  all  classes  of  Califor- 
niaiis,  an  authorized  survey  of  the  grants  would  be 
sutficieiit,  the  government  reserving  the  rii^Iit  to  take 
It'gal  steps  against  suspicious  titles." 

In  July  1848  a  bill  was  reported  to  the  ITnited  Stat«'S 
senate  from  the  committee  on  public  lands,  coming  up 
aijain  for  discussion  at  the  next  session  in  January 
ISVK  To  ascertain  the  claims  and  titles  to  lands  in 
California  and  New  Mexico  this  bill  provided  for  tiie 
{(ppointment  of  a  surveyor-general,  register  of  lands, 
and  receiver,  to  act  as  a  board  of  land  commissioners, 
and  to  present  for  congress  in  1851  a  detaile«l  report 
on  all  titles.  Opposing  this  bill.  Senator  Jienton 
otlered  a  substitute  providing  for  a  recorder  of  land 


"Jonen'  Rrport  on  the  StJjfel  of  I^ml  TUU-n  wi  Cnl,  Wiwh.  (ISTjO),  8vo, 
IH)  |). ;  also  ill  U.  S.  Govt  Itor.  The  latter  uuutaiiiecl  a  list  of  all  tli<!  graiitit 
lit  whii'li  Jniies  fiiund  record  in  the  archives,  ^ilat  Coii^'.,  'J.l  Si'»«.,  Sen.  ni>. 
IS.  I'rtlimiuary  corresp.  of  July  '49  in  Col.  Mf/ui.  and  />«<•.,  TH),  ».  112-18. 
'I'lu!  instruc.  of  the  coin,  of  tlio  laml-otKcu  rf<iuire<l  Joncx  to  iiialce  iiiiiiutu 
investigations,  including  every  title,  etc.,  extemlin^  his  nseareh  to  N. M<;x. 
ami  Mex. ;  but  those  of  Sec.  Kwin)(  noted  the  prolialde  iiiii)o.sHil)ility  of 
<li>iii>;  HO  much.  Jones  went  overland  to  Mex.  from  Cil.,  ami  made  Home 
Hli^'ht  rcHearch  there.  lie  was  later  iiromiiient  aa  an  attorney  in  many  of 
the  I'al.  lanil  cases.  J.  includcil  in  his  re^tort  a  mcntiim  of  the  arcliive  rec- 
onl.i  ati'ectiiig  land  titles,  a  more  complete  8tat<!niunt  appearing  in  J  Wnllnrr, 
'j:t(>,  as  follows:  Kxiiedientcs  numbered  l-.57il;  many  incomplete  eX|M!d.,  maiis, 
liorradores,  etc.;  Ijook  of  copie<l  titles,  'aS-.'i;  toinade  razon,  (»r  reconl-lnKik.jl! 
yoU,  'i'X-!S;  Jinieno  Index  (Hemi-oflicial),  '3.')-44;  Hartnell  Index  (of  titles  in 
'47);  Intok  of  marks  and  brands  '28-9,  c<intaining  menti<m  of  2()  or  more 
early  gniittH;  journals  of  the  os-iombly,  "StMUi;  and  miscel.  doc.  in  official 
ciii'ru8iHindeucv,  etc. 


'  I'' .  ^ 


V 


IH'lj 


SI 


1^1 


f'H" 


li^f 


i ;! 


I! 

;'■'■)  1 


538 


MEJaCAN  LAND  TTiXES. 


titli'S  and  authorizing  action  by  the  district  court  — 
final  for  vahies  of  less  than  $5,000 — against  gnin;^^ 
believed  tt)  be  invalid.  These  bills  being  recommitted 
and  put  to  rest,  the  matter  did  not  come  up  again  till 
September  1850,  when  the  reports  of  Halleck  and 
Jones  had  been  received,  and  California  hud  become 
a  state.  Then  Senator  Fremont  introduced  a  bill— 
supported  by  nobody,  opposed  by  Benton,  and  finally 
tabled — providing  for  a  board  of  commissioners,  with 
a[)p(!ttl,  for  the  claimant  only,  to  the  district  and  supreme 
courts.  Next  in  December  1850  Senator  (iwin  intro- 
duced a  substitute  for  the  Frdraont  bill,  omitting  the 
j)rovision  that  the  decision  f)f  commission  and  district 
court  was  to  be  final  against  the  United  States,  and 
being  in  substance  nearly  identical  with  the  bill  finally 
luissid;  and  in  January  1851,  after  a  discussion,  dur- 
ing which  ]^enton  renewed  his  original  substitute  in 
amplified  form,  the  bills  were  roferred  to  the  judiciaiy 
committee,  which  reported  a  new  bill;  and  this  with 
more  or  b'ss  ametidment,  after  an  earnest  discussion, 
was  finally  passed  on  February  Cth,  by  a  large  nmjor- 
ity.  There  was  no  discussion  in  the  ho*ise,  wlnif 
the  bill  was  passed  on  Afarch  Hd  and  became  a  law.'' 
It  is  (»f  course  im[)o8sible  to  analyze  here  the  bulky 
(K'bates  of  tin?  senate.  Fr«5nn>nt,  during  hh  brief 
term,  was  in  a  sense;  the  representative  of  the  Mexi- 
can grante«'s;  but  lienton  made  himself  their  gr<  it 
champion,  urging  a  speedy  a?vJ  liberal,  not  to  say 
cureless,  confirmation  of  the  claims.  Most  earnestly 
and  even  violently  he  protested  from  first  to  last 
against  the  plan  of  a  commission  us  a  vudation  <>f 
the  spirit  of  the  treaty,  declaring  rej)eatedly  that  to 
oidii^e  the  (  alifornians  to  defend  their  tith?8  before 
thn-e  tribunals  wouM  amoutii  to  confiscation  uistead 
of  the  promised  protectim.  Doubtless,  liowevei, 
there  was  a  feeling  among  n'Tiators  that  this  Benton- 

*See<'oriij.  HMo',  1848^51,  tiiroiigli  iiiiK^x  untlcr  'CV.ifornia.'  Then'  aii 
iimiiy  ntft'rciicoit  to  tliiH  Hulijcrt  in  thew  yuara  in  various  f(ovt  n>]>ortM  ami 
iliMv ,  but  tliKV  Hiniply  hIiow  that  all  r(>ct>){i)iz<'«l  thn  iiii]>ortanL'i-  of  hoiiu^  action, 
and  that  all  favor  a  Hpirit  of  cuutioue  juiiticu  iu  treating  thu  Mex,  titles. 


iii 


POLITICAL  AND  CIVIL  SENTIMENT. 


639 


Fremont- Jones  combination  might  not  be  acting  from 
(lisiiitorested  motives.  On  the  other  hand,  Gwin, 
niiiult'ul  of  the  votes  that  had  elected  him,  and  might 
RLiiun  be  useful,  represented  the  squatter  element,  the 
horde  of  landless  new-comers,  whose  interests  and 
rights  nmst  not  be  lost  sight  of.  He  argued  plausi- 
l)!y  and  ably  that  the  proposed  plan  was  not  an  injus- 
tit'C  to  the  Califomians,  b(;cause  their  titles,  if  legal, 
\ali(l,  and  equitable,  even  if  inchoate,  were  to  be 
liilly  confirmed;  that  it  could  not  be  unconstitutional, 
Ijtcjiuse  it  had  been  the  method  adopted  before,  as  in 
the  Louisiana  claims,  that  it  was  not  a  violition  of  the 
treuty,  since  it  was  adopted  expressly  tu  carry  out 
the  treaty;  that  protection  by  the  courts  was  all  that 
iiiiy  American  citizen  could  desire  for  his  property, 
hut  that  this  plan  provided  a  special  tribuna!  and 
special  rules  of  action  for  others,  so  that  strict  law 
might  be  tempered  by  equity  in  favor  of  these  new 
citi/ens.  He  and  all  agreed  that  the  treaty  nmst  be 
tultilh'd  in  a  spirit  of  liberal  justice;  but  in  so  novel 
and  eoninlicated  a  case  oidv  the  highest  courts  could 
iletrrmine  what  was  just.  Nothing  was  said  by  him 
or  otlicrs  in  reply  to  the  practical  part  of  Ik'nton's 
argument,  that  the  claimants  wouhl  lose  their  Uunl  in 
the  process  of  di-fencc;  but  it  was  perhaps  thought 
that  tiie  same  argument  might  apply  to  all  systems  of 
legal  protection,  or  tliat  if  Californian  estate's  were 
reduced  in  litigation  from  their  magnificent  propor- 
tions (»f  some  50,000  pcr^b  oach  no  great  harm  would 
!m'  d()n(\ 

I  think  it  evidot  that  in  the  min<ls  of  senators 
here  was  a  strong  undorcurreiit  of  feeling  strikingly 
.siirdlar  to  that  noted  in  California.  Tlie  fever  was 
raiding  in  Washington  as  well  as  Sacramento.  It  was 
not  if  500  or  1,000  rancheros,  living  on  stock-farms 
own  d  by  themselves  and  their  fathers,  and  of  litthi 
vah;  !  l)y  American  standards,  that  the  senate  was 
thir  \iiig,  but  of  a  marvellous  land  of  gold-mines,  gnat 
tow    s,  and  limitless  prospects;  not  of  a  quiet,  pastoral 


Iff  i 


i    IH 


w^-^- 


840 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


people,  but  of  a  horde  of  speculators,  hungry  for  i;,,!,! 
and  power  and  land;  not  so  much  of  the  valid  cla!;ns. 
as  of  the  fraudulent  ones;  of  the  unknown,  more  tlian 
the   known.     All   was   mysterious;    the    McXaniaui 
bugaboo  was  buzzing  in  the  senatorial  ear;  the  Hoiiian 
church  might  present  a  plausible  claim  for  vast  mis- 
8i(»n  tracts;  spider-like  Kpeculators  had  probably  w<»V(  n 
their  webs  over  the  s[H>ts  where  forts  must  be  i»uilt; 
the  mining  region  might  be  covered  by  diaboHciilly 
contrived  titulos;  Fremont,  Sutter,  Vallejo,  and  Larkin 
might  soize  all  that  McXamara  had  left;  British  siiK- 
jccts  might  have  the  wirijs  laid  to  secure  as  individuals 
what  their  nation   had   lost;  American   settlers  and 
miners  might  find  themselves  without  homes,  thenm- 
<|Uest  practically  ammlled.     The  courts  would  decidt- 
wistly  an«l  fairly;  nothing  below  the  supreme  couit 
eould  be  imjilicitly  trusti'd  in  such  an  emergency ;  it 
was  best  Ut  nuike  haste  slowly.     All  agreed  that  jus- 
tice must  be  done;  it  would  be  time  for  generous  lih- 
erality  when  the  exact  state  of  tilings  should  be  known. 
A[eanwhile,  it  was  well  to  act  with  cauti»)n,  resiirvitig 
t\\o.  various  informalities  of  Afexican  titles  as  weapniis 
of  defene«;  that  mij^ht  be  noede<l.     The  feelin<>'  was  tor 
the  most  part  an  honest  one.  and  the  resulting  actinn 
consistent;  of  its  other  merits  and  its  results  I  shall 
speak  later. 

The  net  of  18.') I,  omitting  details,  provided  for  a 
board  i»f  three  eonnnissioners,  with  a  secretary  and 
law  agent  skilled  in  SjMinish,  to  be  appointed  by  the 
presiilent  for  three  y«'ars,  and  to  hold  sessions  at  plact  s 
named  by  the  presidi'iit.  To  this  board,  duly  author- 
ized to  administer  oaths  and  take  testimony,  each 
claimant  under  a  Spanish  or  Mexican  title  must, 
within  two  years,  present  his  claim,  with  the  docu- 
mi'utarv  ami  other  evidence  on  whi<'h  he  relied,  it  ht  - 
mg  the  duty  of  the  lM)ard  to  decide  promptly  on  tlie 
validity  of  tht;  claim,  an«l  to  certify  its  decision  to  tho 
district  attorney.    Either  party  might  appeal  to  the  dls- 


COMMISSIONERS. 


541 


tri(  t  court,  which  might  take  additional  testiiiKHiy, 
iiii<l  from  its  decision  to  tiie  supreme  court.  All  the 
tvihunals  were  to  be  governed  m  their  decisions  "by 
til'-  treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  the  law  of  nations, 
tilt'  laws,  usages,  and  customs  of  the  government  from 
wliuli  the  claim  is  derived,  the  principles  <»f  erjuity, 
ami  the  decisions  of  the  supreme  court  of  the  I'nittd 
Statis,  so  far  as  they  are  applicable."  All  lands  for 
which  the  claims  were  nsjiK'ted  or  not  presented  Win; 
t«»  he  regarded  as  part  of  the  public  domain ;  confirmed 
( laiins  were  io  be  surveyed  by  the  8urv»'yor-genei-al. 
and  on  tiie  presentment  of  his  certifi«*ate  and  plat,  a 
|iat«'nt — conclusive  only  as  against  the  I'nitetl  Stiitts, 
aixl  not  affecting  the  rights  of  third  parties — would 
Ik-  issued  from  the  general  land-office;  bul  the  district 
judge  might,  on  petition  of  a  contesting  claimant, 
ijaiit  an  injunction  to  prevent  the  obtaining  of  a  pat- 
nit  until  tlu're  had  passed  sufficient  time  fi^r  dcci<ling 
llic  controversy.'"  In  the  case  of  towns  lf»  whi<h 
»•  (ill  ■  had  been  made,  or  standing  on  lands  gmnted 
t<.  ■■■•■  individual,  the  claim  was  to  be  presente<l,  not  by 
tlic  l(»t-owner,  but  by  the  nmnicipal  authorities  «»r  the 
"I  iginal  grantee."  Tlie  provision  on  its  faco,  in  resjK'ct 
I't"  both  spirit  and  metiiods,  was  an  excellent  one. 

TIk*  board  was  a[)[>ointed  from  May  to  Septi'mln-r 
Is.)  1,  organized  at  San  Francisc<»  in  l)»'cemUr,  antl 
<>|Miird  its  sessions  for  tlie  presentment  t>f  clainis  in 
.lamiary  IHiVJ,  two  claims  being  presented  the  first 
day.  but  the  first  dei'ision  not  being  reai-hcd  till 
August.  With  the  (exception  of  one  brief  term  at 
L'ls  Angi'les  in  the  autumn  of  1H52,  the  si-ssions  were 
li<  Id  at  San  Francisco  until  tlu;  final  adjoununent,  on 
March  I,  185(5,  the  time  having  been  twice  ext«'nded 

i.ilcr  tlit>  Riirvtiy  itHi  If  niiglit  \>o  l>r«iiglit  into  thu  <li>  tnct  court,  ami  iti 


tliritKiti  ai)]H'iili!il  to  tlu!  HU|iruiiio  (Miurt. 

"In    (     S.   Slut,  lit   l.iinji;  iv.  tllil;   IhmufUi's  r„L 


lltMl  ,  atia.  'ilCt-^i;  hIho 


1 


r 


MEXICAN  LAND  TIlLJ:S. 


I    1 


by  congress.  The  commiHsioners,  seven  in  nu!iil)(<r 
iiR'ludinu;  all  changes,  wore  able  and  honest  nun, 
though  knowing  nothing  of  the  vSpanish  languagr, 
and  very  little  t)f  Mexican  law  and  customs.'"^ 

In  September  1855  only  three  claims  had  Imcu 
finally  decided.  Some  general  statisticH  for  tljo  fiist 
ten  years,  or  down  to  18()2,  are  appended,  by  which  it 
apj)ear8  that  of  the  813  claims  presented,  5U1  were 
finally  confirmed  and  20.'1  rejected,  2(14  being  Hiially 
settled  by  the  board,  450  by  the  district  court,  and  !)'J 
by  the  supreme  court.'"     So  far  as  figures  tell  tlie 


"Tliu  original  iMtanl  itiipoiiitvil  hy  Pfcm.  Fiilmoro  wiih  coiiiikmlmI  of  Harry 

Tlioriitoii,  JiiiiiuH  Wilaoii,  aixl  Hilaiid  Hull.     WiUoa'a  ii|>uoiiitiiK-iit  not 

lieiiig  approved  l>y  the  seuiite,  ho  rctirtd  in  Oct.  '.VJ.     (i.  A.  llonry  wa^  ip 


piiintuil  ill  hid  place,  but  did  not  not.     In  Marcii  T>!t  PreM.  I'inrce  appointiil  ,14 

,  ami  R. 

'l!MlgU(!ll    in 

The  Hecri'tii'ry  was  J.  H.  <'arr  at  lirnt,  Init  Ooo.  Ki-Imt 


Id  itiaci 
a  new  hoard  AlpiiuUH  Fi'luh,  Tiioiiipdoii  ('aiiiplH.'ll,  and  R.  A.  Tiioiiipiion,  v  lio 
t<M>k  their  HcatH  in  Aiiril.     CaiiiplHdl  reMij^nttd  in  ifune  ''>4  and  was  siicciMdril 


hy  S.  ii.   Farwell.      _  .  ^ .     ^ 

from  .Ian.  '5'J  to  tlie  end.  The  L.  S.  law  agent  wati  (leo.  W.  ( 'ooli^y  to  Min  li 
'r>;{,  V.  K.  Howard  to  .Fan.  '54,  and  later  .John  II.  MeKune.  Tlie  asst  lisv 
a^eiit  wa8  lkol>t(ireenhow  from  Ang.  \V2,  and  Lewis  Klandiiig  afterO.'s  cltiith 
from  June  '54.  The  iiidtruu.  to  the  hiuird  i.sNni'd  Sept.  11,  '51,  liy  the  cdiii. 
of  the  gen.  land-ottiee  contjiiii  nothing  r«.-qniring  special  notice,  nnU'ss  it  l>i' 
that  to  recjiiire  of  the  claimant  a  snrvey  and  maii  to  accompany  liiit  ciiiiiii, 
whit'h  wa.H  not,  I  think,  in  modtcaiteH  in.sidtedon.  I'lie  orit;inal  order  lia<l  Ixiii 
to  hold  m^MMioim  also  at  Sta  B.  and  Mont.,  hut  tlii.s  was  revoked;  and  an  it- 
temjit  ill  '54  to  olitain  another  session  at  I<os  Aug.,  tliongh  hackc^l  hy  tlni 
i'al.  Icf^islaturc,  was  niisiieeessful.  Several  men  appointed  as  cominisMicnnrM 
di-elined  to  serve  on  account  of  tlie  low  salary.  Tlio  leading  law  tinns  en;- 
ployed  hy  tlii^  elaiiiiaiits  before  the  land  com.  in  '5'i  were  Halle(!k,  Piaehy, 
niiii  Hillings,  about  80  cases;  Clarke,  Taylor,  and  Iteekli,  40  eases;  and  Joikk, 
Tompkins,  and  Strode,  '25  cases. 

'■'See,  however,  note  45;  'J5S  cl.  were  presenteil  hy  tiie  end  of  May  '.V_'; 
505  by  the  cud  of  '5'_*;  81'i  at  the  expiration  of  the  two  years  .Mareh  'M;  aihi 
one  by  |>erniission  of  congress  in  '54;  total  8 1  It.  Coiif.  by  1.  e.  5'JI,  rej.  'JT't, 
discontinued  li);  finally  settled  by  1.  o.  '204,  conf.  It>4,  rej.  141.  Claims  (i|i. 
iiealed  to  d.  e.  54(1,  conf.  510,  r<j.  .T.);  linally  decided  48(1  (that  is,  in  (i'J,  but 
.^i  cl.  at  least  seem  later  to  have  iHien  apptMiled  of  the  1 15  that  in  '(i-  h;id 
not  been  diHiiiissed,  hence  the  4.'>0  of  my  text),  conf.  45'J,  rej.  IV.);  no.  of  the 
1.  e.'s  decisions  sustikined  hy  d.  c.  44H — or  4I'J  conf.  and  .'(4  rej.;  no.  of  ilitto 
overruled  I0.*t— or  5  conf.,  il8  r<!J.  Claims  uppealetl  to  s.  e.,  Ult  (or  '.)',)  ,is 
above  i>x]ilainu<l),  of  which  !{5  conf.  and  *J8  rej.;  no.  of  d.  c.'s  dceiHions  sii> 
tained  by  s,  c,  IW — or  i!4  conf.  and  4  rej.;  overruled,  '.'5— or '24  eonf.  ninl  I 
rej.  Tht^se  tigures  are  from  the  7'ii/</r  ii/'  l.iimf  I'tinfs  published  as  an  apjieinli  \ 
to  Holfniini'ii  J{f}ntrU  in  '*i'J.  There  are  many  errors  in  tiiat  list,  and  it  <li>i  s 
not  ot  course  show  the  later  record  of  'M  claims  (that  is,  the  no.  I  have  ruiiinl 
in  my  incidental  search  of  the  decisioiLs,  hut  there  M'ero  probably  more)  tli.it 
caniu  before  the  s.  c,  18  of  them  being  conlinned  and  l<S  rejectee!. 

The  decisions  of  the  land  com.  have  never  liecn  printed,  except  a  few  in- 
ciilentally  in  pamphlets  and  newspapers;  and  the  same  is  true  of  tlie  soulin  rii 
district  court  existing  only  in  '55-  ('tO.  The  decisions  of  the  northern  d.  •'.  111 
'."ill  8  by  .luilge  Og<len  Hoti'inan  were  luiblished  at  S.  F.  '(i'J  as  lliiffiiniu  * 
HijxirU,  i.  Some  later  decisions  in  lam)  comcs  are  founti  in  Mi\\lliMlir1ll.- 
jktrU  and  ^niri/urii  l{<i>orUi;  and  those  t>f  the  «.  c.  in  U.  li.  Sup.  Cuiirt  /i'cjkicp, 


COXFIHMATIONS  AND  REJECTIONS. 


M3 


in  nuinlxT 

niest  nun, 

lan«ruiiLrt , 

had  1m  Til 
>r  tlio  first 
•y  wliich  it 

5'Jl  \v<iv 
'in\r  Hually 
irt,  and  l»'j 
•8  tfll   the 

prmed  of  llany 
lUointliH-iit  imt 
Hi'ury  Was  ip- 

L>e  llppoilitccl  ;i!4 
L'llll||||l8()ll,  \\  III) 
was  SUCiC.ilr.l 

ut  (iv.o.  Ki-lii  r 

Vxdi^  to  Mill  li 

'l"lm  fisst  \\w 

vftt!r(i.'silc,itli 

>l,  i>y  tilt)  corn. 

:u,  unless  it  l>i' 

Miiiy  liix  iliiiii, 

loraer  IiikI  licri 

it;  ami  an  it- 

)ack(!(l  liy  till! 

ouniniissioiiir-i 

iw  tirins  iiL- 

k.  P.ailiy. 

;  ami  Jonix, 


of  May  '.VJ; 

rcll  T»;i;  aii.l 

VJI,  nj.  L'T:!, 

Claims  ;i|i- 

Ih,  in  (i'J,  Imt 

It  III  'tU  li.i.l 

);  no.  of  tlic 

no,  of  ilittii 

U:t  (or  0!)  ;is 

LTisions  .Ml-' 

t'onf.  atiil   I 

an  a|i)it'ii<li>: 

,  aihl    11  ilm  s 

I    ll.'IVt!   follllil 

V  iiiori!)  tli.il 


!iit  a  ft'W  111- 

tllU  MOUtill'I'll 

liurii  (I.  <'.  Ml 

IM     Hofflllill,  i 
l4//w/c;'  V  //•  ■ 


story,  the  district  court  seems  to  have  been  in* in;  fiivor- 
aiili-  to  claimants  tiian  tlie  board,  overrulinj^  many 
iiiore  rejections  than  confirniatiouH ;  but  it  should  be 
iiottd  that  the  court  often  heard  new  testimony  by 
wirK-h  the  claimants  strcntrthened  their  weak  |>oints. 
It  is  known  that  a  few  frauduKnt  claims  were  finally 
cuiiHrnicd,  and  that  a  few  jj^ood  ones  were  nji'rti'd : 
yt  t  there  is  no  reason  to  doui)t  that  the  three  tribunals 
I iir formed  their  duties  honestly  and  ably,  whatever 
may  be  said  of  the  system  under  which  they  had  to 
Work.  In  tlie  matter  of  ai)|)euls  and  other  details  of 
li  nal  method,  slightly  modiHed  from  tinu?  to  tinu', 
tlnr(^  was  some  complaint  of  injustice;  one  of  th*' 
southern  judges  and  one  or  twt*  repri'sentatives  of  th" 
I'liited  States  did  not  eseape  plausible  charges  of  un- 
worthy motives  and  c«>nduct;  and  often  tlu'r*:  a|>peurs 
iis  ill  most  litigation  what  seems  to  the  uiiprof*  ssi«»nal 
iiiiiid  a  strange  preference  for  K'gal  quibble  where  com- 
nioii  sense  wi>uld  bi'tter  serve  the  purpose;  but  re- 
spictiiig  these  points  1  have  no  space  for  discission, 
nor  am  I  p(>rhaps  a  competent  critic.  The  cliief  a|»- 
lianiit  injustice  was  in  these  respects:  in  obliging 
( laiiiiants  to  come  with  their  witnesses  at  great  expense 
tVoiii  the  extreme  south  to  ISan  Kraneiseo;  in  the  policy 
of  tlie  attorneys  for  the  govermnent  who  fought  the 
claiiiis  t)ver  and  over  on  petty  teclinicaiitiis  wliieh 
(iiiglit  never  to  have  figured  except  in  a  few  t«st  i-asrs; 
ill  tht;  fre<|ueiit  espousing  by  tlie  I'^niti-d  States  (»f  oin' 
weak  claimant's  cause  to  defeat  a  strtmger  one;  and 
esju'cially  in  the  appealing  of  many  cases  us  a  mere 
forinality  to  a  higlu'r  tribunal." 

(•r'|ici;i.illy  thoMO  of  Howaril  and  Wallacf.  A  coii'iilct*'  rct;i.'«tvr  of  all  tlu> 
I'l.iiiiis,  Honu-what  on  tlit^  plan  of  llir  Hoiriiiaii  appt'ii'lix,  lint  iiiori'  *'Xt«-h.'<i\<*, 
li'.ii'iii^  t'acli  caHo  tliroii^li  ilu!  luMird,  iNitli  ctiurtM,  ami  tlie  linal  .nurvi-y,  would 
lie  a  niii.Ht  di'xirahlo  work. 

"  In  lliiffiiiiiHit  li'ijkirlM  may  \w  noticed  inniiy  cast-s  in  wliicli  the  judstf 
i-iiys  in  NiiliHtJiiicv:  'Tins  cast!  w.w  oonl.  l>y  tin-  I.  o  ;  no  op|MMiitiun  i.h  iiiAdt! 
Iiri'c  liy  till!  U.  S. ;  it  (utcliiH  all  n^ht  and  i.'^  <'oiilii'ni(  il.  °  McanwIiiK'  tlie  iMMir 
riiu'licro  wa.s  pi-rliap.iaddre.HMed  In  Ins  l.iwyer  somewhat  like  this:  'Voiir  olaim 
Ills    lieen    appealed;   the    I".   S.  are    heilt    oh    defeating    it;   "id>     liV    the    most 

^iijierhiiinan  eflorts  eaii  it  he  savud;  yot  givo  inu  iiiuru  laiul  and  iiiuru  c«ttlv, 
and  1  will  do  my  bent'! 


544 


MFIXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


Ohviouslv  no  annals  of  lititmtion  nor  cvon  (Hi^est  of 
principles  adopted  can  find  phue  hero,  but  of  the  lat- 
ter S(>nio  of  the  more  iinpurtant  and  interestintjf  may 
be  noted.  It  took  the  commission  and  courts  a  h^w^ 
time  to  reduce  the  ori<^inal  system  of  grants  to  the 
simple  liasis  presented  earlier  in  this  chapter,  thoii<rh 
Jones  hud  embfxlied  the  correct  idea  in  his  re|M)rt. 
fivery  jK'tty  irregularity  was  repeatedly  insisted  on 
by  the  government's  attorneys,  and  generally  hud  t<» 
lie  overruled  more  than  once  by  each  tribunal;  Imt 
strict  and  technical  ruling  ultimately  gave  way  for  the 
most  part  to  liberal  and  equitable  principles,  t.hrm'^li 
not  without  dissent  in  high  places.'^  A  j)erfect  title 
did  not  require  presentment  to  the  lM)ard,  but  if  S(» 
presented  must  abide  by  the  result.  Inchoate  titles. 
on  the  other  hand,  were  forfeited  by  non-presentment."' 
July  7,  1840,  was  the  date  assigned  as  the  end  of 
Mexi<"an  rule,  though  the  territorial  authorities  had 
not  been  overthrown  or  tlu^  capitid  taken  till  over  a 
montii  later,  and  gra,nts  of  later  date  were  lu^ld  to  be 
invalid.'"     The   board  and  United  States  courts  re- 

'*  Justice  Da-iiold  disitcntetl  from  many  of  the  e.irly  <IeciHion8  of  the  s.  c, 
favoring  a  Htrict  riiiiii^.  He  helil  that  irrv^'ul.iriticM  Hi>riiii;iiig  from  thi'  ilis- 
orilurly  and  rfvr>lutinnary  Htiito  of  tliv  i-oiiiitry,  and  suiiiwirtt'd  liy  dmilitiul 
tutttiiiioiiy  of  a  dc^mded  and  ignorant  iH.-ii|ilr-,  should  not  Ite  countcnanct'il  l>y 
a  mistiiken  idea  of  lilicrality,  when  a  iitrivt  ruling  would  tranHtVr  titu  l:iii<l 
from  a  few  ignorant.  Mex.  and  unmTupuUiuii  nionoiMdiHtd  to  numcroiiH  intr|. 
hgent  BCttlcrs.  18  ii'Mntni,  SriO.  Kveu  the  U.  S.  attorney  ]>ro<-lainu-d  'tlie 
ciinHtant  policy  of  ti'e  U.  S.  not  to  interjMnjc  far-fetehc<l  or  cii|>rieiouM  iiliiic- 
tions  ngain.tt  claimB  which  seenied  to  lie  \w\>V'  in  giMMl  faith  for  small  (|uautiti<'s 
of  laniT.'  1  Htitrk,  12()7.  .*^till,  a  license  to  occupy  land  fidlowed  l>y  lonj,' (ktii- 
itation  wait  not  rccog.  hy  tli«:  17.  S  as  ^'iving  mime  an  iMpiitahle  title.  Tliu 
10  1.  coast  limit  luid  tlie  l.tck  of  approval  hy  the  aMM-mli.  were  favuritc  oli- 
jcctioaii  at  lirHt;  ai.so  the  lajk  of  authority  for  gnkiiting  landit,  until  tivir- 
thrown  hy  t)ie  deciNJon  that  the  aetM  of  an  otlici;il  miiat  lie  prtiMUined  to  i><^ 
ligitinmti-,  if  tint  disputed  hy  hiit  own  pivt.  19  ll'»ninl,  34.H.  Some  puinlH 
for  which  I  have  no  nMnn  here  may  he  found  in  the  later  list  of  RiM-cimeii  ca>' . 

'*A  J)erfpct  title  w;iH  one  fortified  hy  juridical  |M>tMett)<ion  and  Hurvey.  in 
one  inntance  the  grantee  of  2  I.  got  tornial  iMisiteaaioii  of  0  1.;  hut  after  liu 
claim  t4> 'i  I.  waa  coiilirmed  he  tried  to  hold  the  %k)iole  on  the  gminid  ot  .i 
I'l-rfect  title,      lie  w.i.s  held  to  Ik-  hound  hy  the  lieciHion  of  the  court  luid  tli<' 

t latent.   2  Snwy  r,  .VJ7.     JS<imetime8  jiart  of  a  gnuit  wan  conf.,  while  the  rr^t 
iei;ame  puhlic  land  through  non-preHentment.    1  A/.  2U7. 

"Two  gran'  of  later  date  were  coiilirmed  hy  the  d.  c,  in  one  of  whr  h 
the  inMUaiK-e  of  the  grant  had  Ih-cii  ordep'd  Ix-fore  .luly  7th;  and  it  Wius  lull 
that  delay  in  the  purely  miniHftirial  act  of  drawing  up  the  titlt!  ought  not  \< 
invalidate  tin-  chiiniaiitH  right.i.  •  //o/T. '/rH;  hut  thin  wan  revfr".  d  hy  h.  . . 
Tliu  decUratuiu  uf  the  Mcx.  treaty  coiiu  that  no  grant*  liad  Itv.u  mailc  «iik'i^ 


FLOATING  GRANTS. 


M 


(|ulit«l  the  claimant  to  sliow  a  prima  facio  t'ltlo;  but 
tilt  ir  (ltrisi<»n  was  on  the  validity  of  tlio  tu'i^inal 
|j;raiit,  confinnatiou  and  title  bcini^  final  only  an  a<^^ainst 
tin-  ^nvcrnnirnt,  and  the  rights  of  third  |»artit'.s  heinji^ 
Irtt  unprojudicod  to  bo  settled  by  the  California 
courts."* 

The  distric't  court  often  took  new  evideno*),  but  the 
supniMO  court  never;  nor  would  the  latter  consider 
allt'Ljcd  frauds  or  irn'jjjularities  in  the  acts  of  tiie  former, 
of  the  commission,  or  of  the  surveyors.  No  phase  of 
tlic  whole  matter  ^ave  rise  to  more  complications  than 
tlwit  of  '  rtt)ating'  grants,  that  is,  grants  of  a  giv«'n  area 
witliin  bounds  including  a  greater  area;  and  when 
tliiTc  were  two  or  more  of  these  grants  witiiin  the 
same  greater  Iwmnds,  the  difficulties  wen^  not  diinin- 
i.slu'd.  The  grantee  was  entitled  to  locate  his  land  .as 
he  pleased,  and  to  hold  the  whole  tract  until  final  sur- 
vey, except  as  against  other  grantees.  iJut  in  the 
final  survey  he  must  select  his  land  in  <'onipaet  form, 
and  in  the  case  of  two  grants  the  [)atent  was  final  even 
if  the  later  grant  chanr-ed  to  be  the  first  pateiite«l. 
These  f1(»ating  grants  afforded  the  strongest  tempta- 
tions for  fraudulent  surveys,  and  gave  rise  to  the  most 


M.iy  l.'ltli  was  often  iii^iil  l>y  the  I'.  S.,  liut  wa;*  ]uU  not  to  affect  grants 
aitu.illy  niiide  lH.'twe<-ii  th.it  date  ami  July  Tth.  I  U'.r//<i,-i,  4I'J.  It  was  also 
ar^iu-il  that  gruit.t  iiia<le  after  the  war  of  eolKiui-^t  w,'i<4  lM!k{iiii  were  iiiv:ili>l:  liut 
It  was  lii'lil  that  the  war  w;u<  not  avowedly  wat^i-d  f<ir  i-iiiii|iieNt,  and  if  it.  Iiad 
lii'iii  then?  wa-s  iKi  authority  for  the  poitition  tliat  the  lille  ac(|iiiretl  hy  coll- 
i|ii(-.t  •  ndates  \w^k  to  the  dat«!  of  itti  iiiceittion.'  1  //•/'"  '24\\. 

''t'aseH  iHrfore  the  t'al.  9.  c -alxHit  1)0  of  whirl;  ii.ivu  heoii  cxainincd  for 
my  jmriMme — were  ehntly 'lisjiutes  lietwet^ii  sueh  I'lrtiert  renjM!utinj{  |>:irt«  of 
M'X.  i^'rantH.  ThJH  court  took  no  action  on  the  vahdit>  of  original  ^M-antsor  of 
Hi'tN  ot  the  I.  c,  d.  c,  an<l  n.  c,  Init  ih>alt  with  lHiiiiii(ai'V  dispntcs,  cnnilK'tin^ 
damiH,  (ir  tenn>orary  ri^htt  under  inehoale  tith-s.  < '<il.  Itijfnl.s.  Sonictinicii 
tWd  clainiM  M'eri' i>i'i->c'nteil  for  the  name  land  under  the  kuur'  ^'rant:  Imt  it 
was  tlic  duty  ot  the  I.  c.  to  coiiMihdate  eacli  cl. ;  and  tin' c(iuil>  iclnscil  to 
riiMsidiT  any  iJd  cl.  except  for  new  an<l  decisive  ■  vidiiicc  m  the  case  of  a 
ri-jcctcil  claim.  There  were  scvcril  Huch  camcs  in  coniiei  tion  with  the  Sutter 
({rants,  Uut  individual  claiiiu  had  to  ahide  l>y  tlic  general  decision.  I  111  irk, 
IIH'.I;  '1  J, I,  <)|0.  Till!  existeiM-e  of  rival  dainin  eiiaMed  the  U.  S.,  as  (dse- 
wlu  re  reiuarke<l,  to  work  aga.iti8t  one  title  hy  e!)|i*iUMin){  another.  Pend- 
ing the  great  liti>,'atinn,  rikrhts  under  Mex.  grants!  were  (in  tlieory  at  U-ast) 
|>ri)tected  under  .Slex.  l.»w  and  e<juity;  a  jiriin.i  facio  title  urcHentcd  to  the 
I.  c.  Wax  uiMid  a^ainxt  all  lUl  iiartieii  till  tinil  njec'tion,  ami  the  title  ii  iinally 
Cdiifiriiied  related  hack  to  the  daUi  uf  liliug  the  iiet^tiou.  'Si  dii.  44ii;  lU 
C<lL  HH;  -MCnl.  '2Xi;  .15  r,i/.  S5. 

lltsT.  -AL.,  Vol.  VL    35 


MA 


MKXICAN  LAN* I)  TITLKS. 


If  r 


J 


strious  t,r<>iil)l('s  with  wjuatters."'  The  honnl  icjcctcil 
iiiiiiiy  cljiiiiis  for  lack  of  chfiiiitt!  hx-atioii,  hut  m  w 
tfstimoiiy  in  tlio  (hstrict  court  {jfoiuTally  overcame  tiiis 
olijcctiou.  lioth  the  h)\vt'r  tril)UiialH  wt  re  (hsjtosc*!  at 
first  to  re<juire  strict  coiii|)haiico  with  tlie  c(»ii(litinii  i»t' 
l»uil»hii;j;  and  occupation  within  ayear,  hut  the  su|iniiii 
court  took  a  hhcral  view  of  tliiH  matter,  ac'ceptiii;^  .is 
excuses  ln(han  hostilities,  political  ilisturhances,  and 
other  ohsbiclcs;  and  no  delay  was  fatal  unhss  so  uii- 
irasoiiaitle  as  t4»  create  a  [)re>um|ition  that  tiu!  eraiiter 
had  ahandoned  his  claim,  and  later  trie<l  to  resume  it 
on  account  of  the  increased  value;  of  land."""'     As  In 

'"'I'lii'  tlii'ory  si'i'iiiM  to  liavo  ln-en  that  ju«t  n^  tli<!  Mux.  p>vt  ciiiil.l  (jn  uti 
lii.iliiii^  iK'W  niiiit  4  Ml  \>iuii  as  t!iiiiii:;li  w.i.H  left  to  wiitisly  tlir  lirst  jjr.inti'  ■,  In; 
li.iviiii;  till'  i'i;;lit  til  iiriitrst  nr  tn  |ii'iilci-t  liiiiiNt'lf  liy  M.'ln'tiiij^  Ins  l.iinl  .it  any 
S.  jjiivt  ctmlil  no  <hi  siii'vcyiiin  iitiil  liatiMitlii:^'  tlir  latrr  niaiitH, 


tlllH 


III.    I' 


1" 


«' <|>ri  i.illy  as  till!  roiirtM  liikil   iirr-iiiiiiaMy  coiisiiltrril  tin- lirst  niviiitcii's  rl.ii 
I  as  hi'  liail  hail  tlio  i'ii{ht  to  coutc^t  tho  NUi'Vi'y.      I'l'inr  iii'i'ii|i:itiiiii  iiiili'i-  ,1 

il  al-.11  to  nivt:  tlir  junior  j^niiiti'ti  t\w  pri'icniicu 


il  1 


it'oMsi-  was  lUi'iiiiM 


III  Hill  rtliill.  A  i^raiitcc  llli;4ht,  hoWivcr,  so  ilcliliitcly  srlrrt  his  l.illil  liy 
|ittii>ii  ax  to  t'stiip  his  rliiiii  to  any  iitlitT  loratioii.  'I'liit  |ii'riiiissioii  to  si  In't 
till-  loi'alioii  Mas  ill  riiii'il  lint  an  oMiu.ition  Imt  a  oonrossioii  on  tlir  part  oi  tliu 
I'.  .S.  >;ovt.  Tlio  li.-st  ^'r.iiitci!  oltcii  got  a  latiT  ^raiit  of  tin-  nd'.rnn/f,  or  sur- 
plus, 111  till'  whnlr  tr.ift ;  ami  in  siirli  cases  tlu'  roiiiis  iliil  not  rfi|Uiii'  the  .saiiu! 
Inrnial  Ins  as  in  an  origin  il  ^raiit.  I>iviiliiig  linrs  ofli'ii  sittir  1  hv  tliu 
grant' I  ■>  l>v  arliitratioii  op  litigation  wni'  t'onf.  hy  tlii^  conrls.  On  tluitiii^' 
^•rants  s.i  "5  n''illir.,  4».'i;  l:U',./.  :t7:t,  I7H;  \H  Cfil.  'iXt;  '2\  <  ,il.  TlV.';  X\  <  .il. 
l.CJ;  \  Sii  III/,' r,  ti'ul;  I  //i.//".  jlSl,  •_»()»,  'I'hf  Hiir|iliiH  was  ;:iii(ially  ii'scrvi'.l  tur 
till'  Uovt  in  till'  {.;i'ant.  Another  riass  of  (.'rants  w.'is  tliosr  lor  a  rcrtaiii  an.i, 
'  moil'  or  h'ss,'  within  lixnl  lioiiinls,  the  iiiraniii^  liciii;,'  siliiiily  that  tin'  aii'.i 
was  an  OMtiiiiati',  thoil;;li  all  way  granlnl;  anil  no  il  wa.s  roiiliriiieil  hy  tliu 
I'oiirts  wlirri)  till!  I'stiinati!  was  within  a  fiartion  of  a  lemur;  thus  \!  I.  '|iiii'ii 
as  ()  iiii'iios  '  was  ^ooil    for  anything  ui>  to  ,'<  I.     .Soniftiinrs,  liowrvi  r,  hy 


III 


olciii'.'il  irior,  Ixilli  the  '  more  or  less 'ami  the  ri'scrve  of  the  sui'|ilu't  el 
Mere  atl.'U'lieil;  hut  the  latliT  was  luoiierly  ilisruKarileil  when  the  hoiinils  werr 
clear  .rill  the  estimate  tolerahly  aciurale,  othorwisd  the  foriiier. 

"''I'lie  f.'iiliire  to  perform  uomliliiiiiM  in  f  let  merely  reiulei'iil  the  l.itul  ^i;li' 
jcct  to  lienoiiiiceinuiit  ami  rej^raiit;  it  eoiihl  he  ar^neil  only  hy  the  );i' iii'ii..; 
power,  not  hy  a.lverst!  cl.iiuiaiits;  iinleed  it  w.is  a  niicHtion  whether  any  ni:l.t 
of  ilif.'.i.saiii'e  or  liirfeitiiri'  passeij  from  Mex.  to  the  V.  .S.  'I'he  il.  c.  liii  illy 
took  .so  liheral  a  view  on  |ierfiirin.'iliee  of  coinlitioiis  that  Nome  of  its  iheisi..  >s 
wi'ie  o\  irriilcil.  The  eoiiilitioii  lorliiililiiiK' alienation  of  a  ^r.iiit  ii.nl  no  to.. 
uiiilr  LJ.  .S.  law.s.  i  H'.iII n;;  4l'.'»;  I  ///.  14.'),  I'Jl;  5  Cil.  MS;  Hi  C.il.  .".vi; 
].iril.  4."iH. 

l;;.ioi.'iiiL'i!  of  the  Span,  lan^iiai^o  caiiseil  iiinch  confiisioii  ami  iiiaiiy  luii- 
iToiis  iiliiuilcrs  ill  ihe  litigation,  as  iliil  ii;iioraiicu  of  Mi  x.  customs.  Il.iil' '  •., 
Lhik/  Tilin,  nil),  14.',  Nays  t'lat  not  one  in  teii  ilm's  was  coireetly  traiiNl.it'  I. 
only  one  jiiil^u  ami  none  of  the  com.  utiilcrst<tiiiliiit{  the  litiiKua^e  or  laws;  .111  I 
lie  notes  that  oiiii  claim  was  re(?istcr«!il  hy  the  1.  c,  hecaiise  thi'  uraiitu  in.  i 
with  Ins  f.'imily  III  the  piiehlo,  thoiiKli  this  wasenvoiiraKeil  ami  alinost  rei|iiii  I 
hy  the  .Span.  laws.  As  late  as  W'l  yliiiilnrliiiwi  rtiifft  is  trans.  '  phmt  tin  ■ 
'2  HI  Ilk,  ri'.l?.  Tlin>U).'lioiit  the  Kos^.it  case  in  the  1.  c,  vit  nitiit  ili-  j/'H"  .< 
iiuiyif  J  trauii,  '  il  l.:aguu  of  the  larger  aize.'     A  ilccisiou  of  the  C'vil.  h.  c.  u.i-< 


AIU'HIVK   KVIKKNL'K. 


M7 


■t  ClHlM  ^{11  III! 
est  gl'.llltlv,  In: 
lis  laiiil  at  any 
II'  latrr  j/iaiits, 

(raiiti'i'M  cliiiii, 

ijiitiiiii  iiii<li  r  a 
tim  |iri'l('riiui! 

i<  l.iiul  liy  < II- 

isSKIIl     tl)    SI  ll  it 

till'  |iart  ol  tlio 

(I'lrmilf,  IIP  Mir- 

i'i|iiii'i'  till-  Kami' 

•till'  1     liv    til.' 


a  I'i'i't.uii  an  >i, 

that  till'  ai'i 

it'll il    l>V  till' 


lllur  aiiv  rijl.t 


Inii-it  i'i'i|iiii' 


( vldcncc  in  su|)|M>rt  of  a  jU'rant,  tlic  oxp<>(li('ntr  and 
ii cnrd  f"n»ni  tlio  arcliivt's  wnr  juoiM^rly  <^i\tn  rhict' 
iiii|H>rtamM';  nrxt  ((uniiitjf  tlu'  (ni;4iiial  j^'raiit  arnl  pntof 
uf  occupation.  It  wtis  not  cnoiii^li  to  prove  tlic  loss  of 
iiivIiivcH  tliat  mii^'lit  liavc  contiiin«<l  tlu!  record :  init  it 
must  Ih>  Hliown  tliat  tin;  record  liad  existed.  In  iiie 
jiliseni'i'  of  archive  eviden<'e,  other  proofs  niust  he  ex- 
(1  ptionally  full  and  conclusive;  and  in  resistini,^  fraudu- 
Init  claims  the  rtuirts  had  to  d»'cide  that  "docuinentiiiy 
I  \iilence,  no  ni.itter  how  formal  and  complete,  or  how 
wi'll  suppoited  l>y  tlu!  testimony  of  witnesses,  will  not 


Sll 


nice   if  it  is  ohtained   from  private  han<i> 


The 
nin>t  nmnentus  ami  dani^eious  fijiudulent  claims  were 
tlmse  restiu'j;  on  grants  and  otln  i"  documents  written 
iifter  I  H4(>,  l»eaiini(  the  |L,''enuine  sii;natur«'s  of  jjrovernor 
iiiiil  other  otticials,  hut  ante<lated.  It  was  not  ditlicidt 
to  ohtain  parol  t«'stimony  in  support  of  stich  titles,  hut 
archive  evidence  was  not  easilv  tory:ed.  The  methods 
ill  votruc  witli  the  courts  under  technical  rules  of  evi- 
(|i  lice  seem  not  to  have  iieen  very  well  adapted  to  the 
dt'tcction  of  sucli  frauds.  Some  of  the  cases  are  noted 
ejsewhei'e.'"     The  matter  of  sui'veys  was  one  of  the 

nvirsid  liy  itsi'lf  lncauNO  it  liail  ri^Mtcil  mi  a  trans,  of  riili  In  jntirifm,  itc,  jui 
'll.iviiiu  Nirll  till'  |i('tltinll.'      Ami  tliaiiv  itiiiilsili^  iiistaiiri'.s  liii;{lit  III'  ^ivi'ii, 

•':i  II  ..//.i,',,4:n;  I  M.-'X', 'J*.':. '.".»s';  I  //./.  I7(» 

'■''  III  till-  'criMiki'tl  '  ciiNrH,  a.s  iit  hhiiii'  iif  tlii'  Hti'ii;.{lit  oin-.s,  it  im  Hnr|iriMiii){ 
liiiw  Irw  witiii's.si'M  wi'rr  callt'il,  tlm  limst  iiii|i<':'taikt  imt  a|i|M'ai'iiiL.'.  l''ir 
iii>laiir«',  I'lii  I'ii'o  mill  his  Mi-ii'tarir.s  wrro  Imt  ranly  ralhil  In  |iri>vi'  tin  ir 
hi^iLiliiii's,  tliii  ti'stliiiiiny  III  HiiiiH'  iiii.si'iird  rmititiyiiiaii  wlin  hail  miii  tliriii 
villi'  iii'iii>;  ilci'iiit'il  Niillii'it'lit.  Iti'tiiir  till'  I.  r.  tho  I'laiiii  was  olli  i'<i|  wiili  a 
uiiiu'ss  or  tNVii  til  )iri>vti  iiri'ii|iatiiiii  itiul  Mi^natiirrs,  th"  cxiiiriui'  Imih^  nihih'. 
tiiiH'M  h'tt  iliti'lilinn.illv  wrak   nil  Hiiliiii   |iii|iit,  as   |ii'ih.i|is   hiiatlnil,  kh  that   if 


ill'  tllii  el.  Ilii^iit  lit!  I'cjtM'tril  (III  that  |ii>lllt  almir    .sliil  lint  liilirh  atlriitlnll 


!'■ 


tl)    otiii'l 


Till 


hlfl.tl!      till'      I. 


Ill  w    ti">liiiiiiiiv  «as    iiilrml.    to 


^tl^llL;til^ll  tllU  Wt-ak  ]Mlillt;   OtIU  <ir  tWii  Ullllll|ii'ai'lll'i|   UltlU'SNCS  Wiri'  fnllllil   I 

|iiissi':<Miiiii;  mill  a  riiiiliriiiatiiiii  hoiiiiIiiiii's  olilaiiiril  a^ain 
the  cnlirt.  Kiliaily  on  !i|i]iral  to  tin-  h.  i'.  thr  |ilrNUlii|itio 
iii'ii|>i'i'ly  attciiiU-il  to  all  iircliiiiinarit's,  ctr.,  miil  tlm  iiii| 


111^   iihji'i'tiollH   lint   lir^i'il    III 


tho  1 


nuir  I'lMirt  Wrrn    I'l 


ll.'.l 


f:i.iiiitii(;  ofti'ii   faili'il,  till'  tilt!  H.  c.    hail  away,  in  hii  puii 


Ht    tl 

r   H 

1  tha 

t    t 

IMllllI 

tv 

(III. 

it, 

Ills 

'',\> 

ll'-|i|l'liilis  n 


III'  ^ 


liV 


hail 


nl  I'nilslili  ■'• 


Is    lirn- 


t    th 
IS,    wliicli    It 


ill!  lint  rcioct,  nf  l'('lliaililill|{  tlirlll  till'  II  nrvv  trial;  ainl  U\\  liailil.'<  rnllM 
pi.^s  am'ciinil  onUiil  in  the  <1.  c.   Si c  I  //..//■.  I'.NJ;   I    II. i///.-,,  rvjii,  .'I.V.',  4(Mt. 

Till'  titit!  to  iniiuraU  wan  not  iiifliiili'il  in  ii  Mcx.  grant:  »>>il  •'<»  micIi  a  titlu 
(III  |'M\at()  lainl  wan  unkimwii  to  tho  U.  S,  Kystciii,  it  iHcikinu  ii  |iii/./lc  what 
hi'iaiii)^  of  tliu  title.  It  W'.'M  liiially  liclil  to  Im-Ioiik  ]iriu'tieiilly  tn  tin'  L'raiit) c; 
ithi'l'  there  waH  nn  lieeiisi!  fur  that  othur  ti>  i  iiti  r  pri- 


fnr  if   it  hell 


"»« 


ilt« 


\ati'  laiiil  to  iV\g  for  gold.     This  w'iut  uu  iiiijiortuiit  ijuvdtiuu  Hettkil  lu  thu 
i  ii'iiinnt  cunu. 


M 


il  i 


mu 


54R 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


iiioHt  cnnipIicatiMl  phatscHof  tlio  land  litiofatioii,  oiu;  tliat 
liiHtiMl  loii^ost,  that  ott'orcd  tlio  groatoHt  opportuiiitit  s 
for  fraud,  and  that  pri'sonts  tl»u  j^frcutest  ditfioulti«K  tu 
the  invosti}^at<»r.  At  first,  after  final  coiifirination  ..t' 
a  j^rant,  a  survey  was  made  by  the  8urveyt)r-^eiieial, 
or  ratlier  hy  ouv,  of  liis  de|)utie8,  wlio  hail  no  instruc- 
tions except  to  follow  the  calls  of  the  (^rant,  and  wluof 
ju<l<^nient  was  often  more  or  less  influenced  hy  tin- 
j;ui<lance  of  interested  parties.  On  this  8ur\'ey  thi' 
c«inunissioner  of  the  land-office  at  Washington,  if  lit- 
could  see  or  he  made  to  sec  no  serious  ohjection,  issm  <! 
the  final  patent.  After  18(50  the  survey  itself  was 
suhmitted  to  the  district  court,  whose  decision  coul<l 
he  appealed  to  the  suj)renu!  court;  but  the  courts  con- 
fined themselves  mainly  to  the  approval  or  rejection 
of  the  survey  as  a  whole,  or  to  the  correction  of  radical 
errors,  still  leavin*]f  much  to  the  surveyor's  di.scretioii, 
and  not  closely  (Titicising  his  use  of  that  discretion. 
The  ehanjife  was  necessary,  but  led  to  endless  litii^atiou, 
and  to  the  ruin  of  such  grantees  as  had  saved  a  part 
of  their  lands  in  the  earlier  ordeals.'^ 

With  a  vi(»w  to  illustrate  as  fully  as  possible  the 
•general  course  of  the  jjfreat  liti«^ation  on  Mexican 
titles,  iletailed  annals  of  which  cannot  be  presented 
in  the  spa<:e  at  my  disposal,  I  have  thou;^ht  it  best  tu 
append   in  fine  type  a  list  of  specimen  cases."*     It  iii- 

'"  Iiiai-uuraU)  Hiirvt^yH  ritj.  liy  fjovt  or  rcfuHeil  l>y  claiiiianta;  iiKNuricatiniM 
iir  iii-w  Hiirvi'yH  nnlcrutl  ami  ugiiiii  ri^jeottMl;  tuchiiiuiil  Itluiulon  of  otliriaU 
allowing  thu  rco|H!ninK  of  caitua;  iiiiHuntlurHtandingit  Iiotwi-cii  the  sun-. -gin. 
aiiil  till!  liiiitl-ntliutv,  HiieecHMivu  acta  of  uongrutia  Bottling  old  (lillicultifx  unl 
o|H!iiiiiK  tlio  door  to  now  oiioh-  it  in  lioyoud  my  iiroviiii-o  to  fin  into  dttuil.t  <•( 
tliiH  i-onfiiHioii.  Thu  Hurvoy  watt  the  only  (luostion  in  numt  of  thu  later  ».  r. 
c.-iw-M,  anil  the  court  only  docidud  whether  tliu  Burvey  wait  in  acconi  with  thu 
tloTcc  of  the  d.  c.  ft  W'nUtiri;  827.  The  li<Mlri({uuz  como  preiHintod  iiorha|M  li 
many  ditiicultioii  aa  any.  1  lil.  68*2:  sue  alito  1  Id.  tift8;  almi  a  cane  in  U.  >. 
circuit  court,  2  Siiinfrr,  40.1. 

'*  .SjMioiinen  caaoB  alnhalietically  arranged  by  iiatne«  of  claimanta.  'Hh' 
nunilH-rB  are  thono  of  thu  land  coniniiitMion,  ahlireviutud  1.  c,  tho  U.  S.  lii-- 
trict  court  lieing  ahhrev.  d.  c,  and  Buiirenic  court,  a.  c. 

Alvixo,  Canada  Verdo,  Sta  Cruz,  !w9,  conf.  in  all  the  courta  on  a  |M.-riiii~- 
•ion  to  o<-cu|iy  of  "W;  favorahle  rc|N)rtii  of  local  olticiaU,  with  occupation  ainl 
undiitiiuted  ownerahiu  from  '44>,  though  there  waa  no  grant.  23  llotrard,  'M>. 

Alviito,  Kincon  de  los  KHteroa,  Sta  Clara,  278,  conf.  to  chihln-ii  '  i 
grantvv  by  a  furuier  wife.     The  widuw'a  claim  tu  \  woa  uut  auataiued  by  tliu 


SI'KflMKN   CASKS. 


540 


one  tliut 
•rtuiiitics 
•ultirs  tu 
nation  uf 
-j^rneial, 
»  instruc- 
nd  wlmsi* 
I  by  til. 
rv't-y  till- 
ion,  it'  lie 
f»n,  issufd 
tself  was 
ion  citultl 
uirta  coii- 

rrjcrtjoii 
of  ra<li«al 
liscrc'tioii, 
liscretioM. 
litij^jatioii. 

d  u  ))uit 


pihle  tilt! 
Mexi«-Jiii 
)rt'8t'ntt  <1 
t  best  to 
It  ill- 

liiMuficatioiiit 
of  iiliici.'iU 

Ic  »urv.-giii. 

liculties  an  I 
M  <lttuiU  '>t 

Vo  latc-r  M.  r. 

|nl  with  tliu 

{lorhalM  a.H 

|M)  iu  C.  >. 

»t«.     TIk- 
U.  S.  .li- 

a  iH-'niiK- 
l|>atioii  ami 
\ininl,  'M\ 
Ihililren  "i 
^titl  by  tlie 


( ludcs  oxam|)los  of  most  classt\s  of  claims  that  were 
iivscnted  to  the  hmd  connnission  and  courts,  showing 


(1.  M.  0.,  nn  the  ground  that  a  Mex.  grant  woa  a  donation,  and  not  part  of 

tli.  I'liiiiiiion  prtiiHTty.   \'\  <'iil.  4M.     Tlu;re  wcro  otluT  Miiiiiliir  dcciaionM. 

.\i>!iu'l|ii,  I'ul^iM,  S.  Muttui,  '2,  conf.  Ity  all  3  i (turtx.  Tliii  cliiiin  wati  on 
till'  ^.'iMiit  of  "Xt,  not  on  that  of  ulNiut  ''24;  Imt  on  thu  uarliur  grant  and  (mtu- 
l>.  Mill  thii  I'l.  Hou^lit  to  inulndu  tlio  CaAada  ilu  llainiundo  on  thi;  w.  It  was 
li.  1 1,  liiiwuvvr,  that  the  later  ^nuit  wim  ilcuisive  on  lionndary,  csiHicially  ait 
till'  <  .irtaila  had  Ih-imi  granted  to  Coiipingrr  in  '40.  (( iruur  i  'uAadu  df  K.  'Jl, 
<Hiit  )  It  M'aii  in  tlii.4  ciiMo  that  tlui  1.  e.  adii|itt!d  tho  regulation  ixTniitting 
,1  Im  rsit  clainiuntM  to  font«iit  Itoforo  thu  ImnipI  thu  eoiif.  of  iiiti'rt'(!rin>(  flainm, 
til.  ill  I'isioii  l>eing  puh.  aa  Luml  Com.  Onjiiiiiz.,  Artji.,  etc.,  S.  F.,  IH.VJ.  Tlure 
M  1^  also  pull.  Joiifn'  Anjumriil  for  tho  el.  in  this  oanu,  S.  V.,  ''t'X  In  this 
«  i:l_v  iMHo  woa  ovorruhfd  hy  tho  U.  S.  k.  c.  tho  olijoction  nrgi'tl  liy  the  U.  S. 
til  It  a  urant  within  10  1.  of  the  count  wan  illegal.  18  Honnnl,  'i.'KI.  In  the  aur- 
\<  y  the  w.  line  of  I'ldK'ui  wan  fixed  ut  thu  w.  Iiomu  of  the  i'a:ige  of  hilU  Hepa> 
MiJiii;  it  from  thu  cat'tiitlu  instead  of  tho  KUniniit  where  it  hIiouIiI  have  lieeii; 
lull  ilie  owiiePH  of  tho  eailada  found  no  reineily  ('H\  C'tl.  Ol.'i),  as  the  jiatent  of 
I'liLas  wa«  held  to  ho  final.  In  '78  a  hill  was  defeated  in  emiijres.s  to  allow 
tlir  I'liurti*  to  investigate  the  survey or's  alleged  fraud;  hut  in  Su  thu  etforta 
IikI  lint  iieeii  aliandoned. 

Aniiijo,  Tolenas,  Solano,  'li\  conf.  d.  c.  This  was  a  tloiitiiig  grant  of  .t  1. 
ill  (0,  eonllieting  in  iHiundary  with  luiother  of  '4'J  (Uitehie,  Sui.tiin,  .'<).  'I'liu 
I  ill  r  grant  M-as  first  Hurvey<;d,  and  in  thu  I'al.  s.  e.  (I.'t  <'>rA  'A~',\)  A.'s  elaini  to 
n  rt.iiii  land  within  the  survey  on  thu  ground  of  prior  grant  and  actual  oeeupa- 
ti'iii  wnn  not  HUstJiinud,  thu  patent  Iniing  final  as  held  in  many  like  euMes.  In 
till'  r.  S.  s.  c.  ill  '(iO  (.'>  l\'iilliff,  444)  A.'s  elaim  as  earlier  grantee  to  locatu 
liiH  ^'raiit  first  was  not  allowed,  hut  apparently  on  the  ground  of  earlier  pos- 
M  ssiiiii  liy  thu  later  griintuu  under  a  provisional  concesiiion,  ami  of  a  former 
sitilrmeiit  hy  arhitration. 

liernal,  Uinron  do  las  SiUinas  y  Potrcro  Viujo,  S.  F.,  30,  conf.  d.  c.  Against 
tins  claim  there  was  niadu  in  iMihalf  of  tho  U.  S.  an  earnest  ami  niisueeessful 
(irni't  l>y  u  mass  of  eontlieting  oral  ti^stimony  to  prove  forgery  or  changes  in 
Millie  iif  tiio  papers.  I  J/Djriiuin,  50.  My  Lihniry  stands  near  tho  situ  of  tho 
iijii  Itirnal  rancho  house. 

Kcrreyesa,  .Milpit^ks,  Sta  Clara,  757.  This  claim  won  founded  on  a  luTmit 
I'V  till'  alcahlu  of  S.  Joso  in  ''M,  and  a diseilo  of  ':<■'>  regarded  as  spurious  hy  thu 
1.  I',  which  rejected  the  claim.  In  '(»5-77  tiiocase  was  liefiire  the  d.  c.  and  s.  c, 
iiii'l  the  claim  w;i8  ih-feateil,  the  victory  of  tho  settlors  heing  celehrated  in 
'77  iiy  a  harlKicuo.  Thu  real  merits  of  this  case  are  wrapped  in  mystery.  In 
Ills  /!' liii-ion,  Antonio  lUtrroye.sa  gives  a  sad  account  of  how  his  father  and 
luiitlicrK  lost  their  land  and  were  driven  mad. 

liirieyesa,  Piitas,  Napa,  SIMJ,  conf.  on  a  grant  of  '43  to  two  hrothers,  l>y 
mIioiii  with  parents  and  other  hrothers  the  rancho  was  occupied  from  ','{*,). 
Ill  ii-i  (if  tho  other  brothers  sot  np  a  claim  on  tho  ground  that  the  j,'raiit 
«  !■.  iiiailo  with  a  view  to  common  oi'cupaiicy  hy  the  whole  family,  hut  wcro 
ill  ii'.ili'il.  '21  ('ill.  514.  This  may  very  likely  have  ln'»'n  ono  of  tlu^  ca.ses 
V  Ik  re  a  decision  on  legal  t<x>hnicalitics  is  popularly  regarded  as  oppressive, 
>'  t  tlio  justice  of  the  decision  is  clear  even  to  the  unprofessional  mind. 

Hiilwell,  Arroyo  Chico,  Bntto,  143,  conf.  hy  all  tlio  courts.  l»ickey,  tho 
L'l'aiili'u  of  '4-1,  had  a  'Sutter  general  title,'  o.  v.,  which  was  linally  rejccteil; 
I'lit  he  had  ul.so  what  was  deemed  a  regular  grant  on  which  the  d.  was 
ci'iif.  This  ^avo  rise  to  some  criticism,  as  it  was  tiie  only  one  of  the  i^iMieia! 
tiili'  grants  c  \t.,  and  on  account  of  B.'s  wealth  and  ollicial  stJinding;  Imt  thu 
<li  lisjiiii  seon.s  to  have  lieen  a  just  ono. 

IliHsell,  Mare  Isl,.  Solano,  :i07,  eonf.  on  a  grant  of  '40  1  to  Victor  Castro. 
■|  111'  I'.  S.  later  iKiught  thu  isl.  for  a  navy  yard,  their  titlo  resting  on  a  deed 
n!  JO  from  Ciwtro  to  Bisscll.     In  '77  el.  under  an  earlier  tleed  of  C.  to  Bryant 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


I2i  IIIM 
IIIIM 

nil  2.0 


m 
m 


1.8 


1.25      1.4 

1.6 

— 

< 

6"     — 

► 

Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


33  WEST  MA)N  STR£ST 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  1  t'iSO 

(716)  872-45U3 


1 


0 


550 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


1  If. : 


ili 


the  general  principles  on  which  decisions  were  based, 
and  covering  a  variety  of  minor  points  not  specified  in 

wero  trying  in  the  d.  c.  to  establish  title;  and  even  C.  is  said  still  to  liave 
regarded  himself  as  owner. 

Bolcof,  Refugio,  Sta  Cruz,  214,  conf.  to  sons  of  the  grantee  on  a  grant  nf 
'41  and  patented.  Majors'  el.  to  a  part  (no.  207)  being  rejected.  But  later 
it  was  proved  that  the  grant  had  been  to  the  Castro  si.sters,  whose  names  hiul 
been  erased  fraudulently  and  B.'s  uubstituted.  Thereupon  in  'tiO-70  the  claim 
of  Majors,  who  had  married  one  of  the  sisters,  to  J  of  the  raucho  was  siistaiiiiil 
in  d.  c.  and  s.  c.  (11  Wallace,  442h  It  was  held  that  while  former  proceedings 
were  final  against  the  U.  S.,  wrongs  to  3d  parties  nught  be  relieved  by  a 
court  of  equity. 

Brown,  Laguna  de  Santos  Calle,  Yolo,  70,  rejected  by  I.e.  and  d.  c.  in  'OO. 
The  grant  of  111.  by  Pico,  '45,  to  Prudon  anil  V'aca  was  declared  a  forgery, 
like  otlier  papers;  a  permission  to  occupy  by  Vallejo,  '45,  invalid  and  prob. 
antedated,  and  the  oral  testimony  perjury  in  part  and  8Usi)icious  throughout. 
This  was  a  typical  spurious  claim  in  behalf  of  men  who  never  occupied  tliu 
land. 

Cambuston,  11  1.,  in  Butte,  511,  conf.  by  1.  c.  on  a  grant  of  '46,  depos.  iu 
the  arch.,  '50,  without  other  doc.  proof,  tliough  there  was  some  testimony 
of  occupation  in  '47;  conf.  by  d.  c.  somewhat  doubtfully  because  the  U.  .S. 
made  no  argument  against  it  and  because  of  the  judge's  unwillingness  to 
disregard  uncontradicted  evidence  (1  Hoff.  86).  This  was  the  first  of  the 
spurious  claims  before  the  s.  c,  where  the  chief  argument  in  its  sui)]i()i-t 
was  the  'presumption'  that  Gov.  Pico  attended  to  all  preliminaries,  had  full 
authority,  and  acted  honestly.  This  was  held  invalid;  a  grant  supported 
by  no  archive  evid.  must  be  strictly  investigated.  It  was  sent  back  that  the 
cl.  might  have  a  chance  to  meet  objections;  since  they  might  have  been  nusle.l 
by  the  actions  of  the  U.  S.  agent  (20  Howard,  59);  and  was  rej.  in  '59  by 
the  d.  c. 

Carrillo,  Sespe,  Ventura,  '49,  conf.  by  1.  c.  for  6  1.  on  a  grant  of  '33,  but 
by  the  d.  c,  reduced  to  2  1.,  'seis'  having  been  fraudulently  substituted  for 
'  dos  '  in  the  original  papers.  More,  the  owner,  claiming  to  have  bought  (i  1. 
iu  good  faith,  tri.  I  by  every  means,  fair  and  foul,  aa  is  alleged — including  one 
or  more  '  crooked  '  surveys — to  retain  all  or  i)art  of  liis  ranrho,  and  there  was 
much  litigation  with  settlers  on  the  surplus  govt  lam'  <  tinal  claim,  tliut 

of  being  allowed  to  purchase  the  land  excluded  by  I  .tent  under  the  act 

of  '6()  was  decided  adversely  in  '77.  Mores  murder  i.i  pposed  to  have  been 
an  outgrowth  of  this  land  affair. 

Carpenter,  Sta  Gertrudis,  Los  Ang.,  339,  conf.  on  a  grant  of  '34  to  Joset'a 
Cota  de  Nieto,  as  were  all  the  divisions  of  tlie  old  Nieto  tract,  on  grants  of 
'34  (no.  351,  400,  402,  404,  459).  The  el.  of  the  Nietos,  children  of  the 
grantee,  resting  on  the  original  grant  or  conces.sion  of  1784,  was  rejected  (no. 
423).  Manuel  Nieto  and  his  heirs,  under  Fages'  permit,  occupied  the  whole 
tract  till  '34,  when  it  was  divided  among  2  sons  and  the  widcws  of  2  others, 
the  4  getting  grants  from  Gov.  Figueroa,  which  were  conf.  as  above.  In  '4;{, 
Josefa  Cota,  one  of  the  widoM's,  with  auth.  from  tlie  gov.,  sold  Sta  Gertrudis 
to  Carpenter.  Her  children,  failing  before  the  1.  c,  ai)plied  later  to  the  *  'al. 
courts,  claiming  as  heirs  of  Manuel,  since,  if  Manuel  had  a  title,  their  mother's 
sale  was  invalid.  But  the  Cal.  s,  c.  in  '57-62  (7  Oil.  527,  21  Cut.  455),  after 
several  changes  of  opinion  resulting  from  inaccurate  translations,  (leeided 
that  Manuel  had  no  grant,  only  a  permit  to  occupy,  and  that  Josefa,  as  gran- 
tee and  owner,  had  made  a  legal  sale. 

Castillero,  Sta  Cruz  Isl.  (or  Sta  Catalina?),  Sta  B.,  176,  conf.  by  all  the 
courts.  This  differed  from  the  isl.  grants  to  Oslo  and  others  finally  rejeoteil 
in  1)eing  made  under  a  special  order  of  the  Mex.  govt  in  behalf  of  C,  not  re- 
(}uiring  concurrenise  of  tne  assend).,  l»eing  duly  recorded,  and  boai-ing  all  the 
indications  of  ^euuiueuess.  23  H  allace,  401. 


LIST  OF  CLAIMS. 


551 


the  precedinj^  pages  of  this  chapter.     The  genuine 
claims,  the  validity  of  which  was  never  questioned 

Castillero,  New  Almaden,  Sta  Clara,  366;  Fossat,  Los  Capit-'ncillos,  340; 
BuiToyesa,  S.  Vicente,  503.  The  2  adjoining  ranchos  of  Larios  (Fossat  cl.) 
and  Berreyesa,  in  a  cafiada  about  15  m.  s.  of  S.  Josi5,  wure  occupied  from 
aliout  '34,  and  granted  in  '42.  In  a  range  of  low  hlUa  in  the  southern  part  of 
the  Cii.uada  (the  bound  of  the  rauchos  being  the  main  Sierra  farther  s. ),  on 
one  of  the  ranchos  and  near  the  partition  line,  was  a  mineral  deposit  known 
from  early  times,  and  in  '45  denounced  as  a  quicksilver  mine  by  Castillero, 
who  formed  a  comp.  to  work  the  mine,  obtaining  from  the  Mex.  govt  approval 
of  his  acts  and  an  order  for  a  grant  of  2  1.  of  land.  Forbes  &  Co.  of  Tejiic, 
became  chief  owners,  and  before  '5'2  the  property  had  become  of  great  value, 
and  had  alreaily  been  the  subject  of  much  litigation.  Before  the  1.  c,  d.  c, 
and  s.  c.  from  52,  private  litigation  continuing  unabated,  was  waged  a  great 
triangular  fight — with  the  U.  S.  masquerading  as  one  of  the  three  contending 
interests — for  the  mine  as  a  prize.  The  cl.  of  Fossat  and  Berreyesa,  being  of 
un(]nestionable  genuineness,  were  finally  conf.  by  '58,  though  restricted  by 
strict  rulings  to  narrower  limits  than  ordinarily  would  have  been  accorded, 
and  though  a  desperate  effort  was  made  to  exclude  the  mine  by  identifying 
the  low  range  of  hills  with  the  .Sierra  as  the  s.  bound.  Castillero 's  laml  cl. 
was  rejected  from  tlie  first,  as  there  had  been  no  grant,  and  as  the  land  was 
ah-eady  private  property;  but  the  mining  cl.  was  conf.  by  1.  c.  and  d.  c.  in 
'(51.  Of  the  equity  of  this  cl.  there  could  be  no  real  question,  and  the  d.  c. 
disregarded  the  wholesale  and  absurd  charges  of  fttrgery  and  perjury  that 
wore  made;  but  the  s.  c.  was  so  far  influenced  by  thcje  charges  that— while 
not  basing  its  decision  on  tliis  ground — it  felt  justified  in  a  strict  ruling,  and 
rejected  the  cl.  on  tlie  ground  that  the  alcalde  had  no  jurisdiction  in  the  de- 
nouncement of  mines,  and  that  other  formalities  had  not  been  exactly  com- 
plied with,  etc.  Tliree  of  the  judges  dissented  from  what  was  doubtless  an 
unjust  decision.  Tliis  was  in  '62.  Meanwhile,  by  official  survey  of  '60, 
agreeing  with  the  grants,  the  line  between  the  ranchos  had  been  so  located 
hi  to  leave  tlie  mine  on  the  Fossat  land,  now  the  property  of  Laurencel  & 
Kdgerton.  Now,  the  mining  comp.,  having  lost  its  claim,  but  controlling  tlie 
Bjrreyesa  rancho,  made  a  fhial  efl'ort  to  overthrow  the  survey,  and  move  the 
liiie  westward  sutiiciently  to  include  the  mine.  By  what  seems  hardly  more 
than  jilausilile  and  ingenious  special  pleading,  they  succeeded  before  the  d.  c. ; 
but  the  new  survey  was  finally  rejected,  anel  the  original  conf.  by  tlie  s.  c.  in 
'()."{,  tinis  ending  this  famous  case,  of  which  but  a  faint  idea  has  been  given  in 
tliis  outline.  Being  defeated,  the  comp.  in  '64  sold  the  mine  for  §l,750,Oi)'J 
to  a  new  comp.  of  N.  Y.  and  Pa,  which  bought  in  the  opposing  interests,  and 
down  to  "SO  took  out  over  §12,000,000  in  quieksilver.  Before  tlie  Amer.  and 
Brit,  claim  com.  at  Geneva,  '73-4,  Barron,  Forbes,  &  Co.,  as  Brit,  subjects, 
pi'eseuted  a  cl.  for  .§16,000,000  and  interest,  alleging  that,  by  an  unju.st  decis- 
ion of  the  courts,  under  threats  of  eviction  by  a  U.  S.  marshal,  in  time  of 
war,  when  no  help  could  be  obtained  from  the  home  govt,  they  had  been 
forced  to  s.,11  their  property  for  a  nomuial  price.  The  cl.  M'as  unanimously 
disr.llowed.    if.  S.  (iort  Doc,  Ist  Sess.,  43d  Cong.,  For.  Rel.,  iii.  l()4-8. 

( 'astro,  Canada  de  los  Osos,  Mont.,  703,  rejected  by  1.  c.  and  not  a[H)ealu  1, 
was  a  fraudulent  grant  of  '44,  by  Micheltorena.  It  bore  the  forged  .seal  of 
the  Liinantour  pajiers,  and  L.  was  a  witness  to  prove  signatures. 

Castro,  S.  Fablo,  Contra  Costa,  3!K),  conf.  to  heirs  of  Fran.  M.  Castro  on 
grants  of  '34,  though  the  rancho  hail  been  occupied  by  the  family  long  before. 
Litigation  on  this  land  still  in  progress  in  '85,  has  been  one  of  the  famous 
cases;  but  has  resulted  from  complications  subsequent  to  the  conf.  of  '58,  and 
not  belonging  here.     See  also  life  of  C.  in  Pion.  Reg. 

Castro,  Sobranto,  Alam.  and  Contra  Costa,  96,  conf.  for  11  1.  on  a  grant 
of  '41.  The  excitement  of  '78  et  seq.  about  this  rancho  grew  out  of  the  fact 
that  the  grant  was  a  '  surplus  '  of  several  others,  and  when  the  lines  ot  these 


552 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


H 


except  by  interested  attorneys,  and  which  were  finally 
confirmed,  yet  in  connection  with  which,  through  the 

others  were  fixeil  by  final  survey.  Either  the  sobrante  waa  much  larger  than 
supposed  in  '41  or  57,  or  else  there  was  a  ring  of  U.  S.  land  surrounding  it 
open  to  settlers. 

Cervantes,  Rosa  Morada,  Mont.,  56,  conf.  by  1.  c.,  the  decision  being  piib. 
in  a  separate  pamphlet  of  '52.  It  was  Hofifinau  s  first  Ccose  in  the  N.  d.  c,  aad 
was  rejected  becsvuse  tlie  grant  of  '36  had  not  been  approved  by  the  assembly, 
and  because  the  grantee  had  not  complied  with  the  conditions  of  buililiii^ 
within  one  year;  but  the  overruling  of  this  decision  by  the  s.  c. — its  first  case 
—^produced  a  less  strict  ruling  on  these  points  in  later  cases.  It  was  sent  to 
the  S.  d.  c,  conf.,  and  judgment  affirmed  by  s.  c.  '55.  1  /foJT  9;  10  Howard, 
619;  18  Id.  553.     Jones'  briefs  before  1.  c.  and  s.  c.  were  separately  printed. 

Cota,  Rio  do  Sta  Clara,  Sta  B.,  225,  rej.  1.  c.  conf.  d.  c.  '57  on  grant  of 
'30.  A  survey  of  '67  was  rejected,  and  a  new  one  made  in  '70.  In  '72  an 
attempt  was  made  to  overthrow  the  survey  on  a  diseilo  from  private  luinds, 
so  as  to  include  17,000  acres  held  by  settlers.  This  appears  from  an  argu- 
ment of  J.  F.  Stuart  in  behalf  of  the  settlers,  Wash.,  '72.  S.,  as  was  his  cus- 
tom, argued  that  the  original  conf.  was  wrong. 

Dominguez,  Prietos  y  Najalayegua,  Sta  B.  This  cl.  was  never  presented 
to  the  1.  c,  though  a  genuine  grant  was  made  in  '45;  but  it  was  confirmed  by 
a  special  act  of  congress  in  '60,  this  action  being  procured  largely  by  misrep- 
resentation, and  through  sympathy  for  an  old  family  owning  the  site  of  the 
famous  'big  grape-vine.'  The  great  struggle  which  made  this  one  of  the 
causes  celebres  was  over  the  location,  for  which  the  only  guide  was  the  origi- 
nal diseilo  and  oral  testimony.  The  grant  was  apparently  for  a  tract  of  little 
comparative  value  ou  the  Sta  Ines,  north  of  the  mountain  range;  but  the 
scheme  of  tlie  real  claimants  was  to  locate  it  south  of  the  range  so  as  to  cover 
valuable  lands  adjoinins  or  including  the  Sta  B.  pueblo  laixU.  The  plan  wiis 
not  finally  successful,  out  for  several  years  intense  excitement  prevailed 
among  tlie  Biirbareftos  arrayed  in  two  hostile  parties.  A  good  account  is 
given  in  the  SUi.  B.  Co.  Hist.,  195-209,  with  copy  of  the  diseiio. 

Enriglit,  Stii  Clara  Co.,  514,  conf.  by  all  the  courts,  though  there  wiis  no 
grant,  on  a  marginal  decree  of  '  granted '  on  a  favorable  report  of  '45,  supple- 
mented with  juridical  possession  and  occupation. 

Estudillo  et  al.,  S.  Jacinto,  115-16,  203,  conf.  There  were  2  ranchos  and 
a  sobrante  of  5  1.,  '  more  or  less.'  The  latter  was  conf.  for  the  full  extent  of 
111.  1  Wallace,  311.  Hayes,  Em.  A^o<es,  448-52,  an  attorney  in  the  case,  ex- 
plains how,  in  '06  et  seq.,  the  owners,  by  crooked  surveys  of  the  3  ranchos, 
succeeded  in  stretching  the  sobrante  across  12  miles  of  intervening  space  so 
as  to  include  the  tin  mines  of  Temescal! 

Fremont,  Mariposas,  March  1st,  conf.  by  1.  c.  and  a.  c.  on  a  grant  of  10  1. 
to  J.  B.  Alvarado  in  '44.  The  d.  c.  rejected  the  cl.  for  non-fuUilment  of  the 
conditions  of  occupation,  building,  etc.,  as  the  grantee  never  saw  the  land, 
and  it  wiis  not  occupied  till  after  the  U.  S.  got  Cal.  True,  the  Ind.  made 
occup.  unsafe,  but  that  was  known  when  the  conditions  were  inserted  in  the 
grant.  The  overruling  of  this  decision  by  the  s.  c.  established  a  very  liberal 
rule  for  later  cases  in  the  matter  of  conditions;  and  in  this  case- — the  Sd 
decided  by  the  s.  c. — was  definitely  conceded  the  validity  of  inchoate  equitable 
titles  antl  of  floating  grants.  17  Howard,  542;  18  Id.  30;  1  Hoff.  20.  In 
finally  locating  his  Heating  grant,  F.  included  several  mines;  and  in  tlie 
ensuing  troubles  some  lives  were  lost;  but  it  was  decided  in  '59  that  the  min- 
eral title  could  belong  to  no  other  than  the  owner  of  the  laud.   14  ( 'al.  279,  380. 

Fuentes,  Potrero,  Sta  Clara,  496,  rej.  by  all  the  courts.  This  was  one  of 
the  most  impudent  claims  that  ever  went  beyond  the  1.  o.  It  rested  on  a 
grant  of  '43,  certif.  of  record  by  Jimeno  (J.  not  being  called  to  prove  it),  tes- 
timony of  Man.  Castro  and  Abrego  that  the  sign,  seemed  genuine,  and  testi- 
mony that  records  had  been  lost  which  might  have  contained  something 
about  this  grant  1  22  Howard,  443. 


RIGHT  OR  WRONG. 


653 


cdsts  of  a  protracted  litigation,  the   greatest  wrong 
was  done,  figure  somewhat  less  conspicuously  in  this 

(::il1)raitli,  Bolsa  de  Tomales,  Marin,  205,  couf.  by  1.  c.  and  d.  c,  because 
t'viiloucu  making  a  prima  fauie  cl.  was  not  rcbutteil,  though  it  was  weak,  and 
a  date  liad  been  clianged  in  the  griint.  It  was  sent  back  by  the  s.  c,  but 
liiiiilly  conf.  on  now  evidence.  22  Ifoioant,  89. 

(iai-cia,  9  1.  in  Mendocino,  Il.%  rcj.  on  a  passport  of  '44  to  go  and  select 
ami  occupy  tlie  land,  which  was  done.  A  granii  was  asked  for  in  '4l>,  but 
iK'ver  issued,  tliough  alcalde's  reports  were  favorable.  1  Jloff.  157;  22  Hoimird, 
274. 

(rurcu,  Nogales,  S  Bern.,  383,  conf.  but  no  formal  decree  on  survey  en- 
tert'il  ill  '59;  therolore  a  rehearing  was  granted  in  '70.  1  Sawyer,  383.  G.'h 
possession  had  not,  however,  been  disturbed. 

ikmwz,  Panocha  Grande,  Fresno,  569,  rej.  by  1.  c.  on  a  petition,  disefio, 
etc.  of  '14,  with  testimony  on  a  grant  that  had  been  lost.  Vrom  '51  the  N. 
Lh-ia  (i>uicksilvcr  Min.  Co.  was  in  possession  of  what  was  cl.  to  be  part  of 
I'anoclia.  G.'s  cl.  was  conf.  in  the  d.  c.  '59,  by  consent  of  the  U.  S.  district 
attoriK'V,  Pacilic.os  Ord,  who  was  owner  of  half  the  cl.  Tlien  Wm  McCiarra- 
liau  bought  the  other  half  from  Gomez,  and  a  survey  of  'dl  was  made  to  in- 
thiilo  tlie  N.  Idria  mine.  But  the  cl.  was  brought  before  the  s.  c.  and  rejected 
in  '(io  ;is  invalid  if  not  fraudulent;  for  there  were  two  theories,  one  that  G. 
really  took  the  first  steps  to  secure  a  grant  from  Gov.  Mieheltorena,  his 
frioiul,  and  the  other  that  all  the  papers  were  forgeries  supported  by  perjury. 
,Mi(r.,  however,  claiming  to  have  bought  in  good  faith  alter  a  supposed  con- 
finiiatiou,  claimed  under  the  act  of  '6(5  a  right  to  purchase  tlie  land,  but  was 
Hiiecessfully  opposed  by  the  N.  Idria  comp.  He  got  from  a  Wash,  court  an 
(irdrr,  directing  tlie  sec.  of  the  interior  to  issue  a  patent,  but  this  was  reversed 
liy  tlio  s.  c.  in  '69.  All  phases  of  this  famous  '  McGarrahan  claim 'are  in- 
Yohed  in  a  mysterious  and  hopelessly  entangled  maze  of  legal  teohuicallties 
and  legerdemain.  I  cannot  attempt  to  follow  the  case  here,  nor  have  I  any 
opinion  to  express  as  to  its  merite.  23  Howard,  326;  1  Wallace,  (i'.H);  3  Id. 
7.')-.';  9  /(/.,  298;  Oomez,  Lo  Que  Sale,  M8.,  226-43;  llarte's  Story  of  a  Mine; 
and  no  end  of  special  pamphlets,  some  of  which  are  collected  in  McOurrnhan, 
Mi'iimrhd,  S.  F.,  1870.  The  case  bids  fair  never  to  reach  an  end,  Mc(i.  and 
the  I'anocha  Grande  Quicksilver  Min.  Co.  being  indefatigable  in  seeking  re* 
lief  from  the  courts  and  congress. 

(!onz;ilez,  S.  Antonio,  Sta  Cruz,  336,  conf.  by  all  the  courts  on  a  grant  of 
'HU.  "22  Ifniriiril,  161.  This  was  a  case  in  which  the  f;ranteo  of  about  4  1., 
between  wcll-dctine<l  boundaries,  seems  to  have  got  oidy  ^  1.,  by  an  error  in 
tile  eraiit  following  a  blundering  estimate  of  width  in  the  original  disefio. 
roasii)ly  this  was  remedied  in  the  final  survey. 

Haro,  Potrero,  S.  F.,  101,  613,  conf.  by  1.  c.  on  grants  of  '44,  but  rej.  by 
d.  c.  on  proof  that  tlie  grants  were  fraudulent.  There  was,  however,  a  gen- 
uine license  to  occupy — the  regular  grant  being  withheld  because  the  mission 
ijifln.'i  might  iuoliule  this  land — followed  by  occupation;  and  on  this  as  an 
ei|iiitable  title  7  able  attorneys  before  the  s.  c.  in  '{Hi  strove  to  have  the  cl. 
conf.;  but  it  was  rej.,  the  previous  frivuds  doubtless  having  an  inlluence,  on 
the  purely  legal  ground  that  the  license  was  not  a  grant.  5  ]\'aU(ii-i;  599. 
After  this  decision  lessees  under  the  Haro  title  refused  to  pay  rent,  and 
ciaimed  ownership  as  scjuatters  or  settlers  on  govt  land,  or  city  lands  by  the 
\'an  Ness  ordinance  and  acts  of  congress.  Owners  under  the  Haro  title 
claimed  the  land  on  the  same  grounds  as  their  opponents,  having  been  thcm- 
si'lvcs  the  occupants,  sipiatters,  or  settlers  through  their  lessees;  but  after  a 
scries  of  suits  tiiey  were  defeated  in  '78. 

ilartnell,  Todos  Santos,  Sta  B.,  and  Cosumnes,  Sac,  228,  conf.  by  all  the 
courts,  1  I/ojT.  207;  22  J/oward,  286;  but  the  Cosumnes  cl.  was  cut  down  from 
11  to  6  1.  because  the  others  was  lor  5  I.  and  only  1 1  1.  in  all  could  be  granted 
to  one  man.  H.  's  rancho  of  Alisal,  J  1.,  was  not  deducted  because  it  was  pur- 
chased, not  granted. 


554 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


list  than  the  various  classes  of  fraudulent  claims.     Of 
the  famous  cases  the  claim  of  Andres  Castillero  for 


yr 


m 


Iturbide,  400  1.,  281,  rej.  by  1.  c,  and  as  notice  of  appeal  was  not  filed  in 
time,  the  merits  of  the  case  were  never  considered  Ijy  the  »f.  c.  and  s.  c,  tlitmiih 
it  was  implied  that  it  might  have  merits.  1  Iloff.  UTS;  22  Jlouxinl,  2!K). 
Land  was  Ist  granted  to  I.  in  Texas  '22;  in  '35  his  heirs  were  allowed  to  locate 
tlie  grant  in  N.  Mex.  or  Cal. ;  in  '41  it  was  decreed  that  it  should  ho  in 
Cal. ;  and  in  '45  the  gov.  was  ordered  to  grant  the  land  as  selected  l>y  Salva- 
dor I.  The  latter,  however,  was  not  able  to  come  to  Cal.  tdl  '51.  Pnibalily 
all  this  imposed  no  obligations  whatever  on  the  U.  S. 

Larkin,  Boga,  Butte,  129,  conf.,  as  was  the  adjoining  cl.  of  Fernandez  (no, 
109).  In  a  boundary  dispute  between  these  2  conf.  and  patented  grants  the 
earlier  grant  with  junior  patent  prevailed  against  the  later  grant  and  senior 
patent;  but  on  the  ground  that  the  former  was  not  purely  a  lloating  grant. 
Otherwise,  in  the  case  of  2  floating  grants,  the  date  of  the  patent  was  decisive. 
18  Wotlnre,  255. 

Larkin,  Jimeno  rancho,  Colusa  and  Yuba,  131,  conf.  by  all  the  courts  on 
grant  of  '44  to  Jimeno.  This  case  settled  several  minor  points;  that  area  not 
in  grant  may  l)e  learned  from  other  doc.  of  the  expediente;  that  evid.  of  frauil 
not  ollered  in  d.  c.  will  not  be  received  in  s.  c.;  that  grants  to  civil  and  mil. 
employes  are  valid;  and  that  absence  of  the  usual  conditions  do  not  invali- 
date the  grant.  .lustice  Campbell  dissented  from  the  final  eouf.,  believing 
that  this  cl.  was  a  'put-up  job  of  Larkin,  Jimeno,  and  Micheltoreua  in  '40  or 
later.   18  Howard,  557;  1  Iloff.  41,  49,  68,  72. 

Limantour,  4  sq.  1.  in  S.  F.  (all  south  of  Cal.  st),  also  Alcatraz  and  Verba 
Buena  isl.,  the  Farallones,  and  Pt  Tiburon,  548-9,  cl.  filed  in  Feb.  '53;  conf. 
by  1.  c.  in  '56  on  grants  of  Feb.  and  Dec.  '43,  approval  of  the  Mex.  govt  in 
'43-4,  an  cxi)edieiite  found  in  the  Mont,  archives  in  '53  by  Vicente  1'.  (iomez, 
other  corresp.  and  doc.  evidence,  and  parol  testimony  of  many  individuals. 
L.  claimed  to  have  received  the  land  in  return  for  aid  furnialied  to  the  gov., 
and  the  fact  that  he  did  furnish  such  aid  gave  plausil>ility  to  his  claim, 
except  in  respect  of  its  extent;  but  this  extent,  and  especially  the  fact  that 
L.'s  cl.  to  5  other  grants  aggregating  nearly  a  millien  acres  (no.  715,  780-1, 
783-4),  being  rej.  by  the  1.  c.  had  been  abandoned,  were  sullicient  to  excite 
more  than  suspicicm.  The  conf.  caused  great  excitement  in  S.  F.  '5li-S,  on 
account  of  the  iminenso  interests  involved.  Though  many  able  lawyers  pro- 
nounced the  claim  fraudulent  or  illegal,  many  lot-owuer.s  bought  tiie  title  for 
security;  an  opposing  organization  suspended  its  efforts  on  receiving,'  (juit- 
claim  deeds  from  L.,  and  John  .S.  liittell  published  a  pam]ihlet  in  ^57,  in 
which,  giving  an  excellent  account  of  the  case,  he  concluded  that  tlie  cl.  was 
genuine,  and  that  its  conf.  would  be  best  for  the  citizens.  B^'fuvo  .fudu'e 
Uotl'nian  in  the  d.  c.  the  cl.,  was  fully  investigated  in  '58  and  finally  rejeeteil 
on  tlie  ground  that  the  grants,  expedientes,  and  most  of  the  doc.  were  for- 
geries or  antedated,  and  much  of  the  other  testimony  perjury.  1  Jlojf. 
389-451.  The  exposure  was  so  complete  that  L.  abandoned  the  cl.  and 
deemed  him.self  lucky  to  escape  from  the  country.  Some  of  his  accomplices 
ami  tools  had  turned  against  him.  The  decisive  point  was  the  discovery 
that  the  seals  on  all  the  L.  grants  were  counterfeit;  but  without  this  ami 
other  positive  proof,  I  think  the  fraud  would  have  been  fully  established 
and  the  claim  rejected  on  the  clear  circumstantial  evidence  to  be  drawn  from 
numerous  irregularities,  inconsistencies,  improbabilities,  and  falsehoods  con- 
nected with  the  proceedings  and  evidence.  William  C.  Jones  always  main- 
tained that  no  conn)etent  lawyer  ever  did  or  could  question  the  fraudulent 
nature  of  the  claim;  and  H.  W.  Halleck,  that  the  grant  if  genuine  would  1)0 
held  illegal,  since  the  gov.  could  not  thus  grant  to  a  single  individual  nearly 
all  the  pueblo  lands  without  the  con.sent  or  knowledj-'e  of  the  municipal  au- 
thorities. It  is  probable  that  L.  really  got  a  grant  of  a  small  tract  at  S.  F., 
which  has  no  practical  bearing  on  the  case,  except  that  it  may  in  a  few  iu- 


NEW  ALMADEN. 


555 


the  New  Alinadon  quicksilver  mine  was  probably  the 
most  important  and    complicated.     In  magnitude  of 

stances  mitigate  the  charge  of  perjury  against  some  inilividuals.  Of  course 
hilt  tliu  barest  outline  of  this  cause  celebni  can  be  given  here,  and  I  cannot 
cvi.'M  [ireseiit  its  bibliography. 

J.iiiiantour,  Cienega  del  (iavilan,  Mont.,  782,  rej.  by  1.  c.  but  conf.  by 
(1.  c.  (Ill  a  grant  of  '43  to  Antonio  (.'haves;  and  I  think  tlie  conf.  was  final. 
This  was  the  only  one  of  the  Limantour  cl.  that  became  valid,  but  it  wiis 
diiiilitU'ss  fraudulent  like  the  rest,  Itearing  the  forged  seal,  and  it  is  under- 

st I  tliat  the  U.  S.  ofiicials  knew  this  fact  before  it  was  too  late.     The 

liiplder  umler  L.  claiming  to  have  bought  in  good  faith,  and  adopting  a  liberal 
piilioy  witli  squatters,  was  enabled  to  obtain  his  patent. 

J-ittle,  5  1.  in  Yob),  807,  rej.  by  d.  c.  on  Sutter  gen.  title,  q.  v.  Most  of 
tlir-^i^  cl.  were  conf.  by  the  d.  c,  though  finally  rej.  by  s.  c. ;  but  in  this  case 
tlie  grant  was  fraudulently  antedated  oy  Sutter  in  '50. 

hiico,  Ulpinos,  Solano,  813;  rej.  in  all  tlie  courts  on  a  grant  of  a  8oI)rante, 
some  50  1.,  to  Jose  de  la  liosa  in  '45.  Tins  was  the  last  case  presenteil  to  tlie 
1.  (,'.,  in  '54,  after  the  term  liad  expired,  by  a  special  iictof  congress.  It  rested 
(i:i  line,  deposited  in  the  arch,  in  '53  and  on  oral  testimony.  It  w;i8  one  of 
tlie  most  carefully  prepared  of  the  crooked  cases,  and  diil  space  permit  niiglit 
lie  jii'dlitably  reviewed  somewhat  at  length.  Tlie  claim  was  rej.  as  fraudulent 
tliidughout,  Pio  Pico's  signature  and  the  govt  seal  being  forgeries,  most  of 
the  doc.  spurious,  and  testimony  in  support  of  Rosa's  claim  and  occupancy 
for  the  most  part  perjury.   1  Iloff.  345;  '23  Howard,  515. 

Marehina,  1  1.  in  S.  F.,  granted  in  '44  to  Fernando  M.  in  payment  for  sor- 
viees  to  the  army.  Not  presented  to  1.  c.  or  courts;  but  pub.  in  a  pamphlet 
at  S.  F.  '05,  perhaps  for  the  discipline  of  lot-owners. 

Moreheacf,  Carmel,  Sac,  89,  rej.  in  1.  c,  conf.  d.  c,  and  finally  rej.  in 
s.  c,  the  court  refusing  to  reopen  the  case  for  new  evidence  in  '01.  1  lilark, 
'I'll;  III.  488,  \Vm  Knight,  the  grantee,  bad  a  Sutter  gen.  title;  but  he 
had  also  a  grant  from  Gov.  Pico  of '4G.  The  absence  of  proper  '  record  evi- 
tleiice '  was  deemed  to  justify  strict  ruling  and  close  .scrutiny  of  secondary 
fcvid.  which  was  largely  of  a  suspicious  nature,  tending  to  show  the  doc.  to 
be  fraudulent.  J.  Wayne  dissented  from  the  decision,  deeming  it  'a  severer 
exclusion  of  a  right  of  prop,  in  land  secured  Ijy  treaty  than  has  hitherto  beeu 
ailjuilged  by  this  court  in  any  case  from  Cal.' 

Murphy,  Pastoria  de  las  Borregasj,  Sta  Clara,  90,  conf.  on  grant  of  '42  to 
Kstiada;  as  was  another  part  of  the  raneho  to  (Jiutro  on  the  same  grant 
(im.  257).  M.  held  under  a  deed  from  C;  find  a  claim  of  the  Estradas,  who 
(lisimted  the  valiility  of  C.'s  deed,  was  lost  in  Cal.  s.  c.  (19  <'<il.  278),  because 
it  had  not  been  presented  to  the  1.  c,  the  merits  not  being  considered.  This 
ruling  is  not  clear  to  me  on  the  theory  that  the  U.  S.  patent  was  a  (piitclaim 
without  prejudice  to  the  rights  of  3d  parties. 

Noe,  Isl.  in  Sac.,  294,  rej.  by  1.  c,  conf.  d.  c,  and  rej.  s.  c.  1  Ilnff.  102; 
23  llomii-il,  312.  This  was  a  grant  to  Khvell  for  services  in  '41,  and  was  the 
1st  el.  rejected  for  non-fullilrncnt  of  conditions  of  occupati(m,  etc.,  amounting 
a.-i  was  held  to  a  virtual  abandonment  until  the  change  of  govt  made  the  cl. 
valuable.  The  distinction  between  this  and  other  cases  decided  the  other 
way  is  vague,  but  of  course  the  line  must  be  <li"iwn  somewhere. 

Olvera,  Cuyamaca,  S.  Diego,  375;  rej.  1.  c,  conf.  d.  c.  '58.  Not  surveyed 
till  '70,  and  the  survey  rejected  in  '73,  and  a  now  one  ordered  which  was  to 
exchide  the  Julian  mines  on  the  N. 

Oslo,  Angel  Isl.,  S.  F.,  18,  conf.  by  1.  c.  and  d.  c.  on  a  grant  of  '39  under 
an  onlcr  from  Mex.  of  '38.  It  was  rej.  by  the  s.  c,  becau.se  the  grant  had 
not  been  made  as  ordered  'with  concurrence  of  the  diputaeion.'  'riie  grant 
and  testimony  were  regarded  as  suspicious,  and  not  less  so  because  of  the 
desirability  of  the  isl.  to  the  U.  S. ;  therefore  strict  compliance  with  formali- 
ties was  insisted  on.  23  Howard,  293;  1  Uoff.  100. 


856 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


interests  involved,  and  bulk  of  record,  this  case  before 
the  district  court  was  deemed  second  to  none  decided 


;  I 


Pacheco,  Arroyo  de  las  Nueces,  Contra  Costa,  168,  coiif.  by  all  tlic  courts. 
In  tliis  case  as  in  that  of  (lioiiziilcz  (ii3ti)  there  was  a  blunder  of  "2  si}.  1.'  lor 
'  2  1.  sq. '  in  the  grant;  but  in  this  case  the  error  was  corrected  in  d.  c.  and 
8.  c.  '22  Howard,  225. 

Pachecn,  Bolsa  de  S.  Felipe,  Mont.,  65,  conf.  by  all  the  courts  as  onu  (if 
the  few  perfect  titles,  juridical  possession  under  a  grant  of  '40.  The  d.  c. 
reduced  the  cl.  to  1  1.  because  '  dos  '  had  been  written,  over  an  erasure  of 
'  uno; '  but  the  8.  c.  raised  it  to  2  1.  because  the  change  had  been  made  at  tliu 
time  of  the  grant,  or  before  possession.   1  Walhire,  282. 

Palmer,  Pt  Lobos,  S.  F.,  515,  rej.  by  all  the  courts  as  fraudulent  or  ante- 
dated, on  a  grant  of  '40.  The  fact  that  Gov.  Pico  was  not  at  Los  Aug.  on  the 
date  the  grant  purported  to  be  signed  there  seems  to  have  been  the  entering 
Wedge  to  show  the  fraud.  These  late  grants  were  naturally  regarded  with 
much  suspicion,  and  though  there  was  some  doc.  and  oral  testimony  in  f;i\'iir 
of  the  Diaz  grant,  yet  suspicious  circumstances  were  abundant.  1  H<>ff.  '24<.l; 
24  Howard,  125.  There  seems  to  have  been  another  cl.  to  this  laud,  not  pre- 
sented to  the  1.  c,  on  a  grant  of  '45  to  Joarj.  Pina. 

Pastor,  Milpitas,  Mont.,  305,  conf.  by  1.  c.  '53  and  by  d.  c.  '60  on  a  grant 
of  '38  to  an  Ind.  There  were  many  and  complicated  legal  proceedings  hu- 
sides.  Apparently  the  grant  was  fraudulent,  purporting  to  be  signed  l)y 
Alvarado  at  8.  Antonio  when  he  was  really  far  away  in  tlie  south,  and  us 
constitutional  gov.,  which  he  was  not  till  the  next  year;  and  worse  yet,  the 
survey  was  located  without  reference  to  the  original  bounds,  and  the  aroa  in- 
creased from  12,000  to  30,000  acres  to  include  the  lands  of  some  lliO  settk'r». 
Luco,  of  Ulpinos  grant  fame,  was  the  owner.  In  '76-7  J.  F.  Stuart  in  bohalf 
of  the  settlers  was  engaged  in  desperate  eflforts  to  have  this  fraud  expo.scd 
and  the  wrong  redressed,  but  without  final  success,  so  far  as  is  shown  by  the 
incomplete  records  within  my  reach. 

Peralta,  .S.  Antonio,  Alameda,  4,  273-4,  conf.  by  all  the  courts,  on  grant 
of  '20  to  Luis  P.,  to  sons  of  the  grantee,  li)  Ilmoard,  343.  This  grant  eoverod 
the  sites  of  Berkeley,  Oakland,  and  Alameda,  representing  in  later  years  many 
millions  in  value.  Don  Luis  in  '42  divided  the  land  among  his  four  sons,  and 
in  his  will  of  '51  confirmed  the  division.  His  four  daughters  were  ignored, 
and  this  caused  nmch  litigation  in  later  times  on  the  famous  'sisters'  title.' 
If  the  grant  of  '20  gave  a  'perfect'  title,  all  the  heirs  of  Luis  had  a  valid 
claim;  but  it  was  held  by  the  s.  c.  (13  Wallac,:,  480)  in  '71  that  the  title  of  "20 
was  not  perfect,  since  the  eastern  boundary  was  not  definitely  fixed,  and 
therefore  tlie  patent  to  the  sons  was  final.  It  was  implied,  however,  tliat 
holders  under  the  sisters  might  have  some  claim  that  would  be  recognized  by 
a  court  of  equity  if  properly  presented;  and  there  were  other  ramifications  of 
the  matter  that  I  cannot  follow  here;  so  that  in  '85  the  title  to  certain  tracts 
is  not  regarded  as  altogether  quieted. 

Pico,  Calaveras,  602,  rej.  by  1.  c.,  conf.  d.  c,  and  rej.  s.  c.  on  a  grant  of 
July  20,  '40.  There  was  an  expediente  of  date  prior  to  July  7tli,  but  as  tiiere 
was  some  doubt  about  the  grant  itself,  occupation,  etc.,  the  equities  of  such  a 
cl.,  if  genuine,  were  not  decided. 

Pico,  Jamul,  S.  Diego,  407,  rej.  by  1.  c.  and  d.  c.  '58  on  a  grant,  or  license 
to  occupy,  of  '31.  In  some  way  not  clear  to  me  the  cl.  came  before  the  d.  c. 
in  '70,  on  a  grant  by  Gk>v.  Pico  to  himself,  after  a  petition  from  himself  to 
himself,  in  '45.  It  was  conf.,  but  chiefly  as  an  equitable  cl.  resting  on  the 
license  of  '31,  long  occupation,  etc.   1  Sauyer,  347. 

Pico,  Moquelunme,  357,  rej.  L  c,  conf.  d.  c. — mainly  because  the  court 
was  not  at  lioerty  '  to  substitute  its  own  suspicions  for  proofs  ' — but  rej.  by 
the  8.  c.  on  grant  of  June  '46,  there  being  no  archive  expediente,  with  but 
slight  evid.  of  occupation.  This  Mex.  grant,  however,  seems  to  have  pre- 
vented the  land  from  being  gobbled  up  by  the  R.  R.,  and  in  '76  the  settlers 
celebrated  by  a  barbecue  a  tiual  decision  in  their  favor. 


A  BALKY  CASE. 


557 


previously  by  any  tribunal.     The  transcript  of  record 
filled  3,584  printed  pages;  125  witnesses  were  exani- 

I'dlack,  Yerba  Buena  Isl.,  11,  cont.  by  1.  c,  but  rej.  by  <1.  c.  on  grant  of 
'3i>.  1  IJqf.  284.  There  was  no  original  grant  or  expediente,  only  a  copy 
reciirili'd  in  '49;  but  there  was  much  and  contradictory  testimony  about  the 
exiHtciico  of  the  grant  before  '46  and  the  occupation  by  Castro,  grantee;  and 
8(imu  ilirect  evid.  tliat  Alvarado  antedated  the  grant  in  '48.  The  cotirt  favored 
this  view;  but  rejected  the  cl.  on  the  ground  that  in  the  absence  of  record 
priiof  other  eviilence  must  be  of  the  best  and  free  from  suspicion. 

Heading,  S.  Buenaventura,  Sac,  28,  conf.  by  all  the  courts.  1  Hof.  18; 
18  lloii'iinl,  I .  In  this  case  the  point  was  urged  that  R.  forfeited  \\\»  rights  aa 
a  Mt'X.  citizen  by  joining  Fremont  and  the  Bears  against  Mex. ;  and  J.  Daniel 
diasciitud  on  this  ground,  holding  that  Mex.  never  would  have  conf.  a  grant 
to  8uch  a  man,  aiul  the  U.  S.  were  bound  to  do  nothing  that  Mex.  wouM  not 
liiivu  (lone.  But  the  court  held  that  R.'8  act  was  justifiable  (!),  not  treachery, 
und  if  it  were  the  U.  S.  could  not  urge  an  act  in  their  own  favor  as  a  ground 
of  forfeiture. 

Rico,  llancheria  del  Rio  Estanislao,  S.  Joaq.,  7C7,  conf.  by  1.  c.  and  d.  c, 
an<l  ^ippeal  disnussed,  on  grant  of  11  1.  in  '48.  Juilge  Hoffman  coutirmed  this 
cl.  (Ill  the  conf.  of  the  1.  c.  and  the  absence  of  argument  or  new  testimony 
a<{iiiiist  it  in  the  d.  c,  1)ecause  his  suspicions  were  not  sufficient  to  authorize 
liiiii  to  pronounce  it  a  forgery.  But  later  in  the  Limantour  case  the  Rico 
grant  was  found  to  bear  the  spurious  seal,  and  was  doubtless  entirely  frauda* 
iuiit.     I  have  seen  no  record  of  later  proceedings  if  there  were  any. 

Ritchie,  Suisun,  Solano  Co.,  3,  conf.  by  all  tlie  courts,  on  a  grant  to  the 
Iiid.  chief  Solano  in  '42,  being  the  second  case  before  the  s.  c.  17  Howard, 
0'.'.').  This  case  established  the  right  of  the  Ind.  to  receive  and  sell  lands; 
also  that  mission  lands  were  subject  to  colonization  grants.  Caleb  Cushing 
ill  an  argument  of  80  p.  claimed  that  this  was  a  '  job '  of  Vallejo  to  use  Solano 
to  gL't  land  in  addition  to  his  regular  grants. 

Roclia,  La  Brea,  Los  Aug.,  487,  rej.  1.  c,  conf.  d.  c.  and  s.  c.  on  munici- 
pal grant  of  '28,  and  provisional  grant  of  '40  until  the  pueblo  ejidos  should  be 
settled.  9  Wallace,  C39. 

Rodriguez,  Butano,  Sta  Cruz,  627.  This  was  a  case  where  one  conf.  and 
patented  cl.  left  no  room  for  another  also  conf.  a  little  later.  By  a  possible 
eiTor  in  the  bound  of  the  pat.  cl.  the  court  found  room  for  i  1.  of  the  other, 
and  for  the  rest  stretched  it  over  worthless  mountains  as  the  best  that  could 
lie  done..  1   Wallace,  582. 

Rodriguez,  S.  Francisquito,  Sta  Clara,  642,  conf.  on  grant  of  '39,  but  a 
portion  overlapped  by  a  later  grant  ist  surveyed  was  lost.  29  Cal.  104. 

Roland,  Los  Huecos,  Sta  Clara,  282,  rej.  by  1.  c.  for  lack  of  approval  by 
asseinb.,  of  juridical  possession,  and  of  occupation;  rej.  by  d.  c.  because  the 
grant  was  made  by  the  gov.  in  '46  without  investigation;  but  conf.  by  s.  c. 
on  the  ground  that  in  case  of  a  genuine  expediente  from  the  archives,  even 
lacking  a  diseflo,  the  objections  urged  were  not  valid.  10  WalUice,  224.  Ro- 
laiiil's  cl.  in  S.  Joaq.  co.  (no.  232)  was  rej.  by  all  the  courts  as  antedated, 
though  a  suspicious  expediente  was  produced  from  the  archives. 

Romero,  Sobrante  de  S.  Ramon,  Contra  Costa,  6o4,  rej.  by  all  the  courts, 
liucause  with  petition,  favorable  reports,  etc.,  and  actual  occupation  with 
boundary  agreed  upon  by  neighbors,  no  formal  grant  could  be  shown.  1  Hoff. 
L''JU;  1  Wallace,  721.  The  owners  of  the  adjoining  rancho  (no.  179,  301,  of 
which  this  was  the  sobrante)  had  their  cl.  conf.  at  Ist  for  the  whole  extent  of 
both,  but  the  survey  was  later  restricted  to  2  1.  Meanwhile,  congress  passed 
an  act  allowing  the  Romero  holders  to  contest  Carpentier's  survey  of  S.  Ra- 
mon, and  C.  made  his  survey  in  a  most  extraordinary  shape  so  as  to  cover  all 
tiie  good  land  on  both  ranches.  This  was  before  the  courts  in  '64,  and  I  do 
not  know  the  result;  but  there  has  been  much  trouble  in  the  matter  since. 
This  Cari>entier  seems  to  have  beer  a  shrewd  laud  fiend  interested  in  many 
of  the  crooked  cases. 


658 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


ined,  18  of  them  proin'mcnt  men  from  ^[exic(>;  lawvtis 
like    Reverdy   Johnson,   Judah    P.    Benjanun,    llall 


■!ii'  i 


M 


Sautillfin,  Mission  Doldres,  S.  F.,  '81,  cl.  of  Bolton  on  a  tirnnt  of  '411,  cunf. 
by  1.  c.  '55,  Muljiro/onmi  hy  il.  c.  '57,  but  rej.  by  a.  c.  in  '6"J.  This  vmh  chh' 
of  tlio  fiiinoiis  casos  covuriiiK  3  1.  of  S.  F.  lauds.  S.,  parish  priest  at  S.  !•'.  in 
'4(»,  made  known  his  el.  in  '5(>,  selling  it  to  J.  R.  Bolton,  and  beforo  tiiu  1.  c.'h 
conf.  it  passi'<l  into  tiio  po-sseasion  of  a  Philadelphia  a.ssociation.  The  gen- 
ii iiieneHS  of  the  original  grant,  signed  byltov.  Pioo  and  Sec.  CovarruMas  mi 
Feb.  10,  '4(5,  was  proved  by  the  testimony  of  C.  and  Ills  elerit  An  nas;  im  ux- 
pediente  or  otlier  doc.  from  the  arcliivea  was  produced;  record  anil  approval 
by  the  assenib.  wore  proved  by  parol  evidence;  there  was  tcMtiniony—  nitlicr 
doubtful,  oxecjit  in  that  the  witnesses  had  not  yet  been  impeached — that  the 
grant  hail  existed  in  '4();  and  evidence  direct  and  indirect,  though  of  no  great 
weight,  that  the  grant  iiad  been  antedated  in  '49-50.  That  a  iioverty-sti'ickcii 
Ind.  priest  should  have  got  a  grant  of  '.i  1.  on  condition  of  paying  tlie  uiissiini 
debt,  that  ho  could  have  obtained  so  largo  a  tract  of  pueblo  l:in<la  witlmiit  in- 
vestigation leaving  triices  in  tlie  archives,  and  that  ho  could  or  would  liavc 
kept  his  grant  a  secret  frotn  interested  residents  at  the  mission  and  fioin 
otliers  for  years — all  tliis  creates  against  the  cl.  a  presumption  of  fraud  tliat 
could  be  overcome  only  by  tlie  most  complete  and  satisfactory  evideiiue,  and 
the  evidence  oflered  was  on  the  contrary  weak  and  suspicious  at  every  point. 
The  cl.  shoulil  have  been  rejected  on  its  merits  by  the  I.  c.  at  the  start.  Tlio 
company  owning  the  claim  lias  since  '59  ma,de  many  efforts  to  obtain  satisfac;- 
tioii  from  congress,  and  in  '78  got  a  favorable  report  from  tlie  house  cum.  on 
private  land  Lnaims,  recommending  a  rehearing  of  the  case  by  the  courts  with 
a  view  to  later  compensation  by  the  govt  if  the  cl.  should  bo  held  valid. 
Tills  rejtort  contains  nothing  new  in  support  of  the  cl.  more  important  than 
the  prouiiae  of  the  testimony  of  Santillan  and  Pico,  except  that  the  discovery 
of  a  record-book  is  mentioned.  Perhaps  this  is  the  Uta.  B.  Airh.,  on  p.  i't'i  df 
my  copy  of  wliich  is  the  record  of  a  deed  of  '40  from  Hantillan  to  Carrillo 
of  part  of  the  mission  land,  and  with  it  an  undated  record  of  the  (U^posit  by 
S.  of  his  title  and  other  doc.  in  the  archives  of  the  juzgado.  This,  if  genuiiio, 
•A'lmkl  l)e  of  course  more  important  in  support  of  the  claim  than  anything 
presented  to  the  courts.  The  case  has  many  complications  to  wliich  I  can- 
not even  allude. 

Sepulveda,  Sta  Mdnica,  Los  Ang.,  457;  also  Reyes,  Boca  de  Sta  M.,  44.'); 
both  conf.,  but  no  survey  or  patent  as  late  as  '73.  At  this  date  tiiere  was  a 
(piarrel  between  the  claimants  as  there  had  boon  almost  continuously  since; 
'2  )-7  when  they  occupied  the  land  under  a  provisional  license.  Tlieie  hail 
been  several  grants  and  revocations  with  frequent  litigation  down  to  '4(1,  ami 
the  case  was  a  complicated  one;  but  it  was  decided  that  Reyes  could  Imlil 
the  area  within  which  his  IJ  1.  were  to  be  located  until  the  final  survey 
slioulil  be  made.  45  Cid.  379. 

Serrano,  Temescal,  S.  Diego,  414,  rej.  by  1.  c,  conf.  d.  c,  and  rej.  s.  c,  on  a 
license  of  '19,  under  which  S.  occupied  the  land  from  '19  to  '52,  his  right  never 
being  questioned.  It  was  heltl  that  his  written  permission  to  occupy  consti- 
tuted no  eipiitable  cl. ;  indeed,  he  would  have  been  better  off  without  it, 
since  long  possession  with  his  belief  in  ownership  might  have  been  an  t.i|ui- 
table  title  but  for  the  paper  showing  his  right  to  be  temporary!  The  Calitm- 
niaiis  did  nq,t  exactly  appreciate  this  reasoning.  5  Wallace,  451. 

Shorreback,  800  v.  sq.  in  S.  F.,  795,  rej.  by  1.  c,  conf.  by  d.  c,  but  decree 
vacated  in  '(iO.  It  was  a  grant  by  the  prefect  in  '45,  and  without  much  doubt 
fraudulent.  In  '85  this  claim  comes  up  again  to  terrify  lot-owners,  resting 
apparently  at  this  stage  on  some  informality  in  the  final  decree  of  reject  inn. 

Stearns,  600  v.  sq.  in  S.  F.,  94,  rej.  by  all  the  courts  on  a  grant  of  '4(i  to 
Andrade,  including  the  tract  known  as  the  Willows.  The  grant  was  held  to 
have  been  made  after  July  7th  and  antedated.  6  Wallace,  589. 

Suflol,  Cocbes,  Sta  Clara,  107,  conf.  '50  on  a  grant  of  '44  to  an  Iiul., 


LIST  OF  CLAIMS. 


650 


I  to  an  Iiul., 


;^^('Allist^T,  and   Edmund  Raiidolpli  on  one  side   or 
the  other  gave  utterance  to  100  to  400  pagi'S  each 

lloliiirto;  yot  in  T)()  S.  failed  to  eject  an  intruder,  tlic  ('id.  h.  c.  lioliling  that 
ail  IikI.  could  not  make  a  valid  convuyancu  of  lainl.   \  Huff.  110;  Wn/. 'J.'i.'). 

Siitlicrland,  Cajon,  S.  Diogo,  '2(»'J,  conf,  l»y  all  the  courts  on  ^raiit  of  '45 
to  I'i'ilrorcna.  Held  not  to  he  void  because  nohountU  or  quantity  were  Nixx'i- 
tii'il,  so  lonf{  an  there  was  a  tract  of  the  name — and  only  one — in  the  region. 
Ill  Jhininl,  'M3. 

Sutter,  N.  Helvetia,  Sac.  Val.,  92,  conf.  hy  all  the  courts  on  grant  of  '41 
for  II  1.  Tiio  original  grant  hail  been  burned  in  '51;  archive  evidence  was 
vory  sliglit;  and  the  location  was  vague  in  many  respects;  yet  tlie  eviijenco 
was  dceiiieil  conclusive  that  Sutter  luul  iu  '41  reo'd  a  valid  grant  of  11  1.  in 
the  Sac.  V;d.  21  lloimrd,  170.  As  to  location  the  case  was  .sent  back  to 
d.  c.  for  further  action.  AsS.  had  sohl  lanils  almost  anywhere  in  the  val. 
wliere  desireil,  to  many  persons,  the  location  of  his  grant  became  a  niatuer 
(if  great  imjiortance  and  difficulty  since  it  was  hard  to  cover  with  a  I '  1. 
survey  claims  scattered  over  100  1.  Originally  by  a  blunder  in  lines  of  lati- 
tude tlie  soutliern  bountl  had  been  placed  many  miles  north  of  the  fort,  and 
the  s(]iiatters  of  Sac.  city  struggUMito  have  it  apoear  that  S.  owned  iiotliing 
south  of  the  Sac.  and  Fctather  junction,  S.  himself  being  willing  to  take  that 
view  at  times;  but  the  location  of  the  fort  and  tlie  mention  of  tlie  .'{  buttes 
a-i  a  northern  bounil  were  very  properly  deemed  conclusive.  The  survey  of 
'.V.»()0  located  the  lan<l  in  2  tracts,  one  of  2  1.  including  the  fort  and  city,  the 
dtlier  of  1)  1.  on  the  Feather  Riv.,  including  Marysville.  The  d.  c.  set  aside 
t!iis  survey,  and  in  '03  approved  a  new  one  locating  the  land  in  a  long  line 
of  l.'l  tracts  between  the  same  limits  as  before,  the  theory  being  to  follow 
S.'s  own  successive  selections  as  shown  by  settlements,  deeds,  etc.,  a.s  the 
nearest  approximation  to  justice.  The  s.  c,  however,  sot  aside  the  last  sur- 
vey and  restored  that  of  '(50;  that  is,  conlirmed  the  grant  as  originally  maile, 
not  attempting  the  impossible  by  trying  to  remedy  Sutter's  blunilers  and 
frauds.  2  Wallace,  502.  See  also  vol.  iv.,  pp.  220-32,  of  this  work,  for  map 
and  some  details. 

Sutter,  Sobrante,  92,  conf.  by  1.  c.  and  d.  c.,  but  rej.  by  s.  c.  on  a  granr.  of 
Feb.  25,  '45,  for  the  surplus  of  N.  Helv.  to  the  extent  of  22  I.,  signed  by  (tov. 
Micheltorena  at  St.a  B.  This  gnant  also  was  burned  in  '51,  and  the  evidence 
ill  support  of  its  authenticity  seems  weak  and  wholly  insutlicicnt,  though  I 
have  little  doubt  that  S.  did  get  from  the  gov.  such  a  paper  in  return  for  his 
services;  but  the  cl.  was  rejected  on  the  ground  that  such  a  grant,  even  if 
genuine — made  by  Gov.  M.  out  of  his  capital,  engaged  in  civil  war,  on  the 
Verge  of  dcifeat,  made  to  a  band  of  foreigners  on  whom  his  success  depended, 
without  due  formidities  of  law,  not  recognized  by  his  successors,  kept  secret 
till  the  U.  S.  were  in  power,  etc. — constituted  no  ecpiitablu  claim  wliich  the 
U.  S.  W(!ro  bound  to  confirm.  21  Hownrd,  )    1  et  se(j. 

Sutter,  'general  title,' 220,  235,  303,  G05,  620,  058,  ct  al.,  conf.  by  L  c. 
and  <1.  c. ;  but  rej.  by  the  s.  c.  This  gen.  title  was  a  doc.  signed  I>ec.  22, 
'44,  by  winch  (iov.  M.  confer,  jd  on  each  person  who  had  asked  for  lands  and 
got  a  favorable  report  from  S.  a  title  to  the  lauds  solicited,  a  copy  of  this 
order  is.sued  and  certified  by  S.  to  serve  as  such  title.  The  ostensible  motive 
was  to  save  the  time  and  trouble  of  making  so  many  individual  grants;  the 
real  motive  was  to  bribe  S.  and  his  settlers  to  aid  M.  against  his  foes,  the  or- 
der being  sent  up  to  the  fort  before  the  volunteers  started.  The  certificates 
were  given  out  by  S.  within  the  next  year,  except  some  fraudulently  ante- 
dated in  later  years;  but  none  of  the  claimants  had  really  applied  in  good 
faith  for  lands  before  the  general  order  was  signed.  The  1.  c.  and  d.  c.  conf. 
such  of  these  cl.  as  seemed  genuine  on  the  ground  that  the  title  with  actual 
occupation  by  settlers  constituted  an  equital)le  cl.  on  the  U.  S. ;  but  the  s.  c. 
held  that  the  general  title,  not  depending  in  any  way  on  the  colonization 
laws,  was  at  the  best  but  a  promise  to  diijtribute  laudi,  if  successful,  among 


BiEm 

■ti 

u 

■If 

1' 

il|r 

1 

1 

.,1^- 


SdO 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


of  lugal  lore,  eloquence,  wit,  and  sarcasm;  dozens  of 
Hpecial  paniplilets  on  the  subject  were  j)ublished,  Ije- 
sides  the  regular  briefs  and  court  records;  and  outside 
of  the  main  struggle  between  the  claimants  and  the 
United  States,  there  was  always  a  complicated  litii^a- 
tion  in  progress  between  quarrelling  claimants.  The 
great  battle  had  to  be  fought  again  before  the  supreme 
court,  where  by  an  unjust  decision  the  mining  claim 
was  finally  rejected;  and  after  another  struggle  in 
behalf  of  a  survey  that  should  locate  the  mine  on  jni- 

hig  supporters,  and  his  defeat  abrogated  whatever  power  had  Loen  conferred 
on  S.  No  L'xuuptioii  was  made  in  cases  where  the  cl. liad  been  put  provisionally 
in  poshossion  by  Crov.  M.  until  he  could  decide.  21  Howard,  408,  412;  '1\\  lil. 
255,  202,  476. 

Swartz,  N.  Flandria,  655,  787,  rej.  on  a  grant  of  '44  by  all  the  courts. 
I  Hof.  230;  1  Wallacf,  721.  This  cl.  wa« presented  to  1.  c.  without  tviduiuc, 
which  was  Ist  iiitrod.  in  d.  c.  The  court  was  in  doubt  about  the  legality  of  this 
course,  though  inclined  to  permit  it;  but  the  cl.  was  rejected  aa  a  forgery. 

Tescliemacher,  Lupyomi,  Sonoma,  607,  rej.  by  1.  c,  conf.  by  d.  c,  but 
remanded  by  s.  c.  and  finally  rejected.  22  Howard,  392.  Tliis  was  a  cl.  not 
supported  by  archive  record,  witn  slight  evid-  of  occupation  and  genuineness 
of  signatures.  The  court  evidently  regarded  it  as  antedated  or  forged,  luul 
required  such  testimony  in  such  cases  as  '  to  make  the  antedating  irreconcil- 
able with  the  weight  of  proof.' 

Vallejo,  Agua  Calicnte,  Sonoma,  741,  rej.  by  1.  c,  but  conf.  by  d.  c.  and 
B.  c.  1  BUick,  283;  1 1  WalUtce,  506.  The  opposition  was  based  on  the  sale  of 
the  land  by  the  grantee  to  V.  before  the  Hnal  grant  was  made,  thus  enabling 
V.  to  evade  tlie  restriction  to  1 1  1. 

Vallejo,  Petaluma,  Sonoma,  250,  conf.  on  grant  of  '43,  10  I.,  and  purchase 
of  '44,  5  1.  Though  the  cl.  is  recorded  as  conf.  and  ajjpeal  dismissed  in  '57, 
(ren.  v.,  Hist.  Cat,  iv.  385-6,  says  that  final  confirmation  was  not  secured 
till  '75,  after  he,  tired  of  fighting  squatters  and  lawyers,  had  given  up  his 
rights  to  the  land. 

Vallejo,  Soscol,  Solano,  291,  conf.  by  1.  o  xnd  d.  c,  but  rej.  by  s.  c.  on  a 
grant  and  sale  by  (Jov.  Micheltorena  in  43-4  There  is  no  doubt  of  the  legiti- 
macy and  good  faith  of  the  transaction;  the  genuineness  of  the  doc.  was  not 
questioned  in  the  lower  courts,  and  in  the  s.  c.  only  in  a  general,  quibbling, 
absurd  way;  but  the  cl.  was  rej.  on  the  ground  that  the  gov.  had  no  power 
to  sell  govt  lands.  1  Black,  541.  He  could  give  it  a,way  for  nothing,  but 
could  not  exchange  it  for  food  to  support  his  soldiers  1  Two  of  the  judges 
dissented  from  this  most  unjust  ruling,  and  in  '63  congress  by  a  special  act 
provided  that  actual  purchasers  under  the  Vallejo  title  should  have  the  pref- 
erence to  enter  the  land  at  $1.25  per  acre.  The  grant  covered  the  towns  of 
Benicia  and  Vallejo;  and  there  was  much  litigation  later  between  dififercut 
interests. 

Vasquez,  Soulajule,  Marin,  245,  conf.  d.  o.  '56.  In  74  Mesa,  holding  a 
part  of  the  same  grant  that  had  iiot  been  presented  for  conf.  to  the  1.  c,  in- 
siated  that  the  conf.  of  V.'s  part  was  a  com.  also  of  his  part;  but  he  was  de- 
feated in  all  the  courts.  21  Wallace,  387. 

West,  S.  Miguel,  Sonoma,  251;  rej.  by  1.  c.,  but  conf.  by  d.  c.  and  s.  c,  22 
Howard,  315.  The  grant  of  '44  was  for  1^  1.,  but  after  '46  the  quantity  was 
fraudulently  changed  to  6  1.  T)ie  a.  c.  heUl,  however,  that  this  did  not 
invalidate  the  genuine  cl.  for  IJ  L 


NOTABLE  CASES. 


661 


vatc  lands  controlled  l>y  the  company,  the  latter  waa 
forced  to  yield  and  part  with  its  property  at  a  nominal 
j.rice   of    $1,750,000.      The    Frt'mont   claim   to   tho 
M.iriposas  was   another  cause  celebre  involving  im- 
mense interests,  the  grant  being  almost  tho  only  one 
aiK'f'ting  the  gold  region,  and  its  early  confirnuitiou 
settling  several  important  legal  questions.     The  l'anf>- 
clia  Grande  claim  of  Vicente  Gomez  assumed  great 
importance  (m  account  of  the  New  Idria  quicksilver 
nunes,  which  the  grant  assumed  tc  cover;  and  in  its 
development  it  became  the  famous  McGarrahan  case, 
the  basis  of  Harte's  Story  of  a  Mine,  a  case  apparently 
destined  to  eternal  life  before  congress  and  the  courts, 
though  by  the  land  tribunals  the  claim  was  rejecte-t 
as  fraudulent.     The  grant  by  which  the  Frenchman 
Limantour  attempted  to  grasp  the  most  valuable  i  arts 
of  San  Francisco  was  a  fraudulently  antedated  docu- 
ment iiuppoi't'  ;1   i>y  other  forgeries  and  by  perjury  of 
many  witnesses.     The  confirmation  of  the  claim  hy 
the  comiiiissionors  naturally  caused  intense  excitement 
ill  the  city,  and  large  sums  of  money  were  extorted 
from  frightened  property  holders;  but  happily  the  fraud 
was  brouoht  to  light   before  the  district  court,  tiio 
judge  pronouncing  the  case  in  several  respects  "with- 
out parallel  in  the  judicial  history  of  the  country." 
The  Peralta  grant,  covering  the  sites  of  Berkeley,  Oak- 
land, and  Alameda,  though  important  on  account  of 
the  great  value  of  the  lands,  was  genuine  and  valid, 
giving  comparatively  little  trouble  to  the  land  tribu- 
nals; but  an  almost  endless  litigation  in  the  California 
courts  sprang  from  Peralta's  division  of  tlie  estate 
among  his  sons  while  ignoring  the  daughters.     The 
Bolton,  or  Santillan,  claim  to  a  large  tract  at  San 
Francisco  mission,  resting  on  a  pretended   grant   to 
tlie   parish   priest   in    1846,  caused  almost  as  nmch 
excitement  as  that  of  Limantour;   and  not  even  in 
1886  had  the  eastern  association  owning  the  claim 
abandoned  all  idea  of  obtaining  from  congress  some 
compensation   for   their   alleged   losses   and  wrongs. 

Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    36 


se2 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


n    I 


it.) 


ilJ 


u 


I  s  49 


Sutter's  claim  at  New  Helvetia  rested  on  a  valid 
grant  that  was  rinally  confirmed;  but  in  this  case 
many  complications  arose  from  the  discovery  of  gold 
in  this  region,  from  the  building  of  Sacramento  city 
on  the  land,  from  a  series  of  blunders  in  the  original 
survey,  and  from  Sutter's  peculiar  methods  of  selling 
land  almost  anywhere  with  but  slight  reference  to  his 
boundary  lines.  Vallejo's  claim  for  Soscol,  on  which 
stood  the  towns  of  Benicia  and  Vallejo,  was  finally 
rejected  as  resting  on  a  sale,  and  not  on  a  colonization 
grant;  but  the  injustice  was  to  some  extent  remedied, 
so  far  as  the  settlers  were  concerned,  by  a  subsequent 
act  of  congress. 

The  mission  lands  demand  separate  notice  in  this 
connection,  though  in  a  strict  or  legal  sense  there 
never  were  any  such  lands.  Neither  to  the  neophyte 
conmiunities,  to  the  friars,  nor  to  the  church  were  the 
so-called  mission  lands — ^that  is,  the  lands  adjoining 
the  missions,  and  utilized  at  one  time  or  another  by 
those  establishments — ever  granted  by  the  Spanish  or 
Mexican  government.  The  system  has  been  fully  ex- 
plained in  the  mission  annals  of  preceding  volumes. 
The  friars  were  simply  hired  agents  of  the  government, 
never  had  any  property  rights  whatever,  and  never 
claimed  any,  except  as  guardians  of  the  Indians.  The 
neophytes  had  simply  the  right,  on  becoming  chris- 
tianized and  civilized,  to  obtain  land  grants  like  other 
citizens;  a  few  of  them  did  so,  and  the  government 
merely  withheld  from  colonization  such  constantly 
diminishing  portions  of  the  public  lands  as  were  pros- 
pectively needed  for  the  neophytes;  the  governors 
granted  lands  not  thus  needed  from  time  to  time  to 
private  ownership,  their  right  to  do  so  never  being 
questioned  under  Mexican  rule,  and  being  eventually 
admitted  by  the  United  States;  and  in  this  matter 
the  friars  had  no  other  right — though  they  were 
always  consulted,  sometimes  consenting,  sometimes 
makmg   objections — than   that   of  protesting   before 


MISSION  ESTATES. 


563 


tlie  supreme  government  that  in  a  particular  grant 
tlie  neophytes'  prospective  needs  had  been  ignored. 
Finally,  the  church  had  an  equitable  and  always  rec- 
ognized right,  becoming  in  a  large  sense  legal  with 
tlie  progress  of  secularization,  to  the  possession  of  the 
church  buildings,  priests'  houses,  cemeteries,  and  cer- 
tain small  tracts  at  each  establishment  utilized  by  the 
priests  as  gardens  and  orchards  for  their  own  support. 
In  1845-6,  the  governor  leased,  and  finally  granted 
or  sold,  to  private  parties  the  remnants  of  the  mission 
estates — that  is,  all  the  public  lands  adjoining  tlie 
missions  not  previously  disposed  of — the  purchasers 
being  required  to  pay  the  mission  debts,  to  support 
the  parish  priest,  to  pay  the  expenses  of  public  wor- 
ship, to  recognize  the  title  to  church  property  proper, 
and  not  to  disturb  the  ex-neophytes  in  the  possession 
of  the  lots  actually  cultivated  by  them.^^ 

During  the  military  rule  of  1846-8,  on  account  of 
the  conflicting  claims  of  lessees,  purchasers,  and  priests, 
the  mission  estates  as  related  elsewhere  gave  the 
authorities  somewhat  more  trouble  than  other  classes 
of  landed  property;  but  attention  was  directed  only 
to  the  protection  of  the  estates  from  damage  and  to 
the  maintenance  of  individual  rights  in  statu  quo,  the 
question  of  title  being  left  to  later  tribunals.  Aftor 
California  became  a  state,  the  legislature  in  1850  at- 
tempted without  results  some  step-^  of  investigation ; 
and  for  the  rest  the  courts  continued  to  protect  all 
rights  pending  a  final  decision.-^  Finally  the  mission 
claims  were  presented  to  the  commission  in  three 
classes.  First  were  the  claims  under  Pico's  sales  of 
1845-6,  seventeen  in  number.  These  sales  differed 
in  several  respects  from  the  colonization  grants  which 

'■'^For  full  details  of  Gov.  Pico's  leaocs  and  salus  of  the  mission,  estates  in 
'45-0,  with  information  on  the  final  disposition  of  each  title,  see  iv.  541). "li; 
V,  5r>S-Q5;  and  also  local  anniJs  of  the  different  missions  '45-8,  in  the  same 
vohimes.  Hist.  CaL,  this  series. 

^*  CaL,  Journals,  '50,  through  index  p.  1302,  1342.  The  plan  proposed  was 
to  pay  Halleck  and  Hartnell  !fl5,000  tor  a  detailed  report  on  mission  titles. 
In  Xoliili  vs  Reifmnn,  6  Cal.  325,  the  priest  at  Sta  Clara  failed  to.  establish 
tlie  claim  of  tlie  church  to  the  Sta  Clara  orchard. 


BM 


MEXICAN'  LAND  TITLES. 


Hi; 


^Hl 


%-m 


the  governor  had  an  undoubted  right  to  make;  there 
was  the  Montesdeoea  order  of  November  1845,  rc- 
ceivcd  in  April  184G,  suspending  all  proceedings  in 
the  sale  of  mission  estates;  the  Tornel  order  of  Marcli 
giving  Pico  and  Castro  'ample  powers'  to  defend  tlio 
country,  if  «  valid  revocation  of  the  preceding,  was 
jirobably  not  received  before  most  or  all  of  the  sales 
had  been  made;  and  moreover,  the  sales  themselves 
were  irregular  in  not  having  been  made  by  auction  as 
provided,  the  claimants  offered  little  proof  of  having 
complied  with  conditions,  archive  evidence  was  for  the 
most  part  lacking,  and  the  belief  was  general  that 
Pico  had  granted  the  estates  to  English  friends  afti  r 
July  7,  1846.  The  lower  tribunals,  liowever,  virtually 
admitted  the  jjovemor's  right  to  make  the  sales, 
though  they  rejected  seven  of  the  claims — notably 
the  Santillan  claim  to  San  Francisco — for  various 
frauds  and  irregularities,  or  because  the  claim  was  f'  ' 
church  property;  and  when. finally  in  18G3  the  su- 
])reme  court  decided  in  the  cases  of  San  Gabriel  and 
San  Luis  Rey  that  the  governor  had  no  right  at  any 
time  to  sell  the  mission  estates,  eight  of  the  claims 
had  been  finally  confinned.'^ 

Second  was  the  archbishop's  claim,  in  behalf  of  the 
church,  for  one  square  league  at  each  mission,  M'ith 
additional  lands  at  San  ^Miguel,  Santa  Clara,  and 
Santa  Ines,  to  be  held  in  trust  for  the  Indians.  For 
the  21  leagues  no  grant  was  alleged,  and  for  the  addi- 
tional lands  reliance  was  placed  oidy  in  certain  orders 
of  1844  for  the  distribution  of  lots  among  the  neophytes 
as  a  part  of  the  process  of  secularization.  As  there 
liad  been  no  grants  or  even  occupation,  there  was  no 
valid  claim  before  the  courts,  which  could  only  protect 
rights,  not   distribute   lands   to   any  class,   however 

"Laud  com.  nos  81,  110.  175,  224,  295,  WS,  378,  410  au.l  808,  47(5,  47'.l, 
526,  5;{8,  C'21-2,  607  an<l  574,  742  aii<l  754,  752.  Those  coiilirmeil  were  S. 
Diogo,  S.  JuaiiCap.,  S.  Feniaiulo,  S.  Buenaventura,  Pur(siiiui,  S.  Luis  01)isi>i , 
Sdledati,  S.  juaii  Bautista;  rejecto<l  8.  Luis  Rey,  S.  Gahriol,  Sta  Barbari, 
Sta  Inea,  S.  Miguel,  S.  Jose,  Sta  Clara,  S.  Francisco,  ami  S.  Rafael;  wliili' 
S.  Cirlos,  S.  Antonio,  Sta  Cruz,  and  Solano  did  not  come  before  the  1.  c.  in 
this  form. 


PUEBLO  LANDS. 


ncd 


deserving,  except  by  act  of  congress.  Therefore  these 
<  launs  Were  rejected  by  the  board  and  diseontinued.'"** 
It  is  unfortunate  that  the  Mexican  governnient,  or 
that  of  the  United  States,  did  not  make  provision  for 
the  Indiana  by  granting  lands  to  be  hekl  in  trust  by 
ecclesiastical  or  other  authorities,  though  of  course  the 
courts  could  afford  no  relief.  Third  and  finally  was 
the  claim  of  the  archbishop  for  the  church  property 
at  each  mission,  including  a  few  acres  of  garden, 
orchard,  and  vineyard;  also  the  Santa  Ines  college 
lancho,  and  La  Laguna  in  San  Luis  Obispo,  which 
rested  on  formal  grants.^  This  claim,  being  a  jierfectly 
valid  and  equitable  one,  was  confirmed  by  the  board  in 
1855,  appeal  being  dismissed  in  the  district  courts  in 
1857-8. 

Under  Spanish  and  Mexican  rule  a  pueblo,  or 
legally  organized  settlement,  whatever  its  origin,  was 
eiititli'd  to  a  tract  of  land  for  the  various  uses  of  the 
community  and  its  members.  The  land  was  larely,  if 
iver,  formally  granted  by  the  government  at  the 
founding,  but  the  pueblo  might  at  any  time  take  ste})s 
to  have  the  bounds  fixed  by  a  survey,  which  amounted 
to  a  grant,  thoui^h  even  this  in  California  was  often 
long  delayed,  or  sometimes  omitted  altogether.  It 
seems  to  have  been  generally  understood  that  by  law 
antl  usage  a  pueblo  was  entitled  to  at  least  four  leagues 
of  land,  though  there  was  a  question — not  yet  entirely 
cleared  up,  I  think — whether  the  area  was  four  scjuare 
leagues  or  four  leagues  square.  Pueblo  lots  were  sold 
or  distributed  to  residents  by  the  municipal  authorities 
iiistc^ad  of  being  granted  like  ranchos  by  the  governor. 
The  system  is  sufficiently  explained  elsewhere,  espe- 
cially in  connection  with  the  local  history  of  the  dif- 
ferent towns.*' 

The  act  of  1851  provided  that  the  existence  of  a 

'^'*No.  GfiS  of  the  1.  c.     The  deciaion  of  the  board  in  a  newspaper  clipping 
I  tiiid  in  Iliiii)!*'  MixK.  U.,  404. 
^»  No.  ()0J»  of  th<!  1.  c. 
^  iSee  aku  referenced  iii  note  1  of  thia  chap. 


k    H 


M 


5G6 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


I 


town  on  July  7,  1846,  should  be  regarded  as  prima 
facie  evidence  of  a  land  grant,  and  thus  the  claim 
should  be  presented  in  the  name  of  the  town,  and  not 
of  the  lot-owners.  Of  course  the  claims  of  such 
owners  to  lots  bought  and  occupied  before  1846  wore 
sure  to  be  confirmed;  but  the  sale  of  lots  by  the 
municipal  authorities  had  continued  since  1846,  and 
on  these  lands  as  on  others  not  sold  adjoining  the 
larger  towns  squatters  had  settled,  acquiring  a  valid 
title  if  the  lands  belonged  to  the  United  States ;  hence 
the  chief  importance  of  determining  the  validity, 
extent,  and  nature  of  the  general  pueblo  titles.  The 
general  conclusions  reached  in  the  United  States 
tribunals  were  that  each  town  was  entitled  to  the  lands 
granted  or  assigned  by  survey,  or  to  four  square 
leagues  if  no  area  or  bounds  had  been  fixed ;  that  the 
United  States  government  was  bound  to  acknowledi^^e 
and  perfect  the  equitable  and  inchoate  title  of  a  pueblo 
as  of  an  individual ;  that  sales  by  the  alcaldes  since 
1846  were  valid;  but  that  the  pueblo  title  was  not  of 
such  a  nature  as  to  permit  sale  under  execution  for 
claims  against  the  town,  the  lands  being  held  in  trust 
for  certain  uses;  and  that  the  authority  of  the  alcalde 
was  not  so  absolute  as  to  invalidate  grants  regularly 
made  by  the  governor  within  pueblo  limits.  Most  of 
these  claims  were  decided  by  the  board  and  courts 
before  1860;  about  1870  the  surveys  in  their  main 
features  had  been  made  and  confirmed;  but  not  till 
1884  was  the  last  patent  issued. 

The  modern  towns  of  Sonora  and  Sacramento  pre- 
sented claims  for  land,  which  of  course,  resting  on 
nothing,  were  promptly  rejected  by  the  board,  and 
discontinued.^^  The  Indian  pueblos  of  the  south,  Las 
Flores,  San  Dieguito,  and  San  Pascual,  presented  no 
claims,  their  lands  being  included  in  private  ranches, 
though  in  the  case  of  Las  Flores,  and  possibly  of  the 
others,  the  owners  had  acquired  the  Indian  title,*^     Of 


"  Nos  639  792  of  the  1.  c. 

"Nos  345,  441,  700,  of  tlie  1.  o.     The  validity  of  Pico's  purchase  of  Las 


PUEBLO  LANDS. 


667 


rchase  of  La.s 


the  pueblos  that  had  been  more  or  less  fully  established 
ou  the  sites  of  the  secularized  missions,  Sonoma's  claim 
for  four  leagues  was  confirmed  and  patented  in  1880; 
tliat  of  San  Luis  Obispo  was  rejected;^  while  those 
of  San  Juan  de  Argiiello  and  San  Juan  de  Castro, 
the  latter  of  which  might  perhaps  have  been  success- 
ful, were  never  presented.  Of  the  three  original 
pueblos  of  Spanish  times  Branciforte  presented  no 
claim;'*  to  Los  Angeles  claiming  sixteen  leagues  was 
confirmed  a  tract  of  about  four,  patented  in  1875; 
while  to  San  Jose,  though  the  commission  restricted 
its  claim  to  four  leagues,  the  final  confirmation  and 
survey  of  1866  were  for  a  tract  within  bounds  fixed  in 
1838  or  earlier,  eleven  and  a  half  leagues  long  by  two 
and  a  half  wide,  which,  several  ranchos  being  excepted, 
gave  the  pueblo  less  than  two  leagues  in  five  tracts.^ 
Of  the  four  presidios  on  the  sites  of  which  pueblos 
were  duly  organized  in  1835  or  earlier,  San  Diego  ob- 
tained confirmation  for  the  tract  covered  by  Captain 
Fitch's  official  map  of  1845,  quantity  not  specified; 
and  after  the  usual  protests  and  controversy  the  sur- 
vey seems  to  have  been  approved  in  its  main  features 
in  1870,  a  patent  being  issued  in  1874.^  Santa  Bar- 
bara's claim  was  confirmed  in  1861  and  patented  in 
1872  for  an  area  within  certain  bounds  amounting  to 
four  leagues.  The  pueblo  lands  of  Monterey  had 
been  definitely  assigned  by  a  survey  of  1830,  and 
were  confirmed  to  the  town  by  the  board  in  1856,  ap- 

Flores  with  approval  of  local  authoritios  is  affirmed  in  5  Wallace,  536,  the 
puublo  title  being  virtually  coufirmed. 

^^Nos  237,  738,  of  the  1.  c." 

»*The  alcalde  at  Sta  Cruz  sold  lands  in  '49-50;  but  in  '60-«  the  title  to 
these  lands  waa  held  to  have  been  forfeited  by  the  failure  of  the  pueblo,  if 
there  was  rie.  to  present  tlie  claim.  Ste pennon  va  Bennett,  35  Cal.  424. 
IlespectiuE  os  Angeles  lands  I  have  found  nothing  beyond  the  brief 

record  in  tlie  iljff.nan  list,  no.  422,  and  the  record  of  patent. 

■^  Nos  280-7  of  the  1.  c.  There  were  many  comijlications  in  tliis  case,  which 
is  presented  in  detail  most  satisfactorily  by  Hall  in  his  Hist.  S.  Josi,  333-49, 
with  map.     In  '80  no  final  patent  had  been  given. 

""No.  589.  Scraps  ami  pamphlets  in  Hayes'  Legal  Hist.  8.  D'ie<jo,  i.  48  et 
seq.,  are  the  best  source  of  information  that  I  have  found.  The  Sta  B.  claim 
was  no.  543;  see  also  Sla  B.  Comly  HkH.,  199.  The  claim  for  8J  1.  wjis  rej.  by 
tlie  1.  c.  in  '54,  but  conf.  with  reduced  limits  by  the  d.  c.  in  '61.  The  Moat. 
ul.  is  no.  714. 


668 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


V  * 


11 


f 


peal  being  dismissed  in  1858,  though  in  1880  no  pat- 
ent had  been  obtained.  The  fourth  presidial  pueblo 
demands  more  extended  notice. 

The  pueblo  Tand  question  at  San  Francisco,  wliero 
the  great  legal  battle  was  fought,  is  far  too  coni[)li- 
cated  for  any  but  the  most  summary  treatment  hero. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  San  Francisco  was  a  pueblo  in 
1835-46  exactly  like  those  of  San  Diego  and  Mon- 
terey ;  but  my  views  on  this  subject  have  been  ex- 
pressed elsewhere.*^  Able  lawyers,  however,  denied 
the  existence  of  any  pueblo,  or  if  it  existed,  its  title  to 
any  lands  not  distributed  before  1846,  adopting  some 
very  ingenious  theories  to  explain  the  existence  of  an 
ayuntamiento.  Meanwhile  General  Kearny  in  1847, 
probably  without  any  power  to  do  so,  had  granted 
or  relinquished  to  the  town  the  claim  of  the  United 
States,  not  only  to  the  pueblo  lots,  but  to  the  beach 
and  water  lots  not  belonging  to  the  town  under  Mexi- 
can law.  The  alcaldes  and  ayuntamiento  continued 
to  sell  lots  of  both  kinds  in  large  numbers,  unwisely 
removing  the  old  restrictions,  and  granting;  many  lots 
to  one  purchaser;  there  were  many  irregularities  and 
even  frauds  committed  in  connection  with  the  alcalde 
sales  ;  and  the  Colton  grants  were  made  by  a  justice 
of  the  peace  acting  by  authority  of  the  prefect  in 
opposition  to  the  town  council.  While  official  reports, 
notably  those  of  Peachy  and  Wheeler,**  supported  the 
pueblo  title,  and  while  the  legislature  in  1851  ceded 
to  the  city  the  water  lots,  yet  so  high  an  authority  as 
the  supreme  court  of  Californija  in  its  decisions  of 
1850-1  held  the  pueblo  title  invalid,  reversing  that 
opinion  in  decisions  of  1853-7.^^  Meanwhile  in  1851-2, 
Peter  Smith,  obtaining  judgments  against  the  city, 

"  See  vol.  iii.,  p.  702-8,  for  the  pueblo  organization.  See  also  local  annals 
of  S.  P.  in  tliis  and  earlier  vols, 

^  Peaoliy's  report  of  '50  to  council  in  S.  F.  Minutes  qf  Assembly,  154-9; 
Wheder's  Lund  Titles  in  S,  F.,  a  report  of  '51  pub.  in  '52. 

**  Wootlvorth  vs  Fulton,  1  Cal.  295,  and  several  later  cases;  Ist  reversed  in 
Cohas  vs  liama,  3  Id.  443,  al.so  in  other  cases,  including  Welch  r.<  Siiliieiui,  8 
Id.  165,  in  which  Nathaniel  Bennett — tlie  judge  who  had  made  tlie  decisions 
of  '50 — as  attorney  presented  an  elaborate  brief  against  the  pueblo  title. 


POSITION  OF   SAN  FRANCISCO. 


CG9 


proceeded  to  have  large  portions  of  the  town  propmrty 
sold  by  the  sheriff,  for  nominal  prices,  in  satisfaction  of 
his  debt.*'  When  we  consider  also  the  pending  Linian- 
toui  and  Santillan  claims  for  the  most  valuable  parts 
of  the  peninsula,  It  is  not  strange  that  the  people  be- 
came confused  and  excited  in  their  ideas  of  land  tenure, 
or  that  they  came  to  believe  one  title  to  be  as  good  as 
another,  possession  being  best  of  all. 

The  San  Francisco  claim  was  presented  to  the  land 
commission  in  1852,  and  by  that  board  confirmed  in 
1854,  but  only  for  the  region  north  of  the  Vallejo  line 
of  1834,  regarded  erroneously  as  the  pueblo  boun- 
dary.*' In  1855  the  city  by  the  Van  Ness  ordinance 
granted  its  title  to  lands  within  its  limits  under  the 
incorporation  of  1851  to  the  persons  holding  Ixma  tide 
possession  at  that  time.*^  In  1858-1),  as  elsewhere 
recorded,  the  Limantour  and  Santillan  claims  were 
rejected,  other  rancho  claims  on  the  peninsula  having 
meantime  been  finally  confirmed  or  rejected;  and  in 
18G0  the  great  test  case  of  Hart  versu-;  Burnett  was 
decided  by  the  California  supreme  court  in  favor  of 
the  pueblo  title.*^     The  claim  of  San  Francisco,  having 

^"Sue  a  good  account  of  the  Smith  affair  iii  AnrmU  of  S,  /•'.,  370-7. 

■"Tliis  hne  exteiuleil  from  5th  and  Brannan  sts  to  Lone  Mountain  and 
thunce  to  the  ocean.  The  Z:i.niorano  doc.  by  which'  the  gov.  accepted  this  as 
tlio  jmcblo  line  was  proved  to  be  spurious,  iii.  703-4.  See  also  Dwiuelle,  add. 
llG-ll). 

'■^  Ratified  by  the  legislature  in  '58  and  in  '64  by  an  act  of  congress  ceding 
the  U.  S.  title  for  purposes  of  the  ordinance. 

^^  15  €al.  530;  also  separate  pamphlet  with  comments  by  H.  W.  Halleck, 
pul).  at  S.  F.  '00.  Edmund  Randolph's  argument  against  the  pueblo  title  was 
also  published.  Wni  C.  Jones'  Fiu'ldo  i^hiextion  Solved  was  a  pamphlet  on  tiie 
same  side,  largely  in  reply  to  Hallcck's  notes.  Both  R.  and  J.  argued 
agiiinst  the  existence  of  a  pueblo  at  S.  F.,  and  they  put  a  weak  cause  in  its 
best  light.  This  decision  included  the  validity  of  the  governor's  grants  within 
pUL'blo  limits,  and  also  the  invalidity  of  sales  under  execution  for  debts 
a;ainst  the  city  (conf.  by  U.  S.  a.  c.  in  'GG.  5  WalUre,  32G).  After  this  decis- 
ion the  title  to  lots  granted  by  the  gov.,  conf.  and  patented  by  the  U.  S., 
was  attacked  on  the  ground  that  the  1.  c.  had  no  jurisdiction  by  the  act  of 
'r>l,  and  the  patents  were  void;  but  tliis  view  was  overruled  m  Licce  va 
Cliirh',  18  Cal.  535.  Then  it  was  claimed  that  a  gov. 's  grant  of  a  pueblo  lot 
gave  a  perfect  title  not  needing  presentation  to  the  1,  c.  at  all,  and  this  point 
Wiis  not  decided,  the  P*rty  taking  this  view  being  defeated  on  the  groinid 
that  in  his  Civse  the  lacK  of  boundaries  made  the  title  inchoate  30  Oil.  498. 
Holders  of  lots  on  the  gov. 'a  grants  conf.  and  patented,  ])ut  within  the  city 
limits  tried  desperately  to  maintain  their  claims  under  the  Van  Ness  ordi- 
nance, but  the  s,  c.  held  that  the  town  by  that  uid.  had  given  only  its  own 


(:,, 


670 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


been  appealed  to  the  district  court  in  1856,  was  trans- 
ferred in  1864  to  the  United  States  circuit,  and  was 
confirmed  in  18G5.**  By  an  act  of  congress  in  1866  the 
United  States  ceded  the  government  title  to  the  city ; 
the  appeal  was  accordingly  dismissed  in  the  supreme 
court;  and  in  1867  the  final  decree  of  confirmation 
was  given  by  the  circuit  court.  The  confirmation 
was  for  four  square  leagues  bounded  on  three  sides 
by  the  ordinary  high- water  mark  as  it  was  in  1846, 
excepting  the  military  reservations  and  private  claims 
confirmed;  and  the  survey  was  made  by  Stratton  in 
1867-8.  Ten  years  later  a  controversy  was  in  pro- 
gress, it  being  claimed  by  different  parties  that  the 
Stratton  survey  had  not  correctly  located  the  higli- 
water  mark.  The  survey  was  rejected,  a  new  one 
made  in  1883,  and  the  patent  was  finally  issued  in 
1884;  but  a  conti'oversy  about  the  survey  was  still  in 
progress  two  years  later. 

In  1880,  or  twenty-nine  years  after  the  land  act 
became  a  law,  there  were  four  claims  still  pending  in 
the  courts  on  a  question  of  title;  in  the  case  of  ten 
others,  no  survey  had  been  made;  48  surveys  had  not 
been  fully  settled;  27  were  in  the  hands  of  the  general 
land-oftice,  presumably  ready  for  patent;  and  527  had 
been  patented  in  1856-80.  The  rate  of  final  settle- 
ment from  year  to  year  is  shown  in  the  annexed  fig- 
ures.**     In  the  annals  of  this  long  litigation,  which 

title  with  which  that  of  the  Van  Ness  holders  must  stand  or  fall.  9  Wallace, 
315.  A  similar  decision  was  rendered  in  a  controversy  between  a  Van  Ness 
holder  and  a  U.  S.  officer  holding  a  military  reservation,  since  pending  the 
question  between  S.  F.  and  the  U.  S.  the  govt  could  make  reservations  for 
public  purposes.  6  Id.  3ti3. 

**Citif  of  S.  F.  vs  U.  S.,  Opinion  and  Decrees,  a  pamphlet  pub.  at  S.  F. 
1865.  J^ohn  W.  Dwinelle  was  the  city's  attorney  before  the  district  and 
circuit  courts,  and  his  brief  published  in  4  ed.  from  '63  to  '67,  with  in- 
crease of  comments  and  appendices,  forms  his  Colonial  Hitttoi-y  of  S.  F.,  a  stan- 
dard work,  which  not  only  treats  exhaustively  of  the  pueblo  question,  but  in 
other  respects  justifies  its  title. 

*^  Stratton' a  Report  of  Span,  and  Mex.  Grants  in  Cal.,  1880,  in  Cat.  Jour. 
Sen.  and  Assemb.,  24th  Sess.,  appen.  The  4  cl.  still  in  court  were  Las  Cieiic- 
guitas,  Carrillo,  1.  c,  328;  S.  Francisco  lands,  Sherreback,  1.  c,  795;  S.  Josi5 
y  Sur  Chiquito,  Castro,  1.  c,  546;  and  S.  Pedro,  Chapman,  1.  c,  512.  It  will 
be  noticed  that  my  figures  of  note  13,  this  chap.,  as  based  on  the  Hoffman 
list  of  1862,  are  somewhat  modified  by  this  official  report;  612  cl.  were  conf., 
178  rejected,  19  discontinued,  and  4  still  pending  in  '80  of  the  total  of  813. 


HARVEST  OF  THE  ROBBERS. 


871 


may  be  said  to  have  lasted  in  its  most  oppressive 
phases  about  fifteen  years,  there  is  much  interesting 
and  important  matter,  particularly  bearing  on  the 
sc^uatter  controversies,  that  cannot  be  presented  here 
for  lack  of  space;  while  other  topics,  notably  details 
of  the  process  by  which  Californian  claimants  were 
])lundered  by  speculating  lawyers,  must  be  passed  over 
as  well  for  lack  of  accurate  data,  though  the  general 
results  are  well  known,  and  illustrative  cases  might  be 
found.  An  unfortunate  accompaniment  of  the  struggle 
was  the  occasional  resort  of  ignorant  and  unsophisti- 
cated natives,  under  the  guidance  of  ignorant  or  ras- 
cally advisers,  to  clumsy  frauds  in  support  of  good 
titles,  a  plausible  foundation  being  thus  aftbrded  for 
tlie  sweeping  accusations  of  their  enemies,  and  for  the 
wide-spread  belief,  not  yet  extinct  among  even  intelli- 
gent men,  that  most  of  the  Mexican  claims  were 
fraudulent. 

Throughout  the  period  of  litigation  the  squatter 
influence  was  potent  in  a  hundred  ways,  direct  and 
indirect,  though,  as  we  have  seen,  it  failed  at  the  start 
in  bringing  about  a  general  revolt  against  law,  equity, 
and  treaty  obligations.  The  squatters  settled  on 
Mexican  grants,  fenced  in  springs,  raised  crops,  and 
killed  cattle,  devoting  their  gains  to  the  costs  of  legal 
warfare  against  the  owners.  For  years  they  had  a 
secret  league,  with  the  moral  support  of  thousands 
who  were  not  members;  and  instances  of  armed  resist- 
ance to  legal  ejectment,  involving  sometimes  loss  of 
life,  were  by  no  means  rare.  In  too  many  cases  the 
squatter  interest,  masquerading  in  the  name  of  the 
United  States,  was  the  real  opponent  to  the  confirma- 
tion of  equitable  titles;  in  some  instances  it  is  sup- 
posed to  have  influenced  the  appointment  of  law  agents 
representing  the  government;  and  it  virtually  con- 
trolled legislatures,  juries,  and  the  policy  of  congress- 

The  yearly  patents  issued  were  as  follows:  '56,  1;  '57,  12;  '58,  27;  '59,  27; 
(K),  29;  '61,  15;  '62,  19;  '63,  15;  '64,  6;  '65,  36;  '66,  71;  '67,  24;  '68,  14;  '69, 
14;  70,  18;  71,  35;  '72,  40;  73,  29;  '74,  17;  75,  14;  76,  19;  77,  13;  78.  6; 
'19,  17;  '80,  10. 


I    ' 


m 


672 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


[Si 


men,  so  that  tlie  C^alifornians  had  small  chance  for 
justice.  In  1852,  Senator  Gwin,  under  tliis  intlueMcc, 
had  the  assurance  to  introduce  a  bill,  which  happily 
did  not  pass,  to  give  squatters  a  valid  donation  title  to 
80  acres  on  Mexican  grants,  charitably  permitting  the 
owner  to  select  the  same  area  elsewhere  on  public 
land/*  By  an  act  of  the  legislature  in  the  same  year, 
school  warrants  might  be  located  on  any  land  not  yet 
confirmed  to  the  claimant,  and  on  such  confirniatioii 
they  might  be  moved  elsewhere.*^  And  again,  an  act 
of  1856  provided  that  all  lands  should  be  deemed  ])ul)- 
lic  till  the  legal  title  was  shown  to  have  i)asscd  to 
private  parties;  that  possession  should  be  prima  facie 
evidence  of  a  right  to  such  possession ;  that  title  under 
patent  should  begin  with  t'ls  date  of  the  patent,  and 
the  owner  could  claim  nothing  for  the  use  of  the  land 
before  such  date ;  and  that  a  successful  plaintili'  in  an 
ejectment  suit  nmst  pay  for  improvements  and  grow- 
ing crops  or  sell  the  land,  the  value  in  either  case  to 
be  appraised  by  the  jury!  There  were  other  o[)press- 
ive  features  of  this  squatter  law,  but  the  act  was  tlic 
next  year  declared  unconstitutional  by  the  supreme 
court. *^  This  shows  the  spirit  of  legislation,  which  I 
do  not  attempt  to  follow  in  detail. 

It  should  not  be  forgotten,  however,  that  the  set- 
tlers as  well  as  the  grant-owners  had  their  real  griev- 
ances; and  that  while  they  included  a  lawless  and 
unprincipled  element,  many,  perhaps  most,  of  thciu 
acted  in  accordance  with  their  honest  convictions. 
They  could  buy  no  good  Mexican  title,  they  could  not 
find  what  was  surely  government  land  on  which  to 
settle.     Educated  to  look  with  suspicion  on  all  that 

♦"Text  of  the  bill  in  S.  F.  A  Ua,  Dec.  12,  '5G.  Gwin,  in  hia  Memoirs,  MS., 
thinks  this  would  have  been  an  excellent  measure! 

*'  Cnl.  Stn/Hte.%  1852,  p.  41-3. 

*^CitL  Stat.,  '56,  p.  54;  7  Cal.  1.  There  were  also  wise  congressional 
enactineuts,  general  and  special,  in  favor  of  the  settlers,  and  not  against  the 
grantees,  providing  that  purchasers  under  Mex.  title  finally  rejected  sluuild 
have  the  preference  in  purchasing  from  the  U.  S. ;  and  that  an  ejected  squatter 
might  recover  his  land  if  not  included  in  the  final  survey,  though  this,  in  cer- 
tain phases  of  the  floating  grants,  was  overruled  by  the  courts.  14  U,  S.  Stut. 
at  Larije,  220;  33  Cal.  102;  9  Wallofe,  21)9. 


ATTORNEY-OEXErwVL'S  IlEPORT. 


878 


was  Mexican,  regarding  many  league  grants  as  un- 
American  and  therefore  wrong,  naturally  imbibing  the 
current  feeling  that  most  of  the  grants  were  fraudulent 
and  would  be  finally  rejected,  advised  by  their  lawyers 
to  become  squatters  and  trust  to  the  future,  what  won- 
der that  they  came  to  regard  themselves  as  victims 
rather  than  workers  of  iniquity!  And  moreover,  in 
many  instances  the  land  sharks  delil)erately  set  up 
false  claims  in  the  name  of  native  grant-owners,  anil 
extended  their  surveys  over  the  honest  possessions  of 
settlers  with  a  view  only  to  the  levying  of  blackmail ; 
and  by  their  crafty  misinterpretations  of  court  decrees, 
laws,  and  alleged  threats  to  owners  ignorant  of  the 
English  language  and  American  ways,  tiiey  stirred  up 
various  causeless  dissensions.  The  evils  of  the  time, 
except  so  far  as  they  sprang  from  conunon  defects 
of  Imman  nature,  should  be  attributed  maiidy,  not  to 
the  squatters  or  to  any  other  particular  class,  but  to 
the  fundamental  error  of  the  United  States  govern- 
ment, of  which  more  presently. 

In  1860  Attorney-general  Black  made  a  report  to 
tlie  president  on  the  California  claims,  a  report  devoted 
mainly  to  denunciation  of  the  native  Californians  as 
forgers  and  perjurers,  and  of  Mexican  officials  as  worse 
if  })()ssible ;  to  exaggerated  allusions  to  the  "organized 
system  of  fabricating  land  titles  carried  on  for  a  long 
time  by  Mexican  officials  in  California,"  when  the 
making  of  false  grants,  with  the  subornation  of  false 
witnesses  to  prove  them,  had  become  a  trade  and  a 
business;  and  to  extravagant  self-praise  for  his  fore- 
tliought  in  sending  E.  M.  Stanton  to  California  in 
1858,  and  for  the  skill  with  which  the  documentary 
results  of  that  mission  had  been  utilized  to  defeat  in 
Washington  the  gigantic  frauds  that  had  passed  or 
were  likely  to  pass  unchallenged  through  the  hnver 
tribunals.**     In  reply,  William  Carey  Jones  wrote  a 

^^Black's  Report  qf  the  Attorney-yen.  on  Cal.  Land  Claims,  Wash.,  18(51, 
8vo,  14  p.  B.  note»  an  act  of  congress  on  May  18,  '58,  provi<ling  for  criin- 
iu;il  prosecution  and  punishment  of  any  person  prosecuting  a  Cal.  land  claink 
upuu  a  false  title. 


;r 


I'll' 


674 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


series  of  letters  in  which  he  severely  criticised  tlic 
attorney-general's  statements  and  theories,  expos: i\fr 
with  skill  and  fairness  some  of  Black's  blunders  and 
false  pretensions.*" 

In  the  later  years  there  have  been  many  attempts 
before  the  courts  and  congress  to  reopen  some  of  tlie 
cases  where  fraudulent  claims  are  alleged — and  some- 
times truthfully — to  have  been  confinned  and  patented. 
Such  attempts  have  not  been  successful  because,  what- 
ever the  merits  of  the  cases,  not  only  the  right  of  tlie 
government  to  reverse  the  decisions  of  long  ago,  but 
the  policy  of  reopening  the  doors  of  land  litigation,  has 
been  questioned.  In  1876  the  United  States  attorney, 
aided  by  able  counsel,  brought  a  suit  in  equity  to  re- 
open two  of  the  cases  before  the  circuit  court;  and 
judges  Field,  Hoffman,  and  Sawyer  in  concurring 
adverse  decisions,  besides  considering  the  strictly  legal 
aspects  of  the  matter,  dwelt  most  forcibly  on  the 
manifold  and  manifest  evils  that  must  result  if  the 
work  of  the  old  and  extinct  tribunals  could  be  unset- 
tled on  allegations  of  fraud  in  transactions  which  those 
tribunals  had  investigated  with  special  power  and  ad- 
yantages.  It  was  implied  that  congress  might  prop- 
erly invest  the  courts  with  powers  not  now  possessed 
to  reexamine  fraudulent  cases  of  a  certain  nature ;  but 
it  was  held  that  the  frauds  now  alleged  were  not  of  a 
kind  to  justify  the  court,  even  if  it  had  the  power,  in 
opening  the  way  to  endless  litigation  and  a  new  un- 
settling of  the  California  titles.  That  this  was  a  cor- 
rect view  of  the  matter  can  hardly  be  questioned.^^ 

'^Letters  of  WilUam  Carey  Jones  in  Review  qfAtt  gen.  Black's  Report,  S.  F., 
1800,  8vo,  31  p.  Says  J  :  'If  tlie  matter  shall  ever  be  strictly  examined,  it 
will  be  found  .that  the  >  '.rious  acts  of  congress  in  relation  to  the  claims  to 
land  in  Cal.,  and  the  wa  that  those  acts  have  been  administered,  have  hud 
the  effect  in  a  large  dea)  i  to  substantiate  what  is  false  and  discredit  what  is 
true.  Ten  years  ago  it  uld  have  been  as  feasible  for  a  lawyer  who  was 
instructed  in  the  aubjeCi  atter  to  detect  a  simulated  grant  here,  as  for  a 
cashier  of  a  bank  to  detect  false  note,  or  a  chemist  a  false  coin;  and  this  fact 
I  have  constantly  stated  fr«    ■  1849  upward  to  the  chief  authorities  concerned.' 

*'  Mexican  and  Sjpatmh  rants,  decision  of  the  court  published  in  pam- 
phlet form,  S.  F.,  76,  8vo,  K  p.  The  claims  involved  were  nos  421  and  96  of 
the  1.  c. 


GOVERNMi.NT  POUCY. 


575 


riticiscd  tlu3 
i38,  expos:  ll^r 
iundcrs  and 

ny  attempts 
some  of  the 
—and  soinc- 
tjd  patented, 
sause,  w  hat- 
right  of  til 0 
t|g  ago,  hut 
ligation,  has 
es  attorney, 
quity  to  re- 
court;  and 
concurring 
trictly  legal 
bly  on    the 
)su]t  if  the 
J  be  unset- 
krhich  those 
'^er  and  ad- 
light  prop- 
V  possessed 
ature;  but 
•e  not  of  a 
power,  ill 
a  new  un- 
was  a  cor- 
;ioned." 


slieport.S.  F., 
y  examined,  it 
>  tlie  claiin»  to 
red,  have  had 
icredit  what  is 
ivyer  who  waa 
here,  as  for  a 
;  and  this  fact 
les  concerned. ' 
ished  in  pani- 
421  and  9G  of 


In  conclusion,  some  general  comment  on  the  system 
adopted  by  the  government  and  on  its  results  is  called 
for.  All  that  can  be  truthfully  said  in  commenda- 
tion— possibly  somewhat  more  in  certain  phases — has 
been  presented  directly  or  indirectly  in  the  preceding 
])a<,'cs  of  this  chapter.  We  have  seen  that  congress, 
though  led  to  adopt  exaggerated  and  inaccurate  views 
of  Californian  affairs,  acted  for  the  most  part  honestly 
in  its  efforts  to  avert  great  dangers  believed  to  be  ini- 
n)incnt  in  connection  with  fraudulent  land  grants; 
that  senators  were  to  a  considerable  extent  justified 
ill  tluiir  feeling,  not  only  that  the  supreme  court  would 
decide  the  claims  equitably  and  justly,  but  that  only 
the  highest  tribunals  could  be  trusted  with  the  dispo- 
sition of  such  gigantic  interests  as  were  understood 
to  be  at  stake;  that  the  act  of  1851  was  well  enough 
adapted  for  the  settlement  of  the  claims  that  the 
government  seems  to  have  had  chiefly  in  view;  that 
a  liberal  and  equitable  interpretation  of  law  and  treaty 
obligations  was  enjoined  in  the  act  and  supplementary 
instructions;  that  the  commission  and  courts  did  their 
work  faithfully,  with  a  commendable  subordination  in 
most  cases  of  legal  technicalities  to  just'ce;  and  that 
the  final  decisions,  once  reached,  were  in  the  aggre- 
gate as  near  an  approximation  to  the  right  as  could 
be  expected  under  any  system  of  legal  machinery. 
It  may  be  said,  moreover,  that  when  once  the  system 
had  been  put  in  operation  the  courts  could  do  almost 
nothing,  the  government  very  little,  to  prevent  the 
evils  that  appeared;  and  also  that  no  system  under 
the  circumstances  could  have  produced  results  entirely 
.satisfactory,  or  prevented  oppressive  and  ruinous  liti- 
gation. 

All  this,  however,  though  it  reads  like  approval,  is, 
so  far  as  the  government  is  concerned,  only  a  some- 
what overdrawn  excuse  for  a  system  that  in  its  appli- 
cation and  practical  results  merits  only  condemnation. 
It  was  thoroughly  bad  in  almost  every  respect.  So  uni- 
form and  overwhelming  is  the  testimony  to  this  effect 


'1 


■  I,.-!' 


till 


576 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


I. 


^n 


that  citation  of  individual  opinions  is  not  required, 
Writers  on  subjects  connected  with  CaHfornian  annals, 
journalists,  judges  of  the  different  courts,  lawyers 
who  took  part  in  the  long  litigation,  public  officials 
and  private  citizens,  successful  speculators  like  ini- 
povershed  victims,  squatters  as  well  as  grant-owners, 
residents  and  visitors,  American  pioneers  no  less  than 
native  Californians  and  Mexicans,  all — as  their  testi- 
mony lies  before  me  in  print  and  manuscript — agree 
with  remarkable  unanimity  that  the  practical  work- 
ing of  the  law  was  oppressive  and  ruinous;  and  I 
heartily  indorse  the  general  disapproval.  True,  there 
is  some  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the  relative  im- 
portance of  the  various  resulting  evils;  some  of  the 
judges  deem  themselves  under  obligation  to  suggest 
that  most  of  the  evils  were  "perhaps  unavoidable;" 
and  a  few  writers  holding  the  original  system  of  Mex- 
ican grant"  responsible  for  all  blame,  the  United  States 
chiefly,  for  not  having  rejected  all  the  claims/'^ 

It  was  to  the  Californians  owning  lands  under  gen- 
uine and  valid  titles,  seven  eighths  of  all  the  claimants 
before  the  commission,  that  the  great  wrong  was  done. 
They  were  virtually  robbed  by  the  government  that 
was  bound  to  protect  them.  As  a  rule,  they  lost  nearly 
all  their  possessions  in  the  struggle  before  the  success- 
ive tribunals  to  escape  from  real  and  imaginary  dan- 
gers of  total  loss.  The  lawyers  took  immense  fees  in 
land  and  cattle,  often  for  slight  services  or  none  at  all. 
The  United  States  promised  full  protection  of  all 
property  rights,  and  in  theory  they  admitted  the  obli- 
gation to  confirm  not  only  legal  but  inchoate  equitable 
titles;  practically,  by  the  system  adopted  they  declared 
that  every  title  should  be  deemed  invalid  until  the 
holder  had  defended  it  at  his  own  expense  through 

"'I  looked  in  Omn's  Memmrs,  MS.,  expecting  to  find  a  defence  of  the  act 
of  1851,  and  I  found  indeed  a  brief  statement  to  the  effect  that  the  incnHuro 
proved  satisfactory,  its  wistlom  being  shown  by  tlie  fact  that  under  its  work- 
nigs  land  titles  in  Oal.  were  quieted  in  one  third  the  time  required  in  Louisiani 
and  Texas;  but  space  was  precious  and  the  champion  of  the  squatters  hal 
only  30  or  40  pages  to  devote  to  long  quotatioiia  from  his  speecliea  of  '51  as 
quoted  from  the  Coiuj.  Globe! 


EVIL  EFFECTS  OF  THE  SYSTEM. 


677 


from  two  to  six  fiery  ordeals  against  a  powerful  oppo- 
iK'iit  who  had  no  costs  to  pay  and  no  real  interest 
at  stake.  Not  only  did  they  adopt  a  system  which 
permitted  this  oppression,  but  their  agents  took  advan- 
tage of  the  powers  granted,  and  in  a  majority  of  eases 
continued  tlie  contest  when  all  proper  motives  had 
na.sed  to  exist.  It  was  in  no  sense  the  protection  prom- 
ised by  the  treaty  to  finally  confirm  a  title  after  a  strug- 
gle of  eight  to  twenty-five  years  when  half  or  all  the 
estate  had  passed  from  the  possession  of  the  original 
claimant;  it  was  simply  confiscation,  and  that  not  in  the 
real  interests  of  the  United  States,  or  of  American  set- 
tlers, but  of  speculating  land  sharpers.  Senator  Ben- 
ton's denunciations  of  1851  were  justified  by  results; 
the  senate  was  duly  warned,  though  paying  no  heed, 
respecting  the  eflfects  of  its  measure,  with  specifications 
of  how  they  were  to  be  produced,  and  illustrative 
references  to  experience  with  Spanish  land  claims  in 
other  states.  If  senators  believed,  as  they  apparently 
did,  that  nine  tenths  of  the  Californian  claims  were 
fraudulent,  there  was  still  culpable  negligence  antl  in- 
justice in  the  failure  to  provide  for  a  prompt  and  real 
confirmation  of  the  remaininj;  tenth. 

The  spoliation  of  the  grant-holders  was,  however, 
hut  a  small  part  of  the  injury  done  to  Californian 
interests  by  the  measure  in  question.  The  de[)lorable 
cti'ects  of  unsettled  land  titles  and  ceaseless  litigation, 
})rolonged  for  over  twenty  years,  would  be  ai)j)arent 
in  advance  to  any  thinker,  and  in  California  have  been 
fully  realized  from  actual  observation  and  experience 
bv  men  of  all  classes.  Tn  a  sense  there  was  no  govern- 
ment  land  to  be  purchased;  every  occupant  felt  that 
his  possession  was  threatened  by  squatters  on  the  one 
hand  or  by  grant-owners  on  the  other;  neither  squat- 
ters nor  grant-owners  could  sell,  or  dared  to  invest  in 
extensive  improvements;  thus  po[)ulation  was  driven 
away,  industry  and  developn\ent  were  stifled,  and  Cali- 
fornia was  prevented  for  many  years  from  utilizing 
her  natural  resources.   We  must  also  in  this  connection 

HiBT.  Cai*,  Vol.  VI. 


87 


578 


MEXICAN  Land  TITLES. 


i\  I ' 


consider  the  loss  of  life  and  property  caused  by  the  land 
controversies;  the  general  demoralization  and  spirit 
of  lawlessness,  resting  to  no  small  degree  on  the  un- 
certainties of  land  tenure,  which  gave  our  state  so  bad 
a  reputation;  the  race  hostilities  that  were  fomented; 
the  opportunities  offered  for  wide-spread  rascality  and 
illegitimate  speculation;  and  all  the  train  of  evils, 
moral  .and  economic,  that  sprang  largely  from  this 
source,  and  for  which  the  government  may  be  held  in 
greater  or  less  degree  resix)nsible.  And  we  should 
not  fail  to  note  that  besides  the  direct  evils  followinij 
this  unfortunate  legislation,  there  was  a  complete  fail- 
ure to  effect  the  particular  benefits  in  view.  These 
benefits,  as  they  existed  in  the  imagination  of  the 
senate  in  1851,  were  chiefly  a  diminution,  or  dividing- 
up,  of  the  immense  Californian  estates,  a  corresponding 
providing  of  homes  and  small  farms  for  American  set- 
tlers, and  the  defeat  of  fraudulent  claims.  In  no 
respect  were  these  objects  accomplished.  Had  the 
700  and  more  genuine  claims  been  promptly  confirmed 
and  patented,  so  that  a  good  title  could  have  been 
secured,  large  tracts  of  the  state's  best  lands  would 
naturally  have  been  sold  in  small  divisions  to  settlers 
at  prices  very  low  in  the  eyes  of  the  latter,  but  high 
in  the  view  of  owners  who  had  known  no  higher  rate 
than  $1,000  per  league  for  the  choicest  ranchos.  As 
it  was,  the  estates  passed  for  the  most  part  into  the 
hands  of  speculators  who  were  shrewd  enough  and 
rich  enough  to  keep  them.  Land  monopoly  in  Cali- 
fornia is  due  less  to  the  original  extent  of  the  Mexican 
grants  than  to  the  iniquitous  methods  adopted  by  our 
government;  and  as  to  the  fraudulent  claims  it  is  be- 
lieved that  the  worst  ones  were  concocted,  or  at  least, 
mainly  fortified  with  supports  of  forgery  and  perjury 
after  the  commission  and  courts  were  fairly  at  work, 
and  after  the  concocters  had  learned  by  experience 
what  supports  were  likely  to  prove  most  effective. 
Not  all  would  even  have  been  submitted  at  first  to  a 
proper  test,  and  few  would  have  escaped  detection 


COULD  NOT  HAVE  BEEN  WORSE. 


579 


under  practical  as  compared  with  legal  methods  of 
investigation. 

I  am  well  aware  that  it  is  much  easier,  especially 
with  experience  as  a  guide  after  the  harm  has  been 
done,  to  criticise  the  system  than  to  devise  another  to 
take  its  place  and  remedy  its  defects.  It  is  no  part 
(if  my  duty  to  draught  the  bill  that  should  have  been 
j)assed  by  consrress;  but  if  it  had  to  be  done,  my  diffi- 
culties would  be  vastly  lessened  by  the  fact  that  so  far 
as  can  be  learned  from  my  investigations,  and  the 
suggestions  of  others,  there  would  be  little  danger  of 
devising  a  worse  plan  than  the  one  adopted.  But  for 
tlie  national  disgrace  involved  it  would  have  been 
better  to  disregard  treaty  obligations  and  reject  all 
the  claims;  for  then  the  grantees  might  have  pre- 
empted a  small  tract  adjoining  their  buildings,  or 
have  migrated  to  Mexico,  or  revolted  and  been 
promptly  killed.  As  has  often  been  remarked,  it 
would  liave  been  infinitely  better  to  promptly  confirm 
all  the  claims,  both  valid  and  fraudulent.  The  first 
method  proposed  to  congress  in  1848-9,  that  of  a  com- 
mission to  investigate  and  present  a  detailed  report  in 
1851,  might  have  had  its  advantages,  if  followed  by 
the  prompt  confirmation  en  masse  of  all  but  suspicious 
and  apparently  unfounded  claims.  Fremont's  bill, 
in.st>much  as  it  made  the  decision  of  each  tribunal 
final  as  against  the  United  States,  was  better  than  its 
successor.  Benton's  bill,  in  general  accord  with  Jones' 
report,  providing  for  an  authorized  record  and  survey, 
the  government  reserving  the  right  to  contest  claims 
of  certain  classes,  was  founded  on  a  just  appreciation 
of  the  situation.  Hittell  says  the  Californians  "were 
entitled  to  the  confirmation  of  their  titles,  after  an 
examination  as  lirief  and  simple  as  the  circumstances 
would  permit,  and  with  as  little  expense  as  possible. 
The  government  should  have  made  a  list  of  all 
ranchos,  the  possession  of  which  was  matter  of  com- 
mon notoriety,  and  mentioned  in  the  archives ;  should 
have  confirmed  them  summarily,  then  surveyed  them 


680 


MEXICAN  LAND  TITLES. 


^1 


\r'*n 


'  li 


and  issued  patents.  The  claims  which  were  not  men- 
tioned in  the  archives,  or  had  not  been  reduced  to 
possession,  might  properly  have  been  subjected  to 
judicial  inquiry." ^^  Crosby,  a  lawyer  wlio  took  par^, 
in  many  of  the  land  cases,  recommended  to  Senator 
Gwin  the  adoption  of  a  plan  providing  for  a  board  of 
registration  to  record  claims,  take  evidence,  and  turn 
over  each  case  as  soon  as  completed  to  the  surveyor- 
general  for  prompt  survey,  disputed  boundaries  to  be 
settled  by  arbitration,  the  survey  to  be  final,  and  a 
patent  to  be  issued  after  one  year  hfid  been  allowed  for 
interested  parties  to  present  their  c.Vims  or  charges  of 
fraud  in  the  district  court."  Henry  George,  the  op- 
ponent of  land  monopoly,  suggests  that  the  United 
States  mi"ht  well  have  confirmed  to  the  grant-holders 
a  certain  area  around  their  improvements,  "and  com- 
pounded for  the  rest  the  grants  called  for  by  the 
payment  of  a  certain  sum  per  acre,  turning  it  into 
the  public  domain. "^^  R.  C.  Hopkins,  keeper  of  the 
archives  throughout  the  period  of  litigation,  believes, 
like  Jones,  that  neither  the  distinguishing  between 
genuine  and  fraudulent  claims,  nor  the  fixing  of  the 
bounds  of  the  former,  would  have  presented  any  great 
difficulties  to  a  practical  man;  and  he  thinks  that  the 
employment  of  such  men,  familiar  with  the  people, 
customs,  and  lanouagc  of  the  countrv — men  like 
Spence,  Hartnoll,  Stearns,  or  Pablo  de  la  Guerra,  for 
instance — in  some  capacity  should  have  been  a  feature 
of  the  best  plan. 

"^Ifittell's  Hist.  S.  F.,  sec.  89;  see  also  the  same  author's  Remurcen  n/Cai, 
article  in  Ilesperian,  iv.  147-55;  and  many  articles  in  the  S.  F.  Altn  a:ul 
other  papers.  H.  has  always  persistently  and  consistently  denounced  tlie 
Imd  law  as  opposed  to  the  true  interests  of  Cal.,  and  his  services  in  tliid 
respect  are  gracefully  acknowledged  by  Dr  Royce,  Squatter  Riot  <tt  Sue,  v'.w 
witJi  e(|ual  earnestness  and  more  philosophy  has  taken  similar  views  of  t!  c 
matter,  wliicli  is  treated  l)y  him  more  ably  than  by  any  other  writer,  not  only 
in  tlie  article  cited,  bnt  in  his  California.  Did  space  permit  I  might  give 
many  and  long  quotations  of  different  authors  in  this  coimection. 

^*  Croxhy's  Ereiits  in  Cul.,  MS.,  67-78.  This  writer  gives  a  clear  account 
of  the  whole  matter,  shoM'ing  in  clear  light  the  evils  resulting  from  the  act 
of  '51 

'■''  George's  Our  Land  and  Land  PoUcy,  14-17.  This  author  gives  a  V(iy 
fair  view  of  the  general  subject,  though  dwelling  particularly  on  the  bogus 
grants  aud  swindling  operations. 


*v 


A  BETTER  WAY. 


581 


ot  nien- 
uced  to 
cted  to 
ok  parh 
Senator 
joard  of 
nd  turn 
irveyor- 
.>s  to  1)0 
,1,  and  a 
)wcd  for 
larges  of 
the  op- 
Unitcd 
>lioldors 
ind  coni- 
by  the 
f  it  into 
T  of  the 
believos, 
between 
Of  of  the 
ny  great 
that  the 
people, 
on    hUc 
erra,  for 
feature 


Clearly  a  prompt  settlement  was  the  great  thing  to 
be  desired  for  all  interests,  much  more  important  than 
the  detection  of  a  few  petty  frauds;  and  the  whole 
matter  should  and  could  have  been  ended  in  five 
years  at  the  utmost;  most  of  the  claims  should  have 
been  confirmed,  surveyed,  and  patented  in  less  than 
three  years.  Litigation  should  have  been  confined  to 
a  few  test  cases;  seven  eighths  of  the  claims  should 
have  been  included  in  a  sweeping  confirmation  on 
ijfeneral  principles;  and  the  expense  should  have  been 
borne  by  the  government.  Let  us  hope  that  the  time 
may  come  wlien  tlie  united  wisdom  of  the  nation  in 
congress  assembled  shall  equal  the  practical  common 
sense  of  the  average  business  firm,  and  the  honesty 
and  efficiency  of  officials  shall  equal  the  honesty  and 
efficiency  of  average  business  clerks;  then  shall  we 
jiave  four  times  the  justice  that  we  now  receive,  for 
one  f()urth  of  the  cost. 


rcen  of  fill, 
Allii  a:ul 
louiicud  the 
fcea  in  tliid 
It  Sue,  who 
lows  fif  tl  e 
Jii-,  not  only 
Imight  give 

lar  account 
Vom  the  iut 


rl:'!^^ 


ires  a  very 
the  bogns 


■;;  '1 ' . 


,fji  '■ 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

FILIBUSTERING. 

1850-1860. 

Attractions  of  Spanish  America  to  Unprincipled  Men  of  the  United 
States — Filibcstebino  in  Texas — The  Morehead  Expedition  from 
California  to  Mexico— B'ailcre — Charles  de  Pindbay's  Efforts 
and  Death — Raoulx  de  Raousset-Boulbon's  Attempts  at  Destruc- 
tion— Capture  of  Hermosillo  and  Return  to  San  Francisco — 
Trial  of  Del  Valle — Raousset's  Death  at  Guaymas — Walker's 
Operations — Republic  of  Lower  California — Walker  in  Sonora— 
Walker  in  Nicaragua — His  ExECirrioN  in  Honduras — Crabb,  the 
Stockton  Lawyer. 

The  metallic  wealth  of  southern  and  central  Amer- 
ica WIS  the  magnet  which  drew  the  Spaniards  on  to 
seizure  and  spoliation.  This  was  conquest;  and  so 
rapidly  was  it  accomplished  that  their  Gallic  and 
Anglo-Saxon  neighbors  found  left  for  them  only  the 
meajjre  remainder  in  the  outskirts.  Yet  resolved  to 
have  a  share  of  the  treasure,  they,  in  turn,  levied  on 
the  Iberians.  The  circumstances  under  which  this 
partition  was  effected  gave  rise  to  the  term  filibuster- 
ing, interpreted  as  piracy  by  the  sufferers,  and  soft- 
ened by  the  aggressors  into  freebooting  under  shadow 
of  prevailing  war.  With  the  march  of  progress  and 
settlement  the  chronic  yearning  for  Spanish  America 
on  the  part  of  the  United  States  increased;  but  ris- 
ing above  the  vulgar  pillage  of  the  privateer,  it  cov- 
eted more  especially  the  land  with  its  resources  in  soil 
and  mineral  veins.  Austin  had  sampled  the  quality 
of  their  goodness  in  Texas,  and  pronouncing  it  delec- 
table ;  Houston  slipped  the  booty  into  the  union.  So 
rich  a  morsel  whetted  the  appetite  for  more.     Mexico 

(582) 


LAND  AND  GOLD. 


583 


ventured  to  remonstrate,  and  was  mulcted  for  her 
temerity  in  the  map-revision  which  placed  California, 
New  Mexico,  and  the  intermediate  country  north  of  the 
houndary  line.  "  Filibuster !"  cried  the  losers,  in  im- 
potent rage ;  and  flattered  by  the  revival  of  an  antique 
epithet  gilded  by  daring  achievements,  the  Gringo 
nodded  approval.^ 

The  weakness  of  Mexico,  as  shown  by  the  United 
States  invasion  of  184G-7,  and  by  her  subsequent  an- 
archic succession  of  rulers  and  frequent  local  and  gen- 
eral revolutions,  served  to  call  attention  to  a  condition 
favorable  to  a  further  adjustment  of  boundary.  This 
view  was  gaining  such  wide  recognition  as  to  enter 
into  party  speculation,  the  embryo  confederacy  adopt- 
ing it  as  a  compensating  means  for  the  failure  to  plant 
slavery  in  California.  Herein  lay  no  robbery  to  them. 
It  was  manifest  destiny  that  the  stars  and  stripes 
should  advance  with  culture  to  the  natural  limits  of 
the  Isthmus,  perchance  to  Tierra  del  Fuego. 

With  the  example  and  fame  of  Houston  before 
them,  projjhets  rose  plentifully  to  enunciate  this  gos- 
pel; and  in  California  especially  these  expectant 
founders  of  states  met  with  eager  listeners.  It  was  a 
land  of  adventurers,  drawn  by  the  thirst  for  gold  and 
excitement,  and  stirred  by  a  reckless  gambling  spirit. 
The  cream  of  the  gold-field  had  apparently  been 
secured  by  the  first  comers,  for  the  following  hordes 
found,  instead  of  mere  skimming,  harder  work  than  had 
entered  into  their  calculation  or  mood.  A  large  pro- 
portion preferred  to  dream  of  virgin  sources  beyond 
the  usual  haunts,  to  distant  fields  enshrined  in  mystery. 
Their  eyes  turned  readily  to  Mexico,  the  mother 
eountry  of  California,  and  for  centuries  renowned  for 
lier  mines.  Rumor  had  long  since  planted  gold  and 
silver  mountains  in  Sonora,  and  scattered  nuggets 
below  the  Gila  in  such  profusion  that  the  dreaded 
Apaches  moulded  from  them  their  bullets.     It  was  a 

'  See  Hist.  Cent.  Amer.,  ii.,  this  series,  for  origin  and  doings  of  the  fili- 

buaters. 


m 


!i 


S84 


FILIBUSTERING. 


■t  i\ 


a 


M 


thirst  for  easy  and  sudden  acquisition  akin  to  the  rest- 
lessness inherited  from  the  western  backwoodsmen, 
who  were  ever  moving  onward  to  new  settlements. 

The  agitation  took  shape  in  1851.  After  various 
conflicting  reports,  which  at  one  time  fixed  upon  tlie 
Hawaiian  Islands  as  the  victim,"  tlien  fitted  out  a 
pirate  vessel  at  Sydney  to  intercept  the  gold  shipments 
by  way  of  Panamd,^  attention  settled  upon  the  soutli- 
ern  border,  where  constant  strife  held  out  the  tempta- 
tion to  daring  spirits  for  siding  with  some  faction,  ami 
so  acquire  booty  if  not  foothold.  J.  C.  Morehead, 
during  the  preceding  year,  had  risen  into  notice  as  thu 
leader  of  an  expedition  against  the  Yumas  undL-r 
gubernatorial  appointment;  but  the  cloud  dispelled 
before  he  reached  the  scene.*  Still  thirsting  for  blood 
and  glory,  he  received  one  of  those  invitations  wliicli 
reV)el  leaders  in  Mexico  were  not  backward  in  extend- 
ing, though  slow  to  fulfil.  The  military  promenade 
to  Colorado,  having  served  to  point  out  to  his  follow- 
ers an  easier  and  more  alluring  method  of  earning 
money  than  by  hard  digging,  an  organization  was 
quickly  effected.  One  small  division  marched  by  way 
of  Los  Angeles  to  Sonora;  another  appeared  subse- 
quently at  La  Paz;  and  Morehead  himself  sailed  in 
May  with  a  company  for  Mazatlan.  A  proclamation 
i  sued  by  the  United  States  government  against  such 
movements  served  to  interfere  with  a  complete  enlist- 
ment, and  on  reaching  Mexico  the  broken  bands  found 
the  aspect  so  changed  or  unpromising  that  they  were 
glad  to  slink  away  under  the  guise  of  disappointed 
miners.® 

'■'Sam  Brannan,  Estill,  and  others  had  ina<1e  suspicious  movements,  and 
the  king  of  tlio  Islands  gave  vent  to  liis  alarm  in  a  speecli  before  his  parlia- 
ment, iu  appeals  to  the  U.  S.  commissioner,  and  in  taking  steps  for  defence. 
A  ltd  Cal.,  May  15,  1852.  In  1854  two  persons  came  to  S.  F.  to  organize  an 
expedition,  to  which  the  attention  of  the  authorities  was  called,  but  nothing 
resulted.  U.  S.  Gov.  Doc.,  Cong.  33,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Doc.  10,  vi.  101-2. 

»  White's  StaL,  MS. 

*  As  mentioned  in  the  chapter  on  Indians. 

^  For  references  and  details,  ave  Hu<t.  Xort/i  Mex.  States,  ii.,  imder  Son.  and 
L.  Cal.  Morehead  narrowly  escaped  arrest  at  San  Diego.  Alti  C<il.,  May  17, 
1851.  The  Jeffw^ou  Davis  clique  ha<.l  not  then  acquired  control  at  Washing- 
ton. 


TOWARD  THE  SOUTH. 


585 


Moxican  rebels  were  evidently  too  capricious  to  be 
nlied  upon;  but  the  superior  govermiiont  itself  was 
at  tliis  time  presenting  inducements  for  seekers  after 
glory.  It  had  struggled  since  1848  to  establish  niili- 
tarv  colonies  for  fjuardinj'  the  frontier  aijainst  Indians, 
as  well  as  the  neighboring  republic;  yet  the  good  pay 
and  grants  of  land  failed  to  tempt  its  indolent  citizens 
from  congenial  home  surroundings  to  irksome  border 
duty.  Others  there  were,  however,  wlio  saw  herein 
a  stepping-stone  to  higher  levels.  Race  prejudice  ran 
wikl  in  those  days  in  California,  and  Frenchmen  re- 
ciivcd  a  share  of  the  ill  feeling  directed  against  His- 
pauo- Americans,  or  greasers,®  so  that  hundreds  of 
tliom  were  driven  from  the  mines  to  earn  a  precarious 
subsistence  in  tlie  towns/  Common  persecution  at- 
tracted tlieni  toward  those  of  the  Latin  race,  and  to 
tlie  gilded  tales  of  the  border  region,  and  the  Mexi- 
can government  felt  encouraged  by  their  dislike  of 
the  United  States  to  accept  their  services  as  frontier 
colonists,  with  permission  to  open  mines.  Some  seven- 
score  accordingly  departed  at  the  close  of  1851  for 
C'ocospera  Valley,  in  Sonora,  under  the  guidance  of 
Charles  de  Pindray,  a  reduced  French  n(»l)leman.^ 
As  might  have  been  expected,  the  sorely  harassed 
authorities  failed  to  keep  their  engagements,  and  the 
consequent  distress  produced  desertion,  accelerated 
by  the  sudden  and  suspicious  death  of  Pindray. 

The  dissatisfaction  among  the  French  with  their 
condition  in  California  M-as  too  ijreat  to  be  eradicated 
by  one  check,  and  it  required  only  a  renewal  of  oilers 
to  revive  the  Sonora  gold-fever  under  another  leader. 
This  personage  was  at  hand  in  Count  Gaston  liaoulx 
do  Kaousset-Boulbon,  a  figure  of  somewhat  Liirn)utian 
stature  and  reputation  as  compared  with  the  Apollo- 
Herculean  proportions  of  his  defunct  predecessor,  yet 
big  with  the  soaring  spirit  of  chivalry  infused  by  fam- 

^  Causes  and  outbreaks  related  hi  the  chapter  oil  luiiiiug  fur  1849-50. 
'  Partly  from  ii,nioraiice  of  Engliali,  and  ot  any  useful  trade. 
*  An  Apollo-Hercules,  who  had  hunted  game  for  the  8.  F.  markets.     De- 
tails ill  /(/. 


686 


FILIBUSIERINO 


-n 


ily  tradition,*  and  witii  an  ever-sniouklcring  enthusiasm 
to  cany  into  ofl'ect  tlie  glowing  fancies  of  liis  tiny 
dreams,  which  pictured  him  another  Bayard  or  La- 
fayette on  the  path  to  mihtary  achievements.  And 
it  must  be  confessed  that  nature  had  not  altogether 
neglected  him  for  tlie  r61e  at  least  of  figure-head  for 
some  romantic  enterprise. 

Although  rather  petit  and  slender,  his  figure  was 
graceful,  with  a  handsome  oval  face  and  strongly 
marked  features  set  off  by  the  characteristic  French 
mustache  and  imperial,  of  blond  hue.  His  ey(.'s,  bent 
in  dreamy  reverie  or  sunk  in  pessimist  gloom,  turned 
readily  into  fiery  resolution  or  flashed  in  accord  with 
an  imperious  gesture.  The  voice,  un.aflectedly  C(jni- 
manding  or  animated  to  eloquence,  could  thrill  with 
encouragement  or  sway  with  charm  of  song  or  conver- 
sation. Skilled  with  pen  and  pencil,  his  verse  or  sketch 
shone  beside  the  sword  and  rifle,  and  he  managed  tlie 
bridle  with  grace  and  dash.  Although  sustained  by 
such  talents,  his  ambition  had  declined  under  the  prac- 
tical unfoldment  of  Europe  to  a  visionary  colonist 
undertaking  in  Algiers,  relieved  by  occasional  hunting 
tours  and  military  incursions.  It  was  an  existence 
forced  upon  him  by  a  season  of  extravagance  in  tlie 
giddy  whirls  of  Paris,  to  which  he  returned  (mly  to 
meet  another  worse  rebuff"  in  the  political  turmoils  of 
1848,  as  editor  and  republican  candidate.  Crushed 
both  in  aspirations  and  fortune,  he  availed  himself  of 
the  gold  excitement  to  join  the  hegira  to  California, 
and  here  penniless  he  sank  from  hunter  and  miner  to 
laborer,  yet  clinging  to  the  hope  of  some  higher  destiny. 

The  undertaking  of  Pindray  had  not  failed  to  kindle 
his  imagination.  With  the  advice  of  the  French  con- 
sul he  repaired  to  Mexico,  where  similar  colonizing 
schemes  had  been  long  agitated.  He  assisted  in  giving 
shape  to  the  liestauradora  Mining  Company,  under 
patronage  of  President  Arista,  for  opening  neglected 
fields  in  northern    Sonora,  and  arranged  to  bring  a 

'He  was  boru  at  Avignon  in  1817,  of  a  decayed  province  fauiiiy. 


RAOUSSET'S  EXPEDITION. 


587 


body  of  French  to  protect  the  operations  of  Mexican 
colonists  against  the  Apaches,  in  consideration  of  re-, 
c't'iving  annnunition  and  supplies,  half  of  all  land  and 
iniiH'S  and  tradinj^  profits.  So  alluring  an  otter  (juiekly 
biought  a  host  of  recruits  at  San  Francisco.  He 
stlct'tcid  2(50  men,  and  with  them  arrived  at  Guaymas 
in  June  1852.'° 

The  prospect  lield  forth  in  the  project  had  mean- 
wliile  brought  another  raining  comjKiny  into  the  field, 
whose  intrigues  roused  the  jealousy  of  the  Mexican 
officials  and  army  men  against  the  entry  of  an  indoj)en- 
(Icnt  foreign  command.  ])cnounced  as  an  intruder, 
l^iousset  found  every  possible  obstacle  thrown  in  his 
way,  notwithstanding  the  ostensible  sanction  of  his 
contract  by  the  federal  authorities.  He  nevertheless 
ft)rced  his  way  toward  the  frontier,  but  with  supplies 
cut  oft'  and  rear  threatened,  he  saw  that  his  party 
would  soon  melt  away.  The  colonization  plan  mat- 
tered little  to  him,  save  as  a  means  to  obtain  for  him- 
self the  proud  distinction  of  a  conmiander  ;  and  finding 
himself  at  the  head  of  so  large  a  body,  composed  to  a 
larufo  extent  of  old  soldiers,  the  half-cuibed  ambition 
of  the  little  count  began  to  assert  itself  for  feats  more 
in  accord  with  his  dreams  than  garrison  duty  among 
red-skins.  What  miirht  have  been  his  course  if  the 
authorities  had  kept  faith  with  him  can  only  be  con- 
jectured. The  lack  of  faith  on  the  part  of  the  Mexicans 
justified  almost  any  step;  and  his  desire  was  fanned 
into  a  flame  by  the  vague  promise  of  support  from 
some  of  the  frontier  settlers,  who  were  disatt'ected  on 
account  of  the  neglect  of  the  authorities  to  protect 
tliem  against  savage  raids. 

lie  despatched  agents  to  San  Francisco  and  Maza- 
tliui  for  stores  and  reenforcements,  and  marched  south 
with  his  now  ragged  brigade  of  250  men,  intending  to 
surprise  Hermosillo,  the  most  important  town  of  So- 

'"Iii  the  ArchUmld  Grade,  the  Mexican  consul  assisted  to  overrulo  tlio  ob- 
jections of  the  U.  S.  ollieiais.  Americans  were  as  a  rule  excludcU  to  humor 
Mexican  prejudices. 


688 


FILIBUSTERING. 


norn,  and  there  tlictiite  demands  for  justice,  tliouji,'!! 
nally  to  prepare  for  the  independence  of  the  stati-, 
sustained  by  the  expected  ininiigration  and  revoki- 
tioiiary  factions.  A  love  affair  delayed  him,  and 
enabled  General  Blanco  to  occupy  Hermosillo  with 
1,000  men.  Nothing  daunted,  the  fiery  Frenchman 
led  his  followers  to  the  assault,  and  with  the  aid  itf 
four  i^uns  carried  the  place,  on  October  14th."  The 
triumph  proved  fruitless,  however.  The  Mexicans 
were  not  prepared  to  yield  their  place  to  foreigmis. 
The  proposed  allies  held  oloof,  and  an  outcry  coiicern- 
in<i:  foreign  annexation  served  to  unite  hitherto  hostile 
factions  against  him.  The  only  hope  of  the  French 
lay  in  reenforcements ;  and  while  awaiting  them  it 
became  necessary  to  retire  from  the  midst  of  tiie 
gathering  ^Mexicans  to  the  safer  shelter  of  Port  Guay- 
mas.  Then  Raousset  fell  sick  with  climatic  fever, 
and  discord  broke  out  among  his  followers,  of  wliich 
the  authorities  took  advantage  to  persuade  them  to 
deliver  up  their  arms  for  a  small  consideration  and 
depart. 

llaousset,  who  had  been  no  real  party  to  the  sur- 
render, returned  to  San  Francisco  to  receive  the  most 
flatterlncf  recojjnition  as  the  victor  of  Hermosillo. 
The  speed  with  which  he  had  wrested  the  chief  town 
from  the  military  forces  of  the  state  Ciiufirmed  tlio 
belief  that  an  invasion  could  be  easily  effected,  and  the 
enthusiasm  roused  by  his  feats  gave  promise  of  ready 
material  for  a  repetition  of  the  enterprise,  while:  the 
custom-house  at  Guaymas  was  expected  to  provide 
ample  means.  On  repairing  to  Mexico  in  the  middle 
of  1853  to  claim  indemnity  on  the  broken  contract, 
though  more  jiroperly  to  seok  aid  and  pretexts  for 
fresh  plans,  he  found  his  old  patrons  favorably  dis- 
posed, and  the  French  iDinister  seemed  prepared  to 
foster  a  project  that  might  lead  to  great  ends.  France 
was  then  striving  for  a  revival  of  Napoleonic  glories, 
with  a  predilection  for  colonial  conquests  as  exhibited 

•'  At  a  cost  to  himself  of  17  killed  and  25  wounded. 


KIVERSE  AMBITIONS. 


B80 


ill  tlio  subao<iuent  expedition  to  Mexico.  Dictivtor 
Saiita  Anna  failctl,  however,  to  grant  any  ooncessiona, 
vliile  delaying  the  count  with  idle  promises,  until 
lioUHset  in  exasperation  ft)rnied  a  liague  with  the 
t'tderalist  rebels,  and  hastened  away  thirsting  tor  ven- 


u-L'ance 

c5 


At  San  Francisco,  also,  he  found  himself  checked 
liy  the  American  rival  scheme  under  Walker,  whose 
iulhiential  supporters  at  Washington  induced  tlie 
authorities  to  exert  a  watchful  interference  upon  any 
disturbing  French  movements.  Startled  by  the  dou- 
ble design,  and  especially  by  AValker's  projects,  Santa 
Anna  sought  to  counteract  both  by  instructing  the 
!^[exican  consul  at  San  Francisco  to  step  in  and  en- 
gage for  Mexican  ser\'ice  the  most  likely  filibuster 
material,  except  American,  with  a  view  to  scatter  it 
ill  small  and  readily  controllal)le  groups  in  the  coast 
states.^*  Not  aware  of  the  latter  intention,  Raousset 
was  elated  at  the  unexpected  aid  extended  to  his 
})lans  by  the  Mexican  government  itself,  in  oft'ering 
jiassage  and  support  to  his  followers.  About  600  were 
(luickly  enrolled,  and  packed  on  board  the  Challentje 
ill  one  body,  by  the  blundering  consul.  Regarding 
this  mana'uvre  as  directed  mainly  against  themselves, 
the  Walker  party  stirred  the  authorities  that  they 
might  realize  the  enormity  of  so  flagrant  a  violation 
of  the  neutrality  laws,  and  the  Challenge  was  seized 
in  March  1854. 

For  some  reason  the  vessel  was  released  and  allowed 
to  proceed  early  in  April,  although  with  her  passen- 
gers reduced  in  accordance  with  the  tonnage  act  to 
not  quite  400,  mostly  French,  of  a  motley  descrip- 
tion, with   some  Irish  and   Gennans.^*     The  oppor- 

*'  He  obtained  at  S.  P.  oflFers  of  substantial  aid,  which  were  withdrawTi 
\N'hen  news  cunic  of  the  Gadsden  purchase,  with  rumors  aO'ucting  tiie  fjijsiou 
of  Sonora. 

"  The  terma  were  $1  a  day,  with  rations,  arms,  election  of  their  own  officers, 
and  aid  to  settle  as  colonists  after  expiration  of  the  year's  service. 

'* .)  Ua  Cal ,  Mar.  22-3,  Apr.  1-2.  The  reason  for  the  release  may  be  sought 
in  the  glaring  discrimination  exhibited  shortly  before  in  favor  of  Walker's 
enlistments,  and  in  the  harmless  character  of  the  party. 


u 


IT 


I!  i 


M 


^m 


Al 


590 


FILTBUSTERING. 


tunity  herein  presented,  however,  of  teaching  the 
Mexicans  a  lesson,  was  too  good  to  be  lost.  Their 
government  had  lately  complained  with  justice  against 
the  United  States  for  countenancing  filibuster  enrol- 
ments. All  responsibility  could  now  be  thrown  off 
by  arraigning  their  consul,  Del  Valle,  for  a  similar 
infringement  of  the  neutrality  laws.  He  was  accord- 
ingly arrested  and  pronounced  guilty.  During  the 
trial  both  sides  demanded  the  testimony  of  P.  Dillon, 
the  French  consul.  A  recent  convention  with  France 
forbidding  any  compulsory  citation,  a  mere  polite  re- 
quest was  made  for  his  attendance,  yet,  on  refusing, 
he  was  forcibly  brought  into  court,^^  whereupon  he 
indignantly  struck  his  flag.  He  was  soon  after 
arrested  as  an  abettor  of  Del  Valle's  enlistment; 
but  as  the  defence  showed  the  expedition  to  be  the 
very  opposite  of  a  filibustering  afl^air,  one  aiming  to 
check  such  movements,  the  jury  disagreed.^®  The 
difficulty  and  danger  of  convicting  the  French  consul 
naturally  affected  his  confrere,  and  so  the  better  course 
was  taken  to  impress  upon  the  Mexicans  the  magna- 
nimity of  the  United  States  by  dismissing  the  case 
against  both.  Due  apology  being  tendered,  the  tri- 
color was  once  more  floated  on  the  breeze. 

Raousset  had  arranged  with  the  Challenge  party  to 
follow  them  with  more  men;  but  the  discomfiture  just 
then  of  Walker  dampened  the  ardor  of  his  adherents. 
Yet  his  only  hope  lay  in  Sonora,  and  so  he  slipped 
away  in  a  pilot-boat,"  reaching  Guaymas  July  1st, 
after  a  severe  voyage.  The  sweets  of  power  and 
profitable  idleness  had  by  this  time  imbued  the  com- 

^^The  judse  decided  that  compulsiou  was  not  permissible. 

**  May  2utn,  all  but  two  stooil  for  convictioa  oa  the  ground  that  any  en- 
listment for  military  purposes  was  against  the  law.  Full  report  of  proceod- 
lags  in  U.  S.  Govt  Doc.,  Cong.  35,  Sess.  1.  H.  Ex.  Doc.  88,  x.  i:J4-5I;  Aita 
CaL,  April  to  May,  June  1,  July  14,  1854;  iDec.  3,  1855;  S  F.  Herald,  April 
1  et  seq.,  June  1,  1854;  Cat,  Chronicle,  June  1,  1854;  Annals  S.  F.,  531-5; 
S.  F.  Post,  Sept.  7,  1878.  Dillon  was  in  1856  promoted  to  consul-general  nud 
charge  d'affaires  at  Santo  Domingo,  and  died  there  soon  after.  S.  F.  Bulletin, 
May  7,  185G. 

»'  The  Belle,  with  six  men  and  nearly  200  rifles.  The  pros][)ect  of  being 
involved  in  the  consular  trial  hastened  his  departure. 


DEFEAT  AND  DEATH. 


591 


manders  of  the  party  with  a  distaste  for  hazardous 
enterprise,  and  rather  than  surrender  their  office  to 
another  they  would  play  into  the  hands  of  General 
Yancz,  the  new  military  chief  of  Sonora.  Aware, 
on  the  other  hand,  that  in  unity  lay  their  only  safety 
and  means  for  enforcing  the  favorable  contract  with 
the  government,  they  had  sturdily  resisted  the  efforts 
to  separate  them,  especia  .y  after  Walker's  failure 
diminished  the  filibuster  scare.  Raousset  was  led  to 
believe  that  Yanez  stood  prepared  to  break  with  Santa 
Anna,  and  would  be  glad  to  form  an  advantageous 
alliance.  The  general  certainly  desired  to  strengthen 
his  position  for  the  prospective  political  changes,  and 
seeing  in  tlie  French  complication  a  justifiable  reason 
for  doing  so,  he  entered  into  the  negotiation  to  gain 
time  for  the  reenforcements.  And  so  the  count  allowed 
himself  to  be  outwitted  by  both  parties,  and  lose  the 
favorable  opportunity  of  securing  at  least  Guaymas, 
with  its  valuable  custom-house  and  vessels.  Tlie 
gathering  troops  at  length  opened  his  eyes.  The 
French  battalion  also  perceived  their  error,  and  that 
in  resolute  action  alone  lay  the  remedy.  Confident 
in  his  strength,  Yanez  cast  aside  the  mask,  and  refused 
to  entertain  any  proposals,  whereupon  the  French 
marched  atjainst  his  barracks  in  three  columns.'^ 

With  harmonious  cooperation,  under  the  inspiring 
guidance  of  Raousset,  the  attack  had  many  prospects 
for  success ;  but  he  committed  the  mistake  of  declining 
the  command  in  order  to  allay  the  jealousy  of  the 
existing  leader's  clique.  The  resull  was,  tliat  the  main 
column  was  demoralized  by  the  fi.  st  sweeping  fire  of 
the  Mexicans.  The  disorder  sptead,  leaving  Raousset 
with  only  a  handful  of  supporters,  wliose  heroic  efforts 
were  wasted.  A  portion  had  Hed  to  a  vessel,  which 
overtaken  by  a  storm  buried  their  shame  beneath  the 
waters  of  the  gulf.  The  rest  fell  back  to  the  consulate 
before  the  now  advancing  garrison,  there  to  surrender 


'"In  four  companies,  of  about  75  men  each,  8weil<jd  by  French  reaidenta 
to  about  3o0  iu  all. 


m 


592 


FILIBUSTERING. 


1 1 


!i; 


If 


fi 


with  the  concession  barely  of  life.  With  the  excep- 
tion of  a  few,  who  were  allowed  to  depart  or  join  the 
army,  they  were  thereupon  sent  into  the  interior  to 
endure  great  sufferint;  ere  the  Frrich  minister  ob- 
tamed  their  release.^' 

The  vague  terms  of  the  capitulation  were  ignored 
as  regards  Raousset,  and  he  was  condemned  by  com  t- 
martial,  and  shot  on  August  12th,  a  month  after  the 
battle.  He  lacked  clearness  of  head,  tact  and  prudence 
for  carrying  out  the  projects  conceived  by  an  exalted 
ambition.  Dash  and  fervor,  name  and  personal  attrac- 
tions, were  not  sufficient  to  sustain  them.  His  pur- 
poses were  thwarted  by  a  fitful,  misdirected  energy ; 
personal  indulgence  was  permitted  to  imperil  the  vic- 
tory at  Hermosillo,  and  lack  of  firmness  and  prompt 
action  lost  to  him  the  advantage  gained  thereby,  as 
it  did  the  ready  triumph  at  Guaymas.  The  petty 
schemes  to  which  his  hiijh  dreams  dwindled  demanded 
for  success  the  same  unscrupulous  keenness  used  by 
intriguing  rivals  and  opponents,  rather  than  his  some- 
what rigid  principles  of  honor.  They  appeared  out  of 
place  in  this  ferment,  save  to  impart  a  redeeming  lustre 
to  his  character.®'  Discouraged  by  repeated  failures, 
he  rather  courted  death,  and  met  it  with  the  proud 
fortitude  of  one  whose  vanity  was  flattered  by  the 
sympathetic  admiration,  especially  of  the  Mexican 
women,  and  whose  erratic  imagination  sought  througli 
the  bullets  consecration  as  the  martyr  of  a  great  cause, 
as  an  heroic  if  unsuccestiful  liberator. 


The  possession  of  some  of  the  qualities  lacking  in 
the  French  connt  enabled  a  contemporary  American 
filibuster  to  attain  to  far  greater  achievements  and 
distinction.  We  instinctively  connect  the  leadership 
of  a  great  enterprise  or  party  with  a  man  of  com- 

'*  For  details  concerning  the  expedition,  I  refer  to  Hist,  North  Mex.,  ii.,  thia 
series,  with  references  to  the  aut^iorities. 

'■"He  could  have  saveil  himself  had  he  chosen  to  desert  his  companion;  ami 
he  might  have  secured  many  i  dvantages  at  Mexico  by  considering  only  liim- 
self. 


WILLIAM  WALKER. 


503 


nianding  presence  to  supplement  that  personal  mag- 
iKitisni  which  conunands  followers.  But  Raousset 
was  diminutive,  and  in  the  Tennessee  lawyer,  William 
Walker,  the  ideal  is  marred  by  a  still  more  puny  stat- 
ure, and  an  unprepossessing  exterior,  marked  by  light 
towy  hair,  and  a  heavy  freckled  face,  surmounted  for 
a  long  time  by  a  huge  white  fur  hat  with  a  wavy  nap, 
well  in  accord  with  the  strapless  pantaloons,  ill-fitting 
coat,  and  stalking  gait.^^  A  relieving  feature  was  the 
seemingly  pupilless  gray  eyes,  their  large  orbits,  half 
concealed  by  white  eyebrows  and  lashes,  at  once 
Impelling  and  fascinating  with  their  strong,  steady 
penetration.^^  While  rejecting  none  of  the  emotions 
working  within  the  little  man,  their  icy  stare  indicated 
(>i:]y  too  plainly  the  unscrupulous  nature  to  wliich 
vthing  was  subordinated.  His  reserve  melted 
);  /»'  even  in  genial  company  from  the  stolid  indiffer- 
ence which  deepened  into  absolute  heartlessness. 
Slow  of  speech,  swift  in  energy,  with  a  sharp  pen 
ever  ready  for  attack ;  brave  and  resolute  to  obstmacy ; 
a  slumbering  volcano,  repellant  save  in  its  snow- 
fringed  deception,  and  burning  with  ambition  for  a 
fame  of  wide  range — herein  lies  an  explanation  why 
lie  abandoned  the  sedate  medical  path  staked  out  for 
liim,  to  enter  the  ruore  seductive  mazes  of  the  law, 
and  failing,  to  seek  as  editor  a  vent  for  his  pent-up 
a  '^-gressi  V  c  noss. 

The  French  operations  in  Sonora  had  served  to  rouse 
the  sim'iUir  siimbering  projects  among  the  Americans, 
v\cn  Ti  (listvUit  Washington,  where  it  took  shape  in 
the  Ciiid' iKni's  purchase  of  the  Gila  region.  And 
many  mon  v-.ji  notning  to  lose  save  life,  stood 
ready  to  risk  it  for  a  possible  fortune  and  the  attendant 
excitement.     Walker  saw  an  opportunity ;  and  foUow- 

''  Warren  believed  that  he  could  not  liave  turned  the  scales  at  100  lbs. 
His  unprepossessing  '  apj)earancu  was  that  of  anything  else  than  a  military 
chieftain.'  Duj«t  ami  Foam,  211-12. 

'^''  'The  keen,  sharp  fl.ash  of  broken  steel  in  the  sun,'  says  the  poet  Miller. 

'■"Bir'i  and  early  career  have  been  toiiolied  in  J/M.  Cent.  Am.,  iii.,  and 
///••<<.  .,'■  iJi.  Mfx.,  ii.,  this  scries;  also  Fidd'g  lieinin,,  1)3;  Bowmana  Xeiva- 
■j-'ptr   it    ;t,  MS.,  ,13. 

1    -I.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    38 


i 


694 


FILIBUSTERING. 


ing  the  cue  already  given,  he  sought  at  Guaymas,  in 
the  summer  of  1853,  a  grant  for  a  Hiilitary  frontier 
colony  against  the  Indians;  but  the  government 
shrank  in  distrust  before  an  offer  so  singularly  dis- 
interested. The  sheep-clothing  could  not  hide  the 
wolf.  Unabashed  by  the  termination  of  his  farce,  he 
returned  to  San  Francisco,  determined  that  the  state 
should  have  his  protection  whether  it  willed  or  not. 
If  Mexico  could  not  shield  Sonora  from  cruel  savages, 
then  must  humanity  step  in.  The  United  States  had 
neglected  its  pledge  to  restrain  the  red-skins,  and 
Walker  felt  bound  to  interpose  in  behalf  of  his  coun- 
try's honor.  .Raousset's  renewed  efforts  gave  spur 
to  his  own.  ^>.rPT.  to  forestall  him,  and  profit  by  the 
enthusiasm   wl  his   contracts   and   victories   had 

tended  to  rouse,  >  opened  a  recruiting  office,  baited 
with  prospective  plunder,  and  the  offer  of  a  square 
league  of  land  for  each  man.  A  large  number  took 
the  bait,  and  still  another  host  of  passive  participants 
nibbled  at  the  scrip,  which,  representing  land  in  the 
prospective  republic,  was  freely  tendered  at  a  liberal 
discount.  Money  was  plentiful  in  those  days,  and 
the  investment  appeared  as  an  attractive  lottery,  with 
perchance  some  prize  to  be  drawn  from  out  the  bat- 
tles. It  was  argued  that  the  uprising  in  one  section 
might  induce  neighboring  states  to  join  for  eventual 
absorption  in  the  union ;  the  war  in  itself  to  prove  a 
strong  appeal  for  United  States  interference,  if  only 
to  stop  bloodshed.^* 

The  brig  Arrow  was  now  chartered  for  the  proposed 
colonists,  and  provided  with  stores  and  a  generous 
quantity  of  rifles  and  six-shooters  wherewith  to  de- 
velop the  resources  of  the  country.  The  military 
commander  in  California  at  this  period  was  General 
Hitchcock,  a  man  so  blind  to  the  weather-vane  of 
political  exigencies  as  not  to  understand  the  value  of 

'**  They  intend  to  arm  the  Apaches  against  us, '  cries  one  jour  al.  Sono- 
renfii;  March  28,  1851.  For  additional  details  on  this  expedition,  I  refer  to  my 
Hist.  Sorlli  Mex.,  ii.,  this  aeries. 


SAILING  FROM  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


595 


al.  Sono- 
f  er  to  my 


Walker's  implements  for  industrial  unfoldment,  nor  to 
perceive  his  right  to  distribute  the  lands  of  a  friendly 
neighbor.  He  accordingly  undertook  to  seize  the 
vessel,  only  to  discover  his  mistake  when  other  wiser 
officials  caused  it  to  be  released,  and  when  General 
Wool  was  sent  to  replace  him,  with  headquarters 
planted  at  Benicia  in  order  to  allow  freer  play  to  the 
champions  of  enterprise.  It  is  sufficient  to  point  out 
that  Jefferson  Davis  was  secretary  of  war  at  the  time, 
and  that  the  Gadsden  purchase  was  then  under  con- 
sideration, in  order  to  guess  at  the  complications  apt 
to  arise  from  a  successful  revolution  in  the  border 
states.^^ 

Meanwhile  Walk."  slipped  away  in  another  vessel, 
the  Caroline,  during  tlie  night  of  October  16th,  with 
four  dozen  followers,  leaving  reenforcements  to  follow. 
Guaymas  was  '.he  announced  destination,  perhaps  to 
mislead  the  enemy,  which,  indeed,  made  formidable 
])r(;parations  in  Sonora.  The  smallness  of  the  party 
precluded  hope  in  this  direction;  and  as  future  enlist- 
ments and  credit  depended  on  early  successes,  the 
isolated  and  weaker  Lower  California  was  selectetl  for 
the  initial  point.  On  November  3d  the  vessel  cr(j)t 
into  La  Paz  under  cover  of  a  Mexican  Hag,  and  find- 
ing all  unsuspiciously  quiet,  Walker  pounced  upon  it, 
seized  the  governor,  and  gained  possession  without 
firing  a  gun."**  No  less  miglity  with  the  pen  thait  the 
sword,  he  thereupon  proclaimed  the  Republic  of  Lower 
California,  distributing  official  honors  amonij  his  band 
with  lavish  generosity.  After  thus  conferring  sover- 
eign independence  upon  the  people,  he  further  sought 
to  ])lease  them  by  abolishing  tlie  heavy  duties  under 
which  the}-  had  so  long  been  groaning,  a  double  bait 
to  cover  the  baib  contained  in  the  adoption  of  the  code 

'"  Mexican  officials  protested  as  late  as  Jan.  1854,  and  were  assiircil  by 
Hitchcock  that  tlie  government  was  seeking  to  check  the  Walker  movement; 
but  <as  it  failed,  Mexico  undercook  to  do  so,  with  the  result  that  their  consul 
was  arreateil,  as  explained.  As  late  as  Aug.  J854  Wool  was  instructed  not 
to  anticipate  or  interfere  with  the  civil  authorities  in  cases  of  unlawful  ex- 
peditions.  U.  S.  Gm\  Dor.,  Cong.  3.S,  Sess.  2,  Sen.  Doc.  16,  vi.  102. 

^"''  -\  new  governor  arriving  just  then  waj  also  secured. 


Ii 


596 


FILIBUSTERING. 


of  Louisiana  for  a  constitution.  The  publication  of 
the  text  was  wisely  deferred,  lest  the  Mexicans,  with 
tlicir  democratic  instincts  and  admixture  of  negro 
blood,  should  shrink  before  its  revolting  slavery 
clausos.  Although  little  concerned  at  the  nature  of 
his  measures,  so  that  they  served  his  purpose,  Walker 
based  his  advocacy  of  slavery  on  lofty  grounds,  as  a 
missionary  scheme  for  civilizing  the  blacks,  while  as- 
sistmg  to  liberate  the  whites  from  degrading  manual 
labor. 

The  prestige  acquired  at  La  Paz  had  to  be  pre- 
served; and  as  it  might  at  any  moment  be  dimmed 
l)y  a  detachment  from  the  other  side  the  bay,  the  fili- 
busters resolved  to  seek  a  still  safer  base  for  opera- 
tit)ns.  Their  preparations  for  departure  so  fired  the 
patriotism  of  the  Mexicans  that  the  entire  town  rose 
in  lively  chose  of  some  stragglers.  Walker  promptly 
turned  his  guns  upon  them  and  landed  to  the  rescue, 
whereupon  the  riatives  retired,  with  some  casualties, 
it  is  claimed.  Thus  was  the  liberator's  expedition  bap- 
tized in  blood,  in  the  glorious  battle  of  La  Paz.^ 

A  few  days  later  the  party  appeared  at  Todos 
Santos  Bay,  the  new  headquarters,  whose  desert  sur- 
roundings and  paucity  of  inhabitants  promised  to  be 
safeguards  against  molestation,  while  tlie  proximity 
to  the  United  St.i;tes  frontier  must  serve  to  inspire 
greater  confidence  for  the  invasion  of  Sonora.  Un- 
fortunately the  scanty  population  centred  in  a  mili- 
tary colony  whose  destitution  had  infused  a  desperate 
courage  into  an  otherwise  harmless  soldiery,  and  find- 
ing the  rancho  stock  to  be  rapidly  disappearing  under 
the  appetite  of  American  foragers,  their  stomachs 
filed  a  stinmlating  protest.  The  result  was  a  series  of 
harassing  attacks,  abetted  by  the  rancheros,  whose 
stolid  conij)rehension  could  not  grasp  the  advantage 
of  exchanging  insecure,  elusive  property  like  roaming 
cattle  for  the  title  deeds  to  fixed  landed  estates  oflered 

^  The  Mexicans  also  claimed  the  victory,  poiuting  ia  proof  to  the  hurried 
departure  of  the  invaders. 


WALKER'S  EXPEDITION. 


607 


Lower  California. 


698 


FnJBUSTERING. 


by  Walker's  band.*^     But  reenforcements   were  at 
hand. 

The  victory  at  La  Paz  had  roused  wide  enthusiasm 
at  San  Francisco.  Her  editors  extended  their  wel- 
come to  the  new  republic  into  the  sisterhood  of  states,^ 
and  her  vagabond  population  offered  their  aid  to  build 
its  fortunes.  Indeed,  H.  P.  Watkins,**  vice-president 
of  Walker's  republic,  quickly  enrolled  some  300  of  tlio 
claimants  for  glory  and  plunder  in  Colorsido  desert,^* 
and  despatched  them  in  the  middle  of  December  to 
Todos  Santos,  greatly  to  the  relief  of  the  criminal 
calendar.  Walker  now  began  to  drill  and  forage  for 
the  march  into  Sonora,  to  which  the  peninsula  was 
formally  united  under  the  title  of  Republic  of  Sonora. 
But  discontent  was  already  spreading.  To  the  new- 
comers had  been  pictured  rich  churches  and  well- 
stocked  haciendas,  inviting  to  pillage  and  plenty. 
They  found  instead  only  arid  ranges  with  a  few  mud 
huts,  and  with  scant  rations  of  corn  and  jerked  beef, 
wliich  were  not  calculated  to  cheer  the  flagging  spirit 
for  a  tramp  through  the  wilderness  to  face  the  lines 
of  bayonets  beyond.  Lash  and  even  executions  availed 
not,  and  when,  after  a  suicidal  delay  6f  three  months, 
the  start  was  made,  in  the  latter  half  of  March,  barely 
1 00  men  fell  into  line.  A  week's  journey  through  tiie 
desert,  while  at  their  heels  hovered  the  Cocopas,  who 
sniffed  their  beeves,  served  to  dispel  among  the  rest 
all  lust  for  the  spoils  of  Sonora.  On  reaching  the 
Colorado  River  only  35  ragged  liberators  remained, 
chiefly  ministers  and  other  high  officials  who  were 
loath  to  relinquish  the  glittering  titles  that  placed  them 
above  common  men.  Before  such  a  series  of  reverses 
the  ardor  of  Walker  himself  had  to  yield,  and  he 

**  The  captive  governors  availed  themselves  of  the  turmoil  to  bribe  tlic 
captaiu  of  the  vessel  to  slip  away  with  thein. 

•'»AUa  Cal,  Dec.  8,  1853. 

*•  Walker's  law  partner  at  Marysville,  dubbed  colonel. 

*'  Later  enlistment  notice-s  in  AUa  CaL,  Jan.  3,  Feb.  1,  1854.  At  Sonora 
the  hot-bed  for  rowdies,  an  enthusiastic  meeting  was  held  on  Jan.  17th,  Baird, 
Walker's  qnat'termaster,  and  others  making  stirring  speeches  in  l)ehalf  of 
liberty  and  humanity  in  the  namesake  state.  The  Lark  Anita  left  Due.  13, 
1853,  with  230.     Others  took  the  steamer  to  Sau  Diego. 


DOWNFALL  OF  THE  REPUBUCS. 


599 


turned  to  rejoin  the  handful  left  behind  to  hold  the 
country.  Encouraged  by  the  waning  strength  of  the 
foe,  soldiers  and  settlers  gathered  with  fresh  zeal  for 
the  fray,  and  gave  impulse  to  the  retreating  stei)s  of 
the  filibusters.  At  the  frontier  the  harassed  strajj- 
glcrs  were  met  by  United  States  army  men,  who,  on 
May  8,  1854,  took  their  parole  as  prisoners  of  war 
with  unwonted  consideration,  and  provided  them  with 
free  passage  to  San  Francisco.  Walker  was  arraigned 
for  infringing  the  neutrality  laws,  and  acquitted.^^ 

Although  the  verdict  was  manifested  by  a  defeat  of 
justice,  the  public  as  a  rule  approved  it.  The  expedi- 
tion, once  so  lauded,  was  already  branded  as  a  piratical 
raid,  and  the  cause  of  humanity  had  passed  into  a  joke; 
yet  a  flattering  conceit  hovered  round  the  grandeur  of 
the  plan  and  the  daring  of  the  enterprise,  which  served 
to  wreathe  the  leaders  at  least  with  a  halo  of  romance. 


Walker  passed  out  of  sight  for  a  time  within  an 
editorial  sanctum;^  but  his  fame  had  gone  abroad,  and 
his  busy  pen  propped  it  assiduously  in  correspondence 
with  Si»anish  America.  His  reputation  as  an  able  and 
brave  leader,  with  influence  for  rallying  adherents, 
perchance  with  oflicial  backing,  had  floated  on  swelling 
rumor  to  distant  Nicaragua,  where  the  Granada  and 
Leonese  factions  were  then  busily  squandering  blood 
and  treasure  in  the  strife  for  power.  The  Leonese, 
being  defeated,  looked  around  for  aid,  and  bethought 
themselves  of  the  little  California  editor.  The  longed- 
for  opportunity  had  come.  Casting  aside  the  quill, 
he  hastily  enrolled  threescore  choice  comrades,  and 
stole  away  in  the  Vesta  on  May  3,  1855.^     His  career 

^'Assisted  by  the  well-calculated  failure  of  the  consular  trial  just  ended. 
Watkias  and  Einory  had  been  arrested  shortly  before  for  enlisting  men,  and 
fined  $1,5(H)  each,  but  the  sentence  was  never  enforced.  Watkio«,  pioneer  of 
^larysville,  represented  Yuba  in  the  state  senate  in  1838.  :ind  died  at  Oak- 
land, Dec.  28,  1872,  age  63.  Marysvilk  Afqienl,  Jan.  4,  187.3;  Alameda  Guz., 
Dec.  27,  1873;  Colusa  Sun,  Apr.  11,  1874;  AUa  Cat.,  June  3,  IG,  Oct.  13-20, 
1854. 

^AUaCal,  June  16,  1854. 

'*  The  sheriff  had  laid  an  embargo  for  a  heavy  grocer  bill,  but  his  deputy 
WIS  niade  captive  till  the  vessel  reached  the  higli  seas.     Others  followed  in 


w 

I 
! 

'Hi- 


600 


FILIBUST£RINO. 


after  this  is  better  known  to  the  world  than  the  fiasco 
in  Lower  California.  His  skill  and  energy  turned  the 
scale  in  favor  of  his  allies,  who  rewarded  him  with 
the  position  of  generalissimo.  Success  brought  more 
personal  adherents  to  his  banners,  and  fired  with  am- 
bition, he  vaulted  into  the  presidential  chair,  changing 
religion  to  court  the  masses.  Casting  prudence  to  the 
winds,  he  perpetrated  one  outrage  after  another,  till 
the  exasperated  natives  rose  to  expel  him  in  1857. 
During  the  subsequent  futile  efforts  to  regain  a  foot- 
hold, he  visited  California  to  cast  his  nets  for  means,^' 
but  failed  to  gain  any  sympathy,  and  his  execution  in 
Honduras  in  18G0  evoked  not  a  ripple  of  regret.^ 

In  Lower  California  circumstances  were  against  him, 
although  the  long  delay  at  Todos  Santos  detracts  from 
his  otherwise  resolute  pnmiptness.  In  Nicaragua  his 
own  heedlessness,  as  in  rousing  the  enmity  of  the  in- 
fluential navigation  company,  and  in  forcing  a  needless 
and  repelling  slavery  act  upon  the  people,  served  to 
cut  short  a  career  which  might  otherwise  have  borne 
him  to  the  summit  of  his  ambition.  His  skill  as  a 
projector  and  commander  were  shackled  by  unreason- 
able obstinacy,  tinged  with  a  fatalistic  belief  in  his 
high  destiny  as  a  liberator  and  standard-bearer  for  the 
United  States.  His  cold  unscrupulousness  withheld 
admiration,  and  divested  him  of  the  romantic  glauK^ur 
which  infolds  the  less  important  achievements  of  the 
gallant  Raousset-Boulbon.  And  so  the  brilliant  ef- 
forts which  might  have  taken  rank  with  those  of  a 
Houston  sank  under  the  aspect  of  indifference  to 
freebooting  schemes,  and  the  gray-eyed  man  of  destiny 
dwells  in  memory  as  a  pirate. 

the  steamer,  under  the  guise  ot  through  passengers  for  the  eastern  states. 
Tliey  entered  under  a  contract  for  men  and  arms  transferrefl  to  Walker  by 
an  American  of  Nic. 

'■"'  His  silence  while  at  S.  F.  in  March  1859  augured  new  schemes,  and  a 
vessel  in  the  harbor  attracted  suspicion.  His  old  ])artner,  Henningsen,  was 
then  enlisting  men  in  the  east  for  Arizona.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  March  31,  1859;  S. 
F.  Pout,  Jan.  11,  1879. 

'•Full  account  of  his  career  during  1855-CO,  in  Hist.  Cent.  Am.,  iii.,  this 
series. 


CRABB'S  EXPEDITION. 


601 


To  the  ordinary  observer,  the  failure  of  Raousset 
and  Walker  in  Mexico  appeared  mainly  due  to  a  lack 
(»f  prompt  and  harmonious  action ;  and  this  being  re- 
mediable, their  projects,  so  fraught  with  flattering  suc- 
cess and  notoriety,  continued  to  find  advocates.  The 
acquisition  of  the  Gadsden  tract  served  to  open  a  part 
of  the  desired  field  to  gold-seekers,  and  to  renew  the 
belief  in  a  further  extension  of  United  States  domin- 
ion ;  while  the  approximation  of  its  borders  to  the  other 
delectable  portion  of  Sonora  held  out  the  allurement 
of  readier  access  by  land,  with  a  near  refuge  in  case 
of  defeat.  The  continued  struggle  of  factions  in  the 
state  added  to  the  opportunity ;  and  fired  by  the  bril- 
liant progress  of  Walker  in  Nicaragua,  the  lingering 
filibuster  leaped  forth  once  more.  The  leader  on  this 
occasion  was  Henrv  A.  Crabb,  a  lawver  of  Stockton, 
and  a  prominent  whig  in  the  state  senate,  with  de- 
cided southern  proclivities.  The  old  story  of  patriot- 
ism and  farms  was  by  him  flavored  witii  the  authorized 
colony  plan  of  his  wife's  Sonoran  relatives  and  the 
assumed  alliance  with  some  revolutionary  party,  pref- 
erably the  strongest.  Crabb,  as  proclaimed  general, 
set  out  early  in  1857  with  an  advance  body  of  barely 
fivescore  men,^'  by  way  of  Yuma,  the  main  body  to 
follow  by  sea  to  Libertad.  At  the  end  of  March  he 
])resented  himself  at  Sonoita. 

By  this  time  the  political  aspect  had  changed  in 
Sonora.  The  Guandarists  had  been  crushed  by  Pes- 
queira,  who,  victorious,  with  anqilc  troops  to  control 
the  state,  was  not  likely  to  imperil  his  reputation  as  a 
})atriot  and  his  position  as  a  ruler  by  connivance  with 
any  filibuster  scheme,  especially  an  American  one, 
even  if  willing  to  do  so  under  adverse  circumstance, 
lie  accordingly  took  prompt  steps  to  drive  them  out. 
Crabb,  on  the  other  hand,  advanced  to  Caborca  to  meet 
the  large  reenforcements  by  sea,  but  which  had  not 
been  permitted  by  the  authorities  to  leave  California. 
While  thus  waiting  he  was  surrounded  by  overwhelm- 
ing forces,  with  artillery,  which  compelled  him  after  a 

"  Including  McCouu  and  Oxley,  who  had  both  been  iu  the  legislature. 


FIUBUSTERINO. 


fierce  stnigj^le  to  surreiuler.  The  prisoners,  59  in 
number,  were  shot  in  batches,  a  small  rear  body  wa> 
overtaken  and  cut  to  pieces,  and  a  relief  from  Tucson 
narrowly  escaped  the  same  fate.** 

This  slau«j;hter  of  capitulated  men  was  for  a  time 
hotly  denounced  in  the  United  States;  but  it  must  be 
admitted  that  the  Mexicans  were  to  some  extent  jus- 
tificsd  in  seeking  by  a  severe  lesson  to  suppress  filibuster 
expeditions  which  previous  leniency  seemed  to  en- 
courage. The  cry  for  vengeance  was  invoked  chieHy 
by  interested  speculators  and  politicians  to  provoke 
the  authorities  tt»  some  action,  of  which  they  stood 
ready  to  take  advantage  by  preliminary  incursions. 
But  the  attempt  failed,  and  the  lesson  proved  effective 
in  dif'couraging  unsupported  movements.  The  only 
approach  to  such  operations  was  made  on  the  Lowir 
California  frontier  by  local  rebels,  who  sought  alter- 
nately adherents  and  refuge  on  the  American  side.'"' 
The  French  invasion  of  Mexico  led  to  some  volun- 
teer enrolments  in  behalf  of  both  sides,  and  shipment 
of  arms,  with  certain  discrimination  in  favor  of  t^ 
Juarists,*"  and  the  struggle  of  the  Cubans  recei^ 
active  sympathy  on  the  Atlantic  side.  Such  acts  have, 
however,  been  neutralized  by  the  recurrence  in  recent 
times  of  a  certain  agita'iion  in  favor  of  further  annex- 
ations, with  a  consequent  revival  among  Hispan  )- 
Americans  of  odious  memories,  and  of  hostility 
toward  Anglo-Saxon. 

The  filibustering  spirit  is  not  dead,  as  instanced  by 
Soto's  recent  expedition  to  Honduras;  and  it  will 
linger  so  long  as  discord  reigns.  The  California  gold 
excitement  was  peculiarly  favorable  to  it,  in  openinj^ 
new  fields,  in  stirring  the  lust  for  roaming  and  adven- 

^  Details  in  Hist.  North  Mex.,  ii.,  this  series,  with  ample  reference  to 
authorities. 

^^  /(/.  In  1855  false  gold  reports  caused  a  rush  of  miners  to  Peru,  to  startle 
the  South  Americans  for  a  moment. 

*^  Whose  agent.  Gen.  Vega,  figured  conspicuously  at  S.  F.  about  IStit. 
Id.;  Vega,  Doc.,  i.-iii. ;  Vallejo,  Doc.,  xxxvi.,  200.  Vega8ubsequentlyrebellt.il, 
and  in  May  1870  he  sent  a  steamer  to  raid  (iuaymas,  levying  some  $15(>,(HK) 
in  goods  and  funds,  besides  arms.  A  U.  S.  vessel  later  pursued  and  buriid 
the  steamer.  S.  F.  Call,  March  1,  1870,  alludes  to  a  mysterious  expedition  ut 
this  time. 


A  BAD  BUSINESS. 


003 


lure,  and  in  massing  a  horde  of  reckless  brawlers 
and  shiftless  unfortunates.  The  political  attitude  and 
nei^lect  of  tlie  government  gave  them  cue  and  en- 
couragement, and  the  anarchic  condition  of  Mexico 
l»resented  an  opportunity,  while  the  public  tend«'red 
approving  sympathy  and  aid,  moved  by  race  prejudice, 
by  political  tendencies,  and  by  thoughtless  admiration 
f(»r  the  daring  nature  of  tlie  enteiprise  and  tlie  noto- 
riety attending  its  achievements,  both  flattering  to 
national  pride.*^  The  separation  of  Texas,  so  widely 
hold  up  as  an  example,  had  the  justifying  stamp  of  a 
liberation  from  oppression ;  but  the  proclaimed  motives 
of  the  subsequent  imitators  were  arrant  deceptions. 
The  constant  disorder  and  bloodshed  in  tlie  south,  and 
distance  from  the  scene,  made  abettors  oblivious  to 
the  abhorrent  crimes  involved  in  these  undertakings. 
They  were  foul  robberies,  covered  by  the  flimsiest  of 
political  and  social  pretences,  gilded  by  false  aphorisms 
and  profane  distortion  of  sacred  formulas.  Liberty 
dragged  in  the  mud  for  purposes  of  theft  and  human 
enslavement;  the  cause  of  humanity  bandied  in  filthy 
mouths  to  promote  atrocious  butcheries;  peaceful, 
blooming  valleys  given  over  to  devastation  and  ruin ; 
happy  families  torn  asunder,  and  widows  and  orphans 
cast  adrift  tt)  nurse  affliction;  and  finally,  the  peace  of 
nations  imperilled,  and  the  morality  of  right  insulted.*^ 
The  thought  of  such  results  should  obliterate  all  ro- 
mance, and  turn  pride  to  shame.  They  remain  an 
ineffaceable  stain  upon  the  government  of  the  most 
j>rogressive  of  nations,  and  veil  in  dismal  irony  the 
dream  of  manifest  destiny. 

*'  For  mere  hanclfuls  to  declare  war  against  a  republic  of  8,000,000  people 
almost  surpasses  in  wild  recklessness  the  advance  of  a  Cortes  against  the 
Aztec  empire,  for  he  dealt  with  8enii-l)arl)arians  unused  to  steel,  tire-arms,  and 
liorses,  while  they  moved  against  equals.  Like  him,  however,  tliey  counted 
on  local  dissensions  and  alliances,  and  more  on  the  attitude  of  a  powerful 
neighbor. 

*^  In  the  very  paucity  of  the  filibuster  forces  lay  a  germ  of  crime,  as  it 
compelled  them  to  resort  to  pillage  and  intimidation.  Internatioual  law 
points  to  warfare  as  wasteful  and  uncivilizing  whou  invaders  are  unable  to 
Lave  behind  them  a  track  of  conquered  and  secured  country.  Tlie  U.  S. 
stands  charged  with  connivance  in  piratical  acts  by  reason  alone  of  its  iiidif- 
f'  rt;ice  and  neglect  to  impeile  or  punish  them.  The  chief  officials  especially 
have  this  additional  sin  to  answer  for. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

FINANCEa 

1849-18C9. 

An  Empty  Treasttrt— Temporary  State  Loan  Act — State  Debt— Li- 
censes AND  Tavation — Extuavaoasce  and  Peculation — ALAKMisd 
Increase  of  Ijkut — Bonds — State  Indebtedness  Illegal — Repudia- 
tion Re-iected-  ThiEvino  Okkicials — Enok.mous  Payments  to  Steam- 
ship Companies — Fedeiial  Appropriations — Indian  Acsents — Mint— 
Navy-yard —  Fohtifijations  — ("o\.st  Survey  —  Land  Commission  — 
Public  Lands— Homestead  Act — Educational  Interests — Tue  Peo- 
ple ABOVE  All. 


i'i,' 


P     ''■■ 


The  legislature  which  convened  January  6,  1851, 
at  San  Josd,  found  itself  confronted  with  an  empty 
treasury.  The  Temporary  State  Loan  Act  of  1850 
had  not  fulfilled  the  expectations  of  its  authors,  if  i;i- 
deed  they  had  looked  beyond  the  present  mosiicnt  in 
passinjL^  it.  The  bonds,  although  drawing  three  ptr 
"cnt  i)er  month,  before  the  close  of  the  first  fractional 
fiscal  year  ending  June  00,  1850,  had  depreciated  t» 
one  fourth  of  their  par  value.  It  was  urged,  to  .'.c- 
couiit  for  this  condition  of  ijovernment  credit,  that  the 
state  had  no  means  of  liquidation  except  by  taxation, 
no  improvements  to  afford  a  revenue,  and  could  nut 
command  her  resources  in  public  lands.  The  [K)pula- 
tion  and  wealth  of  the  country  were  of  such  a  nature 
that  they  could  not  be  reached  by  taxation,  or  the 
tax  gatherer.*  The  foreign  miners'  tax  and  the  capi- 
tation tax  were  fixed  too  high;  in  consequence  of 
which  they  were  evaded   or  resisted,  and  often  no 

'The  failure  to  collect  taxes  was  the  fault  of  the  collector,  Richardson. 
The  gnveriinr  had  been  advised  tu  api^)oiut  M.  McCurkle,  or  some  other  etU- 
cieut  person. 

(604) 


IN  THE  BEGIXNING. 


60S 


property  could  be  foiaid  to  attach.  The  law  made 
state  bonds  and  warrants  payable  f(^r  taxes,  which  the 
ti(  asurer  was  compelled  to  receive  at  their  depreciated 
value.  Indeed,  the  tax-payers  purchased  them  for 
that  purpose,  thereby  reducing  tlieir  burdens  to  the 
amount  of  the  discount  on  them;  and  even  the  tax 
collictors  when  paid  in  money  converted  it  into  bonds 
which  they  paid  into  the  treasury,  pocketing  tlie  dif- 
fiiiiice.  The  issue,  being  restricted  to  $300,000,  was 
soiiu  expended,  after  whi(;h  time  the  state  goverimient 
was  kept  up  without  a  dollar  in  the  treasury,  at  a 
ruinous  sacrifice  of  the  interests  of  those  who  devoted 
their  time  to  the  public  service.  The  state  debt  at 
the  end  of  June  1850  was  $371,573.11.  After  the 
achnission  of  the  state,  bonds  and  warrants  advanced, 
the  former  selling  at  auction  at  from  1)1  to  1)5,  and 
the  latter  at  80,  but  having  a  fluctuating  value 

liv  the  15th  t>f  December  the  state  debt  amounted 
to  $485,4(50.28.  The  excess  of  expenditures  over  re- 
ceipts was  $122,179.85.^  The  governor  in  his  annual 
imssage  to  the  legislature  referred  to  the  pressure 
hrought  to  bear  upon  him  to  convene  an  extra  session 
in  order  to  pass  an  act  to  procure  another  state  loan, 
and  took  the  occasion  to  dehv(!i  a  sermon  upon  the 
injustice  of  laying  burdens  upon  jiosterity  merely  to 
ilrfray  the  j)resent  expenses  of  government,  and  with- 
out creating  with  it  any  public  impiovements  wliich 
ini^lit  help  in  time  to  relieve  the  state  of  dt'bt,  and 
insisted  strongly  upon  tlie  wisdom  of  checking  tlie 
(  xtravagance  which  the  condition  of  the  country  in 
the  beginning  had  fostered.  "It  occurs  to  me,"  said 
he,  "that  tlie  most  rational,  just,  and  certain  means 
of  getting  out  of  debt  is  to  make  more,  expend  less, 
and  boriow  none."  But  wlien  he  undertook  to  point 
out  a  method,  nothing  new  was  evolved.  There  was 
indeed  nothing  to  resort  to  but  taxation.     As  to  pub- 

^ Crmliy'ii  Enrbi  EirnU,  MS.,  40;  Comptroller's  Rt-pt,  in  f^ol.  Jour.  Sin., 
I'^-'l,  51!),  5.12;  A'<('-.  Tiinwniyt,  K-h.  2S,  l>sr>l;  TIm.iiuw,  '\\\  Sof  Dimtoi-y, 
1"'7I.  87-8;  L'iU.  Jour.  Uni.,  1851,  753-4;  GoVfriiDr's  Muus.,  iu  I'lil.  Jour.  Jim., 


606  FIXAXCES. 

lie  property  there  was  absolutely  nothing  to  produce 
a  revenue.  The  survpyor-general  declared  that  lie 
could  hear  of  no  land  belonging  to  tlie  state,  exce|it 
that  which  a  recent  act  of  congress  granted  to  all  tho 
states,  namely,  the  swamp  and  overflowed  lands,'  which 
would  not  become  available  property  until  surveyed 
by  the  general  government*  Thus  wliile  the  mines 
were  yielding  millions  every  month,  the  state  was  in 
a  condition  of  deplorable  poverty 

To  correct  this,  the  mode  of  assessing  and  collecting 
public  revenue  was  changed  somewhat  A  poll  tax 
of  three  dollars  was  levied  on  every  male  inhabitant, 
Indians  excepted,  between  the  ages  of  twenty -one  and 
fifty  years,  all  property  was  liable  to  a  tax  of  fifty 
cents  on  each  $100  for  state  purposes,  and  an  equal 
amount  for  county  purposes.  Lands  sold  by  the 
state,  though  not  granted  or  conveyed,  were  made 
assessable.  All  funds  collected  under  the  provisions 
of  the  act  were  to  be  in  the  lej^al  currencv  of  the 
United  States,  in  foreign  coin  at  its  value  fixed  by 
law,  in  gold-dust  at  sixteen  dollars  per  ounce,  troy- 
weight,  or  in  bonds  of  the  state  authorized  by  the  legis- 
lature of  1850,  with  the  interest  due  thereon.  License 
taxes   were   required   of    billiard- tables   and    tenpin- 

*  As  a  curiosity  of  le^sUtion,  Owin  relates  that  this  act  resulted  from  liis 
consenting  to  allow  a  Kill  giving  to  the  staK-  of  Arkaiisita  its  swamp  and  ovoi  ■ 
flowed  lands,  which  had  Ik-cu  {laiMeil  in  the  lowor  iiouse,  to  be  brought  up  iii 
the  senate  on  one  of  the  three  cUys  allowed  tor  V.d.  business  before  tlie  cinl 
of  the  session.  In  a  conversation  »Mth  the  Arkansas  senator,  (Jwin  ii^rceil  to 
give  way  if  ihe  act  shouhl  lie  made  general  instead  of  special,  and  apiilic  mIiIc 
to  all  the  states  and  territories.  The  aniendineiit  was  made,  and  tlic  ait 
passed  and  was  approved,  thuH  unexpectedly  endowing  Cal.  with  a  cousidt'i- 
able  addition  to  state  lands.  J/^moV",  M.S.,  45. 

•Charles  T.  Whiting,  sur.-jifii.,  seems  to  have  been  a  Inimorous  chnracti'r, 
tliough  his  humor  apiiears  rather  grim.  No  reports  having  been  reci-ivtcl 
from  assessors,  he  M-as  unable  to  give  any  information  concerning  agricnltur<il 
aifairs.  Tiie  grasshoppers  ba<l  Itcen  destructive  in  some  hicalities,  and  as  a 
preventive  he  * recommemled  thcextifnsive  introduction  of  turkeys.'  He  hml 
no  means  of  ascertaining  the  (|uantity  of  mineral  lands  in  the  state.  Tlic 
rcp<.<"t8  ■>f  tho  county  8ur\'eyor»  were  Ur<eles8  to  him,  being  chiefly  on  oM 
Spanish  grants,  and  detache«t.  The  great  drawUick  to  agriculture  was  tie 
uncertainty  of  land  titles;  otherwise  «  al.  would  Ikj  the  equal  of  any  of  '':i 
states,  etc.  No  suggestions;  no  information:  all  negative.  'I  know  '  Imt 
one  method  of  planting  and  preM>rving  forests  ot  trees;  vi?..,  put  the  seed*  n\ 
the  grounil  and  protect  the  idiuwti  uy  a  icnce  or  ditch.'  Cal.  Jour,  Hen.,  l!>.il, 
67t>-7. 


WAYS  AND  MEANS. 


607 


alleys,  for  the  state;  and  upon  itinerant  venders  of 
merchandise,  liquor-sellers,  caravans,  and  shows  of  all 
kinds,  for  county  purposes.  A  special  act  was  passed 
to  license  gambling,  wliich  placed  the  impost  on  tables, 
every  house  in  the  limits  of  San  Francisco,  Sacramento, 
and  Marysville  containing  over  three  gaming-tables 
to  pay  $1,500  quarterly,  and  every  house  having  three 
or  less  tables  $1,000  quarterly;  but  in  smaller  towns 
tlie  license  should  be  thirty-five  dollars  a  month, 
three  fourths  of  all  the  money  so  collected  to  be  paid 
into  the  state  treasury,  and  the  remainder  into  the 
treasury  of  the  county  granting  the  license. 

Xotwithstiinding  the  admonitions  of  the  governor, 
an  act  was  passed  authorizing  a  loan  of  $500,000  at 
twelve  per  cent  per  annum,  for  the  purpose  of  defray- 
ing the  expenses  of  Indian  hostilities;''  and  this  debt 
it  was  expected  the  general  governnient  would  pay. 
Lastly  a  funding  act  was  passed,  requiring  the  state 
treasurer  to  prepare  bcmds  to  the  amount  of  $700,000, 
in  sums  of  $500,  bearing  interest  at  the  rate  of  seven 
per  cent  per  annum;  $.}50,000  to  be  made  [)ayable  in 
New  York  on  March  1,  1855,  and  the  remaining  half 
payable  at  tlie  same  place  in  March  1801,  the  interest 
to  l)e  paid  half-yearly,  either  in  New  York  or  at  the 
ottiee  of  the  treasurer.  The  creditors  of  the  stat'  ,  on 
pres*'  iting  either  the  b<mds  of  the  temporary  loan  or 
state  warrants,  could  have  them  excjianged,  wlien  not 
less  than  $500  in  amount,  for  the  new  bonds ;  and  from 
and  after  the  1st  of  May,  1851,  all  revenue  of  the 
state  should  be  collected  in  the  leyal  eurrenev  of  the 
I'nited  States,  ei  In  g'»ld-dust  at  $  1(5  an  omice ;  except 
that  in  payment  of  the  ordinary  state  tax  the  old 
l»onds  might  be  presented  as  before.  A  tax  of  fifteen 
cents  on  each  $100  of  taxable  property  in  the  state,  to 
lie  paid  in  currency  or  gold-dust,  was  levied  to  pay  the 
interest  on  this  debt.     It  was  made  the  duty  of  the 


■'Tlie  accounts  of  A<ljt-gen.  McKinstry  make  the  pxpenseaot  the  El  Dorado 
and  (iilii  ex|>eilitioiis  aiiuHiiit  to  ti|49,  llMt.H'J.  « Vi/.  Jnnr.  Sen.,  I8.")l,  7!>">.  My 
June  iSdl,  5;'Jii),(X)J  li;i<l  Im-cii  ilrawii  in  Marruiitd  from  the  war-loau  luuil. 


608 


FINANCES. 


treasurer  to  set  apart  a  sinking  fund,  to  consist  of  all 
surplus  interest,  all  money  received  from  the  general 
government  on  account  of  the  civil  fund,  and  all  })r()- 
ceeds  of  sales  of  state  lands,  except  those  reserved 
for  school  purposes,  with  whatever  surplus  should  he 
remaining  in  the  general  treasury  on  the  Lst  of  ^Mav, 
1852,  and  every  year  thereafter,  when  not  othervviM" 
api)ropriated,  until  the  fund  should  be  sufficient  for  the 
payment  of  principal  and  interest  of  the  bonds. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  civil  fund  of  military  gov- 
ernment days  was  still  regarded  as  belonging  right- 
fully to  the  state  of  California,  and  that  its  repayinnit 
was  confidently  exj)ected.  An  efi'oit  toward  creating 
a  revenue  was  made  by  granting  to  the  city  of  8an 
Francisco  all  the  beacli  and  water  lots  beloni^inu:  to 
the  state  under  the  recent  act  of  congress,  upon  con- 
dition that  twenty -five  per  cent  of  the  receipts  arising 
from  the  disposition  of  these  lots  should  be  paid  into 
the  treasury  of  the  state.  Also,  a  section  of  ovn- 
flowed  land,  on  an  island  in  the  Sacramento  liiver, 
was  conveyed  to  John  F.  Booth  and  David  Callowav, 
upon  condition  that  drains  an«^l  levees  should  be  con- 
structed to  test  the  cultivable  qualities  of  the  land 
under  improvement,  and  that  the  grantees  should  pay 
into  the  state  treasury  $1.25  ])er  acre  for  the  benefit 
of  the  school  fund  of  the  district.  But  as  even  this 
moiety  of  an  income  had  to  wait  for  the  government 
survey,  and  might  take  three  years  theri'after  for  pay- 
ment to  be  made,  it  could  not  be  rey;arded  as  a  vci  v 
present  help.  The  study  of  the  legislative  |)roceedings 
and  comj)troller's  reports  of  California  might  reasdii- 
ably  deter  any  future  chance  ctmnnunity  like  that  uf 
1S41)-jO  from  assuming  the  respt)nsibilities  of  stati- 
Iiood. 

The  civil  debt  of  the  state,  December  31,  1851, 
was  $71)G,l)(;3.y5,  and  the  war  debt  $1,445,375.71),  or  a 
total  of  $2,242,331).74.  There  Iwnl  bt>en  paid  into  tii.^ 
treasury  bv  the  several  counties  $22,570.31  for  IS.'.^s 
and  $245,359.1)7  for  1851,  or  a  total  of  $2G7/J30.28, 


DEBT. 


609 


an  amount  not  equal  to  the  temporary  state  loan  of 
1850,  without  the  interest.    Some  counties,  it  was  true, 
were  delinquent;    and    the   whole    amount    charged 
against  the  state  was  $333,138.79.     To  correct  this 
condition  of  the   public  finances,  the  legislature  of 
1852  authorized  the  issuance  of  state  bonds  for  $600,- 
000  more,  at  seven  per  cent,  payable  in  1870,  the  ac- 
cruing interest  to  be  paid  semiannually,  m  January  and 
July.     This  act,  like  the  former,  permitted  the  holders 
of  state  warrants  to  exchange  them  for  the  new  bonds, 
in  sums  not  less  than  $100,  and  to  the  extent  of  $1,000. 
A  special  tax  of  ten  cents  was  levied  on  every  6 1 00 
of  taxable    property  in  the  state,  which  was  to  be 
applied  to  the  payment  of  the  interest  accruing  upon 
the  bonds  of  1852,  any  excess  to  be  turned  over  to  a 
sinking  fund  provided  for  the  payment  of  interest  and 
l)rincipal.      This  sinking  fund  consisted,  besides  this 
surplus,  of  all  moneys  received  by  the  state  from  the 
United  States  on  account  of  the  civil  fund  after  the 
redemption  of  the  bonds  uf  1851,  to  which  tliis  fund 
had  already  been  appropriated,  with  a  reservation  of 
?50,000  for  the  payment  of  claims  against  it.     Next, 
the  proceeds  of  the  sales  of  all  lands  thereafter  to  be 
acquired  by  the  state,  except  those  reserved  for  school 
purposes,  and  the  swamp-lands,  the  moneys  from  which, 
after  the  redemption  of  the  bonds  of  1851,  should  be 
applied  to  the  liquidation  of  the  indebtedness  of  1852. 
The  legislature  of  1852  also  repealed  all  the  former 
revenue  acts,  and  made  the  law  for  levying,  assessing 
luui  collecting  revenue  much  more  complete  and  strin- 
j,'ent  than  forniorly.     Much  comi)laint  had  been  made 
by  the  people  of  the  southern  counties,  devoted  prin- 
cipally to   grazing,    because   they   paid    more    taxes, 
having  more  real  estate,  cattle,  and  other  property 
which  an  assessor  could  find,  than  the  much  more 
numerous  population  of  the  northern  counties;  and 
hence  that  they  were  compelled  to  bear  an  undue  pro- 
jxirtion   of  the  burdens   of  government.     This   was 
what  was  feared  when  the  Spanish  delegates  had  sat. 

Ui8T.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI    39 


U\ 


610 


FINANCES. 


in  the  constitutional  convention,  and  what  the  native 
land-owners  ]»ad  always  protested  against.  This  pro- 
tost  became  in  1851  a  movement  for  a  division  of  tlie 
state,*  and  warned  legislators  to  take  measures  to  avoid 
a  disaffection  which  might  at  any  moment  be  taken 
advantage  of  l)y  a  political  faction  to  cut  off  the  best 
agiicultural  portion  of  tlie  state.  Some,  indeed,  were 
not  warned,  but  carried  the  matter  into  the  legislature, 
where  they  discussed  the  question  of  how  to  divide 
the  state,  instead  of  how  to  reconcile  the  disaffected 
portion.^  It  was  even  put  forward  as  a  motive  that 
eacli  part  would  get  500,000  acres  of  school  land. 

The  per  cent  was  not  increased  under  the  law  of 
1852.  For  every  $100,  thirty  cents  was  exacted 
from  all  property,  except  public  and  United  States 
holdings,  and   charitable  institutions  for   state   pur- 


*  Meetings  were  held  in  San  Diego  and  Los  Angeles  to  consider  the  buI*  joct 
of  a  division  of  the  stiite,  and  a  convention  appointed  to  meet  at  >Sant:i  Ijilr- 
bara  in  Oct.  Accordingly,  on  the  20th  of  that  month  dulegates  were  prustiit 
at  Siiiita  Barbara  aa  followa:  from  San  Diego,  VV.  C.  Ferrell,  A.  Harasztliy, 
Tiblnits,  C.  I.  Cants,  T.  W.  Sutherland,  Joamiin  Artcpo,  Pedro  Caniillo;  fnmi 
Los  Aiigck's,  B.  D.  Wilson,  J.  L.  Brent,  J.  K.  S.  Ogier,  Iguiicio  Vallc,  t'ur- 
nuU,  J.  A.  Carrillo,  L.  Hoover,  J.  Hunt,  J.  M.  Sanchez,  Hugo  R<'id,  imd 
others;  from  Santa  Bdrbara,  H.  S.  Carnes,  S.  Barnes,  S.  Hem,  C.  V.  It.  l-ce, 
A.  iM.  do  la  Guerra,  Joat^uin  Carrillo,  Detarviana  Ootherez,  S.  Andir.scm, 
Mai-nh,  Aiiastacia  Carrillo;  from  Monterey,  Frederick  Russell,  the  3  other 
delegatus  elected  not  being  in  attendance.  Delegates  from  counties  nortli  of 
Monterey  declined  to  participate,  although  admitted  to  scats  in  the  conven- 
tion. The  whole  number  present  were  3L  Carrillo  was  chosen  prcs.,  Breiit 
chaii-iuiin  of  the  com.  on  resolutions,  and  Ferrell  chairman  of  the  com.  to  pre- 
pare an  address,  'ihe  resolutions  set  forth,  among  other  things,  that  la-.\'3 
coul  I  not  1)6  framed  to  bear  equally  upon  sections  so  diversified.  A  central 
coiiiinittee  of  5  wtts  appointed  to  supervise  a  continued  movement  to  etl'eut 
tlie  result  aimed  at  after  the  adjournment  of  the  convention.  The  boundary 
line  was  much  discussed.  A  motion  to  fix  the  northern  boundary  'along  the 
nortlicrn  line  of  Monterey  county,  south-east  to  a  point  opposite  the  head  of 
Tularo  Lake,  thence  east,'  was  voted  down.  The  convention  held  for  .3  days. 
The  ilesire  was  to  be  remanded  to  the  condition  of  a  territory.  S.  F.  AlUi, 
Sept.  12  and  28,  and  Oct.  6,  13,  and  2ti,  1851;  Hayes*  Scraps,  Amjeles,  ii.  U; 
Hayen'  CouxtU.  Lair,  i.  1-37;  Tnylor,  CuL  Notes,  4. 

'  Till)  S.  F.  AlOi  attacked  the  'clique  in  legislature  to  divide  the  'tate  at 
all  hazards '  without  gloves,  showing  the  folly  of  the  ])roi>osition,  and  that  it 
Would  leail  to  tlie  exjiense  of  a  convention  costing  $100,000  or  5I5.),000,  and 
finally  to  the  old  quarrel  over  slivvery,  could  congress  be  brought  to  consider 
tlio  priiject  of  a  territory  being  made  out  of  a  state.  Tliose  who  favored  it, 
excepting  the  native  population  who  did  not  understand  the  ilrift  of  their 
Ameriiian  supporters,  were  soutiicm  pro-slavery  men,  and  had  no  other 
object  than  this,  to  open  the  country  to  slivenr.  Cal.  Political  Srrnps,  51-3. 
They  might  have  gone  a  step  further  and  asked  the  questiou  if  congress  had 
the  power  to  transform  a  state  into  a  territory. 


TAXATION 


611 


poses,  and  fifty  cents  for  county  purposes.  The  for- 
tign  owners  of  consigned  goods  were  taxed  eighty 
cents  on  every  $100.  The  poll-tax  was  reduced  to 
$3,  and  was  required  of  every  adult  male  inhabitant 
not  exempted  by  law.  Payment  was  received  in  pure 
gold-dust  at  $17.50  per  ounce,  in  foreign  gold  coin  of 
fixed  value,  and  United  States  legal  currency,  or  in 
the  three  per  cent  state  bonds  of  1850.  One  object 
of  the  funding  acts  of  1851  and  1852  was  to  cancel 
the  bonds  of  1850,  bearing  the  enormous  interest  of 
3G  per  cent;  but  the  holders,  as  they  gradually  appre- 
ciated in  value,  were  in  no  haste  to  exchange  them 
for  seven  per  cent  bonds,  and  there  were  still  $241,- 
291.11  outstanding  at  the  close  of  1851,  while  of 
the  second  issue  only  about  half  had  been  taken.  At 
the  close  of  1852,  however,  the  former  class  of  bonds 
outstanding  had  been  reduced  $03,750,  on  which  there 
remained  to  be  paid  an  equal  amount  of  interest,  and 
the  legislature  of  1853  passed  an  act  levying  an  addi- 
tional tax  of  ten  cents  on  each  $100  of  real  or  personal 
propei-ty  for  the  purpose  of  cancelling  the  remainder 
of  these  bonds,  paying  the  interest  on  the  funded 
debt  of  1852,  and  providing  a  sinking  fund  for  the 
same. 

With  regard  to  the  beach  and  water  lots  granted 
to  San  Francisco,  from  which  considerable  returns 
were  expected,  only  $1,000  had  reached  the  treasury 
from  that  source,  owing  to  a  neglect  of  the  conditions 
of  the  grant,  and  to  litigation  in  which  the  property 
liad  become  involved.*  The  tax  imposed  on  con- 
signed goods  had  also  met  with  much  resistance  in 
San  Francisco,  and  had  been  found  unproductive.* 

These  measures  failing,  the  legislature  of  1852  had 

*CuL  Statutes,  1853,  197;  Oovertwr's Mesa.,  inCal.Jour.  A8»em.,  1853,20-1. 
See  chapters  on  birth  of  towns  and  history  S.  F.,  this  vol. 

*The  (list  atty  of  S.  F.  co.  submitted  to  the  grand  jury  200  indictments 
agiiinut  persons  violating  the  act,  which  were  ij/iiored,  and  the  '  evident  hos- 
tility '  to  the  act  manifested  by  that  l>ody  made  it  advisable  to  refrain  from 
iustituting  civil  proceedings  before  the  matter  should  be  brought  to  the  at- 
tention of  the  legislature.  Choernnr's  Mess.,  in  Cat.  Jour.,  1853,  21;  6'.  F. 
AUa,  Jan.  4  and  Feb.  14,  1853;  S.  F.  Bulktin,  April  4,  1856. 


i,^l 


i: 


61S 


FINANCES. 


*5 


resort  to  the  500,000  acres  belonging  to  the  state, 
and  which  the  constitution  devoted  to  the  support  of 
common  schools,  authorizing  the  governor  to  issue 
land  warrants  for  quarter  and  half  sections,  at  $2  an 
acre,  to  the  full  amount  of  the  grant.  The  state 
treasurer  was  authorized  to  sell  these  warrants,  either 
for  money,  state  scrip,  or  three  per  cent  bonds,  the 
revenue  received  under  this  act  to  constitute  the 
school  fund  of  the  state.*"  The  revenue  derived  from 
the  sale  of  these  lands  was  set  aside  for  a  general 
fund  to  meet  the  liabilities  of  the  state,  the  interest 
on  which  was  to  be  appropriated  to  the  support  of 
schools. 

At  the  close  of  1852,  the  civil  debt  of  the  state 
amounted  to  $1,388,213.78,  and  the  war  debt  to 
$771,190.05,  or  a  total  of  $2,159,403.83,  besides  a 
debt  to  the  school  fund  of  $190,080.  During  all  this 
tinkering  with  the  state  finances,  no  member  of  the 
legislature  seemed  to  think  of  retrenchment  as  one 
means  of  reducing  indebtedness.  Such  a  sentiment 
was  not  in  accord  with  the  temper  of  the  times.     The 

fmblic  journals  sometimes  hinted  at  it,  and  John  Big- 
er,  governor  in  1853,  attempted  to  point  out  how 
half  a  million  annually  might  be  saved,"  by  a  reduc- 
tion in  salaries  and  the  abolishment  of  unnecessary 
offices.  The  legislatures  had  all  passed  salary  acts, 
but  it  was  only  to  redistribute  or  increase  the  amount.*'^ 

>*  Cal.  Statutes,  1852,  41-3.  The  state  supreme  court  having  declared  such 
Incationa  and  eiitriea  legal,  a  very  large  amount  of  such  lauds  was  then  pur- 
cliased  and  paid  for.  The  sec.  of  the  interior  having  declared  all  such  sales 
and  entries  nullities,  and  the  sup.  court  in  a  subsequent  decision  having 
overruled  the  former  decision,  much  difficulty  arose  as  to  title,  and  many 
conflicts  ensued.  In  order  as  far  as  practicable  to  relieve  the  state,  as  well 
as  the  purchasers  of  such  lands,  from  the  difficulty  thus  produced,  congress 
passed  the  act  entitled  'an  act  to  quiet  land  titles  in  Cal.,  approved  July  2v<, 
I8()6.  All  such  lands  as  had  been  thus  sold  by  the  state,  and  which  had  nut 
been  settled  upon,  occupied,  and  improved  by  prei^mptors  and  homestead 
applicants,  were  subject  to  the  operation  of  the  law  of  1852.  Zabrukie,  Land 
Lam,  660,  5(i7-72. 

"  CcU.  Jour.  Aarnn.,  1853,  20.  In  1866,  when  Gov.  Bigler  had  become 
more  or  less  corrupted  by  custom,  he  made  a  *  favorable '  comparison  of  Cal. 
with  the  states  of  Ind.  and  111.,  which  had  large  debts — contracted  for  quite 
other  purposes  than  9aying  salaries,  or  unneoessary  appropriations.  Cal.  Jour. 
Sen.,  1856,  22. 

>' Compare  the  acts  of  1850,  1851,  and  1852.     In  the  year  last  named  the 


SALARIES. 


618 


The  legislature  of  1853  raised  the  property  tux  for 
the  support  of  the  state  govornment  to  sixty  cents  on 
each  $100,  levied  a  tax  of  fifteen  cents  on  the  same 
amount  for  tlie  payment  of  the  interest  on  the  debt  of 
1851,  twenty  cents  for  the  payment  of  the  interest  on 
the  debt  of  1852  and  tlie  school  bonds,  and  four  cents 
to  pay  interest  on  state  prison  bonds,  authorized  by  a 
law  enacted  at  tlie  same  session.  For  county  pur- 
]  loses,  fifty  cents  might  be  levied  on  property,  besides 
the  special  taxes  upon  trades,  professions,  occupations, 
bankers,  merchants,  tavern-keepers,  liijuor-dcalcrs, 
auctioneers,  consigned  goods,  gaming,  and  every  form 
of  business  except  mining,  agriculture,  and  day  labor. 
The  poll-tax  remained  at  $3. 

At  the  end  of  1853,  the  three  per  cent  bonds  had 
been  so  far  redeemed  that  only  about  $10,000  of  prin- 
(Ml)al  and  interest"  remained  to  be  paid ;  but  the  state 
indebtedness,  exclusive  of  the  school  fund,  had  in- 
creased to  $3,001,455.70.     Nearly  $1,000,000  was  a 

a^'grcgate  amount  was  considerably  increased,  although  some  important 
clumu'us  WL-re  niatlo.  The  governor's  salary  in  1S50  was  $10,000,  in  1851  $(!,- 
OiM),  m  185-2  $10,000.  Sup.  judges  received  in  1850  $10,000,  in  1851  $7,000, 
in  1852  $i8,000.  A  public  translator  received  |S,000.  Tlie  salary  of  state 
treasurer  Wiia  first  $9,000,  then  $5,000,  then  $4,000;  of  comptroller,  first  $S,- 
000,  tlien  $5,000,  then  $4,500,  and  other  offices  in  proportion.  Of  the  1  i 
<U3triot  judges  in  1852,  8  received  $5,000,  2  received  $3,000,  and  1  $4,000. 
District  attorneys  received  $1,800.  The  supt  of  pub.  instruction  was  paiil 
$'4,000  for  not  very  arduous  services.  The  atty-gen.  was  cut  down  from 
$"7,000  to  $1,000,  and  advanced  ajain  to  $2,000.  A  supt  of  public  budtling 
received  $4,000,  though  he  was  not  needed;  a  prison  inspector  ifO,000,  and 
1  irge  appropriations  were  made  to  hospital  ana  other  purjKises,  far  beyond 
tlie  ability  of  the  state  to  pay.  The  pay  of  legislators  the  lirst  and  !>eeond 
sessions  was  $16  per  dicin.  This  was  reduced  to  $10  and  tlien  to  le^,  and 
mileage  to  $8  per  every  20  miles.  Gov.  Bigler  a«lvised  doing  away  for  a  year 
or  two  with  several  of  the  high-salaried  supernumeraries,  reducing  per  diem 
and  mileage,  making  sessions  uiennial,  and  limiting  them  to  90  days,  placing 
tlie  salaries  of  governor  and  supreme  judges  at  $7,000,  and  reducing  the 
number  of  district  judges  to  8.  CaL  Statuten,  1850,  83;  1851,  444-5;  and  1852, 
4'J;  J/ayes'  ConMiL  Law,  L  41. 

'*The  state  credit  became  seriously  endangered  through  the  state  trciksurer 
having  placed  in  the  hands  of  Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co.,  bankers,  the  interest 
money  due  at  the  American  Kxchange  Bank  in  New  York,  in  Jan.  1854, 
uinounting  to  $01,750,  who  failed  to  pay  the  coupons  as  demanded.  At  this 
juncture,  the  banking  firm  of  Duncan,  Sherman,  &  Co.,  of  that  city,  volun> 
tarily  paid  the  interest  from  their  own  funds,  thus  saving  the  credit  <>'  the 
state  from  ruin.  Palmer,  Cook,  ft  Co.  claime<l  to  have  the  money  in  the  N ,  w 
York  bank  to  meet  the  interest  when  due,  which  the  latter  denieii.  The  debt 
to  Duncan,  Sherman,  k  Co.  remai.ied  unpaid  for  several  months.  CaL  Jour, 
Assent.,  1855,  029-30;  S.  F.  AUa,   darch  19,  1854. 


1^ 


|i 


614 


FINANCES. 


war  debt,  which  it  was  expected  the  general  j^ovcrn- 
iiK'iit  would  some  time  assume,  but  the  interest  on 
which  the  state  was  comj)ellod  to  discharjifo  until  it 
was  finally  ascertained  tliat  congress  would  come  to 
its  relief.  The  school  warrants  sold  at  this  time 
aggregated  $403, .'{GO,  which  had  been  converted  into 
bonds  at  seven  per  cent.  Property  in  the  state  was 
increasing  rapidly,  having  reached  nearly  $100,000,000, 
the  tax  on  which,  at  sixty  cents,  would  bring  in 
$000,000,  while  the  other  special"  and  poll  taxes,  it 
was  estimated,  deducting  the  expenses  of  collection 
and  delinquencies,  would  furnish  a  sum  total  (»l" 
$780,000,  the  estimated  expenditures  for  the  sanu.' 
period  amounting  to  $'JGO,000. 

Again  the  governor  urged  retrenchment  as  neces- 
sary. "The  enormous  sum  of  $182,427.4.'{  has  been 
paid  for  clerk  hire,  and  to  the  officers  of  the  two 
houses  during  tl»e  sessions  of  1852  and  185.'}.  Th<! 
amount  paid  last  session,"  he  said,  "to  officers  and 
clerks  alone,  was  $10(),0D.'{.70."  An  attempt  had  Ixmu 
made,  he  added,  to  hold  the  executive  responsible  for 
every  expenditure  of  public  money ;  hence  he  might 
be  permitted  to  direct  attention  to  the  subj(!ct,  ami 
invite  cooperation  in  reform,  and  a  revision  of  th(( 
rev«;nue  laws,  of  whi».'h  complaint  was  made  on  account 
of  inecjuality  and  excess. 

The  legishiture  of  1854  followed  the  examph;  of  its 
predecessors.  It  made  the  reveime  bill  a  subject  of 
much  ]>ainstaking,  but  it  8U(rceeded  in  reducing  the 
pr(t|H'rty  tax  oidy  six  ctmts.  It  found  in  the  treasm y 
sufficient  funds  to  liquidate  the  principal  and  interest 


'•Tho  ri'vonnc  law  of  18.">.1,  taxing  cnnttigiu;*!  gfKMls,  im^t  with  disapprnvul. 
A  liir;,'n  iiifctiiig  couvuiu'd  in  S.  F.  in  .Juii.  iW.'Vt  t<>  remonstrate  !ij,'!iinst  tin' 
luw  iis  not  only  uiijuHt,  Ixit  in  conflict  with  tliu  U.  S.  conHtitution;  brinj,'  iii 
fact  a  duty  upon  inijiortH  from  otiicr  Htatcs.  It  wan  t^Htimatol  tliat  tlic  tax, 
It  colluutcil,  woiilil  nmount  to  ;!f'274, 1'J'i,  at  tiU  cento  on  the  $1IN),  which  tin.' 
law  calletl  for  'a  siini  equal  to  the  onlinary  revenue  of  perhapM  a  majority  "t 
the  Mt'ites  of  the  union.'  It  waH  contcHtcd  in  the  courtm,  ami  pronouinKl 
rij^ht  anil  coUKtitutional  by  the  aup.  Ixtnch.  The  trailex  also  romouHtratnl 
afiainnt  being  taxed  upon  their  meatiM  of  getting  brtsid.  S.  /'.  .Mtn,  .I:iii.  10, 
1K54.  Nu  cliango  was  effected  in  the  law.  Cal,  Jievtiiue  ami  Tcwation  iSi'myii, 
10-12. 


LKOTSLATION. 


tas 


of  tlio  ilirco  per  cent  bonds  of  1850,  and  a  surplus  of 
iitarly  $40,000,  after  paying  the  lialf-y<a»ly  iiitcrt.'st 
of  tlio  bonds  of  1851,  which  could  be  applied  to  <\'iii- 
crlliMj^  the  principal  still  outstandin<^  of  $^500, 500  duo 
ill  March  1855.  To  meet  any  deficit,  calculations  were 
made  upon  the  im-onio  from  the  sale  of  the  stuttj's 
interest  in  the  beach  and  water  lots  of  San  Francisco. 
Of  the  bonds  issued  under  the  act  of  IH.Vi  tlu^re  st'.ll 
remained  $  I, .'$1)4, 500,  exclusive  of  the  interest,  wliich 
cniild  be  met  oidy  by  appropriating  the  fund  st^t  a|>art 
for  till!  redemption  of  the  state  prison  bonds.  Tho 
tntal  liabilities  of  the  state,  notwithstanding  tJM;  partial 
|)ayment  of  the  funded  debt,  was  at  the  end  of  IS54 
)i^.!',;{J)4,!>2H.84. 

Again  the  h'gislature  resorted  to  funding  the  comp- 
trnJK'r's  warrants,  drawn  between  June  IHJ.'J  and  duly 
IH55,  and  authorized  the  issuance  of  .^^700,000  in 
IhiikIs,  in  denominati<ms  of  ijjlOO,  .^500,  and  $1,000, 
Ixaiing  interest  at  seven  per  cent,  to  run  until  IH70, 
tlir  interest  made  payable  annually,  January.  A  tax 
(tf  six  cents  on  each  $100  of  all  the  taxable  prop<!rty 
ill  the  state  was  levied  to  pay  the  interest  on  these 
hoiids.  Jiy  the  end  of  this  year  the  civil  and  war 
(l(l)t  together  amounted  to  $4,401,7  I  <!.. '58,  vvliilt;  the 
city  and  county  indebtedness  in  the  state  footed  up  as 
much  more.  The  same  body  [ia.s.scd  an  act  providing 
lor  the  sale  of  all  swamp  and  ovirllowed  lands  at  one 
dollar  an  acre,  so  eager  were  they  to  ri<l  the  state;  of 
its  dower.  They  paid  $f 0,000  to  j»ages  to  add  to 
their  dignity,  and  neglectiuJ  to  appro|)riat(!  a  dollar  fur 
the  surveyor-general's  olHc*?,  rendering  it  practically 
nugatory.  The  receipts  into  tin;  state  treasury  down 
to  June  30,  1855,  amounted  to  $;{,:{;{;!,!)47.(;(; ;  the 
expenditures  by  the  government,  not  including  aj)- 
]>ropriations  for  public  buildings,  but  paid  out  chieily  in 
salaries,  was  $5,G70,l)C0..'i8.  It  is  true  that  this  had  not 
beiiii  in  cash,  and  that  state  serif)  was  never  at  jiar ;  nor 
was  it  possible  it  ever  should  be  under  the  system 
pursued  by  the  legislatures.     Jobs  and  crookedness 


•If 


FINANCES, 


naturally  grew  out  of  the  abundance  of  state  war- 
rants. Speculative  bankers,  like  Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co., 
contrived  by  bcHJoming  the  bondsmen  of  state  otliccrs 
to  obtain  the  handling  of  the  money  which  sliouKI 
have  been  in  the  state  treasury.  Crime  becuiuo 
easy  and  natural  on  both  sides.  Palmer,  Cook,  .He 
Co.,  who  had  nearly  ruined  the  state's  credit  in  iy54 
by  withholding  the  interest  due  on  its  bonds  in  order 
to  depreciate  them  for  speculative  pur]K)ses,  the  money 
being  in  their  possession,  in  1856,  through  the  com- 
plicity of  officials,  had  both  the  state  and  the  city  of 
San  Francisco  in  their  power.  The  press  and  the 
people  remonstrated;  and  such  journals  as  could  not 
be  purchased  courageously  exposed  the  iniquity  in 
their  midst. 

The  legislature  of  1856  made  an  effort  by  fundujg 
the  indebtedness  which  should  remain  after  the  dose 
of  that  year,  to  convert  all  outstanding  warrants  into 
bonds  at  seven  per  cent,  and  accordingly  issued 
$1,000,500  worth  of  new  bonds  payable  in  1875,  witli 
interest  half-yearly,  receivable  ih  California  or  New 
York.  To  meet  the  interest,  a  tax  of  ten  cents  was 
levied  on  each  $100  of  taxable  property  in  the  state, 
the  surplus,  if  any,  to  be  used  from  time  to  time  in  re- 
deeming these  bonds  at  the  lowest  rates  at  which  tluy 
could  be  purchased  of  the  holders.  It  was  also  made 
the  duty  of  a  board  of  examiners,  consisting  <jf  the 
governor,  secretary  of  state,  and  attorney-general  to 
examine  the  books  of  the  controller  und  treasurer,  and 
count  the  money  m  the  treasury  as  often  as  onee  a 
month.  But  the  previous  mode  of  legislating,  like 
virtue,  was  bringing  its  own  reward,  making  reforms 
difficult.  Finances  all  over  the  state  were  in  a  deplor- 
able condition.  Millions  had  been  wrung  out  of  the 
people  to  support  extravagant  county  and  municipal 
governments."    The  laws  regarding  collection  of  ttixes 

'^For  the  condition  of  affairs  in  8.  F.,  gee  a  cominunicatiou  from  Sam 
Branuan  in  S.  F.  Bulletin  of  Oct.  29,  1850.  Brannau  tendered  his  tiixts  for 
18r)5-<3  in  city  scrip,  which  the  officials  were  bound  to  receive.  Ho  fiiilcav- 
ored  to  get  them  to  bring  the  case  before  the  courts,  which  they  would  not 


DISHONEST  OFFICIAI^ 


617 


were  impei'fecl,  and  delinquencies  not  uncommon. 
Suits  til  law  were  instituted  tc>  brinfjf  tliese  defects  to 
tiie  notice  of  the  lavv-niakors,  uid  to  prevent  payment 
of  taxes  in  state  and  county  scrip,  the  supremo  court 
deciding  adversely  to  Attorney-general  William  T. 
Wallace,  that  state  controller's  wan  ants  could  not,  in 
tilt'  face  of  the  funding  acts  of  1855  and  185(1,  bo  re- 
t'tivcd  for  taxes.  This  was  a  check  upon  the  practice 
of  collector's  going  into  the  market  to  buy  up  stiite 
warrants  at  seventy  or  seventy-five  cents  on  the  dollar, 
and  substitutinjj  them  for  the  coin  or  tjold  bullion  n- 
ct'ivcd  from  tax-payers,  and  was  a  step  in  the  right 
dii'uction. 

The  reform  hov'<)ver  began,  as  I  have  said,  too  late 
for  the  catastroplie  to  be  averted.  A  deficit  had  boon 
discovered  in  the  accounts  of  State  Treasurer  S.  A. 
!McMeans.*"     His  successor,  Henry  Bates,  improved 

do,  and  after  months  of  waiting,  rather  than  appear  deliuqueut  he  paid  the 
inoacy.  His  object  in  resisting,  he  states,  was  to  kuup  iiioiioy  out  of  the 
1.  ikU  of  the  officers.  In  185(i-7  he  again  withhchl  his  taxes.  'It  is  well 
k  own,'  Ite  says,  'that  tiiu  present  sherilf  (or  party  assuming  to  act  as  such) 
i  failed  to  ({ualify  as  the  lu.w  directs,  and  it  is  notorious  that  the  tix  uol- 
Krt(ir  is  insolvent. '  Again:  '  I  have  not  only  not  paid  the  present  year's  taxes, 
liiit  1  liave  also  advised  my  friends  to  witldiold  theirs  until  after  tliu  aiiproudi- 
iiig  election,  and  I  have  no  doubt  future  events  will  justify  the  wi.^doni  of 
my  course.'  With  regard  to  public  affairs  he  aaya:  'The  present  indebtedness 
of  tlie  state  of  Cal.,  represented  by  bonds,  audited  accounts,  etc.,  is  aliout 
$r>,iH)(),UOO.  Some  of  the  Irands  bear  an  interest  as  high  as  V2  per  cent  per 
annum.  (These  were  the  Ind.  war  bonds  of  1801.)  So  I  think  I  may  safely 
estimate  tlie  yearly  accruing  interest  upon  this  debt  at  $350,()0(),  or  an  aver- 
age of  7  per  cent.  Now,  add  to  this  the  amount  necessary  to  carry  on  the 
govt,  and  we  at  once  see  the  startling  amount  it  is  necessary  to  raise  every 
year  by  tjixation.  Think  for  a  moment  how  the  above  $5,000,000,  and  the 
lf8,(KM,000  or  ^10,000,000  Ixjsiiles,  what  have  Ikcu  ilrawn  from  the  people  by 
t'Lvation,  have  been  8(juandered.  L<Mtk  at  the  present  extravagant  sy.stem 
of  conducting  the  state  govt,  and  decide  if  the  expenses  of  the  state  may  not 
he  reduced  bj'  an  honest  effort.  But  turning  from  state  affairs,  consiuer  for 
a  moment  how  the  people  of  this  city  have  been  oiiiiressed  and  roblmd. 
Tliink  for  a  moment  of  the  vast  amounts  that  have  been  drawn  froin  the 
Iieople  in  taxes — the  large  sums  received  from  the  sales  of  real  estate,  and  the 
presriit  heavy  indebtedness  of  tlie  city.  What  have  we  got  to  show  for  all 
tliis  ?  The  ^J,(M)D,000  or  g8,000,OJO  received  from  Uxes,  and  the  %!•»,( >;)0,000 
or  .'S'),000,000  indebtedness,  together  with  the  large  sums  received  from  the 
Mulcs  of  real  esbite,  have  all  been  squanilered.  Much  less  oppression  and  dis- 
h<iiiesty,  in  177"%  caused  the  American  revolution  in  whicli  our  fathers  took 
p'trt,  and  I  say  it  is  not  remarkable  that  their  sons,  in  18r)U,  should  follow 
tlirjr  example  and  fall  back  upon  their  reserved  rights  for  their  own  protec- 
tion.' 

"'I>r  S.  A.  McMeans,  bom  in  Dandridge,  Tenn.,  1808,  was  eiigagetl  in 


the  war  with  Mexico,  and  came  thence  to  Cal.  in  1849. 
City,  Nov.,  in  187(>.     Sac.  Lentler,  Aug.  5,  1876. 


He  died  in  Virginia 


618 


FINANCES. 


upon  such  a  mere  peccadillo  as  a  discrepancy  in  ac- 
c«)unts,  and  launched  wholesale  into  a  violation  of  all 
law  and  all  trust,  by  purchasing  and  assisting  others 
to  purchase  state  warrants,  controller's  warrants,  and 
state  scrip  of  every  kind,  with  the  coin  and  bullion  of 
the  state.  His  own  profits  from  this  mode  of  unlaw- 
ful speculation  aggregated  for  1856  about  $15,000. 
The  law  requiring  the  public  moneys  to  be  kept  in  the 
fire-proof  vault  of  the  capital,  and  forbidding  its  de- 
posit with  any  individual  or  firm,  was  disregarded,  and 
Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co.  again  became  the  holders  without 
securitj''  of  $88,520.,  interest  money  due  in  New  York 
on  the  state's  bonds,  but  which  they  retained  for  their 
own  use,  the  firm  failing,  and  most  of  its  memljcrs  and 
agents  absconding.  Great  was  the  outcry  against  the 
defaulting  bankers,  where  the  state  was  thus  dis- 
honored, and  the  guilty  treasurer  hastily  gathered  up 
what  money  remained  in  the  treasury,  which  fell 
$15,000  short  of  the  amount  due,  and  placed  it  hi  the 
haiuls  of  Wells,  Fargo,  &  Co.,  to  be  transmitted  to 
^cw  York.  This  company  then  entered  into  arrange- 
ments to  assist  Bates  in  his  nefarious  transactions,  who 
pt.'rmitted  E.  A.  Rowc,  president  of  the  Pacific  Ex- 
press, and  others,  to  speculate  with  the  state's  money 
def)osited  with  them,  by  reason  of  which  $124,000  was 
lost  to  the  treasury. 

In  order  to  cover  up  the  deficiency  in  the  stiite's 
i'uuds  on  the  meeting  of  the  legislature  of  1857, 
Bates  bargained  with  the  agent  of  Wells,  Faigo,  & 
Co.  at  Sacramento  for  a  temporary  loan  of  $20,000  to 
make  a  .showing,  should  a  committee  of  the  assenihly 
l)roceed  to  count  the  money  in  the  treasury,  as  was 
threatened.  The  sum  borrowed  was  placed  in  the 
state  vaults,  partly  in  United  States  money  and 
partly  ni  California  ten-dollar  pieces,  w<;rth  twenty- 
fi\e  cents  less  each  than  United  States  ten- dollar 
coins;  and  when  the  money  was  returned  to  ^V  <  lis, 
Fargo,  &  Co.  it  was  in  coin  of  the  United  States  mint. 
In  order  to  obtain  this  temporary  loan  the  treasurer 


WSM 


MEN  WHO  SHOULD  HAVE  BEEN  HANGED. 


619 


drew  his  official  draft  in  favor  of  the  firm,  in  the  sum 
of  $20,000.  In  order  to  meet  the  interest  falHng  due 
in  January  1857,  Bates  took  from  the  general  fund  to 
apply  upon  the  interest  fund  the  sum  of  $G0,000. 

Tlicse  things  did  not  happen  because  the  people 
were  dishonest,  or  had  not  furnished  the  means  to 
in.iintain  honorable  financial  standing,  but  because 
the  men  who  forced  themselves  into  places  of  public 
trust  were  corrupt  professional  politicians.  On  the 
heels  of  these  losses,  amounting  to  no  one  knew  how 
iiiueh,  but  evidently  to  $27'2,521,  came  the  decision 
by  the  supreme  court  that  the  state  bonds  te  the 
amount  of  over  $3,000,000  had  been  unconstitiitlon- 
ally  issued.  The  wonder  is  that  no  one  had  put,  forth 
this  opinion  before;  the  language  of  the  constitution 
being  plain  on  the  subject  of  creating  any  debt  or 
liabilities,  which  singly  or  in  the  aggre*-  *te  should 
exceed,  with  avy  previous  liabilities,  tne  sum  of 
$!:)00,000,  except  in  case  of  war,  or  for  a  special  ob- 
jeet,  the  means  of  paying  the  interest  and  principal 
being  provided  for;  and  not  then  until  it  should  have 
been  submitted  to  the  people,  and  consented  to  by 
the  vote  of  the  majority,  with  other  precautions  and 
restrictions.  It  seemed  to  come  upon  the  pul)lic  as  a 
,sur|)ri8e.  "Disguise  it  as  we  may,"  cried  the  Sacra- 
mento Union,  "the  world  of  civilization  will  pronounce 
th(>  verdict  of  judicial  repudiation  against  the  state  of 
Ciiliforniu,.  Let  but  a  single  failure  to  pay  our  inter- 
est prom[itly  occur,  after  the  decision  of  our  court  is 
read  on  the  Atlantic  side  and  in  Europe,  and  the  nau.e 
of  (>alifornia  will  become  the  scorn  of  all  states,  as 
Well  as  of  all  men  who  prize  public  faith  and  individual 
honor."  After  leaving  the  constitutional  (piestion 
untouched  for  five  years,  to  bring  it  up  now,  and 
decide  against  the  validity  of  a  debt  of  more  tha'.i 
8-5,000,000,  would  look  like  a  delil)erately  planned  and 
executed  act  of  dishonesty.  In  that  light,  the  decis- 
ion was  regarded  as  a  public  calamity. 

iiut  the  masses  were  not  dishonest,  and  when  it 


'I  II 


»;.' 


JV    ;<l 


;lti 

i  ,li 


620 


FINANCES. 


r( 


was  pointed  out  by  the  judge  that  the  question  co 
still    be   submitted  to   tlie    people,    of  adopting 
indebtedm  88  of  the  state,  with  the  addition  of  aj)|i 
priations    for   net-essary    future    expenses,   they 
seiited;  and  a  bill  of  submission  beinj^  passed  by  t 
legislature  of  1857,  voted  to  pay  $4,000,000  ratlin 
than  enilure  the  ignominy  of  repudiation.     Civil  boiu 
continued   to   be  Issued    from  time  to  time,  as  tl 
ex])enses  of  the  state  demanded. 

There  were  still  two  sources  from  which  relief  y|as 
expected,  (^ne  was  the  In(''an  war  debt  a|)pro}nlia- 
tion  by  congres-s,  of  $y24,259.G5,  which  would,  if  jtclid 
into  the  treasury  of  California,  have  gone  far  towai 
lifting  the  present  burden.  But  Jefferson  Davis,  sec- 
retary of  war,  refused  to  jmy  the  accounts  transniittod 
to  him  until  he  should  be  phu-cd  in  possession  of  the 
vouchers  upon  which  the  warrants  were  issued.  Many 
of  these  were  lost;  besides,  the  governor  demurred  to 
sending  any  pirtion  of  the  archives  of  tlie  state  to 
Washington.''  Settlement  was  made  on  about  half 
the  amount,  interest  accumulated  on  the  remaiiitior, 
and  after  vainly  entleavoring  to  secure  a  further  ap- 
propriation, the  holders  of  war  bonds  were  forced  to 
take  what  thev  could  jjet  out  of  the  first.'" 

The  other  fund  Kxiked  to  for  rcjlief  was  tliat  col- 
lected during  the  military  government,  after  the  treaty 
of  Guadalupe  Hi<ialgo — the  civil  fund.  But  after  sev- 
eral memorials,  re.s<»lutions,  and  eft'orts  by  California 
senators  to  have  the  claim  acknowledged,  it  was  fur- 
ever  put  to  rest  by  a  decision  of  the  supreme  couit  of 
the  United  States,  that  the  action  of  the  federal  offi- 
cers in  collecting  custonm  after  tin?  cession  and  hcfore 
a  government  was  established,  was  warrantable  and 


"S'ic.  UvioH,  Sept.  20,  1866;  S  F.  AUa,  Aug.  7  and  Sept.  21,  \m>,  S.  F. 
Bulletin,  Stfut.  23,  l»5»i;  CaL  Jtmr.  S'u.,  1857,  app.  no.  8,  10,  18  !'.•:  /'/•, 
18.W,  .•n2-13,  47.VO;  r,tL  fitj»rU,  6,  49»;  Tut/iill,  JtiHl.  Cat.,  52»-di  (innriiors 
Mciuxujt,  in  Ciil.  J<mr.  !im.,  MSM,  if7-8. 

'"  Tuthill,  Hid.  '  i/.,  f(.4y  K  few  of  thp>ie  IhiikIii  were  founil  and  i>ftiil  aa 
Ut«  aa  1873-1.   6'.  H.  Hmue  Com.  Iti-ft,  6Gi),  iv.,  43d  Cong.,  Ist  Sewi. 


STAMP  ACT. 


on 


I'as 


proper.  After  this  there  was  nothing  to  do  but  to  go 
(111  levying  enoniious  taxes,  and  cutting  down  expendi- 
tures. To  a  Cahfornia  legislature  it  was  much  easier 
to  CO  itinue  the  taxing  than  to  discontinue  extrava- 
gance 

In  1857  it  was  found  necessary  to  levy  a  wax  on  the 
export  of  gold,  on  insurance,  and  on  divers  branches 
of  eoinnierce,  in  the  shape  of  a  stamp  act,  providing 
that  after  tlie  first  day  of  July  no  court  should  take 
oni;tiizance  oi  any  complaint  founded  on  any  promissory 
note,  foreign  or  inland  bill  of  exchange,  certificate  of 
deposit,  policy  of  insurance,  bill  of  lading,  b(jnd,  mort- 
gage, deed,  lease,  or  receipt,  unless  it  should  be  writ- 
ten on  paper  stamped  for  the  sum,  and  in  the  manner 
required  by  the  act. 

In  18G1  the  indebtedness  of  cities  and  counties 
amounted  to  about  $10,000,000.  In  1803  the  state 
'lol»t  was  still  about  $5,000,000.  The  direct  tax  levied 
hy  tlie  federal  government  during  the  war  of  the  re- 
IrUIou,  soldiers  relief,  and  soldiers  bounty  funds,  as 
well  as  public  institutions  taxes,  kept  the  people's  ex- 
ixnses  up,  even  after  a  system  of  retrenchment  had 
Utn  befjun.  In  1807  the  state  tax  was  99  cents 
and  the  state  debt  a  little  more  than  two  years 
previous;  and  it  was  not  until  1875  that  the  debt  was 
reduced  to  a  little  less  than  $3,000,000  and  the  state 
tax  to  04  cents.  The  property  valuation  of  the  state 
at  tliis  period  was  $011,500,000;  the  amount  charged 
tax  collectors  for  state  and  county  purposes  was 
820,141,508.39,  of  which  nearly  seven  millions  went 
to  the  state  treasury.  The  population  of  1870  was 
5(J0,'J47  persons,  divided  amongst  whom  the  assess- 
ment amounted  to  $35  for  every  man,  woman,  and 
child  in  the  state.'*  No  wonder  the  collectors  de- 
ducted nearly  fourteen  per  cent  for  delinquencies  in 

'*  Controllor's  Rept,  187.V1875,  22-3.     For  county  inJebtodnoss  of  Los  An. 
gele«  CO.,  aee  HaytA  SrrajiM,  Aivjfle*,  v.  496;  of  Yub*  co.,  lVi<i<'o.  HiiU.,  4;t-4; 
^      of  Miirin  co.,  Marin  Co.  Hint.,  I2*J-.'W.     Kl  Doraili.  ci..,  as  early  as  I85'2,  owud 
il  |iai<l  as       H      t%,lliiO,  which  it  had  no  means  uf  paying.  Placer  Timu  ami  TraMcript,  Jan. 
■      15.1852. 


■r  .-^ev- 

foi'iiia 

as  t'or- 

aurt  of 

1  offi- 

het'ore 

!  and 


,1,1  HI 

'It  l! 


622 


FINANCES. 


making  up  their  estimates.  And  yet  California  liad 
a  greater  amount  of  wealth  to  the  individual  tlian  any 
of  the  older  states.  Her  troubles  had  never  come 
from  any  real  lack  of  means,  but  from  the  impropor 
use  of  them.^" 

^  As  to  the  U80  made  of  snch  money  as  had  been  appropriated,  I  will  m.ike 
flome  mention  here;  and  also  of  all  public  institutions  charged  with  ]iuMic 
nionevH.  The  first  public  building  orAered  by  the  logislature  to  Iiu  tTcctiil, 
fur  which  a  fund  was  provided,  wiis  the  state  marine  hospital  at  8.  F.  h 
April  18r>0,  an  act  was  passed  authorizing  the  same  '  upon  grounds  contaiiiing 
not  less  than  20  acres,  and  which  at  the  time  of  such  erection  shall  bclmi^  to 
the  state,  and  sliall  bo  situated  upon  the  bay  of  S.  F.,  and  not  less  thiiii  2  imr 
more  than  12  miles  distiint  from  that  i)art  of  the  town  of  8.  F.  known  as 
Clark's  Point.'  The  building  was  to  cost,  with  improvements  of  gnmn^ls,  nut 
more  than  $50,000.  Tlie  money  to  carry  out  this  purjKwo  was  to  l)e  dcriveil 
from  fees  to  the  health  officer,  elected  by  the  legislature.  These  ftes  were 
for  visiting  and  examining  each  vessel  from  a  foreign  port,  §20;  eacli  vessel 
from  any  U.  S.  port,  not  on  the  Pacific  coast,  of  above  100  tons,  ^Hi,  mitover 
100  tons  $12;  under  100  tons  §8;  coastwise  vessels  to  jiay  the  sum  of  ji). 
Fines  imposed  for  obstructing  the  visit  of  the  health  otiicer  to  go  into  tlie 
fund.  The  receipts  for  the  first  quarter  were  $:}4,G8.3.16,  'which  n«m  m  w 
required  to  jjay  the  ordinary  exitenses  of  the  establishment  (which  woh  tli  n 
in  a  temporary  building)  during  that  periot).'  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1851,  ajiii.  ,>il. 
For  the  2d  quarter  the  receipts  were  $."M),830.93,  which  sum  w.os  also  nt'cn- 
sary  to  pay  current  cxj^nses,  except  $107.43,  found  among  the  iiiicl;iini(..l 
effects  ot  dece^iscd  persons.  Tliis  sum  was  the  first  paid  into  the  st^itu  tn  ,im- 
ury  to  fcinn  astate  nospitol  fund.  Meantime  congress  a])propriat('il  .*.")(l,fKJO 
for  the  en.'ction  of  a  ma-.'ie  hospital  at  S.  F.,  which  should  have  renikml  the 
state  hospital  unnecessary.  Butnotso  thought  the  legislature  of  liSitl,  wliirli 
passed  an  act  to  provide  a  revenue,  compelling  the  master  or  owner  of  a  vis- 
sol  arriving  from  a  foreign  port  to  give  a  severed  boml,  in  a  penalty  of  j'JtKi, 
for  each  passenger,  conditioned  to  indemnify  and  save  harndess  tiie  state 
marine  hospital  at  S.  F.,  and  every  city,  township,  and  county  in  tiie  state, 
from  any  cost  or  charge  for  the  relief,  support,  or  medical  treatment  of  tlie 
persons  named  in  the  Ijonds,  which  were  required  to  lie  secured  by  2  or  mure 
suri'ties,  provided  that  the  master  or  owner  might  commute  for  the  n  i|uiiiil 
bonds  by  puymcnt  of  ^!i  in  money  for  each  cabin  passenger,  and  for  em  h  liick 
passenger  $3.  Any  refusal  or  ne^dect  cmsed  a  forfeiture  of  not  le-'^s  tii.ui 
$J>00,  nor  more  than  $2,030,  which  inund  to  the  l)eiiolit  of  the  h<wpit;d  luiil, 
and  all  vessels  were  required  to  carry  a  charity-box  for  the  collection  of  inuuoy 
for  the  state  inarinu  hospitaL  The  act  also  made  this  institution  a  city  Ims- 
pitil,  by  autliorizing  the  city  to  send  there  its  sick,  upon  terms  agreed  ii]inn 
between  the  city  and  the  trustees  of  the  marine  hospital,  but  not  to  exciel 
$50,0;)0  annually.  CoL  SMitli:t,  1851,  384-6,  A  cerfciin  proi>ortiou  of  t!.o 
revenue  derived  from  gaming  licenses  and  auction  tax  was  also  diverted  to 
the  hospital  fund.  It  would  seem  from  remarks  in  the  yl /<<i  that  tlie  state 
marine  nosoital  was  regarded  as  '  infamous.'  'Maledictions,'  says  tiie  e<liNir, 
'upon  theneads  of  those  who  enacted  the  illecal,  cruel,  and  villaiiou.s  pro- 
vision, by  which  the  poor  mariner  was  plundered,  not  succored,  a:id  tlie  com- 
morcial  interests  of  the  state  jeopardized  for  the  purpose  of  aratifyiii;^  a  f^w 
craven  satellites.'  Other  hospitals,  at  8ae.  and  8tockton,  autliorized  in  \>>'<>\, 
received  a  part  of  these  taxes.  Sac.  Wius  granted  $:tO,000  and  .Stoekteii 
$20,000.  These  other  state  hospitals  receivcit  an  appropriation  annntlly  »iit 
of  the  general  funrl.  In  1852  an  act  was  paH.fed  authorizing  the  trustees  of 
the  Stockton  state  h(«pilal  to  erect  a  building  for  the  insane  of  the  xtate,  an<i 
to  provide  for  their  Bi>p|iort,  the  building  not  to  cost  over  $10,000,  this  Mim 
to  be  paid  out  of  the  state  treasury,  with  $7,500  for  the  support  of  tin;  iutoue. 


EXPENDITURES. 


623 


It  could  not  bo  said  that  at  this  period  CaHft>riiia 
had  any  system  of  political   economy.     From  1849 

Tlii'se  institutions  annually  required  more  money.  The  next  device  for  their 
iiii[i[ii)rt  was  the  *i)aj«8enger  act,'8iu\ilar  to  the  act  l>efore  ilesurilted,  hut  cull- 
in;.'  for  not  less  than  $5  nor  more  than  i^lO  for  each  paHxeuger  laii<Ie<l  iu  Cal., 
from  foreign  countries,  or  the  other  statea  of  the  union;  and  exacting  heavy 

I U  lor  landing  a  lunatic,  cripple,  paui>er,  or  intirni  person,  not  a  inemlter 

(if  a  f'luiily.  By  an  act  of  1853  a  com.  of  inwnigrantt)  for  tlio  port  of  S.  F. 
w;w  authorized,  to  l>e  ajjpointed  hy  the  gov.,  to  hold  office  for  twoyejirs,  and 
to  npiirove  all  bonda  and  adniiniater  all  oatha  in  the  diachargo  of  th<;  ilntiea 
comiiriod  with  tlie  paaaengvr  act.  Hia  |)ay  was  ten  per  cent  of  the  receii>tH, 
the  remainder,  after  i>aynient  of  coata,  to  go  into  the  state  treasury.  Two 
f\iiUn  of  thia  fund  waa  then  ajtpropriated  to  the  support  of  the  in.sane  as}  luiii 
ixt-iltlislied  at  •Stockton  in  \liAii,  in  place  of  the  Stockton  state  hiMpital,  antl 
for  which  a  dnift  on  the  treasury  of  S;^),^^  waa  authorized.  The  state  niariiiu 
hospital  was  discontinued  in  IS.'k),  and  the  proi>erty  Ixdonging  thereto  waa 
conveyed  to  the  county  of  8.  F.  for  the  use  of  the  indigent  sick,  and  all 
iiioncya  received  in  couiniutation  of  Ixmds  un<ler  the  paaaenger  act  waa  ait 
apart  to  constitute  the  hospital  fund  of  the  state  of  Cal.,  to  he  apportioned 
among  the  counties  of  the  state  in  proportion  to  their  population.  To  dis- 
courage the  imn)igration  of  pi^rsons  who,  under  the  laws  of  Cal.  and  the  C  .S., 
colli. I  not  I>ecome  citizens,  a  law  waa  passed  in  1H55  reipiiring  a  tax  of  %'.'><>  to 
liu  paid  for  every  such  person  brought  to  any  port  iu  Cal.  Suit  could  l>o 
liroiiu'ht  against  the  master,  owner,  or  consignee,  iu  the  event  of  a  refusal  to 
I'ly  tlie  amount  due  to  constitute  a  lien  on  tiie  vessel.  All  moneya  collected 
uii'ier  thia  act  wci-^  to  Ite  paid  into  the  treasury  for  the  hoapital  fuutl,  except 
tivo  per  cent  to  go  to  the  commissioner  of  immigration.  In  18.Vi,  the  sum  of 
$'J.'),iNM)witsappro])ri<'ited  lor  the  relief  of  the  overland  immigration,  and.^'J,(K)0 
for  the  use  of  titc  indigent  sick  at  San  Diego.  In  ISoo  t>l(>,()(N>  waa  ap|>ro- 
{iiiited  to  l>e  divided  Iietween  the  two  orphan  asylums  of  S.  F.  In  J8.'i0 
i40.iHM>  was  appro]iriated  for  the  completion  of  the  state  insane  asylum  at 
Stockton.  The  city  of  Sac.  brought  a  claim  of  $144,tM).'>.riO  against  the  state, 
wliii'li  was  saiil  to  have  l>een  expended  by  that  city  between  Dec.  (i,  184!),  and 
May  ',i,  I8.*)l,  on  account  of  the  sick  aiul  destitute,  not  residents  of  the  city 
or  county,  and  for  theitroiter  interment  of  those  of  thia  class  who  dii.-d  witliin 
tliat  jieriod.  During  tlie  licavy  overland  immigration,  a  largo  uundier  of  im- 
nii;;r.-     a  were  relieved  annually,  as  well  as  many  sick  mineru. 

Te  provide  a  fund  for  the  state  library,  a  tax  of  il5  Wiia  levietl  ujKin  tlie 
cninini.s.sidu  of  every  stite  oHicer  anil  every  memlier  of  the  legislature.  A 
lioarl  consisting  of  the  governor,  treasurer,  comptroller,  president  of  the 
Kiiiati',  and  speaker  of  the  assembly,  ha<l  power  to  draw  this  money,  an<l  to 
]'iiii'!iaNe  books,  maps,  and  furniture  for  the  library,  A  Kupplcmental  act 
iii.ule  all  fees,  of  whatever  nature,  collected  iu  the  otiico  of  tlie  secretary  of 
fitate,  a  portion  of  the  library  fund.  }ty  au  act  of  bSt'iti  ho  much  of  the  above 
laws  as  conflicted  with  a  provisiim  of  the  militia  law  setting  asiile  the  ^'>  tax 
(>:i  military  commissions,  to  conatitute  a  military  fund,  was  rt^jtealud.  In 
tlii-i  maimer  were  si>ecial  taxes  made  to  meet  most  of  the  expenses. 

H"th  Ivforo  and  after  the  ailmissiou  of  tin;  state,  convicts  w<ro  contiiiol 
on  '|<ri.<ou  .rigs  '  at  S.  F.  and  .Sac.,  and  in  such  insecure  jails  us  were  to  be 
fimii'l  in  some  counties.  Hut  in  IN.')!  the  legislature  passed  an  act  making 
M.  (i.  V'allejoand  James  M.  Kstill  lessees  of  statu  prison  convicUs,  and  uima 
ilii'ia  ilevolved  the  obligation  for  ten  years  to  guard  and  provide  for  this  class 
ul  persons,  three  inspectors,  with  a  salary  of  {fl,5<)0cach,  Iteiug  ap{Miiiitcd  to 
ni.ik.'  rules,  and  n.'port  to  the  legislature.  During  the  year  1851,  accoriling 
to  the  inspectors,  the  jail  in  S.  F.  was  used  for  a  portiimof  the  state  co!i>  icts, 
aii'l  one  prison  brig  had  Ihm'u  fitted  up  and  miK>red  near  Angel  I.sland,  on 
wliicli  ."15  prisoners  M-ere  conlined.  The  law  of  1851  iiir'''id  the  erectiim  by 
tilt  xtatu  of  a  |tcuiteutiary,  but  leased  the  state  prison'ua,  without  retptiring 


PINANCEfl 


to  1857,  268,713  persons  had  arrived  at  San  Fran- 
cisco by  sea,  and  144,100  had  departed  in  the  Kuine 

any  returns  from  their  labor,  while  paying  inspeoton,  in  addition  to  the  amU 
of  arrcat  and  prosecution.  This,  as  the  inspectors  remarked,  had  the  look  of 
'affording  rare  facilities  for  private  advantage.'  The  number  of  convicts 
turned  over  to  the  lessees  in  Jan.  1851  was  60;  and  CaL  convicts  were  among 
the  worst  in  the  world,  lieing  the  scum  of  the  criminal  professions  from  every 
part  of  the  inhabited  globe.  Others  were  a<lded  to  the  60  during  tliu  year. 
From  tlie  prison  brig  17  escaped  by  overpowering  their  keepers,  and  tlirte 
escaped  iu  8.  F.  Out  of  the  '20  thus  let  loose  upon  society,  7  were  recaptured. 
UxH>n  this  report  the  legislature  of  1852  passi^d  an  ovt  constituting  the  in- 
spectors and  the  supt  of  public  buildings,  a  board  to  examine  bids  for  a  con- 
tract and  select  a  site  for  a  state  prison;  purchase  to  be  made  of  20  acres  for 
that  purpose  at  not  more  than  $10,000,  to  be  paid  out  of  tlie  general  fund. 
No  limitation  as  to  price  was  mentioned  in  the  bill,  but  all  the  prncurdg 
from  the  sale  of  swamp  and  overflowed  lands,  after  draining  and  levying'  tlio 
same,  was  pledged  to  lie  held  inviolate  for  the  payment  and  redemption  uf 
bonds  of  the  state,  issued  and  made  payable  in  10  years,  with  7  {H^r  cent 
interest,  payable  semiannually,  for  the  purpose  of  discharging  the  debt  to 
the  contractor.  The  board  were  to  settle  upon  a  plan  suitable  for  the  pur- 
pose, and  did  so.  Two  bids  were  received,  one  from  Isaac  Saffrans,  and  one 
from  F.  Vassault,  either  of  which  would  have  footed  up  nearly  81,000,000. 
The  plans  and  proposals  were  approved  by  Bigler.  Land  was  purelia.sed 
at  San  Quentin  point,  and  excavations  begun,  when  the  legislature  of  185:i 
ma<le  an  investigation  of  the  subject.  The  gov.  had  not  pointed  cmt  the 
unconstitutionality  of  the  act,  nor  expressed  any  doubts  of  its  exiiediency. 
Tlie  investigatirn  showed  that  several  members  of  the  senate  had  pru[)ose>l 
liuiitationa,  tiie  majority  being  in  favor  of  $100,000,  and  tliat  when  it  was 
voted  upon  these  senators  had  believed  that  $100,000  was  incorporated  in 
the  bill  by  amendment.  Yet  when  the  original  bill  was  examined,  no  evi- 
dence could  be  found  of  mutilation  or  erasures.  By  what  legcrdcmaiu  tlie 
bill  passed  through  both  houses  was  not  discovered.  That  the  same  craft 
was  shown  in  the  bids  was  proven.  Several  were  presented  and  withdrawn, 
leaving  only  the  two  mentioned.  These  were  copies  of  one  another  in 
every  re8i)ect,  except  '  slight  difference  in  the  estimates,'  showing  that  tluy 
oinanatoil  from  the  same  source.  The  sureties  offered  in  one  case  were  J.  M. 
KstiU,  Jos.  Daniels,  and  R.  H.  Allen,  and  in  th<^  other  John  Middletuu  and 
T.  Butler  King.  There  seemed  to  have  been  many  persons  interested  in  the 
job,  but  the  responsibility  was  not  fixed  upon  any.  The  legislature  of  1SJ3 
passed  an  act  declaring  void  the  contract  with  Vassault,  and  autliorizinj^  the 
exi>enditure  of  $135,0(X)  in  the  construction  of  a  state  prison  on  tiiu  grouml 
at  San  Quentin,  to  be  pai<l,  as  before  proposed,  in  state  bonds  maturing  in 
ten  years,  with  interest  at  7  per  cent;  and  $18,315  Was  paid  out  of  the  ^ttn- 
eral  fund  for  the  work  and  material  already  done  and  furnished.  No  second 
offer  of  tlie  state's  swamp-lands  was  made  to  unprincipled  speculators;  hut  a 
tax  was  levied  of  4  cents  on  each  $100  of  taxable  property,  to  constitute  a 
fund  to  redeem  the  bonds  until  the  debt  should  be  paid.  Thomas  D.  Johns 
M.-is  the  contractor  under  the  new  arrangement.  Tne  prison  was  completed 
iu  Jan.  1854,  and  the  convicts,  242  in  number,  were  removed  thither  at  a  coat 
of  $25,000.  The  appropriations  of  1852  and  1853,  '  for  special  objects,  liuviu(| 
no  necessary  connection  with  the  administration  of  the  state  govt,'  amounted 
to  $430,350.78.  The  legislative,  executive,  and  judiciary  departments  had 
cost  in  the  period  $1,107,027.80.  In  1855  the  legislature  created  a  board  of 
tlirce  state  prison  directors,  who  were  intrusted  with  the  manaffcnient  of 
prison  affairs,  nomination  of  sulwrdinate  officers,  etc.  The  first  Uoiitd  was 
ap|toi:ited  by  the  legislature,  and  exiiendod  in  7  months,  including  the  erec- 
tion of  a  wall  about  the  pris<m,  the  sum  of  $382,220.84,  or  a  montluy  average 
of  over  $64,000.     The  second  board  was  elected  by  the  people,  and  expended 


DRAIN  FOR  TRANSPORTATION. 


625 


manner.  At  the  low  average  of  $175  each  for  these 
4 1  J, Sin  passenijers,  the  amount  of  passage  money  paid 
to  New  York  stcan).sliip  companies  was  $72,242,275. 
Tlio  freight  earned  l)y  these  companies  on  the  specie 
sliii)ped  since  1840,  at  one  aiid  a  half  per  cent, 
amounted  to  $4,8.'^5,1)07.  Other  freights  had  yielded 
at  a  low  estimate  $11,000,000,  making  a  sum  total 
of  $«a,078,183,  from  these  three  sources  alone,  paid 
(•lit  of  California  pockets  to  New  York  steamship 
roinpanies.  Yet  nobody  thought  of  organizing  a 
Ciilifornia  steamship  company.  Fire  and  marine  in- 
surance companies  in  England  and  New  York  drew 

i  1  1 1  luontlis  S475,41.3.1!3.  The  Hol.-iry  of  each  of  these  directors  was  $.'{,r)(K). 
Tliiir  term  of  nlliuo  wiia  3  years,  Imt  so  cliwsiticil  tliat  a  new  diroctor  Viis 
clm.srti  at  eaoli  aiuiual  deotimi  to  till  tho  iilacu  of  one  ^oiiig  out.  Tlic  ahiriii- 
i:r,'  r\{iuii(liturc3  of  these  directors  causc<i  tlio  lt'gi;<latiire  of  1850  to  authorize 
a  I'oiitruct  for  the  care  of  the  prisoniTS,  and  tlie  erection  of  such  huildin^a  ai 
^!lllllM  Ite  requiretl,  at  a  cost  ot  not  over  (>15,()0i)  per  niontii,  and  appointed  the 
lit'iit  gov.,  state  conip.,  and  treas.  a  lM)ard  of  conis.  to  make  rules  for  the  gov- 
crniiii  nt  of  tlie  prison.  An  appropriation  of  ^.KK)  for  tite  travelling  expenses 
Hi  iMcli  was  tlieir  only  pay.  Tiiey  let  the  contract  to  Kstill  for  4>  10, 000  per 
iiioiiih,  who  had  the  lease  also  of  the  prisoners' lahor.  Tlie  iliret't«)rs  were 
Miiie  simply  a  police  hy  heing  recpiired  '  to  give  their  daily  attention  to  tiie 
t:if(irci  inent  of  such  nilea  '  as  were  proviled  hy  the  connni^isiouers.  The  pay- 
i?iciit  (if  !?I0,r)OO  annually  for  tlie.ie  siii»erfluoU8  oflici'rs  was  <liscoutinned,  when 
tlif  legislature  of  iHol  aholished  the  oflice.  Throu^^h  such  ahuses  of  trust  as 
tlie  state  prison  legislation  exhihited  <luring  a  j)eriod  of  several  years,  the  peo- 
jle  liecanie  stirred  wp  finally  to  take  reprisal. 

No  action  was  taken  providing  for  the  erection  of  the  state  capitol  before 
1S,")(),  wlien  th(!  lcgi.slature  pa.s.sed  an  act  proviiiing  for  its  construction.  I're- 
v.iiu>ly  that  hody,  after  it  cea.sed  its  peripatetic  practices,  had  oecupiecl  a 
Kuililiiig  erectetl  liy  the  county  at  a  great  c«)st,  and  whicii  heing  paid  fur  in 
iHiiiity  iMMids  drawing  1{>'J;),000  interest  per  annum,  rented  only  for  i!ll.',0«K) 
)  ailv,  leaving  tlie  county  to  pay  ^'f'.OlK}  for  tlie  ),lory  of  possessing  tiic  e:ip- 
im1;  tint  the  rents  paid  hy  the  state  amounted  to  ftiil'J.OOO  annually.  Tie 
iiiiiiini.-isioners  apiiointcd  to  contract  for  and  .sujieriiiteiid  the  work  were  1). 
F.  I>iiui;las,  (i.  \\  .  Wliitman,  and  (iilltert  (Jriswold,  and  the  sum  of  .S>(H),0<N) 
w;w  .11  propria  ted.  Tho  warrants  drawn  fmiii  time  to  time  on  the  trea.><iii'y 
W;Te  in;ide  redeemable  in  bonds  of  the  state  bearing  7  p-r  ei'iit  interest,  i.i 
HUiii.s  (if  .^.'iCK)  and  jil  ,(K)().  To  meet  the  indebtedness,  the  jiroeeed  <  of  the  sales 
iTJe.i.M's  of  lands  donated  to  the  stilte  by  the  United  .States,  or  which  niiglit 
'i  ■  tlicreatter  donated  for  public  buildings,  was  set  apart  as  a  fund  from  whn  li 
'"  piiy  the  interest  and  principal,  the  tiriit  payment  to  be  made  in  .lanuary 
I'^'iT.  Should  not  the  fund  e<pial  by  Nov.  of  that  year,  and  every  year,  tho 
"Uiii  (if  .''ilO.OOO  over  the  interest,  enough  was  to  he  a<lded  from  the  geiiciMl  I'uiid 
t<i  III cike  it  JjjiKMHN),  whicli  WiM  to  constitute  a  sinking  fund  for  the  gradual 
ii'iluiiiiitiiin  of  tlie  bonds.  In  I8.'4  the  city  of  Sac.  had  donated  a  sit.'  fdr  the 
<i|iital,  and  upon  that  the  structure  was  being  (greeted  by  Joseph  Noiigues 
«li>ii  till!  decision  of  tiie  sup.  court,  that  the  debts  contracted  by  the  state 
ilidVc  .'|(;t(K),(NK)  were  unconstitutional,  arrested  i>rocecdi:igs.  The  erectio'i  of 
till' iiipitol  building  therefore  belongs  to  another  period.  Itwu-li'H  Slot.,  MS., 
II;  .1/1.  MiHM.  Uoi:,  18,'iS,  i;i;  Cul.  SUitutrs,  18,"(M),  passim;  Sm:  Union,  .March 
31,  iS^fi;  S.  F.  daily  journals,  18.'!()-0,  passim. 
UiMT.  LAI,.,  Vol.  VI.    40 


^lll 


i'ii 


eat  FINANCES. 

annually  $2,000,000;  yet  not  one  of  these  corpora- 
tions, owned  anything  in  California  which  could  he 
taxed.  Their  capital,  derived  largely  from  Culii'oniiii, 
returned  California  nothing,  and  secured  no  cljiini.s 
agairiHt  them.  The  state  greatly  needed  water  ioiu- 
panios  for  raining  and  agricultural  purposes,  but  thtio 
Mere  few  canals,  and  entirely  inadequate  to  the  exist- 
ing want,  not  to  mention  the  wants  that  could  ha\c 
been  created. 

The  constitution  of  the  state  was  not  favorable  to 
corporations,  special  legislation  being  {>rohibiti'(i. 
Under  the  indebtedness  in  which  the  state  had  btcoiiie 
involved,  and  considering  the  time  required  to  call  a 
convention  to  amend  that  instrument,  men  lusitatctl 
to  make  the  movement.  Had  legislation  been  all 
that  was  desired,  labor  was  too  ^ligh  in  California  to 
make  manufactures  profitable,  even  where  the  mate- 
rial was  present;  therefore  merchants  continued  to 
order  from  the  east  cargoes  of  costly  merchandise— 
they  c{)uld  not  afford  to  order  cheap  articles  and  pay 
high  freight — for  which  the  laboring  as  well  as  the 
wealthy  class  were  forced  to  pay.  This  was  anotln  r 
drain  on  the  money  of  the  country.  All  the  world 
sent  of  its  productions  to  this  young  and  undisei|tliiit(l 
commonwealth;  and  like  a  boy  at  a  fair,  the  connuoii- 
wealth  would  buy  anything  offered. 

It  is  time  I  should  mention  the  gifts,  not  few  in- 
deed, nor  small,  which  the  state  received  from  the 
general  government,  in  return  for  this  river  of  wtalth 
which  she  was  pouring  forth  so  lavishly  to  eiiiicli 
the  peojjle  of  the  earth.  The  short  time  left  afte?-  the 
California  delegation  obtained  their  seats,  before  the 
first  session  of  the  thirty-first  congress  expired,  |ii()- 
hibited  much  discussion  of  the  merits  of  the  se\i  lal 
bills  introduced.  Those  that  were  passed  in  the  thne 
weeks  before  congress  adjourned  were  four;  nanuly, 
an  act  changing  the  collection  districts  already  (\ lut- 
ing, and  creating  six  additional  ones;  an  act  extentliiig 
the  judicial  system  of  the  United  States  to  the  state 


GENERAL  GOVERNMENT. 


627 


of  California,  which  was  divided  into  two  judicial  dis- 
tricts;'* an  act  to  authorize  the  appointment  of  Indian 
a;,'ents  in  California;*^  and  an  act  making  appropriations 
for  light-houses.**     Neither  of  these  brought  much 

''  California  waa  divided  into  northern  and  southern  districts.  The  salary 
of  the  judges,  being  tixud  at  $3,riOU  and  IJ'i.MM),  was  inadequate  to  thiir 
I'xiiuases.  (iwin  gave  notice  that  he  should  ask  for  an  increase  of  pay  at  thr 
iii'Xt  session,  Comj.  OMm,  1840-,'K),  20-(i8,  and  the  legislature  of  ISo'I  pu-^Mcd 
a  joint  resolution  instructing  their  senators  to  obtain  an  increase  of  salary 
fi.r  tl\o  U.  S.  district  judges.  Cnl.  Stafiitfn,  1852,  282. 

"Said  McCorkle,  democratic  congressman  in  1852:  'An  appropriation  wits 
mailu,  and  the  president  authorizetf  to  appoint  3  commissioners,  with  full 
piiwcrs  to  treat  with  them,  and  to  make  such  other  arrangcmuntn  as  the  eir- 
cii instances  might  require.  As  iu  other  cases,  in  pursuance  of  the  tixeil  policy 
toward  Cal.  adopted  l>y  the  present  adininistrittion  [whi^],  3  Keiitlenieii,  en- 
tinly  ignorant,  not  only  of  the  country,  hut  eM])ecially  of  the  nature  and  hahits 
ot  our  Indians,  were  sunt  out  from  the  Atlantic  to  protect  the  people  ol  the 
riii'itie  from  the  savage!!  who  inhabit  our  state.  These  men,  na  might  have 
IxTii  expected  under  the  circumstances,  have  committed  the  most  egregious 
blunders,  anil  find  opixwed  to  them  and  the  policy  they  atlopted,  not  only  the 
entire  population  of  Cal.,  but  the  senate  of  the  U.  S.,  which  ha.s  rejected 
every  treaty  maile  by  them  with  the  Indians  unanimously.  Tiie  eiiornioiis 
tlclits,  amounting  in  all  to  nearly  $1,00(),UOO,  have  been  repudiated,  and  un- 
fortunately, while  depriving  these  imported  officers  of  their  portion  of  tlio 
{irotits  and  speculation,  many  innocent  third  parties,  who  from  their  ranciivs 
ami  stores  have,  in  good  faith,  furnished  them  supplies,  arc  also  eoiiip<  IK'd  to 
siitl'iT  losses.'  McCorkle  spoke  as  a  partisan,  but  in  the  main  correctly,  al- 
tliouj{h  he  knew  that  one  at  least  of  the  commissioners,  O.  .M.  VVozencraft, 
u'a.4  a  pioneer  of  Cal.,  and  a  man  of  affairs  in  the  state,  who  therefore  should 
liear  Olio  third  of  the  blame  of  the  rojecteil  treaties.  The  other  commissioners 
Wire  (iei>rge  W.  Biirbour  and  Redick  .McKee.  Tlie  i)eople  of  Cal.  cjid  coin- 
|iLiin  of  the  treaties  because  they  reserved  to  the  Indians,  according  to  tlie 
iiuncrs,  'every  acre  really  rich  in  minerals,  or  really  adapted  to  agricultural 
]Mir.snits,' <$.  /'.  AlOi,  July  2(>,  18.^1,  in  all  the  valleys  along  the  Imhc  of  tlio 
Sierra  Neva«la,  from  the  Stanislaus  to  Kern  River.  The  miners  were  orden  d 
<ill',  also  the  farmers,  ferries  removed,  and  the  Indians  placed  between  the 
mines  and  the  commerciiil  {mints  of  supply.  At  the  same  time,  the  tract 
rc-icrved  to  each  tribe,  except  in  one  instance,  was  Utct  small  for  Indian  iikmIcs 
of  life,  and  t«io  large  for  farming  puriioses,  could  they  be  brought  to  learn 
a^'riciilture.  Rept  of  s|M!cial  committee  on  public  lands,  in  the  senate  of  Cal., 
in  C'll.  Jnur.  Sen.,  1852,  575-".>2.  The  amount  first  approprwteil  for  tlic  ex- 
{tt'iises  of  the  coiniiiissioii  was  $25,000.  The  Indians  were  In  a  ho.stile  atti- 
tiiiie,  caused  by  their  freipient  depredations  and  the  retaliatory  acts  of  the 
miners.  The  commissioners  therefore  travelled  with  a  military  escort,  and 
incurred  heavy  exfHinses,  accomplishing  nothing  more  than  to  secure  a  teiii- 
norary  lieace  by  yielding  the  p<nnt,  and  making  presents  and  promises  to  the 
luilians,  quite  transcending  their  powers  in  making  and  executing  treaties. 
For  this  they  were  dismissed,  an<l  the  32d  congress  estiiblishcd  the  olhce  of 
HiiihTintcndent  of  Indian  affairs,  and  appropriated  ^HN),(M)U. 

--'.'Vii  appropriation  of  $iM>,0()0  was  made  in  1850  for  the  erection  of  li^dit- 
hou.ses  on  the  coast  of  Cal.  and  Oregon,  and  to  this  was  a<lded  |>I5,000  in  I  n.'i  I . 
The  appropriation,  however,  remained  untouched  in  the  treasury  for  a  year 
aiiil  a  half,  and  then  all  the  material,  workmen,  and  mechanics  needed  were 
»lupped  from  the  east,  depriving  Cal.  of  any  participation  in  the  l>enelitsi  of 
the  exiienditure  of  this  money.  So  the  hungry  politicians  complaiiiei*,  with- 
out reflecting  that  men  and  material  were  not  to  Ite  obtained  so  cisily  in  tins 
country.  There  were  8  lights  to  bo  established,  the  cimtract  given  to  <  lilili.ms 
auil  Kelly,  who  sent  out  their  men  and  material  in  the  bark  Oriole,  Cony. 


628 


HNANCRS. 


money  to  Callfoniia.  Tho  prevailing  iniproasion  of 
the  expense  of  buildin^r  in  tliis  state  made  cotij^nss- 
inrn  careful  of  votinjr  appropriations.  At  the  seniiid 
Hi'ssion  8oni('thinjL(  more  tangible  was  secured,  tlu)Ui,'li 
liv  no  means  as  nuu'lj  as  had  been  looked  for,  sinro  it, 
was  firmly  believed  tiie  civil  fund,  then  amountinj^  to 
$  1  ,r)00,000,  would  bo  re8tt»red  to  the  people  fr<ini  \vli(»iii 
it  was  collected,  as  they  inaintaine<l  illegally,  in  addi- 
tion to  ap|>ropriations  whi<*h  they  iiad  a  riglit  to  ex 
pect;  whereas  the  whole  amount  obtained  froTu  tlic 
thirty-first  congress  aggre  ;at(!d  n(»t  much  over  a  mil- 
lion. This  amount,  to(),  had  been  lessened  by  the  mis- 
management of  agents  appointed  by  the  government 
to  take  chariie  of  disbursements.'** 

One  of  the  thiniis  m<»st  desired  in  California  was  a 
mint.  The  subject  was  discussed  during  the  slioit 
time  that  remained  of  the  first  session  of  the  thi?t\  - 
first  congress,  but  not  finally.  A  short  time  previous 
to  the  admissiim  of  California,  Senati>r  Dickiiisoimt' 
New  Y^ork  had  brought  up  a  bill  for  the  establishment 

OM'C,  184tt-r»(>,  iipp.   1083,  which  wi*  Knally  wnokuil  at  the  mouth  of  tlic 
('iiltiiiiliiii. 

-'  An  H|>|)r<>|iriation  of  $50,U(N)  waiit  xuoaIv  in  IHTiO  (or  tho  erection  of  a  inariiu- 
liiiMpitiil  ut  S.  v.,  iinil  ti|()0,(HN)  for  a  new  (niHtoin-liouHf,  with  tlie  iiroinix- ui 
i::M)l),(KN)  nioru  to  coniph'tu  it,  uiuUt  ct-rtiiin  voiulitiohH,  anions  wliii'li  wnf 
tlii'si!  twu — Uiitt  S,  F.  HhoiiM  tlonatv  an  i-li<^ili|i'  Kitu  on  the;  pl.-iza,  .-itnl  tint 
ni'Ulicr  Htato  nor  otlicr  taxeH  dhoiihl  lio  levied  on  tho  property.  Allen  A 
ilali  wtw  ajipointttil  MUpt  of  pultlic  l>uililiuUM  in  S.  F.,  witit  a  Hilary  of  .^l(>  \>ir 
<li<  ni.  He  Hpeut  Hix  niontliH  in  I'al.  and  did  nothing.  Whether  it  was  ^iltii- 
gcther  IiiH  fault,  or  whether  it  was  not  pjirtly  htTanm;  the  S.  F.  |M;o|ile  W'  le 
uniiet^^miincd  om  tti  the  proper  Hiteti,  the-  wliig  lulntiniHtnition  wiu  iiikIi' 
cliarp^lile  with  the  delay.  On  the  lOth  of  Dee.,  IH,'i'2,  tho  eoininoti  ciiiiiicil 
and  mayor  of  N.  F.  eonveyuil  to  the  U.  S.  govt  Mix  tit'ty-vani  lotn  on  Ulkmu 
I'oint,  where  th);  U.  S.  marine  hotipital  wax  eieetiMl,  tlui  toUil  eoxt  of  \\ljMii 
wa.s  aliaut|>2'iO.(KH).  It  wiw  coniplete<i  in  l>ee.  \HXl.  In  May  IS.V_>  een_-n  >< 
appmpriaUMl  li^Wt.tHH)  to  improve  a  Hite  Heh'Cted  on  the  corner  of  Wiu<liiii^li>ri 
ami  IUtt(!ry  Mtx,  where  tlie  eu.stonidioime  and  piwt-olliee  building  was  lirj,ill> 
iTicted  in  ISr>4.  In  tho  meantime  the  govt  ])nrehaMed  the  '  eiiHtoni  lnMise 
MiK-li  '  on  the  corner  of  Sansome  and  Siieramento  hU*,  at  a  coot  ot  ^i.'iO.iHU, 
where  aliuilding  eiwtiiig  i<l4(>,(NH>  was  ereeted,  and  where  the  otlices  ot  tin- 
rustoina  and  naval  departments  of  the  govt  were  kept.  T.  Kntler  Kinj:  ^Il>' 
ceetleil  CoUiur  iw  eollector  in  .Jan.  l.S.'tl.  C  K.  tireene  wan  deputy  coile(  tcr 
The  imrts  of  entry  esUdiliHlied  were  at  Sae.,  Itenieiik,  Stinikton,  Mont^eivv. 
•S.m  Diego,  and  Ihuidiohlt.  '  It  was  an  expt.-rimeiit,'  luiyHliwin,  'to  aseirinn 
where  commerce  wouhl  most  develop  its<-lf.'  JesHe  li.  Ilandilcton  wa'  ><'l 
lectoratSac.andW.  (i.Ctallaher  at  lU^nicia,  and  RolK'rt  A.  I'arker  inspeetirii 
cu.->toinit  at  Trinidad.  All  tiie  purtu  uf  entry  were  tinally  altoluhed  and  unwlc 
ports  uf  delivery,  vxcu|>t  S.  F. 


BRANCH   MINT. 


C29 


of  a  branch  mint  at  Ni'W  York  city.  Benton  pro- 
{i(>.s(;d  to  uiuund  by  establishing  a  liranch  uiint  and 
iis.sjiy  ottice  at  San  Francisco,  in  wbidi  form  the  bill 
piisKctl  the  senate,  but  failed  in  the  lower  house  in 
«(>iisoquonce  of  the  opposition  of  the  l^ennsylvania 
«ltl('iratif»n  to  the  N(»w  S'ork  branch  mint.  At  the  next 
session,  the  bill  being  before  the  oonnnittee  of  the 
whole,  and  not  likely  to  pass,  a  substitute  was  ofllred 
fur  the  whole  bill,  proposing  to  make  coins  issuri  by 
tlic  assay  ottice  of  Moft'at  &  Co.'"'  a  legal  tender,  and 
t(»  enlarge  and  improve  that  institution.  The  Cali- 
t'ltiiiia  delegation  atl'ected  toopp()se  the  substitute  bill, 
and  to  be  still  hopeful  of  securing  a  mint.  Want  of 
time,  however,  in  the  short  session  was  given  as  a 
reason  for  abandoning  their  object,  ami  it  was  h'ft  to 
ite  prosecuted  by  their  successors.  A  bill  was  finally 
passed  July  1852,  authorizing  tiie  erection  of  a  brunch 
mint  at  San  Fr-ncisco,  and  appropriating  ^300,000  for 
tliat  purpose;  but  the  money  was  exjKinded  in  j)ur- 
rliusing  and  extending  the  Unitetl  States  assay  ottie«>. 
A  mint  finally  went  into  operaticm  in  April  1854,  with 
iiia<liinery  capable  of  coining  ;^30,0()0,0()()  annually. 

Among  the  first  appropriations  was  $100,000,  for 
commencing  the  construction  of  a  dry-dcK'k  on  the 
coast  of  California.  Gwin  being  appointed  on  the 
committee  of  naval  affairs,  of  which  he  was  chairman 
tVoni  1851  to  1855,  was  in  a  position  to  report  and  to 
push  bills  connected  with  naval  and  marine  interests, 
aiul  did  so  with  commendable  energy  and  persever- 
ance. The  final  cost  of  the  tlryMl«)ck,  and  removal  to 
Marc  Island,  was  alxmt  $1,000,000,  all  but  the  first 
$100,000    being   appropriated    by    the    thirty-second 


^'Mnfiatt  ft  Co.  wuro  U.  S.  assay  contractnra  untli-r  an  tu^t  piiMud  duriii^r 

ilK;;<>Nti<>ii 
III  (Iwin,  ifiO,  $100,  aiiil  $l!00  goM  piecvji  wcru  |Kurniitti>«l  to  l>u  iiianuFu<-turu<l 


tint  [icnileiicyof  the  mint  dill.     Augustus  lluuiltert  was  thuoHttaycr  upiHiiiit 
til  atlix  tiie  U.  S.  stamp  t<>  thu  gold  iisaayuil  at  tliis  ollicf.     At  the  sug;;<>Ntioii 


at  tins  establish 'nent.  Oieinn  Meiiioirii,  MS.,  115.  Previous  to  tlio  ostaldish- 
iiieiit  of  the  U.  H.  assay  otiiue,  private  companies  had  issued  coins,  whieli  now 
Ih  tfiui  to  1m  ropudiatud,  making  a  panic  in  the  money  market,  while  at  the 
xaiiif  tinio  nothing  was  sultstituted  for  the  small  coins  rejected.  After  the 
i-»t.ililiMhiu(Mitof  the  mint  in  1H.'>4,  Owin  reporteii  a  bill  for  tlie  coinage  of  $60 
&U)I  ^iUO  pitMses,  which  failed  iu  tliu  house. 


i!  |i: 


I 


HNANCES. 


congress."  Gwin  was  also  on  the  finance  conimitfpp. 
which  }^ave  liim  opportunities  which  he  improved. 
CaUfornia  having  but  one  representiitive  in  the  senate 
for  two  sessions,  Gwin  may  be  credited  with  havinjr 
secured  most  of  tlie  larjfe  sums  appropriated  by  tliis 
confifress.  He  reported  a  bill  in  January  1852,  pro- 
viding for  the  cst;iblishnicnt  of  a  navy-yard  on  aljirvre 
scale.  Some  trouble  was  experienced  after  the  pas- 
sage of  the  bill  in  selecting  a  l(»cation  for  the  work, 
Mare  Island  being  the  site  at  length  fixed  upon.  It. 
cost  the  government  $50,000  to  secure  a  title  to  tlio 
land."^     The  first  appropriation  for  general  purposes 

^S.  F.  Par.  JVVmw,  Dec.  2,  1850;  (/.  S.  AetMand  Itrn.,  I'lS-O,  31st  Coiik., 
1st  ScHH.;  U.  S.  Liiwn,  4;  U.  S.  H.  Ex.  /'or.,  37,  V4.1.  v.,  'XM  Coug.,  2.1  S,h».; 
I'aL     Itfii.,    1857,    135;    Cong,    (llolir,    l»4t)  50,    I'.J-JO,    a«0,    WkW;    lh.".l   J. 

I  ItKI  1504;  Gwin,  .Mi-moir",  MS  ,  la');  V.  S.  //.  Kx.  Ihx-.,  31.  v.,  31»t  Cij^  ,  .M 
So.is.;  Solnnot'o.  Hut.,  'J47-0'2;  Sanp/f,  Coll.,  MS.,  iii.,  y.  140;  (JinnM  Sjm-H,, 
in  U.  S.  Sen.,  March  23,  185'2:  .S'.  >'.  AU<i,  April  12,  l8o-';  /«/.,  Martli  I'.t, 
1852;  Cal.  Mil.  Affuim,  Scmjm,  12;  Rupt  of  com.,  iu  U.  6.  Sen.  Ittft,  14,  vol. 
i.,  32il  Cong.,  iHt  Sons. 

'•'  Victor  Caatro,  v.'ho  owned  Mare  Island  ainl  projierty  on  the  ni.i'nlaiui, 
lic'iiig  troiihled  l>y  the  Indi.ti:!<  stealing  In  mica,  couvcyi-d  a  Itanil  of  hriMMl  man-A 
to  thu  iaiiuid  for  security;  huntv*!  its  name  of  Isla  do  la  Yogua,  or  Miiri!  I  limii. 
Its  advantages  for  a  naval  station  V-gaii  early  to  Ih:  oltserved,  and  J.  B.  Kri>l>ii', 
a  oapt.  in  the  U.  S.  arm  .-,  purehasco  it  from  Castro  in  ]H4*.I.  In  1850  lie  snlil 
an  interest  in  the  iisUmd  to  Caut.  Bt^zer  Simmuus;  and  sulwoquently  an  iii- 
torcst  was  sold  to  W.  A.<<pinwall,  of  thu  tirin  of  Howland  &  Asitinwall,  ulio 
later  pnrchased  the  whole  islanil.  Capt.  Blunt,  commissioner  U.  8.  N.,  Ii.ul 
reconnnt-nded  this  location  to  the  govt  in  1850,  for  a  navy-yard.  In  1H.')I, 
Ccim.  McC'anlcy,  who  was  instructed  J>y  the  dept  to  report  niton  the  iiii»<t 
eiigilile  site  for  the  naval  arsenal  of  the  Facitic  coast,  deci«ledly  favored  S.mai- 
lito;  liut  the  dept,  not  Ix-'ing  sutistied,  instructed  Com.  Sloat  to  make  an  exam- 
inatiiin  of  the  nitut  cligihle  uointa  on  thu  bay,  and  he  recommended  Marc 
Inland,  which  tlie  govt  finally  purchiMuil  in  1852  of  As|>iuwan  for  $.'i().iMN). 
In  Sept.  1852  the  dry-dock,  Iniilt  iu  New  York  in  sections,  began  in  arrive, 
a  [Mirtion  on  the  merchant  ship  hnijiire  reaching  the  island  Sept.  1 1th,  li.iviii^ 
gnmndcMl  near  the  present  site  of  the  magazine  and  remaine<l  3  days  Ix'trirc 
she  was  tloated  again  by  lightering.  •She  was  followed  by  the  packet  (^'ii'tii  nf 
thf  Kiist,  and  later  in  the  year  by  the  />»^'(i('  p  with  the  remainder  of  the  ilm-k. 
Under  the  supcrintemlencc  of  Theodore  ('.  I)cane,  agent  of  the  contraitorii, 
and  Ihirius  IVekham,  foreman,  the  vessels  were  nioordl,  and  the  ships  A\*- 
charged  by  means  of  iKioms  and  scows.  Fty  C'liri-stnias  ,'{  sections  were  fraiiird, 
and  \\\  the  autumn  of  1853  0  sections  were  i.<.::>nlete.  The  first  vessel  taken 
on  for  rei>aira  was  the  steamer  I'ticijir  in  185!).  In  *854  sulmirai  (then  iM|>taiii) 
FaiTagnt  was  appointed  ti>  the  command  of  the  island,  with  instnu-tii>iis  to 
carry  on  the  work  of  completing  a  naval  station.  Isaiah  Hanscoin  hiul  liei-ii 
sent  out  to  superintend  the  construction  of  the  marine  railway  ami  Ikisjii,  and 
was  appointed  subsetpiently  naval  constructor.  The  frigate  hiileffnilini'  wiis 
the  tint  U.  S.  ship  which  testeil  the  dry-d«>ck.  She  w.is  taken  upon  ^  '^^'■'■ 
ti(»n8,  with  her  l»attcrics,  spars,  stores,  and  crow  of  500  men  on  Ixxird.   I  ><  *'. 

II  and  12,  18.55.  The  trial  was  su^ierintended  by  P.  Knrgt'u,  of  the  N.  Y  ('"• 
which  built  the  dock.  S<if.  liettenr,  Feb.  2,  1871;  Vnllrjoi  hrtmirli',  Fel.  ll>. 
1878;  ^\  F.  AUa,  June  ti,  1854.     The  state  ceded  ita  interest  in  Maru  l»laud 


NAVY-YARD. 


631 


wiiH  8100,000,  ami  the  socoml  $100,000  f(.r  a  bliick- 
Miiitli-Hlu>|>.""'  Then  there  Wus  jj  150,000  for  a  flouting 
wharf  and  hasin  in  1853,  hesides  alnrnt  $.'JO,000  for 
uther  objects  in  connection  witli  it.  Tlie  thirty-tliird 
coiifrress  appropriated  about  $1 ,000,000  for  conipletin|;r 
l)la<-ksinit]i-Hlio[),  store! touucs,  l)aHin,  and  railway  at 
Maro  Island,  and  in  185G  the  appropriations  for  con- 
st luction  reached"'"  ^44 1,000  for  that  year. 

J^arije  Hunis  were  appropriated  for  fortifications"*'  on 
Alcatraz  Inland  and  Vort  lN>int,  and  for  an  arsenal  at 
!  Jt  nicia,  at  least  $l,l).*).'),000  bein«:j  expended  on  the  two 
Hrst-nientioned  works  from    1854  to  1850.'"      Besides 

to  tlie  U.  S.  in  1854.  CiL  St.it.,  18M,  UW-'J;  Oil.  Jour.  Srii.,  IHM,  '218,  284-4i, 
M>:>:  Ajm.,  no.  4.  It  u  HtaUil  in  tliu  .S'.  K  Hirnlil,  .Ian.  '.I',  MM,  timt  |85,U00 
u;iH  paid  for  the  isliiiKl;  litit  (twin  HuyM  ;(.*><),U(IO.  He  al.<o  Rt'itca  tliiit  after  t2fi 
yi'^tr.H,  and  tlie  most  tlionmgh  iiivuatiKiition  of  all  cluiiiis,  purtiu.s  wt:ru  fouiul 
Hi'ttiii;;  lip  clniniii  to  tliiii  pruixsrty.  'Tho  law  otlicvrn  of  the  uovt  niuitt  liuvu 
stiiiii^uly  nuglect4!)l  thfir  duty  if  tliexo  clainm  havo  any  validity.'  Memoim, 
.MS  ,  S-.'. 

'"i'onij.  (iltplii',  )8.")I-'J,  pt.  iii.,  I^-iw.s  xxi.  CSwin  nays  lie  meant  to  correot 
till-  iiolicy  in  rL7;ar<l  to  navy-ynr<lH  on  the  Atlantic  coUMt;  to  juivo  only  oiio  on 
till'  I'aeii.  ■  coaMt,  ami  that  one  i'<|iiiil  to  the  ncoe.HKities  of  tlie  govt.  Aa  tLi-i 
w.is  to  Im)  un  a  grund  Hcale,  and  the  workshopH  were  to  exijt  fi>r  all  time,  lio 
tiiiiii^lit  it  right  that  tliiir  coiiMtruetionHhoiilil  l>u  equal  to  tlie  di'manil.-i  of  the 
Nrrvice.  The  1>l<\ckitniilh-Khop  wait  to  contain  J'.'ti  fiirnacea,  ami  cover  acreit 
lit  j^round;  anil  at  the  high  ]iriceit  then  ruling  i:i  Cal.  would  coHt  li'l()0,UO(). 
111!  I'lideavored  to  HCiiUggle  the  appropriation  into  the  tinaiice  committtie'ii 
iiii'lget,  liiit  the  Hh'.irp  eyeM  of  MatMin  of  Va  dtttt^cted  it,  and  willi  niinli  Moleni- 
iiity,  Htated  to  the  Mcuate  tliat<iwin  ha<l  iiut  diiwul^l(iO,()()0  for  a  Maikiiniith- 
hliiip,  wlu're4Ui  lie  had  never  m-eii  one  ill  \  a  which  coHt  inoru  tlian  $IU>>.  The 
a|i]iriipriatioii  wax  Htricken  out,  hut  (iwin  got  it  at  the  next  HeHMion.  MrnuMrii, 
MS.,  8*2.  It  will  rcipiire  ^l.'i.UOii.OUU  or  M>0,UUO,0(H)  to  coniplet«)  the  navy- 
y.iiil  a.H  dexigned.   L'nL  ItrijiMfr,  18.')7,  13.'>-(>. 

'^  A  man  named  Vance  had  a  fat  coiitrai't  with  Mare  iHland  in  ISod,  when 
'III'  furiiiNlie<l  thouHumU  of  milliouH  of  lunil>er  at  ^0  per  M.'  J'Jiiri-la  WfMt 
( (KiH  Siijmil,  Nov.  5,  1873. 

■'"  Defences  Were  earneiitly  desirfd  l»y  the  Cal.  jieople.  An  atUick  wan 
ffai-ed  from  the  French.  L'.  S.  Sen.  Jior.,  Iti,  .'>7,  iVi-i),  Ol,  vol.  vi.,  XIA  Cong., 
21  Si-sN.  And  there  apjitMirs  to  have  l>een  Home  foundation  fur  their  apprehen- 
HJiiiis,  for  on  the  l.'tth  of  .lune,  18.'),'),  a  French  corvette  and  KuxHian  frigate 
fiiiiglit  a  liattle  off  the  harlNir  of  Han  Diego.  The  Kuit8iaii  i>oured  a  liroaiuidu 
into  the  Frenchniun,  which  blew  up  at  half-pa.-<t  II  oVlm-k.  The  KuHniiUi 
tl'i'u  entered  the  liarlior  for  feiMkira.  She  had  (>8  killed  and  I.*)!)  wounded. 
'I'lie  Vessel  carried  ii!i  guiut  and  1100  men.  The  French  veHtiel  waH  the  KjiUiU, 
( irried  12.'t  and  3*20  men.  It  wan  iiaid  her  captain,  Duchene,  lired  the  niaga- 
t\\u-  rather  than  atrike  hia  Hag.  H»yr»  Coll.,  Sun  Dimo  Co.  Lmul  Hint.,  i. 

"  The  Hulijectof  fortifying  the  harltorof  S.  F.  engaged  the  attention  of  the 
govt  H(Hm  after  the  treaty  with  Mexico  in  1848.  A  coinminHion  Wiui  appointed 
ciMi.iiHting  of  majors  Dgden,  Smith,  anil  Leadl>etter  of  the  army,  captaina 
<"ilill>orough.  Van  Brunt,  and  Blunt  of  the  navy,  and  K.  I'.  Hammond,  J. 
•M  Williams,  and  James  Blair,  who  jointly  were  to  select  sites  for  fortifioa- 
tii'iis  and  iiavy^anls.  They  selected  for  the  navy-yard  Maro  Island,  aa  I 
have  stated.     They  also  selected  Benicia  for  the  storehouses  and  arsenala  of 


632 


FINANCES. 


the  direct  appropriations  to  California,  congress,  on  the 
representations  of  the  California  delegation,  voted  oxtm 

the  army,  helping,  with  tlie  P.  M.  S.  S.  Co.,  which  had  its  donntat  }t<iiiitia, 
to  eMtablitih  a  rivalry  betweuii  that  point  aiul  S.  F.  S/ifnmtns  Mem.,  (J7-8; 
Vinton,  (JriuwUer's  kmt,  U.  S.  A.,  185(\  248-52,  274-80;  IW.  AVhv*.  J.iii.  10, 
1850.  f}cn.  Pcrsifer  Smith  gave  it  mn  his  opinion  tliat  S.  F.  was  'in  no  way 
liUcd  for  military  or  commercial  purtMxies.'  Smiwli's  rcpt,  ui  Fnut'ii  Jliit.  CI., 
4t8-9.  SaysCiwiu:  'Kvery  important  site  in  Ciil.  was  covered  hy  a  privatu 
claim — Fort  Point,  Alcatraz,  Ooat  Islaacl,  Angul  I:iland,  and  Maro  Isliiud.  I 
at  first  thought  it  beat  to  Bot>.Io  thoso  claims  without  inquiring  into  their 
validily,  in  order  to  proceed  with  tho  public  work  i  that  were  8o  in'ich  in  di'- 
iiiand  on  tlio  Pauitio  coast.  It  was  by  my  a«Ivice  and  counsel  tliat  the  kuiii  df 
$00,000  was  paid  to  claimants  to  ^!ure  Island,  in  order  that  the  work  <m  thu 
navy-yard  should  be  promptly  commuuctHl.  But  it  was  soon  jK;rcfiv«;"l  tiiut 
there  wouM  Iks  no  limit  to  thuso  demands.'  Memoim,  MS.,  178.  Cistro 
claimed  Yerlia  Uuena  or  Cioat  Island,  so  called  f.-om  being  a  pasture  for  goiitM 
from  IWI  to  184S).  Nathan  Spoar  boujjht  off  Ca.;tro,  and  with  Jack  Full  r, 
kept  goats  and  cattle  ui><m  it  from  1847  to  Feb.  184<.l,  when  SiMsar  sold  to  Kil- 
ward  A.  King,  harbor-master  of  S.  F.,  hi j  interest  fortheconsideratuinuf  Kio 
cents.  S}'t<ii;  I'lijM'iv,  MS.,  3,  S.  F.  Altn,  Jui'o  12,  1808.  King  fncifd  a 
cabin  with  posts,  hcmIm,  and  a  thatch<td  roof,  fur  tho  use  of  a  hcrlfr.  Tiiu 
i.land  api>ears  to  have  been  claimed  by  a  l>r  Jones  in  Feb.  184'J,  wlio  eiiintuycHl 
John  Hall  to  survey  it  and  nrnko  a  plat.  In  \8')0  Jones  lunl  it  resur^•l  -liI 
by  A.  11.  Flint.  Or.  Skrlrhfr.,  MS.,  2.  His  intention  was  to  lay  out  a  town 
o:i  the  isliuid.  But  in  May  1851  Jones  soM  to  James  Brady,  S.  Bl.t'.  k,  >-A.n\ 
Franklin,  and  K.  Franklin.  Subsequently,  in  May,  Brady  sohl  a  onu-i'<itirtli 
interest  to  Joel  S.  Polack.  King,  whose  ri^jhts  do  not  apiiear  to  liave  Ihtii 
consiilered,  went  to  Utali,  after  vainly  endeavoring  to  stdf  his  claim.  Traii.^- 
fcrs  were  made,  by  Polack  ami  Franklin,  to  Morrison  and  Tennent;  and  fur- 
ther tnuiMrers  to  Carptenticr,  and  to  Frank  M.  PixUry,  in  18.')5;  and  fmiii 
Pixley  to  Klim  J.  Hall  in  1857.  John  Hall  also  had  a  deed  from  Kiti^'  ia 
1858.  In  that  year  F.litsa  J.  Hall  brought  suit  against  Thouias  J.  '>ii\Nliuj.', 
who  oocii]  iecl  the  inland  with  John  ( i.  Jennings,  Tlie  plaintiff  was  nonviiitt'd 
oil  acuount  of  a  suit  pending  between  the  govt  and  Polack,  the  U  S.  claiiii- 
ing  the  island.  Dowling  and  Jeunings  claimed  to  have  settled  uim»i  tiie  i.slaiid 
ill  I'ii'J,  and  to  have  occupied  it  in  person  or  by  tenant  until  18(i'',  wduii  tliu 
U.  S.  tlispossesscd  tlieni  witli  troops.  As  Id^'j  ail  1878  a  petition  w<i.s  jirc- 
seiit4  d  in  the  U.  8.  senate,  fron>  tlte  atty  of  Benjamin  Br<M>ks,  KglH'rt  .Inliu- 
son,  and  Jolin  Turner,  alleging  tiiat  tiiey  had  purchaseil  tlie  i:  land  troiii 
Uowling  and  Jenninj^s.  They  a.-serted  that  the  title  was  derived  from  a  city 
onlinauee  of  IK.'.o,  a  xtate  law  of  J8'>o,  and  a  congressional  aut  of  18l>4;  Imt 
the  govt  retaim^l  iiosHessiou. 

The  luMtory  of  Aleatrax,  White,  or  Bird  Island  is  more  simple.  It  wan 
gnuiteu  by  I'io  I'ico,  governor  of  t'al.,  to  Julian  Workman,  in  184<i.  W'nrk- 
man  planted  it  to  his  son-in-law,  Temple,  who  in  March  1849  'jonveyi.il  -t  to 
Kr»>m<iiit,  governor  of  Cal.,  for<>5,000,  'as  t!-.o  legal  representative  of  tlie  l'.  S.' 
Freiooi  t  siibseiiuently  conveyed  it  to  I'-.lmtir,  cVmk,  &  Co.,  without  paying 
the  IJo.iKK)  to  'iemplo,  for  M'hicli  Temple  sued  him.  Palmer,  (."(Mik,  k  In. 
Hueil  thu  govt;  but  as  the  islantl  was  punrhaiu'd  in  the  name  of  the  U.  S.  tiny 
had  no  claim.  S<tc.  Uiiinit,  ['■■h.  14,  1850.  This  island  is  a  rock  al»>iit  miu 
lourth  I'f  a  mile  long,  6'.!5  feet  wide,  140  feet  high,  and  lies  a  mile  .roiii  tli<^ 
wharf  at  North  Beach.  FortiKcations  were  commenced  on  tho  island  in  Ih.'4, 
the  cost  of  which  was  estimate)  by  Ma^.  J.  G.  Banianl  at  |liOO,OtM).  Imt 
|850,0(M>  was  appropriated.  Three  batteries,  mounting  4H  guns,  OH,  I'J,  .ii> ' 
28  iMmiiders.  Maaadnes  were  cut  in  the  rock,  and  tlie  works  were  stro.'j 
anil  complete.  A  Fresnal  light  wiw  ereetetl,  UiO  feet  aliovo  sea-level.  .V  t'. 
AUa,  Aug.  *2,  1855;  Sac.  Unim,  Nov.  14,  1855;  Ewjinerr  Ht-ptu,  in  T.  ^  A'  . 
Doc.,  33,  i.,  uo,  82,  1-6.     Fort  Point,  which  was  fortitied  at  the  ...>ine     'uv, 


COAST  SURVEY. 


033 


pay  to  the  officers'*  and  men  of  the  army  and  navy 
who  served  in  Cahfoniia  in  the  high-priced  times  of 
tlio  first  gold  period.  A  settlement  wus  made  also 
with  the  military  collectors  of  the  civil  fund,  who  were 
allowed  a  percentage;  and  pay  meat  was  made  to  tlie 
(  alifornia  battalion  of  mounted  riHemcn,  which,  under 
Fremont,  joined  in  the  conc|ueht  of  California."* 

An  important  object  was  lielped  fi>rward  by  Gwin 
while  chairman  of  the  naval  committee,  naii'uly,  the 
coast  survey  on  the  Pacific,  important  not  only  co  the 
8hipi)ing  interest,  but  necessary  before  light-houwes 
and  fortifications  could  be  erected.  The  work  of  sur- 
veying the  coast  had  been  commenced  in  1841),  and 
was  much  interrupted  by  the  disturbed  condition  of 
the  population,  and  tiie  extraordinary  exjujiiscs  attend- 
iiiijf  it  during  that  and  tlie  succeeding  two  years.  Con- 
gress, as  not  infrequently  happens,  made  an  injudicious 
M'loction  of  objects  on  which  to  practise  a  spasmodic 
cconom}^  and  the  ways  and  means  committoo  and  the 
committee  on  finance  would  have  appntpriated  no 
more  than  $40,000;  but  the  California  senator  brought 
to  bear  proper  arguments  on  the  chairmuu  of  the  com- 

coHt  $1,038,000.  Granite  wm  Itrougiit  from  Folsom  to  Imi  uhlmI  in  ita  con- 
Htrmtimi.  H.  F.  AU<i,  Ihsc.  2*2,  2:),  18r>:{;  Juue  12,  1854;  ami  May  5,  18fi4i; 
r.  S.  Sin.  Doe.,  24,  vi.,  2M.  L'(>iig.,  2.1  Stuw.;  U.  .S'.  Sm.  Mi»<:,  15,  v<il.  i.,  'AWA 
t'liiiX.,  2<l  So88.;  U.  S.  Sen.  Dor.,  50,  vol.  viii.,  3;Ul  Cong.,  Ist  Sohs.  ;  (J.  S.  U. 
Kj:  />(><•.,  82,  vol.  X.,  33il  <'ong.,  Ist  Sisbh.;  :  L,  Jhif.,  i.,  pp.  109  10,  vol.  i.,  pt. 
ii.,  :»;»il Cong.,  2.1  Sow. ;  C<il.  Mil.  .SVni/w,  t>2-.>  ('<il.  Jiiy.,  1857,  I."4.  Tlio  oilier 
)il<i''.'!«  fortihvd  uhout  tho  liarltor  ata  HOiiu'wliat  later  uc'ritnl  wuru  Liiiio  I'.iint, 
h(>  i;uii8;  Angul  iMlanii,  50;  I'oinl  .San  Joho  aii.l  I'rcHi.iio  Hill,  50  each;  Fort 
I'tiiih,  ICht;  Aluatraz,  47.  I  havu  gpoliin  el.M^wlii-ru  of  Liiiio  Point.  Angel 
l.<l:iii..  wiw  ceducl  to  thu  U.  S.  by  tho  ittatu  um  oiirly  an  1 8.52  or  18.'):t.  <?<il.  Jour, 
Ami  III,  185',!,  840.  It  waa  claiinwl  in  18.'>5  by  Antuino  Maria  Otti«>;  but  tlis 
clniiu  wia  adjustud. 

'^''  .Mrh  Major  Cai'by  copifil  papers  for  tho  cnnvontion  at  Monterey  to  gain 
niiicli-nueuud  nioana  of  livir.g;  ati.t  Mrs  Colonel  CitHuv  live.l  on  iMxiril  uf  an  oltl 
nIii|>;  anil  l^n  Captain  Weatct>tt,  whun  \ur  himbaii.l  <;nt<:rtuinc.I  hi«  fri.  n.U 
ul  (Imnur,  .  irvu.l,  with  hur  niothur,  at  tablu.  TIh^mo  things  wuru  boouuitu 
.iili.'crH  cuu)  i  nt>t  alToril  aurvaittM,  a  eook  coMtin)^  all  :.  cilonel'M  Halary;  an.l 
til.' cliivaln  .iH  (iwin  waa  ntucli  ahoukeil  at  thu  nnproprit;ty  of  women  b.'ing 
ciigii^'ud  in  nc  .ial  aurvioua,  or  oven  copying  jmiK-ra  fur  niouvy.  Meinoirn,  MiS,, 
47  H. 

^''Tht)  b  ttalion  received  9130,000.  Frentont  had,  boaidea,  a  claim  fur  beef 
funiiHhutl,  -.1  lountiug  t.)  9235,000,  whieh  waa  jtaid.  The  extra  pay  of  tho 
uriiiy  ainounte.l  to  9:U),000  annually,  fr.>i>i  1848  to  1852,  and  waa  continued 
at  :/  leMHunud  rate  Htill  longer.  ( 'omj.  Globe,  1851-2,  pt  i.  Ixxx.  U.  S,  II.  Ex, 
iMx:,  77,  vol.  X.,  33d  Cong.,  lat  Seaa. 


t 


I 


FINANCES. 


mittee  on  commerce  in  both  houses,  who  added  an 
appropriation  of  $250,000  to  their  Hst  for  coast  survey 
purpoHes,  and  so  brought  the  sum  up  to  a  workin*,' 
figure.  The  result  of  this  more  hberal  [jolicy  was  to 
8«)  hasten  the  pntgress  of  the  surveys  that  as  imicli 
was  aecompHshed  in  ten  years  on  the  Pacific  as  iiad 
been  done  in  thirty  on  the  Atlantic  coast.** 

A  measure  in  which  Californians  were  interested 
almost  more  than  any  other  was  the  settlenieiit  of 
private  land  claims,  and  the  survey  of  the  reuminiiiir 
public  lands.  Until  this  was  done,  no  man  could  l^e 
sure  when  he  settJed  upon  a  piece  of  latid  that  lio 
would  be  allowed  to  remain  there.  It  was  ol)vi()u.s 
that  such  a  state  of  landed  affairs  nmst  be  prejudicial 
to  the  permanency  of  s^jciety,  as  well  as  to  its  nu>rals 
and  its  financial  standing.  I  have  already  pointed 
out  liow  it  affe<'ted  U-gislation.  Among  the  first  l)ills 
presented  by  the  California  delegation  was  one  "to 
provide  for  the  ascertainment  of  private  land  claims 
in  California,  and  for  the  adjudication  and  settlonient 
of  the  same." 

The  bill  as  presented  by  Gwin  was  opposed  stront^^iy 
by  Benton  on  the  ground  of  injustice  to  Mexican 
claimants,  in  putting  tlieir  claims  to  the  proof  in  courts 
of  law,  and  allowing  them  to  be  appealed,  even  to  tlie 
United  States  supreme  court,  thereby  exhaustiiiLj 
their   means,    and    practically  robbing   many  of  the 

f greater  portion  <»f  their  lands,**  which  went  to  tiiiicli 
ttwyers.      His  view  of  the  working  of  the  law  proved 

**  Its  BUCccBa  waa  aUo  tln«  to  the  aliility  and  energy  of  the  (itiiuerx  dctaiKil 
l>y  the  ()Ui)erint4'nilcnt  to  carry  «Kit  the  w<irk.  The  lirHt  uorps  for  tin'  IiikI 
portion  of  the  Mur\-ey  coiiautnl  of  Aiu«t  Sunt  .laniuH  N.  Williiinia,  C'aiit.  I>.  I'. 
Haininonil,  ami  Jn«4-ph  8.  Knth;  the  naval  sun'ey  l)cinu  uonthicteil  liy  l<i<'<it 
W.  P.  McArthiir  in  the  aehiitttmr  t'trimj,  coninian(le<l  Ity  Lieut  \VaHiiiiii,'t(>ii 
Bartlett.  At  a  late  period,  I'rot.  (ieorge  I>avid8on  IiecaMio  the  heail  ot  tliu 
cimdt  survey  on  land,  which  vnrk  he  carrie<l  on  for  many  yuara  witli  ili^tiu- 
guiahed  Hucoesa. 

'^Said  Henton:  '  Such  a  principle  applied  to  Cal.  or  New  Mux.  wixiM  l>o 
purfectiv  e(|uivalent  to  a  general  couiiHcation  of  landed  pr(iiM!rty  iu  tin  louii- 
try,  and  that  of  the  twi>,  it  w<4ild  lie  more  merciful  at  oni'u  to  jiimh  iiii  <i>  t  of 
general  Cfinfiscation,  no  a*  to  permit  the  p^niplu  to  go  to  work  in  komk'  hiIht 
way  to  ohtain  land,  and  t<>  save  the  ex|M-ni«eH,  anxiotieH,  ami  I  lit'lirvi'  i  may 
■oy  the  liorrofM  of  goin^  tlin>ugh  tiin-i-  lawHuitH  for  their  uro|ierty,  aii4  "iic 
of  tltuau  UwHuita  3,UUU  uulca  Jruui  where  they  live.'  Cotty,  OMte,  18r>()  I,  loli. 


LAND  COMMISSION. 


6S5 


to  be  the  correct  one,  as  I  have  shown,  althoujifh 
tli(^  author  of  it  afterward  claimed  that  by  its  means 
tlu!  land  titles  had  been  settled  in  California  in 
one  third  of  the  time  occupied  in  litigating  those  of 
Louisiana  and  Florida,  some  of  which  were  still  un- 
settled. Other  persons  in  California  believed  two  or 
tisroe  years  a  sufficient  time  in  which  to  adjudicate 
the  Hispano-California  titles,  by  simply  creating  a 
commission  of  logistration  to  sit  in  the  northern  and 
southern  districts,  to  receive  from  claimants  such  writ- 
ten evidence  of  title  and  rights  of  possession  as  they 
might  have  received,  or  chose  to  present  together 
with  whatever  other  evidence  they  had  to  otter  in 
support  of  their  claim,  all  of  which  should  be  regis- 
tered, and  furnished  to  the  surveyor-general  of  the 
state,  who  should  proceed  to  segregate  these  claims 
as  f;->  as  their  examinations  were  completed;'"  and 
wliero  disputes  as  to  boundaries  occurred,  which  could 
n<»t  be  adjusted  by  the  claimants,  arbitrators  should 
be  oalltKl  in,  and  their  decisions  should  be  final,  the 
United  States  issuing  a  patent  for  the  land  as  thus 
bounded.     Had  this  been  done,  most  of  the  liiiids  in 

^Crosby  sayH  ho  knew  many  instanceg  wIuto  the  claimants  woiihl  liave 
iH'i-n  ula<l  to  8uU  their  land  at  a  merely  nominal  i)riuo — 25  or  TiO  ccnta  pur 
acri.'— I>ut  could  not  l>ecauHe  their  titles  were  not  uontirnieil,  or  wore  in  litiua- 
tinii.  Otluir  pcDMUis  Hupiiosed  that,  under  tho  rigoroiin  aiipliiN'iti<in  of  tiie 
e(|iiity  powers  conferred  on  tlie  coniniiwionera  and  tho  U.  >S,  courts,  many 
chinns  would  be  set  uside,  and  the  lands  revert  to  tlio  ^<>vt,  whrn  they  could 
t'tku  them  by  preemption,  which  they  thought  tlio  safer  cotirse;  ami  still 
(itlicrx  feared  that  if  they  lK)ught  of  the  original  claimants  they  niiglit  have 
to  Imy  again  of  tho  U.  S. ;  and  altogether  a  coniiition  of  uncertikinty  w.ia 
cn'.'itrd  which  p%atly  retarded  Rcttleineiit.  Many  were  fnrnd  to  retain 
tlifir  lan<U  waitiug  f<ir  their  titles  to  be  perfecttd,  struggling  along  as  Itent 
till y  could,  until  the  final  contirmatitm,  and  until  tho  growth  of  the  state 
h:ti|  made  them  enormously  valuable,  wlieii  fimling  themselves  in  ]H)sHLs.si<in 
of  iiii'omcs  sufficient  to  enable  them  to  hnld  tlien,  they  would  not  part  with 
till  ir  acres  to  tho:«e  who  desired  to  cultivate  tlicui,  which  M'as  nnotlier  form 
of  tlie  evils  resulting  from  <lragging  a  claimant  dirougii  tlm  laiul  coiiiiiiisNinn, 
afti  r  wliich  by  tlie  operation  of  tiio  law  all  conlirmations  stiMid  apjieali'il  to 
till'  L'.  S.  dist  court,  and  again  to  the  U.  S.  snii.  court,  a  jirocess  wliii-li  in  a 
iiMjiirityof  cases  ma«le  iKinkrnpt  the  original  claiiiuiut.  Speculators  iMiuglit 
up  their  claims  for  nominal  prices,  and  prosecuted  tlium  in  the  courts,  (iiially 
gi'ttiiig  )MNuk.-ssiou,  HO  that  the  native  I'alifornians  were  practically  ili'.siMtiled. 
'I  iliink  the  |Mditical  intluonce,  by  i>andi-ring  to  the  squatter  vote,  hait  more 
nr  li'H.s  to  <h>  with  the  enacting  of  tho  law  creating  the  land  coniiiiiHsinii,  and 
til''  I'ontinaance  of  cosort  by  appeal  through  the  ditt'crent  court.s.'  Kiu-lii  h'lrnU 
II  ''(/,  MS.,  72-4.  Ofteu  duriug  tho  period  a  lawless  squatter  pupulatiuu 
livM  piMwussiou. 


630 


FINANCES. 


California  covered  by  Mexican  grants  would  have 
been  disjmsed  of  to  settlers  at  a  Tow  price;  whereas, 
by  the  working  of  the  act  of  congress  passed  in  Fch- 
ruary  1851,  by  keeping  claims  in  the  courts  for  t^iij^lit, 
ten,  or  twelve  years,  not  only  ruined  the  holders,  hut 
prevented  the  occupation  and  improvement  of  the 
lands  by  others  who  desired  to  purchase  tlnin. 
AVhether  this  was  a  mistake  in  judgment  on  the  part 
of  Gvvin,  who  labored  hard  to  convince  tlie  sciiatt" 
that  he  was  himply  making  it  impossible  for  a  fraiulii- 
leiit  claim  to  be  confirmed,  or  whether  other  consider- 
ations iiitluenced  him,  would  be  hard  to  detenniiic; 
but  certain  it  is  that  the  effect  of  the  law  was  pointcil 
out  to  him  by  advisers  in  California,  as  well  as  hy  the 
Missouri  senator.  On  the  passage  of  the  act,  com- 
missioners were  immediately  ap|K>inted,  who  proceeded 
to  (^ilifornia  to  assume  their  duties  about  the  hist  of 
J)ecember  1851.*' 

The  first  annual  appropriation  for  this  comniissioii, 
with  the  survcjys,  was  $100,000.*'  The  following  year 
it  was  larger,  and  under  the  administration  of  l*resi- 
dent  liuehanan  it  had  grown  to  be  $114,000  f(»r  tht 
conunission  ah)ne.  The  a[)propriati(m  for  surveys  and 
subdivision  of  the  public  lands  in  California,  and  inr 
subdividing  the  islands  on  the  southern  coast,  amounted 
in  1852  to  $115,000;  in  1853  to  $l()0,200;  in  lS;)4t.. 
$:{(;0,000.*'     In  1854  California  received  in  direct  aj. 

"Tlio  commiHainnera  apiHUiiteil  by  I'roMt  Filliiioro  woro:  Hurry  I..  Tliorn- 
toil,  Au({U8tui<  Tluiiiipiiim,  uiiil  AlphouH  I..  Kulcli.  Tho8Uccee<liiiga(liiiiiii.'*tia- 
tioii  tlirimt  till-Ill  out,  liiiil  aniMiiiituil  otlitTM.  Tut/iitl,  llmt.  Cal.,  b'Xi.  'I  »  ill  Huy 
tliix, '  CrfHiliy  iiliMvrvuH,  *iii  jiiMticu  t(>  tliu  tirxt  luiiil  uDininiMiiioii  aiilMuiiliil  iimlrr 
tliitt  law:  tlii'y  uviiie<«l  a  (liii|KMiiti(>ii  to  iMliiiiniMtfr  it  uimhi  a  l>ro(t<l  nml  lilMnil 
Imimih  <if  ei|uity  ami  juMtivu  to  tlia  oluitiiaiit,  aii<l  if  tiiu  U.  S.  Iia>l  Kti>|iiinl 
tlu-rti,  ami  voimiileruil  aa  uoiifiriiiv*!  ami  |iat«tiituil  tliiMu  claiiiiit  mIiicIi  Ii>><1 
Ihii'II  UDtiliriiiiMl  liv  tliu  timt  coiiimiaiiioii,  a  viixt  ainiiiint  of  iiijiiHtiru  M'i>iii<l 
liavd  Itveu  avoiiUMl. '  Hn-lu  Ki<riit»  in  L'ni,  MS.,  74. 

'"  For  tliu  (txiKiiiiuiit  of  till)  voiiiiiiiaHioii  f.*iU,000;  fur  tliti  coiit  of  aurvt-vnig 
private*  claiiiia  iJli.'M),(NMI;  ami  JiV(,(NN}  for  a  law  agent.     In   IS.Vi  an  a|i|>ri'|Mi.i 
tioii  wita  iiiaile  for  two  law  aguiita,  'akilliHl  in  tliu  S|>aiiiHli  an<l  KiiijIhIi  liii- 
guugcH,' (^,(NM)  uiich,  and  92,UI)U  each  for  a  aucrutary  ami  'A  clurlet.    ('<>»•/. 
liUilo;  ItCiO-l,  Wi\. 

^*  A^  an  oxainplu  of  the  naao  with  whitth  money  waa  ol)t4iitio«l  hy  approiiri- 
ntion,  lien!  ia  tho  liat  of  urnntM  in  IH.>4,  wht'ii  (iwiii  aiitl  Wolli-r  witru  tot^i  tlur 
in  lliu  Muiiati';  liiil  war  •U>l>t,  ;int.5l»,(l(M);  aurviy  of  |ml>lu>  liimU,  iS'KMt.lNNi  lor- 
tiliuHtioua,  i3:iU,UU0}  bwtf  furniahu<l  hy  FrOinunt,  ^{:>,IIUU;  runuivingana  miIi- 


FKDERAL  APPROPRIATIONS. 


037 


])n)|)riat'ion8  about  four  iiiillioim,  and  in  appropriations 
ill  wiiich  the  state  was  couccrnocl,  three  niiilionH  nion;. 
Large  amounts  continued  to  be  appropriated  **  ho  long 

Hiotciiou  of  IiuUaiM,  $225,000;  navy-yanl  at  Muro  ImUikI.  CiOO.OOO;  ccuutt  a»<I 
iJaihl  Burvvy,  $l(iU,U(X);  t-x(iloriiti<>ii  of  I'uoilio  ruilnwi  tiri\),IMM);  i'.il.  laud 
com.,  SI05,0(N);  croetinii  cif  appriiitfur'x  store,  ((IOO,(NM);  Iiulit-hiiUHuH,  ifT't.lNM); 
piiri'liasu  (if  eustoin-houNO  l>l<H-k,  fl<'iU,()0O;  mirvcy  of  Mi'xicuii  Iioiiii'lary, 
(e.'>(i.()0!);  mint,  f^lOO.OOO;  Fn'-iiiont  batulioit  claim,  $(i:)n,(NN):  griKViuti  V.  S. 
marine  hnspital  lot,  $44,()()0;  cx[>oU8VHof  loiulcoiii.,  (it.'l.tNM);  iisiHci'llniifoUH  ap- 
]iro{iriatioua  in  deficiency  bill,  $300,<)<)0.  But  at  tliia  tint  i  Calitoniiii  Wita 
iniptving  niilliona  a  mniitU  into  a  im  of  the  cant. 

'<S<ic  Utiiim,  May  5  au.l  Sept.  19,  laV);  ,S'.  /'.  AlUi,  Ai»ril  l.V>,  lSj<i.  Tin- 
S.  F.  r/i/ioHiV//'«  Washington  correaiK)ii(l(iiit  ia  a  lott^-r  of  ,*uly  .'»,  l.stWS,  copii-* 
tin.'  li'»t  of  a]ipropriatioim  rt'oeivud  hy  <':d.  from  a  recent  ti-eaitury  report  niai'.o 
liy  the  direction  of  conL'resH,  eliuisifying  thuex|)enditurt'i4ol'  the  g(>vtfr<ini  ITSO 
til  iSS'i.  As  a  g(M>d  hit  of  history,  California's  ]>(>rtion  is  here  eiinilctiiti-d, 
:n<l  need  not  ho  a;;:iin  refiTrcd  to:  total  anioiint  for  tho  cuMtoni-himxc, 
s7'.i:i,.V.'2.:VJ;  niarino  hosiiital,  |ytt8,0:U.fn';  first  appraiser's  stortw,  j!l()»>,000; 
i..\v  appraiser's  stores,  4^0,000;  SMhtreiisury,  $10(,0IH);  jMwt-orti-i'  at  Sac, 
.^loO.lNN);  mint  appropriations,  $Sifi29,lWl.lif;  whole  amount  for  puhliuhiiild- 
iinji  down  to  188'.»,  li?4,8C.8,(J84.i.'8. 

Tlie  lirst  river  and  hurlM)r  improvement  work  authoriised  l>y  congress  to  bo 
iliiiiii  in  C'al.  was  iu  1>H5*2,  the  building  of  a  levee  across  the  iMouih  of  S.tn  I)ii.'go 
KiviT,  to  turn  it  into  its  former  channel  into  False  Itiiy,  for  wiiieh  )!<'U),(hM) 
was  appropriated.  I'omj.  iUnlie,  18.'l-2;  U.  S.  Lnir^,  A}>i>.,  p.  xxviii.  Since 
\'x\l  time  I^J,0:t8,00U  has  l)een  exi>endedoii  rivers  and  harlMirs  uh  follows: 
S.  }•.  liarlM)r,  «i7.\t)00;  Humboldt  harlmr,  fll'-'.WX);  Oakland  harbor,  $.S74,riO((; 
I' •lain riia Creek,  $:iO,()0!);  U<<lw«M)d harbor,  ^"l,*)!)*);  ,Suc.  Uiver,  )f:«N),(HI(t;  Sac. 
\nA  Feather  Kivers,  f^t.'>,<><K);  iSan  Diego  Uiver,  J75,<><M);  Mokdumne  Kiver, 
.>sS,.">«t>;  San  Jiiaipiin  River,  J80,00();  San  •liHiipiiii  Uiver  and  StiH'Ut<iii  a  id 
Nhiini'iiHlouglis,  <i(((),(»0();  Wilmington  harbor,  J^O.I.OO!*;  harbor  of  refuge  1m- 
two'ii  S.  F.  and  tho  Straits  of  Fnca,  $l.'(>,()OI). 

I'nr  lightdioust'M,  lieacouH,  buoys,  etc.,  ^l,27>'i,'J7»  have  lieeu  exixmdeil  :u« 
i.illiiw.i:  Angel  Island  fog-signal,  ^,•'(00;  Ano  Niievo  Point  li;,'ht  utiiti.m, 
^ltll.(HK);  iK'iiconsand  buoys,  «il  /,28:{;  CalH!  Mcmhieino  light  station,  $1'.M,(I00; 
(ri'so.  lit  City  light  station,  J1.'>,0:)0;  KiwtUrotlici- l.daud  light  utation,  J*.">;>,tKXi; 
lliiiiiliol.lt  light  Mt^ition,  ((4<»,0:)(>;  Mara  I  daud  light  station,  ^in),'.)' •>;  North- 
went  >eal  Uock  light  station,  iil70,(MN);  Oakland  light  st^ition,  l^'>,IK>;);  i'i>  Iras 
iHan.as  light  station,  J'.>-.»,(K»(»;  Pigeon  Point  light  station,  ?<).t,(KH):  Point 
ll<inita  liL;ht  station,  f<ii),(K)0;  Point  Conct^pcion  light  station,  !>'.*:t,(HM);   I'nint 

Vw I  li;:ht  station,  $.'U),tMN>;  Point   Huenemu  light  station,  ti:!-.>,(l(KI;   j'nint 

I'l I  li:!it  sUtitin,  $(>,()().):  Point  U<  yes  light  stjit  ion,  $14l>,(NM);  Point  .\i-<  nai 

I  k;lit  rotation,  $U:t,000;  SantJi  lliirlNtra  light  station,  tsV.>,<NN);  Santa  I  ni/.  Iigl  t 
>'  ttinii,  !>4U,000;  Trinidad  head-light  station,  iU),()0()s  YerU  Itmna  light 
^t.iti..,,,  #1.^000. 

K'>r  defences  $4>,tiI7,'J57  have  been  appropriated  and  oximnded  as  follow^; 
.\isuM.d  at  Ifciiiria,  ii«2."i,7."i7;  defences  at  S.  F.  4!l,ll'J7.(HM)i  F.nt  Al.atra/., 
>l,li',IT,.'><)0;  Fort  Point  fortilications,  <pi,.")l7,r>".»;  Lime  J'uint  forlilnations, 
v'lOii.cDII;  San  |)iego  fortiliealiuiis,  i^'K>,l)00.  Tho  sum  tol.il  ol  aii|inipri.itiiin.4 
!'  I''  nil  iitioiied  amounted  to  $l.'),."',l7,81.'t.  < 'onceriiing  tho  project  to  eittab- 
i  li  1  permanent  arsenal  at  IWnieia,  see  re|iiirt  in  /'.  .S'.  Si n.  ]*<»•.,  47,  viii., 
:>'.'!  (  'ing.,  2d  S<!SS,  It  will  lie  observed  that  the  b.st  of  tlio  Clinmirlf  c<>rre< 
Miiiiileiit  b'avos  out  tlie  millions  ap|inipriatod  for  tho  Man;  Islaml  itav^ - 
)'ir'l,  tho  iNiymeut  tif  the  Imlian  war  d<-bt,  tho  o«un.  on  ptivate  land  claims, 
tV'  i|.i>ropriationH  for  survevs  of  piililio  and  private  laiiiln,  tlio  expenses  of  the 
I'.Ht  ..ilioii  de]i.ir>ment  o\er  it.i  income  in  carrying  the  mads  by  steamer  from 
I'm  mill  to  S.  F. ;  the  np|iropn.ilii>;is  to  keep  licaee  M  itli  liie  liulians;  tlie  e\- 
[■  I  "I'  Hiippiirting  an  armed  iorcu  usliuru  and  ulluat,  with  other  govt  mattors 
iKJiuiuing  to  CaL 


<'  11 


I 


638 


FINANCES. 


as GwiuH ifrtMl  moasuros reiuaiuud  incompleto, or pouKI 
bo  luudu  to  HtiFVo  for  political  capital;  and  lew  muUI 
bo  fouiui  8o  iiu3aii-8piritcd  us  to  wish  to  witiiiiold  a 
few  iiiilllonH  annually  from  the  busy  young  Ktato  wliidi 
sent  forth  from  forty  to  fifty  millions  every  year  in 
trottsure.  If  they  had,  the  California  delegation  un- 
dorstood  perfectly  how  to  smuggle  through  an  ai>pn>- 
priation  for  a  single  object  in  separate  bills,  and  how- 
to  makt;  pres(;ntH  tt)  their  friends  among  the  defieiiiKy 
appropri:iti(Mi.s;  indeed,  our  jHjople  and  their  stTViints 
have  luiver  lacked  skill  in  that  first  of  political  fine 
arts — bribery.  A  kind  of  moral  intoxication,  a  gold- 
drunkennoss,  had  debased  the  public  mind  and  distorted 
the  spiritual  vision,  until  men  esteemed  it  a  distinction 
to  lu'conie  noted  for  procuring  or  handling,  even  for 
stealing,  large  sums  ot  money;  and  it  was  <>nly  wlnii 
their  own  fortunes,  or  their  lives,  were  in  danger,  that 
their  fillows  plucked  up  courage  to  rebuke  them. 

C(M)rdiuate  with  the  desire  to  have  private  laud 
titles  scttU'd  in  (California  was  the  wish  to  secure  lar^c 
amounts  of  public  lands  for  state  pur|)oses  and  [m- 
empti«)ns.  1  a  order  to  provide  for  the  failure  of  sitiiif, 
a  number  of  )>il)s  were  introduced  together,  wlii<  li  I 
have  iiieiitioned  by  their  titles  elsewhere.  By  an  ac- 
cident of  legislation  tlie  state  received  5, 000,000  aeies 
of  swaiii[)  and  overflowed  lands,  which  by  reclantatinn 
beeanie  the  most  valuable  of  any  of  its  lands.  Hy  tlio 
act  (»r  SeptemlH-r  4,  1811,  it  was  entitled  to  .'ioo.ooo 
acres  for  iiiti^-nal  improvements,  which  the  franiers  nf 
the  ciuistitution  devoted,  instead,  to  theconunon-silnHi! 
fun«l.  On  the  opening  of  the  thirty-second  congress, 
Senator  (Iwin,  m  a  bill  provitling  f(>r  tho  surve\ ot 
the  }>ui)ilc  laiuls  in  California,  included  the  granting' 
of  tlonation  privileges  similar  to  those  whi<'li  w*  re 
enjoyed  by  Oregon;  I  ut  congress  was  no  longir  umlcr 
the  necessity  t«>  oflor  c<)m|Huis4ition  to  emigrants  to  tliu 
Pacific  coast,  and  tliis  bill  failed.  He  also,  Im  ia^ 
mindful  of  the  s«juatter  proclivities  in  the  voting  ["'["U- 


CONGRESSIONAL  LEGISLATION.  689 

Intion  of  his  state,  addressed  the  senate  in  favor  of 
iillowing  prceniptors  on  Mexuuin  claims  to  prove  up 
tin  ir  preemptions, and  pvo  the  Mexican  owners,  whould 
tlu'Ir  titles  be  confirmed,  a  Houting  claim  for  the  same 
amount  of  land,  which  could  be  located  on  any  public 
lands  in  the  state;  in  other  W(»rds,  making  the  whole 
.stut(!  public  land,  and  letting  the  native  Californinns 
take  their  chances  with  the  Americans  in  securing 
claims.  The  proftosition  on  its  face  had  a  piratical 
look,  which  caused  it  to  be  rejected  with  some  severe 
ciiticism;  yet  tlie  results  of  such  a  course  «'ould  liardly 
liavo  been  more  melancholy  for  the  natives  than  the 
operations  of  the  private  claims  commission. 

At  this  session  also  tiie  land  question  came  up  in 
tli«'  house  in  the  form  of  a  homestead  bill,  which 
i(((!ived  little  encoumgement  in  the  senate,  from  a 
ftar  entertained  by  a  majority  that  the  government 
was  overstepping  the  bounds  of  its  authority  in  grant- 
iiii,'  lands  l)eh)nging  to  all  tiie  states,  for  the  bont'fit  of 
one  or  more  states.  This  feeling  was  engendi^red  by 
tli<'  grant  of  a  large  amount  of  public  Uiiul  to  thi;  state 
of  Illinois  to  build  a  railroad,  and  whs  entertained 
alik<!  by  senatoi-s  from  Maine  to  Loui.siaaa,  although, 
as  a  se<'tion,  it  was  the  south  that  was  oj)pos«'il  to 
lipstowing  the  public  lands  on  railroad  companies. 
Tlic  liom»stca<l  l>ill  tlMTefon,'  failed  t<'  pass  at  that  or 
any  scHHioii  until  lS(i*J,  wlien  u  republican  congress 
enaeted  a  lioUieKtead  law. 

Tt  was  not  until  March  .'I,  1853,  that  the  public 
lands  in  California  were  julniitted  to  preeni|ttion 
rights.  The  same  act  which  conferred  this  privilege 
iM;i<le  a  grant  to  the  state  of  two  eiitin-  townships  for 
tlif  use  of  a  seminary  of  leuruing,  tn  lu'  selected  by 
the  governor  of  the  statt;  from  the  public  doniuin, 
innieral  land  being  exc<!|ited;  aiid  als<»  tttn  seetions, 
se|ect(?d  in  the  same  maimer,  to  aid  in  erecting  the 
)inl>lie  buildings.  No  other  gnuits  were  niatle  to  the 
«t.it(!  until  I'ne  years  afterward,  when  con^resH  do- 
iiafed  U)  the  several  states  and  territories  lanil  for  an 


I 


640 


FINANCES. 


agricultural  college,  to  be  apportioned  at  the  rate  of 
30,000  acres  ior  each  siniator  and  representativt^  to 
which  they  were  entitled  in  1860,  according  to  wliidi 
distribution  Calit'ornia  received  150,000  acres.  Tlic 
16th  and  .^(Ith  sections  wore  granted  for  public  sciiool 
purposes  by  the  act  of  March  3,  1853,  the  irregular 
manner  of  her  admission  having  deprived  congress  of 
the  opportunity  of  granting  at  tiiat  time  the  custom- 
ary dowry  of  a  new  state  in  school  lands.  Lieu  lands 
were  allowed  to  bo  taken  in  the  place  of  the  n-Hcrvcd 
set'tions,  where  those  were  absorbed  by  ])rivate  grunts. 
In  nlation  to  these  several  grants  of  land,  in  IHCl), 
all  of  the  5()0,000-acre  grant  had  been  sohl,  exceptini; 
10,000  acres,  represented  by  outstanding  school  war- 
rants. All  (jf  the  seventy-two  sections,  and  ten  stc- 
tions,  hud  been  soI«l,  Very  little  swanip-lund  remained, 
and  only  tin;  1<  jist  desirabh>  of  the  surveyed  comnKwi- 
sehool  lands.  The  agrieulturul-eolksgt!  grant  was  coti- 
vertcd  to  the  use  cf  the  st,jit(^  university  by  an  act  ni" 
the  legis'uturc  of  1S(»8.  By  an  act  of  tlie  same  IhmIv, 
provision  was  made;  for  the  sale  of  ull  the  lands  .  C 
every  kiml  owned  by  the  state,  or  in  which  sh(^  had 
any  interest,  the  niuxinnun  ])rice  being  fixed  at  ^1.-^) 


an  acre 


41 


Thus  in  (Mgiitci'ii  3'eurs  th(!  state  had  disposed  (if 
her  Viist  landed  ]»o,s.se.ssions,  muking  no  attenijtt  to 
increase  their  value  by  improvements,  nor  leaving  any 
to  rise  in  value  along  with  the  develojnnent  of  the 
country  about  them.  The  money  realized  was  apjTo- 
priuted  in  tlio  manner  heri'tofore  shown,  a  large  |»ait 
of  it  having  been  dissipated  by  the  extravaganc(  of 
the  early  legislatures,  or  fmudulently  disposed  of  I'V 
political  triclcsters  in  collusion  with  dislumest  (ttli- 
eials.*'"  The  funds  created  have  been  borrowed  I'V 
th«)  state,  the  interest  on  the  money  ol>tained  by  sa<- 

*'In  184V4  eoiign-HM  graiitcil  to  the  at'ito  !if  Ciil.  tlic  YoHoniito  ValU'v,  .mil 
MariiMMa  \>\k  trru  umvo,  not  to  kcII,  l>ut  to  ret^iiii  ii.-i  a  jmlilic  renort,  ti<r  i'>  i  • 
roatioii,  to  Ik)  'iiiiilifiinlilo  for  all  tmu;.'  Oor.   Mexi.,  \H'l\,  ji.  ;j,"{-4. 

'•' /i'>7><  o/'  Joiiil  ('i)iiiiiiiUrrH  oil  Sii^inij)  iii,(/  (tiYrffoiiiil  l.niiU,  ami  l.nml 
MonojHili),  |)r«,><it'iit(.'(.l  at  tliu  'JUth  aviwiuu  of  tiio  Ic^iHiaturu  of  CaL 


LAND  FRAUDS. 


641 


rifu'injif  the  state's  lands,  taking;  the  place  of  the 
incnmo  wlj'u'h  should  have  been  derived  froniajudi- 
liniis  care  for  them. 

Auionj^  all  this  waste,  one  idi>a  has  not  hoen  lost 
siiilit  of,  that  the  educational  interests  of  the  state 
must  receive  such  aids  as  were  iMJssible;  and  accord- 
inixly  nnich  has  htuin  converted  to  education  wliich 
was  not  intended  by  congress  for  the  use  of  schools; 
iiumely,  tlu!  internal  improvement,  seminary,  and  |»ub- 
lic  huildini^^s  appropriations;  and  the  sbtte  has  (hawn 
I'lom  tlic  people  to  supply  the  deficiency  creatiul  in  its 
n  sources  f<»r  ])ublic  improvements.  From  the  saK;  of 
tiile-lands  in  the  city  and  county  of  San  Franeisco, 
8JU(),000  was  appropriated  to  the  benefit  of  the  state 
university  in  18GU.  Subsequently,  the  legislature  do- 
nated to  the  university  a  sutticient  sum  from  the  pro- 
ceeds of  tlic  sah>  of  salt  marsh  and  tide  lands  to 
jiroduee  an  aimual  revenue  of  $r)(),000,  whieli  sum 
was  invested  in  the  state  bonds.*'* 

It  might  reasonably  be  expected  that,  being  involved 
ill  j)ractiees  such  as  here  aie  briefly  touched  upon,  the 
history  of  land  frauds,  for  ♦'xample,  being  of  sutlicieiit 
hulk  to  fill  a  volunu  ,  the  credit  of  the  state  would  l>e 
(Irstroyed.  On  the  (•»)ntrary,  su<-h  is  the  vitality  and 
such  tlh!  resources  of  the  people  and  country,  that  in 
ilcliaiiee  of  oppn^ssive  taxation,  and  despite  of  waste, 
llic  upward  tendency  has  been  steady,  and  not  slt»\ver 
than  in  other  nt^w  states.  No  instituti«»n  of  |  ml  tlic 
hciiefit  customarily  supi»orted  by  the  eoniiiioiiwt  allli.s 
hut  has  been  liberally  provided  tor  in  (  alit'oi  nia.  The 
solid  character  of  the  people,  underneath  the  pc»litieal 
scum,    has    saved    the    reputatiou    and    the    fortunes 


"  I  liavo  mivlo  nn  mention  of  niinural  IiuuIh,  Iiocauso  they  have  n-mainctl 
ti'.c  I'lupt-rty  of  tliu  gen.  govt.  Aftor  nituli  diiiUUHMiou  in  ron^'n-HH,  it  \v;t~t  dv- 
luii'il  to  li.'Hvu  tliuni  fruu  autl  oiNin  to  «!Xi)loratiiin  uii>l  occupation,  l>y  ami  to 
>11  (iii/.cnM  of  tlio  U.  S.,  and  tluMu  who  lia«l  ilui^larol  tliuir  nitcntioii  to 
'■triiiiic  Kiali,  iind  to  luavii  the  govt  of  the  mining  diMtriit.-*  tn  tli.)  local 
nu'iil.itions  of  tho  minure,  wheru  tlicy  did  not  conflict  with  I.'.  S.  livix.  Act 
"I  .Inly  M,  IS(((J,  in  Zultrinkii;  l.aml  Lnwn,  11«>-1>07,  At  a  Mulwcijunit  i>.iiikI 
!«t.  Ills  were  allowed  to  a  certain  amount  of  mineral  land;  Biucu  which  tiiu<e. 
i  largo  quantity  of  thiu  clanH  of  lands  have  been  Mold. 
U18T.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    41 


P  :' 


042 


PIN  A  NOES. 


of  tlio  fountry,  as  in  time  it  will  ri»l  tlio  ntaU^  olVuvn 
of  unfit  incuinlxinfios,  and  clu'ck  the  joljbory  of  its 
le^iHlftturi's.** 

"  '/%■  i'itl[i'i>rniit  ItfijUlfr  for  18.^7  cont«in«  'tho  flrtt  attemiit  to  i)riH(iit  » 
tttl>uliir  viow  iif  tlif  tiiiiiiic«<H  of  tint  M'viTiil  coiiiitiuM  of  till)  KtJito,'  uml  Iroui  it 
1  iixtriu-t  tliii  followiiii;  toUiU:  Th«  tiitiil  dulit  of  tli«  Htitto  in  .Inn.  |.s,'i7 
wiii  «|-.>.  lli:t,(HIO,  «M,:tiK!,<>i>4  ol  whitli  wiut  fuiiil(><l,  aii.l  «4,(NM,:tN1»  wiim  iLuitii,;. 
iiulflitt'iliittiM.  Totiil  ^HMcU,  fotiNiHtin({  of  oiwh,  imUilitoihio^M  from  coumIU'a 
rccuntly  or^iiniM'<l,  uml  ilfliiii|iieiit  Utxi'ii,  aiiioiuitml  to  l|^l*.>S,4iK<.  I'>ivi<liii)( 
tilt)  wliolf  iiiilt'litoiliii'MH  iK'twoi'h  tilt)  at^itu,  tlio  counticM,  iinil  tliu  citii-M,  s  m 
iiiniilHir,  tho  Mtntu  owctl  $'1,  r.>S,l)i'7,  tlitt  counticM  9f2,',VK>,'M\  tliu  eititm  tCi.lltiN,. 
INK'I,  S.  F.  ilolit  tMiing  fi:i,l(«>l,T:it>,  iukI  Sue.  <it|,ri(»7,l54.  Tho  rato  ol  inti  ivHt 
raiiK'oil  fnini  7  to  12  |M)r  oont,  though  n  itiirt  of  tho  ileht  of  .S.  V.  ilri^w  Imt  li 
|M>r  cfut,  mill  a  {Nirt  of  Sun  .Ioii'.'m  ilruw  IK)  {x-r  ovnt  iiit4)rrMt.  'V\w  ^\^w*n\\\ 
valiii>of  tlio  <H'<'ii|Mi>il  litiiiU  WiiH  i^JH.tC.U,  174.  lA;  of  thu  ini|irov«inii'ntM  tiiiiiDii 
f  I7,<'<h),470.  Tliti  vuliiiition  ol'  town  and  city  Iota  wiw  tf(i,4'.>4,(NM,  uml  thu 
iiii|irov<'iiitiiitM  tlirriion  V'i^,'.^.'7,4l4.  'I  Im  |M)rMoniil  prii|HTty  ol'  tliu  nIjiIi' ukh 
ftKI,N77,«>7».»f».  ToUl  viiliiiM.f  jiroiMTty,  roul  uikI  priHonul,  «i'.».\(K>7, 44ini7. 
Thd  HtJttd  tux  of  7(><'.  on  enuh  itWM  |ir<Mlut'tiil  9(Ul5,Hir>.4.'>.  Tim  wliolu  uiiKnint 
rffoivcil  int4i  tliu  Mbttu  troiiHiiry,  down  to  Jiiiui  'M\,  \XM,  from  uvcry  kiinl  uf 
tax,  wiM  {t4,(t57,*Zi7.'l*.>,  wiiilu  thu  uxim-iiimih  of  thu  ittAto  <U')iurtiii<'iitH  hud  liriii 
(i7,o:<'.),tl*il.lU.  Thuru  M'UH  a  Hinidur  dimTf|tuiK'y  in  coiinly  niid  city  iiii'iuiic!! 
and  ('X|H3nHUM.  Tint  total  HliioinriitM  of  ({old  out  of  thu  Htutu  in  tlic  N.iriic 
|Miriod  wuru  (t.'l'J'i,.'{U.'l,Mri4l.  TIik  tolJil  dutiuM  colli'otcd  on  iiii|HirtH  ut  S.  K, 
|(i:i,.'U.'t,  lit.'i.  TotJil  vuluo  of  liiiportM,  fruo  and  othurwiiM),  from  185!)  to  IViti 
inuluMivu,  yv.*7,447,55U. 


CHAPTEU  XXIII. 

POUTU'AL   HiSTOHY. 

iHTia  is:>4. 

<ji  \i.rrr  or  orn  Raki.v  Urt.r.iiA — (iovKiiNou  HriisKTT — (Sovkhnoii  M<i>i»r' 
li.vL— Sknatiikiai.   Ki.wrHtN-  Sowinii    lM(\iiii\'s    TkI' in  — l>K.MiMit,\ii() 

CoNVKNTruN-SKSATHU  ^iwIN,  TDK  Al.Mlltll  I'V  I'ltOVMlKNt  K  OK  (.'aMKiiK- 
MA  — PaKTV  IsHI'M— «;oVKHNllK  IllDI.KU—  IWlliUKHrrK— Willi  K  VM  Hl.AfK 
-Sl.AVKUV  OH  PkaTII  !  — LWIISI.ATIVK  ruiM'KKIUNti.H— TaI.K  »iK  A  X  KW 
roNHTrrfTION — WlllOS,  DkMUC'KATH,  and  InUKI'ENKKNTS—  AN«rillKK 
JiKtIIMLATUKK. 


TiiK  coiniK>8itioii  ol'  Govornor  Burnett's  clmructcr 
was  Hucli  that  he  could  witliout  irictinii  mroiiiiiKHiuto 
lniMNulf  tocircuntHtiUK'cs,  arxl  make  friciulH,  or  at  IniHt 
Hvnid  iiiakiii<^  cnoinioH,  on  oither  side  of  a  (jui  stiou. 
Ho  wa«  Huuve,  correct,  with  onougli  of  u  judicial  air 
to  ij^ive  liis  opinions  Wi-ij^lit  in  ordinary  aH'airs,  with 
tii<»uj;h  Jij^htiH'Ss  and  olastieity  of  intolK'ct  to  cnahlo 
liiiii  to  float  Mifoly  upon  the  surfato  of  pultlio  opinion, 
hikI  from  <'xtraordinary  issues  to  escape  scatldcss. 
Wliatever  in  the  heat  of  conllict  we  may  say  »)f  such 
nil  II,  they  are  «»f  a  recojjfniwd  value  in  society,  hojd- 
lU'^  the  lialanci^  even  when  anarchy  would  result  from 
more  aide  management.  If  is  life,  thou<L(h  crowned 
l>y  no  griiat  or  n(»hle  achievtanent,  has  not  l»een  marred 
I'V  a  single  conspicuous  error.  As  superior  judge, 
uiitUr  llih'y's  a<hninistration,  he  occupied  the  highest 
position  f  ^  whi<'h  ho  could  he  chosen  under  the  gov- 
iniment  de  facto;  and  as  first  governor  of  California 
lie  again  stoiHl  approved  by  the  voters  of  18jO.  But 
lif  was  a  little  too  slow  in  action  and  too  wordy  in 
KiKcch  for  quick-witted  men  of  deeds;  a  litth*  too  con- 

(043) 


I 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


^m  iiM 
§  m  i^ 

MO  mil  2.0 


1.8 


1.25 

'■^  III.'-* 

■« 6"     

► 

Hiotographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


13  WEST  MAtN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.'.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


n 


^ 


C/j 


641 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


servative  for  the  men  of  1851,  so  rapidly  did  things 
change  at  this  period;  and  had  some  prejudices  wbicli 
he  did  not  care  to  render  prominent,  had  changed  his 
rehgion  from  protestant  to  cathohc — a  matter  which 
he  thought  greatly  concerned  him,  but  did  not  in  the 
least  other  people;  besides  which,  he  wished  to  attend 
to  private  affairs ;  ^  so  he  resigned  the  executive  office 
on  the  9th  of  January  of  that  year,'  just  after  the  sec- 

^  Burnett,  Rec,  MS.,  passim;  Sac.  Tramcrivt,  Jan.  14  and  Feb.  1,  1851; 
Cal.  Jour.  Hen.,  1851,  43,  44,  45,  40.  Peter  H.  Burnett  was  bom  in  Nasli- 
ville,  Tenn.,  Nov.  15,  1807,  of  Va  parentage,  to  which  may  be  attributed  liis 
ineradicable  dislike  of  the  free  negro.  When  10  years  of  age  he  removed 
with  his  father  to  Howard  co.,  Mo.,  and  a  few  years  later  to  Clay  co.,  where 
he  attained  the  age  of  19  years,  in  contact  with  a  rude  border  society.  In 
182(5  he  returned  to  Tenn.,  where  he  became  clerk  in  a  store  at  $100  a  year, 
and  later  at  $200.  He  married,  before  he  was  quite  21,  Harriet  W.  Rogers, 
started  in  business,  studied  law,  and  became  editor  of  a  weekly  newspaper  at 
Liberty,  Mo.,  The  FarWfd.  His  lirat  law  business  was  in  prosecuting  some 
Mormons  for  del)t,  and  afterward  was  employed  as  counsel  by  the  Moni.cju 
loaders  whom  Judge  King  hiid  committed  to  jail  in  Liberty,  they  being 
charged  witli  arson,  robbery,  and  treason.  In  1843  he  emigrated  to  Or.,  wliero 
he  became  a  farmer,  lawyer,  legislator,  and  judge.  In  1848  lie  came  to  Cal. 
in  the  first  company  of  gold-seekers,  and  was  unpronounced  enough  neviT 
to  have  made  any  conspicuous  failures  either  in  business  or  politics.  In 
1857  he  was  appointed  a  justice  of  the  sup.  court  of  California,  which  position 
he  held  until  Oct.  1858.  He  afterward  became  president  of  the  Pacific  Bank 
of  S.  F.,  in  which  he  held  a  large  interest.  He  retired  from  business  about 
1880.  A  lengthy  dictation  which  I  took  from  him  he  had  copied  and  printed 
as  Persoiuil  Rcrollcctloni>. 

"The  senate  consisted  in  1851,  in  addition  to  the  members  lioldiugover,  of 
W.  Adams  of  Butte  and  Shasta  districts,  whose  seat  was  '  od,  and  who 

resigned  April  28,  1851;  E.  O.  Crosby,  of  Yuba  and  Suttt  icts;  P.  do  la 

Guerra,  of  8ta  Bdrbara  and  San  Luis  Obispo  districts;  D.  I  .  >uglas,  of  Cala- 
veras; S.  C.  Foster,  of  Los  Angeles,  elected  to  fill  vacancy;  T.  J.  Green,  of 
Sac;  B.  S.  Lippincott,  of  Tuolumne;  S.  E.  Woodworth,  of  Monterey;  M.  E. 
Cooke,  Sonoma;  E.  Heydenfeldt  and  D.  C.  Broderick,  S.  F. ;  A.  \V.  Hopu, 
Los  Angeles;  who  resigned  Jan.  11th;  T.  B.  VanBuren,  San  Joacjuin;  J.  War- 
ner, San  Diego.  The  assembly  consisted  by  D.  P.  Baldwin  and  B.  F.  Moore, 
Tuolunme,  F.  C.  Bennett,  I.  N.  Thorne,  J.  D.  Carr,  J.  S.  Wethered,  W.  W. 
Wilkins,  \V.  C.  Hoflf,  S.  F. ;  J.  Bigler,  D.  J.  Lisle,  C.  Roliinson,  Sac. ;  T.  Bod- 
ley,  A.  C.  Campbell,  Sta  Clara;  J.  S.  Bradford,  A.  Steams,  Sonoma;  E.  Brown, 
Contra  Costa;  H.  Carnes,  Sta  Barbara;  J.  Cook,  San  Diego;  J,  S.  Field,  Yuba; 
C.  J.  Freeman,  San  Luis  Obispo;  G.  D.  Hall,  J.  J.  Kendrick,  El  Dorado; 
E.  B.  Kellogg,  SU  Cruz;  J.  Y.  Lind,  D.  W.  Murphy,  Calaveras;  A.  G.  Mc- 
Candless,  Shasta;  J.  W.  McCorklo,  Sutter;  W.  C.  MoDougall,  F.  Yeiser,  San 
Joaquin;  A.  Pico,  Los  Angeles;  S.  A.  Merritt,  H.  S.  Richardson,  Mariposa; 
A.  Randall,  Monterey;  R.  F.  Saunders,  Butte.  Cal.  Rvij.,  1857,  192-G.  Of 
that  body  of  men  I  find  here  and  there  mention  of  one  who  has  gone  over  to 
the  silent  majority.  Tliomas  Bodley,  born  in  Lexington,  Ky,  in  1821,  came 
to  Cal.  in  1849,  via  N.  O.,  and  engaged  in  merchandising  at  San  Jose  with 
Thomas  CampbelL  He  was  also  in  the  grain  business,  and  at  one  time  col- 
lector at  Alviso.  He  served  as  under-sheriflf  during  the  term  of  Wm  Mc- 
Cutchen.  During  this  period  he  completed  the  study  of  the  law,  begun  some 
years  previous,  and  at  the  expiration  of  his  service  as  sheriff  began  a  success- 
tul  practice.     He  sustained  a  character  for  integrity  and  liberality  in  his 


FIRST  GOVERNORS. 


645 


ig  over,  (if 
ami  who 
,  P.  (Ic  la 
!,  of  Ciila- 
GrecTi,  (if 
sy;  M.  E. 
(V.  Htipo, 
J.  War- 
Moore, 

^^^  w. 

,  T.  Boil- 

'].  Browu, 

1(1,  Yuba; 

Dorado; 

_  G.  Mc- 

eiser,  San 

klariposa; 

KJ-G.     Of 

ic  over  to 

!21,  came 

ose  with 

time  col- 

Win  Mc- 

zun  some 

I  success- 

ty  in  his 


Olid  legislature  met  in  session,'  and  was  succeeded  by 
tlie  lieutenant-governor,  John  McDougal,  a  gentle- 
manly drunkard,  and  democratic  politician  of  tlie  order 
for  which  California  was  destined  tc 


unpleasantly  notorious. 


to  become  somewhat 


aihipted  city.  San  Josi  Pioneer,  Sept.  21,  1878;  Santa  Cruz  Co.  Times,  Feb. 
2.!,  18(i7.  John  S.  Bradford  came  to  Cal.  from  111.  in  1848  or  1849.  In  the 
latter  year  he  had  a  pack-train  carrying  goods  from  Sac.  to  Auburn.  Later 
he  used  wagons,  and  had  a  store  at  Stony  Bar,  on  a  fork  of  the  American 
river,  where  he  built  the  first  house  of  logs.  Moore,  Pioneer  Ejj>res.i,  MS.,  2-7. 
Ito  was  in  partnership  with  Seniple  at  Bcnicia,  as  one  of  the  firm  of  Seinplo, 
luiliinson,  &  Co.,  for  the  transaction  of  general  business.  This  firm  pur- 
ilia.-jcd  the  Chilian  bark  Conferncion,  with  an  assorted  cargo  of  East  Indian 
giMPils,  which  was  dismantled  and  tised  as  a  wharf.  Solano  Co.  J/i-4.,  l.")4-r). 
He  was  the  first  a.ssemblyman  from  Sonoma  dist.  In  1853  he  returned  to 
Siiringfield,  111.,  where  he  was  several  times  elected  mayor.  Beiiicia  Tribune, 
Fel).  7,  1874. 

■'The  prest  of  the  senate  was  D.  C.  Brcnlerick;  prest  pro  tem.,  E.  Heyden- 
felilt;  secretary,  J.  F.  Howe;  asst  sec,  W.  B.  Olds;  enrolling  clerk,  H.  W. 
Caijienter;  engrossing  clerk,  E.  Covington;  sergt-at-arms,  C.  Buruham;  door- 
keeper, W.  B.  Stockton.  Brotlerick  was  elected  clerk  of  the  supreme  court 
Fel).  21st,  and  John  Nugent  filled  the  vacancy.  Cnl.  Iie<j.,  1857,  191.  W.  E. 
1'.  Ilartnell  was  awarded  the  contract  for  translating  the  laws  into  Spanish. 
His  pay  was  limited  by  law  to  SI. 50  per  folio.  He  was  reijuired  to  give  bonds 
in  the  sum  of  ^30,000  for  the  correct  and  entire  translation  of  the  statutes. 
V,tl.  Stat,  1851,  p.  404^5;  Val,  Dor.,  MS.,  35,  296,  307,  317.  John  Bigler 
was  speaker  of  the  assembly. 

*John  McDougal  was  born  in  Ohio  in  1818,  and  in  boyhood  removed  to 
tlie  vicinity  of  Indianapolis,  Ind.,  where  he  was  supt  of  the  state  prison  in 
1S4().     He  was  a  captain  in  the  Mexican  war,  in  which  he  distinguisiied  him- 
self.    The  Black  Hawk  war  breaking  out  about  the  time  he  arrived  at  his 
ma jority,  he  became  captain  of  a  company  of  volunteers,  and  served  the  coun- 
try faithfully.     In  1849  he  came  to  Cal.  with  his  brother  (ieorge,  and  serveti 
ill  the  const,  convention.     He  waa  fine-looking,  and  adhered  to  the  old  stylo 
of  rutHed  shirt  front,  bufif  vest  and  pantaUions,  and  blue  coat  witli  brass 
Iiuttons.     He  used  to  say  that  there  were  two  l)eings  of  whom  he  stood  in 
awe — (rod  almighty  and  Mrs  McDougal.     The  latter  always  treated  him  with 
patient  kindness,  although  often  compelled  to  bring  him  home  from  a  mid- 
night debauch.     Wlien  he  was  afterward  in  the  U.  S.  senate  he  made  but  one 
siieeeli,  in  preparation  for  which  he  wad  three  weeks  in  sobering  ofl'.     On  several 
iieoasions  he  attempted  suicide.     Although  not  at  that  stage  of  his  ruinous 
ciireer  when  elected  lieut-governor,  he  wa,s  seldom  fit  for  the  discharge  of  his 
duties.     Yet  sucli  was  the  influence  of  liis  naturally  genial  and  generous  de- 
priituient,  cultivated  mind,  and  brilliant  social  talents,  tliat  only  his  political 
enemies,  and  not  always  those,  C(mld  bring  themselves  to  treat  him  with  the 
I'liiitenipt  another  man  in  his  position  woulil  have  ree(!ived.     He  owned  pi-op- 
crty  in  Sutterville.     He  died  March  30,  ISlW,  in  S.  F.  Monitor,  April  7,  1S()(>; 
Bii'J'dto  Ej:}ire/<.i,  in  Hityes'  Cul.  Sfttui,  v.  8(!;  Jinffnm,  Si.f  Jfonl/it  in.  Cal.,  15.S; 
i'iin-r  Times,  Nov.  10,  1849;  Jfatje^'  Cat.  X<>f>x,  iii.  46;  S.  F.  Ai'ii,  March  3], 
ISliii;  Crotht/'n  Eurlif  L'l'eiits,  MS.,  37-8;  Oirinx  Memoirs,  MS.,  13;  S.  F.  Cull, 
S  [it.  6,   1868;  Owrlnml  Monthly,  xiv.  32'.>;  S'ir.  Tran^rript,  .March   14,   1S51. 
His  brother  George,  a  man  of  herculean  pmjiortions,  engaged  in  catth^-dealing 
in  Utaii,  and  among  the  Navajos,  was  at  lient's  Fort  on  the  Arkansas  Kiver 
fill'  sDiiio  time.     He  absented  himself  so  long  from  Cal.  tliat  he  was  su[ip(ised 
til  lie  dead,  .-vnd  his  estate  M'.os  administered  upon.     Again  ho  disappears  I  and 
Wis  recognized  in  Patagonia,  but  could  not  be  at  that  tiiiio  induced  to  leave 
that  barbarous  coast.     He  returned,  however,  to  Washington  to  prosecute  a 


. 


646 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


ill 


Previous  to  this  session  of  the  legislature,  alUiou<fli 
some  political  flourishes  had  been  put  forth,  particu- 
larly by  the  democrats,  there  had  been  little  attention 
given  to  party  marshalling  in  California.  Naturally, 
after  the  admission  of  the  state,  it  became  for  tliu 
interest  of  office-seekers  to  consider  whether  tluy 
would  support  the  administration  or  oppose  it.  The 
composition  of  the  legislative  body  of  1851,  chosen  in 
the  autumn  of  1850,  was,  democrats,  27;  whigs,  18, 
and  independents,  5.^ 

The  election  of  a  senator  to  succeed  Fremont, 
who,  hoping  and  expecting  to  be  reelected,  and  hav- 
iny:  left  Gwin  to  harvest  all  the  honors  at  the  second 
session"  of  the  thirty-first  congress,  as  I  have  already 
shown,  and  who  was  present  at  the  opening,  was  the 
signal  to  the  dominant  party  in  the  legislature  to  put 
forth  its  anti-administration  and  anti-freesoil  strength. 
In  order  to  have  time  for  a  satisfactory  canvass,  the 
joint  convention  of  both  houses  was  put  off  until 
the  18th  of  February,  when  the  balloting  began.  The 
nominees  were  Fremont,  Solomon  Heydenfeldt,  T. 
Butler  King,  John  W.  Gear}'',  John  B.  Weller,  and 
James  A.  Collier."  The  whole  number  of  votes  was 
49,  and  25  were  necessary  to  a  choice.  Fremont 
received  but  8  on  the  first  ballot,  which  was  increased 
to  16  once  or  twice  during  the  sitting  of  the  conven- 
tion, which  balloted  142  times  and  sat  ten  dtiys 
without  being  able  to  elect.  Times  were  changed 
since  1850,  when  bear-flag  memories  and  bear-lla;^' 
men  elected  Fremont.  King,  being  an  administratinu 
man,  and  a  southerner  by  adoption,  was  thus  furnished 

claim  against  the  govt;  but  becoming  disheartened  by  the  tediousueas  of  liiii 
suit,  he  killed  himself. 

*<Sac.  Tratiscript,  Feb.  28,  1851.  The  whole  number  elected  was  52;  ii.sntiii- 
blymen  36,  senators  10.  ('al.  Jtej.,  1857,  190. 

*  Fremont  abandoned  hia  duty  for  a  whole  session  to  electioneer  fur  a 
reelection,  oidy  to  be  defeated.  Morn.  Glolte,  Aug.  19,  1850.  Thus  it  v:is 
throughout  his  entire  career — iiimsclf  first  and  always. 

'Nathaniel  Bennett,  P.  de  la  (iuerra,  CJeorge  W.  Crane,  D.  C.  Broderuk, 
P.  B.  Reading,  Alfred  Morgan,  J.  Neely  Johnson,  George  B.  Tingloy,  ^\  ni 
D.  M  Howard,  T.  H.  Green,  A.  Pico,  and  S.  A.  Merritt  received  some  si:it- 
taring  votes.  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1851,  155-274;  S.  F.  Alta,  March  1  and  5,  1N")1. 


ELECTION  OF  SENATOR. 


647 


with  two  strings  to  his  bow,  so  that  he  ran  ahead  of 
1.1s  competitors  on  a  majority  of  the  ballotings  Hey- 
tL'uftiklt,  being  the  first  choice  of  the  democrats,  ran 
next  best  after  King,  who  was  beaten  by  the  opposi- 
tion of  the  whig  political  journal  at  San  Francisco,^ 
the  wliig  members  of  the  legislature  holding  a  caucus 
to  denounce  its  editor,  and  repudiating  it  thencefor- 
ward as  a  party  organ.  After  a  session  of  11 G  days, 
the  legislature  adjourned,  having  passed  a  large  num- 
ber of  laws,  and  made  a  few  appointments.^  It  had, 
however,  not  done  any  great  amount  of  good  for  the 


state.'" 

If  the  fable  of  the  dragon's  teeth  had  been  intended 
to  apply  to  California,  it  would  have  shown  a  remark- 
able crop  of  scoundrels  from  the  sowing.^'     In  two 

^Tliat  is  to  say,  the  Courier,  edited  by  G.  W.  Crane.  The  independent 
press  of  Cal.  at  thia  time  waa  composed  of  the  Ihrald  and  AlUi  of  8.  F. ;  tlie 
Ikrc.ld  of  San  Diego;  the  Herald  of  Sonora;  the  Journal  of  Nevada  City; 
the  QiizeMe  of  Benicia;  and  the  Vmtor  of  San  Jose.  The  whig  press  consisted 
of  the  Morning  Pont,  Ercning  Picayune,  and  Courier  of  S.  F. ;  the  Journal  of 
Stockton;  tlie  Uiiion  of  Sacramento;  and  tlie  JIvrald  of  Marysville.  There 
was  but  one  democratic  newspapisr  in  S.  F.  in  ISol,  the  Pacific  Star;  one  in 
Stockton,  the  Republican;  the  Times  and  Transcript  united  was  the  democratic 
organ  in  Sac. 

•  Atty-gen.  E.  C.  Kewen  resigned  in  1850.  Jamea  A.  McDougall  was  elected 
to  fill  the  vacancy,  Q.-m,-gen.  J.  C.  Moorehead  waa  removed,  and  Willia:n 
H.  Richardson  appointed  to  his  place,  April  20,  ISol.  Adj. -gen.  J.  R.  rerlco 
re.ugned  Sept  24,  1850,  and  E.  W.  McKinstry  was  appointed  in  liis  stead. 
State  printer  H.  II.  Robinson  resigned  in  May  1850,  when  J.  Wincliester  was 
appointed,  who  resigned  in  March  1851.  Eugene  Casserly  was  elected  by 
the  legislature  May  1,  1851,  and  continued  in  odice  till  tlie  contract  system 
of  1852  was  carried  into  eflfect.  The  first  contract  was  awarded  to  (!.  K. 
Fitcli  and  V.  E.  Geiger,  in  Juno  1852,  who  transferred  it,  with  the  consent  of 
the  legislature,  to  (ieorge  Kerr  &  Co.,  in  Feb.  1853.  The  contract  system 
was  rejicaled  in  May  1854,  and  B.  B.  Redding  elected  state  i)rinter,  who  waa 
succeeded  in  1S5G  by  James  Allen.  CaL  Bei/.,  1857,  189. 

'"-S.  F.  Alta,  Jan.  9,  1851;  Hartnell,  C'onwution,  MS.,  pt.  17;  Sac.  Tran- 
script, June  1,  1851;  Field's  Reminiscences,  73-81,  85-90;  Jlai/en'  Scraji.%  An- 
'jelc.f,  i.  41. 

''  Alonzo  W.  Adams,  elected  to  the  senate  from  the  district  of  Butte  and 
Shasta,  had  been  appointed  poll-tax  collector  I)y  the  previous  legi.datiiru. 
On  the  settlement  of  his  accounts,  after  he  took  his  seat,  it  was  asci'rtai:u;d 
that  tliey  did  not  balance,  A  large  number  of  written  receipts  were  for- 
warded to  one  of  tlie  senate  committees,  showing  that  lie  had  given  tliuse  in- 
stead of  the  receipts  furnished  by  the  controller,  and  had  diverted  tl;is 
portion  of  the  puljlic  revenue  to  himself.  He  waa  examineil  before  a  co.;i- 
laittee,  wliich  recommended  his  expulsion  from  the  senate;  but  througli  the 
iuilucnce  of  personal  friends,  he  was  permitted  to  remain  to  the  close  of  the 
session  upon  his  promise  to  resign  and  leave  the  state  inmiediately  after.  This 
he  did,  and  took  a  steamer  at  a  southern  port  for  a  destination  unknown.  W. 
T.  Sexton,  in  Oroville  Mercury,  Dec.  31,  18G5;  Cal.  Stat.,  1851,  637.     '-^t  tlie 


I 


648 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


particular  features  of  tlieir  characters  the  ordinary 
criminal  and  the  corrupt  politician  are  identical — lK)tli 
intend  to  obtain  money  without  honestly  laboring  for 
it  with  head  or  hands,  and  both  are  ambitious  to  ho 
chief  of  their  fraternity.  A  community  of  interests 
may  unite  them,  when  they  become,  indeed,  the  most 
dangerous  of  the  dangerous  classes.  Such  a  combina- 
tion was  rapidly  forming  in  California  in  the  spring  of 
1851;  but  for  greater  convenience  and  economy  of 
space,  I  prefer  to  call  attention  first  to  the  politicians. 

Soon  after  the  adjournment  of  the  legislature,  par- 
ties began  to  form  under  their  respective  leaders,  and 
while  bearing  the  national  names  of  whig  and  demo- 
crat, were  organized  merely  with  reference  to  state 
and  local  questions,  and  divided  among  themselves. 
A  third  undivided  party  consisted  of  independents, 
who  could  not  accept  the  platforms  or  the  candidates 
of  the  whigs  and  democrats. 

Tlie  first  state  convention  of  the  democratic  party 
assembled  at  Benicia,  May  19,  1851,  there  being 
present  17G  delegates  from  the  several  counties,^^  anil 
there  formed  their  state  and  congressional  ticket,^^  and 
their  state  central  committee."  Corresponding  corn- 
first  legislature,  says  Crosby,  *I  think  there  was  not  much  bribery;  there  was 
a  different  class  of  men  in  the  first  from  what  there  was  in  tlie  second.  I 
think  there  was  some  jobbery  in  tlie  second  legislature.  Wo  liad  not  riivenue 
in  the  first  legislature;  the  stiite  had  not  been  admitted,  au<l  thei-e  was  no 
money  to  cover  jobs.'  Early  Eixuts  in  Cal.,  MS.,  64.  A  different  set  of  men 
and  more  money  made  a  difference.  Says  Frink:  '  The  northerners  went  into 
business  on  their  arrival  in  Cal.,  the  soutlierners  into  politics.  Most  of  tlu'ni 
had  held  olHce  in  their  own  states,  and  so  were  adapted  to  a  political  lifo.' 
Vij.  Com.,  MS.,  10.  Ho  might  have  added  that  many  had  left  their  country 
for  their  country's  good. 

'^  There  were  now  30  counties,  the  boundaries  of  the  original  ones  being 
readjusted,  and  Nevada,  Placer,  and  Klamath  counties  createtl  out  of  the 
surplus  territory.  Cal.  SUit.,  1851,  172-«0. 

'■'Tlie  state  ticket  put  up  tlie  names  of  John  Bigler  of  Sac.  for  governor; 
Samuel  Purdy  of  San  Joaipiin,  lieut-gov. ;  Richara  Roman  of  Santa  Clara, 
treasurer;  W.  S.  Pierce  of  Yulta,  controller;  S.  C.  Hastings  of  Solano,  ntty- 
pyn. ;  W.  M.  Eddy  of  S.  F.,  surv.-gon.  For  representatives  to  congress,  J. 
W.  McCorkle  of  Sutter,  and  E.  C.  Marshall  of  Tuolumne.  Hayes  Cal,  Pol., 
i.  1. 

'*  I  think  it  important  to  bear  in  mind  the  names  of  party  leaders,  there- 
fore set  down  the  names  of  the  central  committees  also.  It  consisted  of  Rob- 
ert Semplu  of  Benicia;  Charles  Lindley  of  Marysville;  R.  P.  Hammond  aiul 
S.  A.  lidoker  of  Stockton;  J.  R.  Hardenburg,  M.  S.  Latham,  and  Jolin  S. 
Fowler  of  Sac;  D.  C.  Broderick,  John  W.  Geary,  F.  TUford,  and  F.  P. 


DEMOCRATIC  CONVENTION. 


649 


mittees  for  the  several  counties  were  appointed;  a 
committee  chosen  to  report  the  views  and  resolutions 
of  the  convention,"  and  a  Jefferson-Madison-Jacksoii 
lauding  speech  made  by  Anderson  of  Tuolumne  in  the 
manner  of  the  regular  democracy,  interlarded  by  as- 
sertions that  the  present  whig  administration  was  in- 
tentionally neglecting  California  because  she  had  sent 
a  democratic  delegation  to  congress;  as  if  it  were  the 
custom  of  congress  to  send  democratic  states  to  Cov- 
entry through  their  representatives.  California  had 
been  admitted  eight  months,  and  had  not  yet  a  mint! 
"  This,"  said  the  address,  "is  what  we  call  the  proscrip- 
tion of  the  people  of  California — the  proscription  of 
the  great  producing  masses  of  California — of  the  man 
who  toils  in  the  mines.  It  keeps  back  from  him  that 
which  ho  has  earned  by  the  sweat  of  his  brow.  When 
he  weighed  that  ounce  of  gold,  which  he  obtained  by 
the  hard  blows  of  the  pick,  it  was  worth  only  $IG. 
That  proscription  made  it  so.  A  more  liberal  and 
enliglitcned  policy — the  passage  of  the  measure  to 
which  we  refer — would  have  made  it  worth  $IS.  Of 
the  $50,000,000  dug  from  the  earth  by  the  miners, 
they  lose  at  that  rate  of  per  cent  $6,000,000  per  an- 
num. Is  not  this  enough  to  justify  us  in  calling  the 
policy  of  the  federal  party,  who  are  now  in  power,  the 
proscription  of  the  laboring  masses  of  Califctrnia? 
Are  we  not  justified  in  warning  you  against  the  spirit 
and  conduct  of  our  rulers?"     Thus  the  democrats.'* 

When  Senator  Gwin  returned  from  Washington, 
after  the  adjournment  of  congress  in  the  spring  of 

Tracy  of  S.  F.  The  president  of  the  convention  wis  William  Sniitli  of  S.  F. 
Tlio  vice-prosidents  were  J.  C  Potter  of  El  Dorado;  .Iiiau  B.  Alvarado  of 
C'liiitra  Costa;  T.  W.  Sutherland  of  San  Diugo;  Josh.  Holdon  of  Tuoliunnc; 
Judge  Briglit  of  Yuba;  J.  H.  Ralston  of  Sac;  James  S.  Law  of  Btitto.  Tlio 
ac'cretaries  were  J.  F.  Howe  of  S.  F. ;  G.  N.  Sweazy  of  Yuba;  J.  Cr.  Marvin 
of  Tiiohunne;  and  A.  C.  Bradford  of  San  Joaquin. 

'•'Antlorson  of  Tuolumne,  J.  S.  Heenly  of  Sac.,  T.  \V.  Sutherland  of  Sau 
iJiogo,  John  H.  Watson  of  Santa  Clara,  and  J.  (i.  Wilbur  of  Butte  were 
chosen. 

^'•nkkoU'a  Paris  Exposition,  l.t-14;  Ciil.  Pol.  Srmpii,  3-4;  Par.  ilUir,  i.  66, 
Aug.  (),  18")],  in  Tni/lor'.t  Sjkt.  J'ri'nx,  5(iti;  .S''^'.  Tniiixeripf,  May  15  to  June 
l"*,  IS'jI;  Pliiri'i-  Times  anil  Traiix.,  Sept.  \'),  l>w.  '-',  1851;  Jan.  4,  Feb.  4 
and  L'U,  March  21,  1852;  Biyki'ii  Scmy-liook,  1851-3. 


! 


650 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


1851,  he  issued  an  address  to  the  people  of  California, 
in  which  he  told  them  that  congress  was  loath  to  do 
anything  for  California,  and  that  lie  was  forced  t(j  worl; 
hard  to  extort  such  favors  as  he  had  been  able  to  ob- 
tain; for  which  he  was  thanked  by  the  legislature  in  a 
resolution  which  omitted  the  other  members  of  the 
delegation.  He  planned  the  organization  of  the  (Itnno- 
cratic  party,  and  canvassed  the  state  for  the  nominees 
put  forward  at  the  convention.  The  resolutions  of  the 
convention  gave  evidence  of  having  been  suggested 
by  the  author  of  certain  bills  introduced  in  tlie  sen- 
ate," and  his  hand  was  everywhere  visible.^'*  Patron- 
age was  sought  of  the  great  man,  and  the  great  man 
did  not  despise  the  help  of  the  meanest. 

On  the  26th  of  May  the  whigs  met  in  convention, 
in  the  Powell  Street  methodist  church  in  San  Fran- 
cisco, 100  delegates  being  present  from  twenty  coun- 
ties, seven  sending  no  representatives.^^  Officers  were 
chosen,  and  nominations  made,'^*^  with  the  usual  [yay- 

|'5.  F.  Alta,  May  2,  1851;  Otvin'a  Memoirs,  MS.,  73.  The  Alta  accuse.l 
Gwiii,  not  without  good  grounds,  of  claiming  to  have  accomplished  all  tht- 
good  tliat  was  done  for  Cal.  Tliere  certainly  was  a  scheme  to  appropriati'  all 
the  glory.  Fremont,  after  his  first  three  weeks,  in  which  he  was  allowcil  to 
introduce  a  few  hills,  was  induced  to  absent  himself  to  attend  to  his  rti'lcc- 
tion.  The  congressmen  Gilbert  and  Wriglit  were  persuaded  that  the  sfiwuc, 
being  a  smaller  body,  would  be  sooner  acted  upon,  and  tlierofore  that  tiie 
Cal.  l)usiness  was  more  likely  to  be  carried  if  presented  there  in  the  first 
place.  Thus  tlie  members  of  the  lower  house  were  kept  out  of  siglit  through 
their  desire  to  forward  the  interests  of  Cal. 

"*  It  was  resolved  by  the  convention  to  maintain  the  doctrines  of  tlie  duino- 
cratic  party  as  transmitted  by  JefTerson,  Madison,  and  Jackson;  that  tlie 
ntineral  lantis  of  C'al.  ought  not  to  be  sold  by  the  govt,  but  granted  to  Aiiicri- 
can  miners  and  immigrants;  that  all  the  public  lands  of  Cal.  should  In;  re- 
served from  sale,  and  granted  to  actual  settlers  who  were  citizens;  that  I'al. 
was  entitled  to  the  civil  fund;  that  California  would  give  a  faithful  suli^lul■t 
to  the  constitution  and  the  union;  that  the  administration  of  tlie  general  govt 
had  been  guilty  of  the  most  culpable  neglect  of  the  interests  of  Cal.,  hail  sent 
citizens  of  the  older  states  to  fill  her  state  offices,  failed  to  protect  her  Itnider 
from  savage  aggression,  utterly  disregarded  the  demands  of  the  people  tor 
better  postal  arrangements,  and  failed  to  carry  into  efifect  laws  actually 
passed  for  tiie  good  of  the  state.  Haum'  Val.  Pol.,  i.  I. 

'"  These  were  Colusa,  Klamath,  Los  Angeles,  Monterey,  Mendocino,  Sta 
Barbara,  and  San  Luis  Obispo.  S.  F.  Alta,  May  27,  1851. 

'''*  John  Wilson  of  S.  F.  was  chosen  president  of  the  convention;  ('..  R. 
Griflin  of  El  Dorado,  Rush  of  8ta  Clara,  J.  M.  Burt  of  Butte,  Alfred  Morgan 
of  Calaveras,  James  Fitton  of  San  Diego  vice-presidents;  and  James  B.  Dc- 
voe  of  8ta  Clara,  P.  L.  Sanderson  of  El  Dorado,  and  J.  S.  Robb  of  San  .(oa- 
quin  secretaries.  The  comunttee  on  rules,  and  basis  of  representation, 
consisted  of  A.  J.  Ellis,  S.  F. ;  Horace  Smith,  Sac;  J.  Fitton,  S.  D.;  Thos 


! 


WHIG  CONVENTION. 


651 


;(l  all  tlie 
>r'\nW  all 

(iWtil  to 

,s  rtjtkx'- 
le  Kfimte, 
that  the 
the  first 
through 

the  ihiiui- 
that  the 

1)  AllRTl- 

hi  Ikmv- 

that  C'al. 

1  siiiiport 
ueral  guvt 

huil  sent 
lor  l)i>riler 
juojilc  for 
actually 


[»n;  ('..  R. 
I  Miiigan 
,es  15.  1)0- 
San  -h'a- 
jentation, 
J).;  Thos 


tiality  to  certain  districts,  and  the  usual  resulting  dis- 
aH'i'ction  of  the  neglected  portions  of  tlie  state.  Tlio 
ri'solutions  adopted'^*  had  in  them  a  little  more  meat 
tiiaii  those  of  the  democratic  convention,  albeit  they 
coiresponded  hi  a  portion  of  their  demands,  opposing 
the  sale  or  lease  of  mineral  lands,  but  beini^  in  favor 
of  tlie  general  government  holding  them  for  the  bene- 
fit of  the  miners,  to  be  worked  by  them  free  of  taxes; 
liivoring  the  adjustment  of  disputed  land  titles  in  the 
state  by  commissioners  under  the  authority  of  con- 
gress, with  the  right  of  appeal  to  the  United  Statt  s 
courts;  desiring  the  immediate  extension  of  the  pre- 
emption laws  over  the  public  domain  not  embraced  in 
the  mineral  lands,  and  the  adoption  of  laws  which 
sliould  secure  to  actual  settlers  a  donation  of  not  more 
than  100  acres  to  each  head  of  a  family,  and  grants  of 
tlie  same  amount  to  settlers  on  private  lands,  where 
valuable  improvements  had  been  made,  under  the  be- 
lief that  they  were  open  to  settlement;  asking  generous 
grants  of  land  for  educational  purposes ;  liberal  appro- 
priations for  works  of  a  public  character,  and  the 
improvement  of  rivers  and  harbors;  aid  to  the  con- 
struction of  a  railroad  to  the  Mississippi  Valley,  the 
establishment  of  a  line  of  steamers  between  California, 
the  Hawaiian  Islands,  and  China;  complaining  of  the 

Hodlcy,  Sta  Clara;  Painter,  Shasta;  H.  Critcher,  Yolo;  IL  T.  Boareni,  San 
JiuKjiiiu;  H.  1*.  Watkins,  Yuba;  Geo.  O.  Mc.MuUin,  Trinity;  .Jiulfio  Brooks 
and  \V.  S.  Mesick,  Sutter;  J.  H.  Long,  Solano;  Charlos  .Justis,  I'lacer;  Dr 
-McLean,  Santa  Cruz;  H.  H.  Liiwrence,  Napa;  E.  Stone,  Mariposa;  .1.  C. 
]>(iazann.  Contra  Costa;  John  A.  Collins,  Nevada;  John  Minge,  .Jr,  Marin; 
IJiiwen,  Calaveras;  VV.  D.  Ferazee,  Tuolumne;  Perkiani,  Butte;  Martin  of 
'i'uolunine;  E.  J.  C.  Kewen  of  Sac;  J.  C.  Fall  of  Yuba;  B.  F.  Moore  of 
Tuolumne;  J.  0.  (ioodwin,  Wm  Waldo,  and  D.  P.  Ribhvin.  The  state 
central  com.  consisted  of  John  Wilson,  R.  Hampton,  P.  W.  Tompkins,  Jesse 
]>.  Carr,  E.  L.  Sullivan,  D.  H.  Haskell,  K.  N.  Wood,  Wni  Koliinson,  and 
Chambers.  The  candidates  chosen  by  the  convention  were  Pearson  B.  Read- 
ing for  s,'ov. ;  Drury  P.  liiildwin,  lieut-gov. ;  E.  J.  C.  Kewen  and  B.  F.  Moore 
f  u  'ougressmen;  Tod  Robinson,  judge  of  the  sup.  court;  W.  1).  Fair,  atty- 
gu. ;  J.  M.  Burt,  state  treas.;  Alex.  G.  Abell,  controller;  Walter  Herron, 
s>irveyor-gen.  Reading  came  to  Cal.  in  1842,  crossing  the  niountiiins  by  the 
iioithern  route,  and  presenting  himself  at  Sutter's  Fort,  engaged  in  business 
vith  Sutter.  He  obtained  his  title  by  leading  parties  in  the  Mieheltorena 
wui,  and  in  the  operations  of  the  battalion  of  mounted  riflemen  in  1846.  It 
Viis  said  he  was  born  and  educated  in  Phila,  and  possessed  a  polished  address. 
-  J.  Neely  Johnson  was  chairman  of  the  committee  on  resolutions. 


052 


rOLlTICAL  HISTORY. 


failure  of  congress  to  make  provision  for  a  mint  in 
Calit'ornia;  dcmanditig  tlie  return  of  the  civil  fund, 
and  tlio  payment  of  the  Indian  war  expenses;  cordially 
approviiij^  tlu^  compromise  measures  in  congress;  jnom- 
ising  to  maintain  the  supremacy  of  the  state  laws,  and 
to  administer  tlie  same  with  economy,  that  the  people 
might  not  sufter  from  oppressive  taxation. 

I  cannot  help  being  struck  with  the  almost  total 
ignoring  by  both  parties  of  the  condition  of  the  statu 
resulting  from  nnperfect  legislation,  official  corruption, 
and  excessive  taxation.  The  whigs  did,  indeed,  prom- 
ise economy,  and  to  lighten  the  burdens  of  the  jieojijc; 
but  in  a  manner  to  show  a  timorousness  about  touch- 
ing the  subject  which  amounted  to  a  promise  of  i'ailun'. 
They  feared  to  lose  votes;  but  had  they  been  hon'.'st, 
they  would  have  preferred  losing  in  a  good  cause  to 
winning  in  a  bad  one. 

In  the  mean  time,  in  San  Francisco  and  elsowhoro, 
the  peojle,  that  is  to  say,  the  commercial  and  \n-o- 
ducing  classes,  were  struggling  hand  to  hand  wltli  a 
criminal  element  whose  practices,  while  brutalized  hy 
ignorance  and  evil  associations,  were  not  more  dis- 
honorable, in  proportion  to  the  comparative  intelli- 
gence and  social  conditions  of  the  two  classes,  than 
those  of  men  who  followed  politics  as  a  profession, 
and  fattened  on  the  spoils  of  office.  Yet,  owing  to 
the  fact  that  they  were  more  brutal,  that  they  com- 
mitted nmrder  in  order  to  make  robbery  safe,  it  Mas 
found  necessary  for  an  outraged  people  to  turn  aMii- 
gers,  and  kill  and  banish  in  return.  Of  this  necessity 
I  have  spoken  freely  in  other  places.  I  mention  it 
here  only  to  point  out  the  apathy  or  the  criminal 
truckling  to  vice  of  the  political  parties. 

As  for  the  independents,  "the  true  California  party," 
as  it  was  denominated  by  the  Alta,  though  numerous 
they  made  no  nominations,  as  they  lacked  organiza- 
tion and  cohesion.  It  had  little  or  no  concern  for  old 
political  issues,  cared   nothing  for  administration  or 


INDEPENDENT  I'ARTY. 


653 


anti-administration;  but  while  loyal  to  the  union,  it 
solely  interested  in  the  welfare  of  the  state.     It 


Mil 


iiiiL;lit  throw  its  weijjjht  on  one  aiile  or  the  <ttlier,  ac- 
lording  to  local  interests  or  former  prejudices.  In 
Siin  JfVancisco,  in  April,  it  had  hel])ed  to  elect  the 
wliii^  municipal  ticket,^^  and  some  reforms  had  been 
tilected  by  the  change.  But  no  such  unanimity  of 
action  could  be  secured  for  the  general  election,  and 
the  chief  use  of  the  independent  newspapers  was  to 
exercise  a  censorship  over  the  doings  of  the  two  par- 
ties which  had  put  forth  candidates  and  princii)les. 

It  was  not  long  before  trouble  arose  in  both  parties 
on  account  of  an  unfairness  toward  the  southern  por- 
tion of  the  state  in  regard  to  the  distrilnition  of  offices 
hy  tlie  conventions,  all  of  the  state  nominees  and 
congressmen  being  chosen  from  the  northern  half,'^ 
which  contained  three  fourths  of  the  population,  and 
was  fairly  entitled  to  but  three  fourths  of  the  offices. 
Wliy  the  whigs  should  have  so  blundered  is  not  ac- 
counted for,  except  by  the  greater  greed  of  office  of 
tlic  northern  men,  or  by  competition  with  the  demo- 
crats who  had  made  their  nominations.  But  the 
motive  of  the  democrats  was  not  so  well  concealed 
that  it  could  not  be  fathomed. 

Senator  Gwin,  under  whose  lead  they  were,  had  a 
distinct  idea  with  regard  to  rijjhtino;  the  wroncjs  of 
the  southern  states  in  the  matter  of  slave  territory; 
and  that  was  to  divide  California,  attach  to  the  south- 
ern division  a  portion  of  the  Mexican  territory,"*  and 

--  A  strong  appeal  for  reform  waa  made  in  the  independent  address,  signed 
by.ldsupli  S.  Wallis,  John  K  Bell,  and  J.  R.  Robinson.  S.  F.  AUa,  March 
i."J,  1.S51. 

- '  The  democrats  claimed  that  their  candidate  for  state  treasurer  was  put 
forward  by  the  delegations  from  Sta  Clara,  Monterey,  and  Sau  Diego,  as  the 
icjiresentative  of  the  southern  half  of  the  state.  The  iilea  of  making  a  Sta 
Clara  man  a  representative  of  S^n  Diego  was  scoflFed  at  by  the  intlependents, 
wlio  made  a  shrewd  guess  at  the  policy  of  the  convention. 

"Savs  the  AHa  of  Sept.  2,  1851:  'The  mysterious  givingsout  that  efforts 
are  to  be  made  to  drag  into  the  coming  contest  the  proposition  to  acquire 
more  territory  from  our  neighbors,  either  by  conquest  or  purchase,  is  not  a 
matter  of  moonshine,  in  our  opinion.  There  is  no  doubt,  we  opine,  that  great 
efforts  a!e  afoot  to  bring  the  suspicious  and  obstreperous  south  into  the  cheer- 
ful support  of  the  party  candidates  [national],  through  the  expectations  and 
indueemonta  of  a  further  acquisition  of  territory.     What  that  territory  will 


654 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


in  time  annex  the  Hawaiian  Islands,"  all  of  wliidi 
was  to  become  slave-holdinj;.  With  this  in  view,  li^ 
surprised  the  constitutional  convention  in  1849  by  his 
complacency  with  rej^ard  to  the  boundary  of  the  statu 
and  the  exclusion  of  slavery.  It  was  in  his  tliou;^Iit 
to  change  it  in  the  not  distant  future,  and  to  louti 
the  second  Pacific  state  open  to  southern  institutions. 
It  was,  therefore,  of  no  consequence  that  the  couiitit  s 
adjoining  the  Mexican  boundary,'^"  and  the  southern 

l)u,  it  18  not  so  easy  to  tell;  but  the  recently  authenticated  inHurrectionary  dc- 
moiistrationa  in  Cuba  point  Higniticantly  to  the  possibility  that  that  fair  ami 
fertile  inle  may  yet  be  the  geui  whose  annexation  is  to  restore  the  balam  r  i>f 
power  to  an  equipoise  between  the  north  and  south.  If  this  scheme  slimilil 
fail,  through  the  suppression  of  the  insurrection,  as  no  doubt  it  will,  it  sccnin 
plausible  that  the  northern  provinces  of  Mexico  will  be  the  bait  next  litlil 
out.'  The  Mftrt  also  saw  some  good  n.'asons  for  the  purchase  of  these  pidv- 
inces,  one  of  which  was  that  the  U.  S.  was  bound  by  treaty  to  protect  tluin 
from  the  inroads  of  the  Indians,  and  for  failing  to  do  so  heavy  damages  lia<l 
already  accrued  against  the  U.  H. 

'^■'Says  Uwiu  in  his  Mciiioirn,  speaking  of  himself  in  the  third  person:  'Mr 
G  win  was  an  earnest  advocate  of  the  annexation  of  the  Sandwich  Islands  aii.l 
the  extension  of  (mr  territory  south.  The  (radsden  treaty,  as  it  was  calliMl, 
at  a  later  period  came  before  the  senate  for  ratification.  He  proposed  lliat 
the  boundary,  instead  of  the  one  adopted  in  the  treaty,  should  begin  30  inilL's 
south  of  Mazatlan,  and  run  across  the  continent  to  the  gulf  of  Mexico,  strik- 
ing the  gulf  30  miles  south  of  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  (Jrando  (there  are  certaiu 
lakes  there  that  make  a,  fine  harbor),  and  to  pay  Mexico  $25,000,000  for  ac- 
cepting this  line  of  boundary  instead  of  $10,000,000,  as  was  proposed  in  tlie 
(latlsden  treaty,  for  tlie  present  boundary.  This^was  in  a  secret  session  nf 
the  senate,  and  the  debate  therefore  is  not  of  record. . .  .Mr  Gwin  was  so  much 
dissatisfied  with  the  boundary  adopted  by  the  senate,  that  ho  would  not  vote 
in  favor  of  the  treaty.  In  1851  a  proposition  was  made  by  tlie  Hawaiian 
authorities,  probably  under  the  influence  of  an  agent,  '  it  was  not  acceptuJ. 
To  have  accepted  would  have  opened  afresh  the  questic    of  free  territory 

'■"'The  Mexican  boundary  commis.sion,  appointed  in  1849,  consisting  of  .J. 
B.  Weller  and  Surveyor  Andrew  B.  Gray,  resigned  their  unfinished  work  in 
1850  to  C'apt.  E.  L.  F.  Hanlcastle  of  the  top.  engineers,  who  with  a  captain 
of  Mexican  engineers  completed  the  survey  in  1851.  The  marble  monument 
near  San  Diego  was  placed  in  situ  in  June  of  that  year.  On  the  south  siile 
is  a  shield  bearing  the  inscription,  '  Republica  Mexicana,'  with  an  arrow  almve 
pointing  eastward,  over  wliich  is  'direccion  de  la  linea.'  On  the  reverse  siile 
is  '  United  States  of  America,'  '  direction  of  the  line,'  shield  and  arrow  as  on 
the  first.  On  the  east  sitle  is  '  North  latitude  23-31-58-59.  Longitude  7-48, 
20-1,  west  of  Greenwich,  as  determined  by  Wm  H.  Emory  on  the  part  of  tiio 
United  States,  and  Jos6  Salazar  Ylarrequi,  on  the  part  of  Mexico.'  On  tiie 
west  side,  facing  the  Pacific,  is  '  Initial  point  of  boundary  between  the  United 
States  and  Mexico,  established  by  the  joint  commission  10th  of  October,  1N41), 
agreeably  to  the  treaty  dated  at  the  city  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  February  "2, 
A.  D.  1848.  John  B.  Weller,  U.  S.  commissioner,  Andrew  B.  Gray,  U.  S. 
surveyor.'  The  same  inscription  in  Spanish,  in  another  column  on  the  same 
side,  gives  the  names  of  Pedro  Garcia  commissioner,  and  Jose  Salazar  Ylar- 
requi surveyor.  A  plain  square  shaft,  about  three  feet  at  the  base,  rises  almve 
the  pedestal  11  feet,  terminating  in  an  appropriate  cap.  The  whole  is  IG  feet 
3  in.  above  the  surface.  The  inscriptions  are  upon  the  pedestal,  which  is 
about  6  feet  high.     The  boundary  line  is  straight  from  a  point  of  the  Paeilic 


DYNASTY  OF  DEMOCRACY. 


655 


coast,  Bhoukl  be  offended;  it  was  indeed  a  part  of  the 
schenic  to  make  them  more  diseontented  than  they 
already  were,  that  tlicy  might  be  driven  to  seek  a 
division  from  the  northern  counties. 

Meanwhile  the  independent  i)ress  labored  to  awaken 
in  eitizcns  a  sense  of  their  oblij^ations  as  y;uardiaiis  of 
the  public  weal  to  turn  their  attention  to  election 
matters;  and  charged  tliat  the  reason  why  public  af- 
fairs wore  in  so  unpromising  a  condition  was  on  account 
<){'  the  neglect  of  good  men  to  look  into  thciu,  being 
interested  in  business,  and  still  looking  upon  the  oMer 
states  as  their  homes.  From  this  apathetic  condition 
tluy  were  entreated  to  arouse  themselves  and  save 
the  credit  of  California.  They  had  started  the  ma- 
chinery of  government,  and  left  it  in  reckless  and 
incompetent  hands.  The  law-makers  had  not  suffi- 
ciently felt  that  they  wcic  iaj^ing  the  foundatiens  of  a 
stahlc  conmmnity :  and  the  officials  who  executed  them 
acted  as  if  tbe  present,  with  its  spoils,  was  all  that 
California  ever  would  be,  and  these  could  not  too  soon 
be  safely  stowed  in  their  pockets. 

The  independents,  as  third  parties  usually  do, 
helped  the  election  of  one  party  by  dividing  the 
other,  and  the  democrats  carried  the  state  by  a  major- 
ity of  441.^"  From  this  time  until  the  commencement 
of  the  war  of  the  rebellion  there  was  no  chansre  of 
importance  in  the  comparative  strength  of  parties, 
California  remaining  democratic. 

The  congressmen  McCorkle  and  Marshall  had  been 
elected  *at  large,'  the  legislature  having  neglected  to 
divide  the  state  into  congressional  districts — another 
way  of  slighting  the  southern  counties.  Owing  to  a 
detc'ct  in  the  election  laws,  the  congressional  term  hav- 
ing expired  March  4th,  California  had  no  rcpresenta- 
ti\  es  in  the  lower  house  until  the  following  December; 

a  marine  league  south  of  the  bay  of  San  Diego,  to  the  junction  of  the  Gi!a— 
150  miles;  se>'en  monuments  were  erected,  six  being  of  iron. 

-'Bigler  receiveil  2.3,174  votes,  .and  Reading  22,73.3.  S.  F.  gave  a  whig 
majority,  every  other  co.  going  democratic.  Cat.  Reg.,  1857,  164.  See  cam- 
paign doggerel  in  Taylors  Spec.  Press,  C.32. 


!■  ^ 


I 


!£l 


>     \ 


'    '}iH 


j 


I 


666 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


and  having'  failed  in  the  election  of  a  senator  to  suocood 
Fremont,  for  a  period  of  eight  months  the  only  dtle- 
j^ate  to  cong-ress  from  the  golden  commonwealtli  was 
Gwin.'"*  It  is  not  strange  that  he  came  to  re'-ard 
California  as  his  particular  preserve. 

The  third  legislature  convened  at  Valk^o,  under  the 
protest   of  Governor  McDougal,  January  5,   1852,'' 

■•"*  The  legislature  of  1852  remedied  this  defect  by  a  special  act,  niakiiii;the 
coiigres.-iional  election  fall  on  the  gei-eral  election  preceding  tlie  expiration  of 
a  term — in  18.")2,  and  eacli  second  year  thereafter.  Cnl.  Stat.,  KS.VJ,  14(i, 

'^'^  I'larvr  Times  mid  Tnni.icri]it,  Jim.  15,  18.V2.  The  senate  consisted  on 
this  oi'  aiiion  of  A.  Anderson,  who  resigneil  Apr.  3d.  having  heen  appolnttd 
judge  I't  Slip,  court;  1).  C.  Broderick;  A.  M.  do  la  <!uerra;  Jolm  H.  H.iii-il, 
■who  resif;ni'd  in  March,  when  J.  W.  Denver  was  elected  to  (ill  his  ]jl;K'e; 
James  M.  Kstill,  J.  Frye  of  I'laeer;  Paul  K.  llul)l)s,  B.  F.  Keeiie  of  Kl  Do- 
rado;  P.  \V.  Keyser  of  .Sutter;  J.  E.  N.  Lewis;  J.  Y.  Lind  of  Calaveras;  ('. 
F.  Latt  of  Butte;  J.  C.  McKihhen  of  Yuba;  J.  Miller;  L.  B.  V';m  Bunii; 
(!.  B.  'J  ;  ,'ley;  J.  Warner,  J.  Walsh  of  Nevada;  J.  Walt.m  of  111  ]h<v.uh<; 
yi.  M.  \'-  uihauuh  of  Yolo  and  Colusa;  J.  N.  Ivalston  of  Sac.;  I'liiliii  A. 
It  lacli;  H.  ('.  Robinson;  J.  R.  Snyder,  S.  F.;  Frank  Soule,  8.  F. ;  U.  T. 
iSpra^ue  of  Shasta.  The  olHcers  of  the  senate  were:  S.  Purdy,  prest;  11.  F. 
Keene,  prest  pro  tern.;  A.  C.  Briidford,  see.;  A.  (.i.  Stebbins,  asst  sec;  \V.  V. 
McLean,  V.  K.  Woodside,  clerk.^;  C.  Burnham,  sergt-at-arms;  tl.  W.  Harris, 
door-kieper.   Plinvr  TiincH  itwl  Tniiurri]it,  Feb.  1  and  8,  1852. 

Baird,  of  Sta  Clara,  was  born  in  Ky  in  1822,  and  educated  at  the  I'ilot 
Knob  Aiademy.  ( loing  to  N.  O.  he  w.is  employed  in  a  large  mercantile  linii>e 
for  sivi  ral  years.  He  came  to  8.  F.  on  the  S'itiiiiir,  and  was  deputy  slieiitf 
under  Jolin  Pownes,  the  lirst  sheriff  of  S.  F.  He  w.is  interested  in  the  S.  1\ 
Powder  Works  in  1870,  with  J.  A.  Peck,  the  company  having  beiii  iucDriio- 
rated  in  1801,  when  Baird  was  one  of  the  trustees.  Peck,  Moses  Ellis,  C.  A. 
Eastman,  Edward  Flint,  and  H.  R.  Jones  being  his  associates.  Polities  had 
no  ehariiis  for  Biiird,  who  kept  closely  to  his  business  after  his  halt-term  iu 
the  state  senate.   AVj).  Mem.  aJ'S.  F.,  IHJT. 

J.  M.  ]']still  was  also  a  native  of  Ky,  and  came  to  Cal.  in  1849.  He  was 
fond  of  politics,  and  took  a  10-year  contract  in  1851  to  keep  the  state's  ]iiis- 
oners,  as  I  have  related,  abuses  compelling  the  Icgislat'ire  to  declare  the  l.aso 
forfeited.  In  185(5  the  sttite  again  leased  the  prison  to  Estill,  paying  iiiiu 
$10,000  per  annum.  He  soon  sublet  his  contract  for  half  the  amount,  a;i(l 
the  legislature  again  declared  the  lease  forfeited,  and  the  gov.  took  fonJile 
possession  of  the  keys.  The  matter  came  up  in  the  courts,  which  deuiilL'tl 
against  the  gov.  The  affair  was  compromised  by  paying  a  bonus  to  tliu 
assignee,  in  18(i0,  and  thereafter  the  prison  management  nnprove<l.  Jliii/cs' 
Coll.,  t'lil.  Xnfi's,  ii.  S04;  Sue.  Union,  ^larch  0,  1857. 

Paul  K.  Hubb.s,  of  Tuolunme,  was  born  in  N.  J.  In  1833  he  was  .scut  by 
the  prest  of  U.  S.  to  France  as  a  representative  of  the  govt,  where  he  rcsiiliMl 
6  years,  returning  and  entering  into  commercial  pursuits  iu  N.  Y.  and  I'hila. 
In  1840  he  was  eounnissioned  col  in  3d  regt,  Penn.  vols.  In  184t)  he  was 
elected  controller  of  the  public  schools  of  Phil,  co.,  resigning  in  IM'.I  to 
come  to  Cal.,  where  he  arrived,  on  the  Sii.idn  O.  Owens,  in  Oct.  He  was 
chairman  pro  tem.  of  the  senate  in  1852,  and  gave  the  casting  vote  on  llio 
S.  F.  bulkhead  bill  in  the  interest  of  the  city.  In  1853  lie  was  chosen  st.ilo 
Bupt  of  public  instruction.  In  1859  ho  removed  to  Wash.  Ter.,  wlicri'  he 
prjvctised  law,  and  was  several  times  elected  to  the  presidency  of  the  Ut. 
council;  but  in  1805  he  returned  to  Vallejo,  Cal.,  where  he  died,  Nov.  17, 


GOVERNOR  BIGLER. 


667 


and  three  days  afterward  Governor  Bigler  was  inau- 
gurated.    He  was  in  many  ways  a  strong  contrast  to 

1S74,  of  heart  disease,  at  the  age  of  74  years.  He  was  an  active  politician 
ami  good  lawyer.  Los  Armeies  Ej^ress,  Nov.  26,  1874;  Oakland  1  ransa-ipt, 
Nov.  19,  1874;  Solano  Smsun  BeTpulilican,  Nov.  19,  1874;  Solano  Co  Hint., 
3.')7-(>4;  Vnllejo  Chronicle,  Nov.  21  and  Jan.  23,  1875;  Valkjo  Indeitendent, 
Nov.  18,  1874;  Oakland  Alameihi  Co.  GawUe,  Nov.  21,  1874. 

Joseph  £.  N.  Luwis,  of  Butte  and  Shasta,  was  born  in  Jefferson  co.,  Va, 
in  182(),  an<l  educated  at  William  and  Mary  college.  He  studied  law  wiih 
B.  F.  Wasliington,  and  was  admitted  to  tlio  bar  of  Va.  In  1849  he  came  to 
Cal.,  settling  in  Butte  co.  which  he  helped  to  organize,  and  being  its  lirst 
s'Miator.  He  was  an  able  lawyer,  but  reserved  in  disposition,  unmarried,  and 
ni)t  a  member  of  any  of  the  pioneer  societies  of  the  state.  He  died  suddeidy 
of  lieart  disease,  in  July  1809,  generally  lamented  by  the  members  of  tlie  bar 
iu  liis  county.  Sta  Cruz  Sentind,  July  3,  18G9;  Carson  Appeal,  Nov.  20,  1874. 

Philip  A.  Roach  was  born  in  Ireland  in  1820,  and  came  to  N.  Y.  in  1822, 
and  to  Cal.  in  1849,  arriving  at  Monterey  July  15th,  after  a  journey  across 
tlio  Isthmus  midst  cholera  and  fever.  He  erected  two  houses  at  Monterey 
ami  entered  upon  business  there.  He  was  of  much  use  to  the  administration 
of  ( ien.  Riley,  and  held  the  office  of  judge  of  the  First  Instance.  Under  the 
state  organization  he  became  1st  mayor  of  Monterey,  was  elected  in  1851  to 
the  senate  for  two  years.  He  was  the  author  of  the  law  authorizing  married 
women  to  transact  business  in  their  own  names  as  sole  traders.  In  185.3  he 
was  appointed  U.  S.  appraiser  for  the  dist  of  S.  F.,  which  office  he  held  until 
1801,  when  he  resigned,  and  in  1807  was  editing  the  A'x(i»iirier.  In  1873  he 
w;is  elected  state  senator  for  four  years,  and  was  sent  a  com.  to  W!vs)\ington 
to  secure  restriction  of  Chinese  immigration.  Among  the  democratic  leaders 
of  Cal.  he  has  maintained  a  2>rominent  position  from  the  organization  of  the 
party  to  a  late  period.  See  Qiti./ley's  JrM  Rare,  337-48;  Uoarh,  StnU'ment, 
MS.,  1-S;  Larkin,  Doc.,  MS.,  vi'i.  187;  N.  Y.  Graphic,  in  Sta  Cria  SerUinel, 
July  15,  1870;  Limantour,  Opin.  U.  S.  Judije,  9;  Upluim  Notes,  497-503;  Sac. 
ItiTord,  Doe.  1,  1873;  We-it  Cmist  Shjmd,  May  25,  1875;  Monterey  Herald, 
July  11,  1874;  Lakeport  AwiUiwlve,  June  17,  1871;    Val.,  Doc.,  MS.,  55,  195. 

H.  C  llobinson,  of  Sac.,  was  a  native  of  Conn.,  but  removed  at  an  early 
age  to  La,  and  was  educated  to  the  profession  of  law.  He  came  to  (^al.  in 
l'>i9,  on  the  first  passage  of  the  steamer  C(d\fomia.  Anaheim  Gagetle,  Oct.  10, 
1S57. 

The  assembly  consisted  of  I>.  L.  Blanchard,  J.  Brush,  J.  "V.  Coffroth, 
W.  B.  Dameron,  and  T.  J.  Ingersoll,  Tuolumne;  L.  W.  Boggs  and 
J.  M.  Hudspeth,  Sonoma;  P.  Cannay  and  J.  H.  ( iibsou,  Placer;  A.  Cr.  Cald- 
w(!ll,  Sutter;  D.  M.  Cliauncey,  A.  C.  Peachy,  A.  J.  Ellis,  Bjuj.  Orrick,  G. 
W.  Ten  Broeck,  Herman  Wohler,  and  R.  N.  Wood,  S.  F. ;  T.  H.  Coats, 
Klamath;  G.  W.  Colby,  A.  Kipp,  G.  N.  McConaha,  and  J.  C.  Tucker,  Sac; 
J.  Cook,  J.  H.  Paxtan,  and  James  H.  Gardiner,  Yuba;  H.  A.  Crabb,  R.  P. 
Hammond,  Fred  Yeiser,  San  Joaquin;  A.  P.  Crittenden  ami  J.  T.  Thomp- 
8011,  Santa  Clara;  C.  B.  Stevenson,  Sta  Cruz;  John  Cutler,  W.  R.  Hopkins, 
S.  A.  McMeans,  and  A.  Wing,  El  Dorado;  Yguacio  Del  Valle,  Andreas  Pico, 
l.iis  Angeles;  E.  F.  W.  Ellis,  W.  H.  Lyons,  and  J.  N.  Turner,  Nevada;  S. 
Fleming,  E.  I).  Poarse,  Shasta;  H.  L.  Ford,  Col  isa;  C.  H.  Fowler,  J.  L.  Liw, 
a:i(l  Nelson  D.  Morse,  Butte;  James  S.  Graham,  Solano;  A.  Haraszthy,  San 
Uiego;  P.  T.  Herbert,  S.  A.  Merritt,  and  T.  E.  Ridley,  Mariposa;  A.  Hinch- 
nm\,  J.  M.  Covarrubias,  Santa  Biirl>ara;  W.  P.  Jones,  W.  L.  Kim,  and  (J. 
K.  Young,  Calaveras;  F.  S.  McKenzie,  G.  O.  McMullin,  Trinity;  M.  Paclu^co, 
•Sail  Luis  Obispo;  J.  G.  Parrish,  Yolo;  Napolcan  B.  Smith,  Contra  Costa;  J. 
^.  Stark,  Napa;  A.  W.  Taliaferro,  Marin  and  Mendocino;  Isaac  B.  Wall, 
Moutarey. 

Officers  of  the  assembly  were:  R.  P.  Hammond,  speaker;  Blanton  McAlpin, 
chief  clerk;  All»ert  Alden,  asst  clerk;  J.  C.  Pottor,  eugrossmg  clerk;  W.  C. 
Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    42 


I 

If,  ■ ' ' 

i: 


688 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


.5, 


McDougal.  Honest  and  easy,"  the  squatters  called 
him,  to  whom  he  was  indeed  a  father.  He  was  an 
approachable,  good-natured,  neighborly  man,  who  had 
not  scorned  to  labor  with  his  hands  when  it  seenud 
necessary,  to  unload  steamboats  at  two  dollars  an 
hour,  cut  wood,  take  a  contract  for  making  cotton 
comfortables  when  bedding  was  in  demand,^  or  soil 
goods  by  the  hammer  in  an  auction  store.  There 
were  those  who  said  his  election  had  been  secured  by 
ballot-box  stuffing;  but  it  seems  more  rational  to  be- 
lieve that  the  squatters,  who  were  a  power  in  1851, 
joined  themselves  to  the  southern  democracy  and 
carried  the  election.  Gwin  had  not  despised  the 
squatter  influence,  as  his  land  bills  and  land  commis- 
sion testified;  and  why  should  Bigler?  As  far  as 
manners  went,  Reading  would  have  pleased  the  chiv- 
alry much  better;  but  his  politics  were  not  of  tlieir 
complexion,  and  Reading  had  the  disadvantage  be- 
sides of  having  been  associated  in  business  with  Sutter, 
to  whom  the  squatters  were  as  a  party  hostile.  But 
a  bettor  reason  than  any  other  for  Bigler's  victory 
was  the  fact  that,  as  I    have   said,   California  was 

Kibbc,  enrolling  clerk;  C.  C.  Hornsby,  eergt-at-arms.  J.  H.  Warrington, 
door-keeper;  Richard  Zam1)ert,  page;  V.  U.  Hubbs,  asst  page.  Tiunniui  J. 
IngersoU  M'as  bom  at  Tolland,  Conn.,  180G,  of  early  colonial  stock.  He  pos- 
sessed an  academic  education,  and  studied  medicine  at  Worthington  college, 
Ohio,  M'here  he  graduated  in  1836,  going  aferward  to  Louisville  and  St  Louis. 
In  IS38  he  settled  in  La,  practising  his  profession  until  1849,  when  he  cauic  to 
Cal.  via  N.  M.,  and  located  himself  in  Tuolumne  co.,  where  he  engagoil  in 
mining  and  medicine.  In  1852  he  removed  to  San  Jose,  where  he  married  in 
1859  Mary  Gorman,  a  native  of  St  Louis,  Mo.  He  died  April  .SO,  I88();  S.  J. 
Pioneer,  May  8,  1880;  8.  F.  Chronicle,  May  1,  1880;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  May  1, 
1880. 

A.  W.  Taliaferro  wtw  one  of  the  Virginia  company,  which  was  organized 
in  Richmond  in  April  1849.  It  was  composed  of  75  members,  who  disbanded 
soon  after  arrival.  The  vessel  which  brought  the  company  arrived  in  Oct., 
and  was  soon  sold  for  a  third  of  its  value,  the  cargo,  chiefly  tobacco,  ln'iiig 
left  to  rot  in  the  streets.  An  association  formed  out  of  the  dissolved  Vir^'inia 
CO.,  Taliaferro  being  one,  leased  the  mission  lands  of  San  Rafael  from  Don 
Timoteo  Murphy,  for  farming  purposes,  but  did  not  long  continue  in  this 
peaceful  occupation.  Of  all  these  adventurers,  Taliaferro  alone  remained  a 
permanent  resident  of  Marin  co.,  which  several  times  elected  him  to  tho 
assembly  and  senate.  Mann  Co.  Hi«t.,  121-2. 

'^Plumas  Ndtional,  Dec.  9,  1871;  Siic.  Reporter,  Nov.  W,  1871;  Cnmj, 
InddenU,  MS.,  11-12;  Solano  Press,  1865,  in  IIay>>s  Cal.  Notes,  ii.  289;  (!"i:'ii 
Inatujurul  Message,  in  CaL  Jour.  Aasenu,  28-9-  Sac  Transcript,  Feb.  14  aud 
June  1,  1851. 


DAVID  COLBERT  BRODERICK. 


669 


democratic.  Had  the  governor  been  able  to  with- 
stand the  influence  of  his  associations,  or  to  control 
leg^islation,  his  after-fame  might  have  been  brighter ; 
i'vw  men  realize,  however,  when  they  are  in  the  smoke 
of  battle,  that  they  are  making  history,  and  must  be 
tried  by  its  searching  light.  He  talked  honestly,  but 
alack!  of  how  many  degrees  is  political  honor!  Tlie 
apportionment  having  been  increased,^^  as  well  as  the 
counties,  there  were  G2  members  in  the  assembly,  and 
27  in  the  senate,^"^  Frank  Sould  in  the  latter  body 
enjoying  the  distinction  of  being  the  only  whig  elected 
to  it  in  1851. 

On  the  28th  of  Januarv  the  two  branches  of  the 
legislature  met  in  convention  to  elect  a  United  States 
senator  to  succeed  Fremont,  the  term  having  still  five 
years  to  run  from  the  4th  of  March.  On  the  eighth 
ballot  John  B.  Weller  was  elected.  In  this  election 
tlie  opposing  candidate^  was  David  Colbert  Broder- 
iek.  He  was  an  Irishman,  born  in  Kilkenny,  in  1820, 
liis  father,  a  skilful  stone-cutter,  being,  with  others, 
selected  by  an  agent  of  the  American  government 
to  perform  the  decorative  work  in  the  interior  of  the 
national  capitol  at  Washington.  Here,  as  a  lad,  Brod- 
erick  began  learning  the  trade  of  his  father,  wlio 
afterward  removed  to  New  York,  wJiere  he  soon  died, 
leaving  the  mother  of  David  and  a  younger  brotlier 
to  tlie  care  of  the  eldest  son,  who  was  apprenticed  to 
a  stone-cutter  of  the  city.  It  is  recorded  of  him  that 
lie  discharged  his  duty  faithfully,  even  fondly.  But 
the  mother  soon  died,  and  young  Broderick  was  left 
without  parental  guidance  in  the  metropolis,  where 
his  condition  in  life  brousrht  him  in  contact  with  the 


"The  third  legislature  created  3  additional  counties;  namely  .Tulare,  with 
the  county  seat  at  Woodsville;  Siskiyou,  county  suat  at  Shasta  Butto  (Yrcka); 
iSicrra,  county  seat  at  Downieville.  Cal.  SUU.,  1852,  pp.  240-1,  233-5,  2;J0-3. 

"Souli,  UtatemcHt,  MS.,  4.  In  the  aasembly  from  his  district  there  were  4 
Whigs,  Orrick,  Ellis,  Wood,  and  Thome.  S.  F.  Alt<i,  Sept.  7,  1851. 

"•'  There  were  several  nominees,  but  none  with  any  cliance  asainst  Weller 
and  Broderick.  George  B.  Tingley,  A.  Anderson,  Wdliam  Smith,  R.  M.  Mc- 
Laiiu,  J.  H.  Ralston,  To<l  Robinson,  T.  B.  King,  and  others  were  nominated. 
Cui.  Jour,  Sen.,  li)62,  GS-bZ 


iM 


660 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


rude  and  muscular  element.  He  became  a  chief  amonnr 
firemen,  an  athlete,  a  gladiator,  the  champion  of  weaker 
men  who  were  his  friends.  Feeling  within  him  the 
forces  of  a  strong  nature  ever  striving  upward,  he  grew 
fond  of  exercising  these  faculties,  and  being  desirous  ot' 
educating  himself,  abandoned  his  laborious  trade  to 
keep  a  dram-shop,  which  occupation  brought  him  more 
in  contact  with  men,  and  gave  him  better  opportunities 
for  reading.  Before  he  reached  his  majority  he  was 
a  thorough  politician,  was  called  to  preside  in  conven- 
tions, and  gave  advice  in  the  management  of  polities  I 
campaigns.  He  preserved  a  high  tone  and  correct 
demeanor;  and  although  his  origin  was  lowly,  and  his 
associations  more  or  less  debased,  he  seemed  not  to 
be  sensibly  bound  down  by  them,  but  to  rise  year  by 
year  on  the  shoulders  of  the  electors  of  the  nintli 
ward  of  New  York  City  to  higher  and  yet  higher 
places,  obtaining  at  length  a  position  in  the  New  York 
custom-house,  where  he  dispensed  patronage. 

In  1845  Broderick  was  chosen  by  his  district  to 
preside  in  convention  for  forming  a  new  charter  for 
the  city,  and  was  applauded  for  his  liberal  views,  and 
for  the  firmness  with  which  he  adhered  to  them.  In 
this  same  year  he  lost  his  young  brother,  which  left 
him  alone  in  the  world,  his  serious  nature  becoming 
from  this  time  sad  in  a  marked  degree.  During  these 
early  years  he  attracted  the  attention  and  secured  the 
friendship  of  George  Wilkes,  editor  of  the  Natioital 
Police  Gazette,  who  for  the  remainder  of  his  life  Mas 
the  Jonathan  to  this  David,  loving  him  with  a  devo- 
tion passing  the  love  of  woman. 

In  1846  he  was  nominated  for  congressman,  but 
defeated  by  a  small  majority,  by  a  split  in  his  party, 
he  refusing  to  coalesce  with  the  'barn-burners.'  He 
was  renominated  in  1848,  but  declined  to  run,  for  pe- 
cuniary reasons.  He  came  to  California  in  the  spring 
of  1849,  penniless  and  sick;  for  among  the  charactei- 
istics  of  this  man  of  brawn  and  stature  was  a  feminine 
sensibility,  which  had  received  many  a  jar  in  his  polit- 


THE  SENATORIAL  GOAL. 


661 


ical  strife  and  failures,  and  pecuniary  losses.  Here  lie 
met  some  former  friends,  and  as  there  was  a  lack  of 
coin  on  the  coast,  and  several  months  being  required 
to  procure  it  from  the  east,  it  was  proposed  to  form  a 
company  to  assay  and  coin  gold.  Frederick  D,  Koliler 
was  selected  for  the  assayer,  and  Broderick  became 
his  associate,  performing  the  severe  manual  labor 
required.  They  coined  so-called  five  and  ten  dollar 
pieces;  and  the  profit  upon  these  coins,  which  con- 
tained only  four  and  eight  dollars  respectively,  and 
upon  the  gold  purchased  at  $14  per  ounce,  soon  placed 
Broderick  in  good  circumstances,  and  laid  the  foun- 
<lation  of  a  fortune,  large  for  those  times.  In  the 
autumn  of  1849  the  firm  sold  the  business,  and  Brod- 
erick began  to  think  of  returning  to  politics.  The 
New  York  democracy,  with  whose  ways  he  was  famil- 
iar, was  largely  represented  in  California,  and  particu- 
larly in  San  Francisco,  at  this  period.  What  more 
natural  or  likely  than  that  the  habit  of  managing 
politics  should  return  with  the  opportunity? 

Nathaniel  Bennett  having  resigned  from  the  senate 
of  the  first  state  legislature  to  accept  a  place  on  the 
supreme  bench,  Broderick  was  elected  to  fill  the  va- 
cancy, as  I  have  stated  in  another  place.  In  1851 
ho  was  elected  president  of  the  senate,  and  ruled  with 
extreme  propriety,  not  one  of  his  decisions  being  re- 
versed.^* He  studied  law,  history,  and  literature  with 
the  same  ardor  with  which  he  pursued  any  object;  in 
due  time  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  became  clerk 
of  the  supreme  court.  In  these  successive  steps, 
Broderick  was  cc  u,.u.atly  encouraged  by  the  letters 

'*0n  one  occasion  lie  assaulted  a  reporter  of  the  AUa,  who  he  fancied  had 
impugned  his  motives  and  conduct  in  rcfcreui'e  to  the  military  appropriation 
liill^  calling  him  into  a  committee-room  and  treating  him  with  violence,  the 
reporter  l)emg  rescued  by  other  senators.  S.  F.  Alia,  March  27,  1851.  He 
fiiught  a  duel  with  J.  Caleb  Smith  of  8.  F.,  in  1852,  in  which  his  life  was 
s.ived  by  his  watch.  Sac.  State  Jotimnl,  March  10,  1852.  The  quarrel  grow 
out  of  remarks  by  Broderick  upon  the  habits  of  Ex-gov.  William  Smith  of  Va, 
who  had  provoked  a  scoring  by  his  oifensive  deportment  during  the  previous 
t^etiatorial  election.  The  eldest  son  of  Smith  took  up  the  matter,  which  re- 
sulted ill  a  duel  following  upon  a  card  by  Judge  Suiith,  Broderick  being  tlie 
challenger.  S.  F.  Foot,  Sept.  12,  1878. 


r4 


«'f 


PI 

•  1 
'■1    a 

^B  imI 

'it 


GG2 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


of  his  devoted  friend  Wilkes,  who  as  early  as  1850, 
seeing  that  California  was  about  to  become  a  state, 
urged  him  "to  fix  his  eye  boldly  and  steadily  upon 
the  position  of  United  States  senator  for  California  ;"^' 
to  which  Broderick  had  replied,  like  the  great  evan- 
gelist, "Come  over  and  help  us,"  and  took  the  proftcrid 
advice. 

Broderick  was  now  thirty-five  years  of  age;  was 
thoroughly  trained  in  party  politics,  and  was  an  un- 
compromising, if  not  a  pro-slavery,  democrat.  Theio 
had  begun  to  be  a  distinction  made  between  northern 
and  southern  men  of  the  same  party,  and  Senator 
Gwin,  a  southern  democrat,  was  the  leader  of  the  pro- 
slavery  faction  in  California.  To  divide  the  party,  on 
any  pretence,  had  always  been  regarded  as  a  crime  hy 
democrats.  The  immediate  adherents  of  Gwin  looked 
with  disfavor  upon  the  presumptuous  northerner,  of 
plebeian  origin,  who  aspired  to  sit  among  the  patricians 
of  southern  birth  in  the  nation's  highest  council. 

John  B.  Weller,  from  Ohio,  was  not  at  all  the  c(iual 
of  Broderick  as  a  politician,  but  he  had  occupied  plaees 
of  honor  in  his  state,  had  commanded  a  regiment 


ni 


** There  waa  a  story  current  that  on  le<aving  New  York  Bro<leriLk  swore 
ho  would  never  return  except  as  a  U.  S.  senator.  If  this  is  true,  he  diil  not 
know  what  he  was  swearing  almut.  At  that  period — tlie  spring  of  ]S4I)  - 
little  was  known  of  Cal. ;  certainly  not  that  it  would  mo  soon  hucoiue  a  statu 
of  the  union.  Men  went  there,  then,  for  gold,  iind  thought  of  politico*  after- 
ward. In  the  sworn  statement  of  CJeorge  Wilkes,  from  which  I  liavc;  just 
quoted,  he  avers  that  Broderick  replied  to  his  suggestion,  that  the  ntiiik  sot 
was  too  high  for  him;  but  if  he,  Wilkes,  would  come  to  Cal.,  and  unitf  liis 
efforts  with  his  own,  'there  was  nothing  in  the  way  of  political  aml>itiiiii 
which  he,  Broderick,  would  not  then  venture  to  undertiike. '  Affidavit  of 
Oeoiye  [VUkes,  this  being  a  sworn  statement  of  the  relations  between  UnMloi- 
ick  ami  himself,  ma<le  in  180*2,  on  the  contest  of  Bro<lerick's  will.  Concirii- 
ing  Broderick,  and  the  circumstances  of  his  life,  the  evidence  is  now  abundant, 
and  it  is  time  to  present  him  in  his  true  character,  which  has  been  distoi-tol 
by  both  enemies  and  friends  into  something  abnormal.  I  Knd  nothing  in  it 
not  easily  accounted  for  by  his  circumstiinccs  and  evident  traits  of  coiiHtltii 
ti(m.  Among  his  biographers  are:  Quigky,  liish  Race  in  Cal.,  295-302;  S/nni; 
Hqpreaentatiim  Men,  385-U3;  Fii'lda'  Reminiscences,  7D-84;  Ri/ckinan,  MS.,  H; 
S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  16,  17,  18,  1855,  and  Sept.  IG,  1859;  Sac'  Union,  Sept.  17, 
1859;  Id.,  Apr.  27,  1872;  S.  F.  Herald,  Sept.  18,  1859;  S.  F.  AUa,  l»eo.  8, 
1856,  and  Sept.  17,  18,  1859;  S.  F.  Argonaut,  Apr.  28,  1878;  Monr<w>,  MS.,  It; 
Hayea'  Coll.,  Cal.  Pol,  ii.  82;  McGowan,  in  S.  F.  Post,  Feb.  22  and  March  S, 
1879;  Pajaro  Times,  Dec.  31,  1864;  Crosby's  Early  ErenU,  MS.,  66-7;  llituWn 
Hist.  8.  F.,  307-19;  Merrill,  StaUment,  MS.,  10;  J.  W.  Forney,  in  6'.  F. 
Post,  March  8,  1879. 


JOHN  B.  WELLER. 


668 


the  Mexican  war,  and  when  his  former  general  became 
])resident,  was  appohited  commissioner  to  settle  the 
Mexican  boundary,  and  was,  besides,  a  southern  pro- 
slavery  democrat.  Only  to  such  would  the  Gwin 
management  permit  the  prize  to  tall.  Like  Gwin  and 
Fremont,  he  fixed  upon  California  as  the  field  where 
lie  was  to  achieve  the  triumph  of  an  election  to  the 
national  senate,  and  when  the  scate  was  admitted, 
resigned  his  place  on  the  boundary  commission  to 
engage  in  law  and  politics.  Care  for  the  best  inter- 
ests of  California  was  no  motive.  To  do  what  would 
strengthen  party  and  make  votes  was  the  aim.  Every 
$100,000,  or  land  grant,  or  other  gift  to  the  state,  was 
us  a  bribe  to  reelection.  A  more  ett'octual  bribe  was 
j)t'rsonal  patronage.  During  Fillmore's  administra- 
tion Gwin  managed  this  matter  with  nmch  adroitness, 
Joeing  a  democrat  in  a  democratic  senate,  he  had  the 
jiowcr  to  cause  the  rejection  of  the  whig  president's 
appointments,  in  other  states  as  well  as  California; 
yet  during  the  whole  of  ^Fillmore's  term,  with  a  single 
exception,  the  harmony  between  the  president  and 
the  California  senator  was  disturbed  but  once.*'  While 
maintaining  amicable  relations  with  tlie  executive  he 
controlled  the  federal  appointments  by  finesse,  as  he 
governed  affairs  in  California  by  the  inflexible  demo- 


'*This  was  in  relation  to  the  appointment  of  a  district  judge  for  the  north- 
ern district  of  Cal.  J.  P.  Ueujaiiiin,  of  lia,  a  typical  soutliurn,  pro-slavery 
democrat,  who  was  afterwanl  secretary  of  the  southern  confederacy,  wiw 
nominated  to  the  southern  and  Currey  to  the  northern.  But  (Iwin  objected 
to  Currey  because  he  was  not  known  to  him.  Finally  neither  of  tlio  nominees 
iu'ccpted,  on  account  of  the  small  pay,  <.nly  $3,500.  'I'et  llalstead,'  whom  I 
have  before  mentioned,  a  whig,  but  an  enemy  of  Currey's,  also  opposed  thi* 
nomination,  'and  ho  made  this  opposition  so  formidable,' says  (i win,  'that 
there  Wiis  no  remedy  left  for  mo  but  to  oppose  liis  contirmation.'  Currey  was 
a  personal  friend  of  the  prest,  who  persisted  in  the  iU)mination;  but  (Jwin 
:igain  rejected  him,  when  the  |>re8t  becamo  angry,  and  threatened  to  leave 
Cal.  without  U.  S.  courts.  In  this  dilemma  (I win  besought  the  good  otiiees 
of  Webster,  sec.  of  stiitu,  who  recommended  Ogden  Hotfuian,  of  N.  Y.,  son  of 
O.  Hotfman,  8r,  the  lawyer,  orator,  and  statesman.  Seward  unexpectt^dly 
opposed  this  nomination — Hotfman  being  a  leader  of  that  wing  of  tlie  whig 
jiiirty  called  the  'silver  grays'— on  account  of  the  youth  of  the  nominee, 
wliom  ho  described  as  'only  al)oy.'  Ho  proved  to  be  '29  years  old,  and  a 
thorough  jurist.  Ho  was  confirmed,  and  Cal.  received  an  able  juilge,  while 
Fillmore  was  placated.  Both  Hoffman  and  Junes,  the  first  U.  8.  judgoa, 
were  under  30  when  appointed. 


664 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


cratio  discipline.  A  southern  whig,  like  T.  B.  King", 
might  hold  an  office,  but  a  northern  anti-slavery 
democrat  found  no  favor  and  no  mercy. 

The  legislation  of  1852  was  remarkable  chiefly  for 
the  distinction  sought  to  be  made  between  the  white 
and  colored  races.  There  was  a  color  even  to  crime, 
black  wickedness  being  more  horrible  than  white.^' 
Of  nineteen  pardons  to  criminals  granted  during  ^Mc- 
Dougal's  term,  four  were  to  Mexicans  and  the  remain- 
ing fifteen  to  white  men  bearing  English  names,  to  all 
of  whom,  including  the  Mexicans,  citizenship  miglit 
be  granted  under  the  laws;  while  another  man,  who 
has  not  yet  appeared  on  the  criminal  list,  "on  account 
of  color,"  should  be  legislated  against,  and  doomed 
forever  to  live  under  laws  which  **  patent  his  inferior- 
ity," and  rouse  in  him,  justly,  a  hatred  of  his  oppres- 
sors. Senator  Broderick  vigorously  opposed  these 
sentiments,  but  was  almost  alone  in  his  party  in  con- 
demning them.  It  made  him  an  object  of  distrust  on 
the  part  of  the  chivalry,  who  thenceforward  sou}i;ht 
occasions  of  hostility  toward  the  advocate  of  free 
labor  and  human  rights. 


"  The  annual  report  of  the  board  of  state  prison  inspectors,  with  Gov. 
McDougal  at  its  head,  had  this  significant  paragraph:  'The  board  of  state 
prison  inspectors  beg  leave,  in  conclusion,  to  call  attention,  simply  with  ref- 
erence to  its  bearing  upon  crime,  to  the  expediency  of  prohibiting,  by  strin- 
gent law,  the  importation  into  this  state  of  foreign  convicts,  or  of  those  otluT 
persons  belonging  to  alien  and  servile  races,  who,  on  account  of  color  or  from 
other  causes,  are  excluded  by  the  spirit  of  our  laws  from  participating  in  the 
privileges  and  rights  of  citizenship.  This,  though  a  matter  of  less  immediate 
than  eventful  importance,  is  nevertheless  worthy  of  present  attention.  Fur 
a  while,  no  doubt,  they  may  continue  peaceable  and  obedient,  but  we  submit 
whether  jealousies  and  hatred  will  not  inevitably  spring  up;  whether  they 
will  not  learn  to  detest  and  violate  laws  that  patent  their  inferiority  until 
our  jails  shall  be  filled  with  their  numbers,  and  the  ingenuity  of  legislation 
be  exhausted  in  devising  coercive  laws.  We  submit  whether  danger  is  not 
to  be  apprehended  from  the  presence  amongst  us,  in  great  numbers,  of  au 
ignorant  and  dependent  caste,  excluded  from  rights  to  the  enjoyment  of 
which  all  others  may  freely  aspire,  and  yet,  at  the  same  time,  exempt  from 
that  complete  subjection  to  the  will  of  another  which  can  only  result  from 
tlie  formidable  relation  of  master  and  slave.  From  the  Pelagian  races  in 
Greece  to  the  free  negroes  of  the  United  States,  and  the  peace  of  neighbor- 
ing republics,  the  degraded  race  have  always  needed  the  jailer  and  execu- 
tioner, and  been  conspicuous  for  drunkenness,  improvidence,  and  crime.' 
Thus  lucidly  the  pro-slavery  democracy  reasoned. 


THE  BAD  BLACK  MAN. 


665 


In  consonance  with  the  suggestions  offered  in  the 
report  herein  quoted,  an  act  was  passed  "  respecting 
fugitives  from  labor,  and  slaves  brought  to  tliis  state 
})rior  to  her  admission  to  the  union,"  which  provided 
for  the  arrest  of  fugitive  slaves,  and  their  return  to 
servitude  in  the  state  or  territory  from  which  they 
luid  escaped.  Under  this  law  a  colored  man  or  woman 
could  be  brought  before  a  magistrate,  claimed  as  a 
slave,  and  the  person  so  seized  not  being  permitted  to 
testify,  the  judge  had  no  alternative  but  to  issue  a 
certificate  to  the  claimant,  which  certificate  was  "  con- 
clusive of  the  right  of  the  person  or  persons  in  whose 
fiivor  granted,"  and  prevented  "  all  molestation  of  such 
person  or  persons,  by  any  process  issued  by  any  court, 
judge,  justice,  or  magistrate,  or  other  person  whomso- 
ever." Any  assistance  rendered  the  fugitive,  against 
his  arrest,  made  the  person  so  aiding  him  liable  to  a 
fine  of  $500  dollars  or  imprisonment  for  two  mouths. 
All  slaves  who  had  escaped  into  or  were  brought  to 
California  previous  to  the  admission  of  the  state  to 
the  union  were  held  to  be  fugitives,  and  were  liable 
to  arrest  under  the  law,  although  many  of  them  had 
been  free  for  several  years,  and  had  by  industry  accu- 
nmlated  a  competency.  Illustrative  instances  have 
been  given  in  a  previous  chapter.  The  law  of  1852 
confined  the  operation  of  the  last-named  section  to 
one  year  from  date,  but  the  legislature  of  1853,  see- 
ing that  there  were  still  free  negroes  in  the  state, 
extended  this  provision  to  1854.  The  legislature  of 
1854  also  extended  it  another  year. 

Under  the  constitution  of  California  slavery  could 
not  exist;  but  this  legislative  body  attempted  to  in- 
troduce the  coolie  system  by  an  act  providing  for  the 
enforcement  of  contracts  for  foreign  labor,  made  under 
it,  for  a  term  not  exceeding  five  years.  The  bill  origi- 
nated in  the  senate  with  G.  B.  Tingley,  a  whig,  and 
was  referred  to  a  select  committee  composed  of  Ting- 
ley,  Anderson,  Walsh,  Foster,  and  Roach,  democrats, 
which  reported  favorably  upon  it,  except  Roach,  who 


t 


666  POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

in  a  minority  report  stripped  the  scheme  of  its  dis- 
guises and  laid  it  to  rest  under  an  indefinite  postpone- 
ment.** To  all  these  devices  to  ingraft  slave-state. 
sentiments  upon  the  politics  of  California,  Broderick 
was  as  actively  opposed  as  to  slavery  itself,  regardless 
of  the  frowns  of  the  majority. 

In  January  Senator  Gwin  suggested  to  Governor 
Bigler,  and  tlirough  him  to  the  legislature,  to  pass  a 
law  giving  its  consent  to  the  purchase  of  lands  from 
individuals  or  companies  for  sites  on  which  to  erect 
any  of  the  public  improvements  ^^roVided  for  in  bills 
then  before  congress,  and  even  sent  a  draught  of  such 

'«Crt/.  Stilt.,  1852,  67-9;  /^.,  1853,  pp.  94-5;  Cal.  Jour.  Sen.,  1852,  30C-7. 
The  report  of  Roach  is  so  superior  to  the  general  tone  of  legislatioa  at  tliia 
Bession  that  I  am  prevented  from  giving  it  entire  only  by  lack  of  space.  Its 
tone  will  be  uudorstooil  from  a  few  extracts.  'Thus  far  the  mines  have  been 
opjii  and  free  to  the  labor  of  the  world,  and  they  have  been  so  productive 
that  liartUy  a  law  has  been  needed  for  their  regulation.  This  state  of  things 
has  assembled  in  Cal.  pco})le  of  every  race  and  clime,  of  every  tongue  ami 
creed;  some  entitled  to  work  our  mines  upon  the  same  terms  as  our'own  peo- 
ple, for  reciprocal  justice  gave  them  the  right  to  claim  it,  while  others  wero 
entitled  to  no  .such  privilege;  yet  they  formed,  perhaps,  a  majority  of  the 
foreign  miners,  and  drew  from  our  soil  a  greater  quantity  of  the  precious 
metals  tl»an  our  own  citizens.  This  led  to  the  cry  that  foreigners,  as  such, 
ouglit  to  be  taxed;  and  as  a  concession  to  public  clamor,  a  law,  unjust,  un- 
constitutional, and  indiscriminating,  was  passed,  prohibiting  foreigners  with- 
out a  license  from  working  upon  lands  belonging  to  the  U.  S.,  whereas,  hy 
the  solemn  faith  of  our  govt,  as  pledged  by  treaty  stipulations,  various  pcoplus 
have  as  much  right  to  work  those  lands  as  to  breathe  the  air  in  which  we  hve. 
. .  .At  the  same  time,  a  ruinous  competition  should  not  be  forced  upon  the 
people  of  this  state  by  bringing  servile  labor  to  contend  against  the  interests 
of  our  working  classes.  That  population  forms  the  majority  of  our  people; 
it  is  they  who  are  to  uphold  upon  the  shores  of  the  Pacitic  that  government 
and  its  principles  which  seem  destined  to  make  the  circuit  of  the  gluhe. 
When,  under  this  bill,  Asiatic  labor  shall  take  its  march  to  our  state,  the 
low  price  at  which  it  can  be  brought  renders  necessary  that  some  restriction 
be  imposed  as  to  what  branches  of  industry  it  shall  be  confined;  for  we  iiuist 
have  a  population  of  our  own  race  suflSciently  numerous  to  control  it,  and  not 
depending  upon  the  same  pursuits  in  which  this  servile  labor  may  be  employeil. 
. .  .The  apparent  object  ot  this  bill  is  to  place  foreign  labor  at  the  disposal  of 
our  own  people,  in  order  that,  if  foreigners  earn  money,  it  may  be  for  their 
masters.  Tlie  amount  of  money  is  of  little  consequence  compared  with  tiie 
degrading  effect  of  any  law  that,  to  deprive  them  of  their  gain,  shall  make 
their  labor  inferior,  by  law,  to  capital,  and  give  to  the  latter  a  more  feudal 
right  to  dispose  of  their  persons  and  happiness.  I  am  opposed  to  any  enact- 
ment that  seeks  to  place  burdens  upon,  or  to  doom  to  inferiority,  any  race  of 
men  who  have  no  other  disability  to  become  citizens  except  residence. . .  .The 
hopes  of  the  republican  world  have  been  scared  by  the  retrograde  movemeuts 
of  France;  but  there  despotism  has  not  thought  of  making  one  white  nian 
the  serf  or  bondsman  of  another,  or  of  giving  to  capital,  for  the  term  of  live 
years,  the  hand  and  heart  of  labor.' 


OWIN'S  MEASURES. 


667 


an  act.'"  This  was  the  beginning  of  a  scandal  which 
troubled  the  senator  not  long  after,  concerning  the 
purchase  of  the  assay  office  in  San  Francisco,  and 
might  readily  have  been  taken  for  personal  anxiety  to 
consummate  a  bargain,  but  seems  not  to  have  been  so 
understood,  for  the  mandate  was  obeyed. 

Gwin,  in  his  manuscript  Mertioirs,  makes  much  of 
his  services  to  California  in  the  establishment  of  a ' 
mint,  and  says  little  of  the  charges  brought  against 
him  of  permitting  a  government  assay  office  to  be  es- 
tablished instead,  which  for  four  years  charged  two 
and  one  half  per  cent  on  the  gold  assayed,  causing  a 
loss  to  the  miners  of  California  each  year  of  more 
than  the  cost  of  a  mint,*"  while  one  half  per  cent 
would  have  covered  the  cost  of  the  assaying.  The 
democrats  raged  against  the  whig  administration  as 
the  cause  of  this  loss ;  but  now  and  then  a  whig  put 
the  question  of  how  came  the  two  and  one  half  per 
cent  in  the  bill,  and  who  received  the  extra  two  per 
cent.  A  writer  in  a  Marysvillr  journal,  in  1854, 
signing  himself  'Interior,*  reviewed  Gwin's  course  in 
connection  with  the  mint,  and  exposed  his  method. 
In  the  last  days  of  the  thirty-second  congress,  the  act 
making  appropriation  for  a  mint  having  passed,  Gwin 
introduced  into  the  deficiency  bill  an  amendment, 
which  in  effect  repealed  the  mint  bill,  and  gave  the 
whole  appropriation  to  the  secretary  of  the  treasury, 
to  be  applied  to  the  rent,  lease,  or  purchase  of  an  assay 
office.  This  was  the  explanation  of  his  desire  to  have 
the  legislature  confirm  his  action,  even  before  it  was 
consummated.*^     Marshall  opposed   it   in   the   lower 


triji! 


'*Gwin  says  that  defeated  office-seekers,  who  had  entered  into  a  solemn 
pleilge  to  destroy  him,  were  responsible  for  the  story  that  when  an  appropri- 
ation was  made  for  a  mint  in  S.  F.,  he  had  urged,  and  succeeded  in  sucuring, 
the  purchase  of  the  assay  works  there  for  the  purpose  of  immediately  com- 
mencing the  mint  operations,  and  had  received  a  consideration  from  the  own- 
ers of  the  property  for  his  services  in  securing  the  sale  to  the  government. 
Memoirs,  MS.,  135;  Cal.  Stat.,  1852,  149;  Hart/nville  Herald,  Sept.  26,  1854. 

**  In  the  report  of  the  committee  on  commerce  and  navigation  for  1852,  it 
was  stated  that  the  want  of  a  mint  in  California  for  three  years  had  cost  the 
miners  321,000,000.  Cat  Jour.  Sen.,  App.  656. 

*"  Interior '  quotes  Gwin's  repeal  of  the  mint  bill  as  follows:  Sec.  6th. 


i;  m 


h% 


Ml  rOLITICAL  HISTORY. 

house,  more  than  intimating  that  a  fraud  was  contoni- 
plated,  and  secured  an  amendnn^nt  declaring  that  "tlio 
sum  of  $;100,000  appropriated  by  said  act,  or  so  miicli 
thereof  as  may  l)e  necessary,  shall  be  applied  only  to 
the  erection  and  putting  in  operation  a  mint  in  Cali- 
fornia, and  not  to  the  purchase  of  any  building  tor 
that  purj)08e."  Nevertheless,  in  the  face  of  the  law 
the  assay  office  was  purchased,  and  converted  into  a 
nn!jt,  at  a  swijidling  price.  It  was  not  in  the  natuiu 
of  things  that  such  services  to  Moffatt  &  Co.  should 
go  unrewarded. 

The  legislature  sat  for  110  days,  and  passed  2M2 
acts  and  resolutions.  A  bill  was  introduced  in  the 
lower  house  "recommendinsf  the  electors  to  vote  for 
or  against  calliuij  a  convention  to  revise  and  chaiioo 
the  entire  constitution  of  the  state,"  which  was  killed 
in  the  senate."  The  subject  being  referred  to  a  special 
committee  in  the  assembly,  the  grievances  stated  as  a 
ground  for  revising  or  reenacting  the  constitution  were 

Be  it  further  enacted,  that  nothing  in  the  provisions  of  .in  act  entitled  *  an  act 
to  establish  a  brunch  mint  of  the  U.  S.  in  Cal.,'  shall  bu  construed  so  an  to 
prohibit  the  appointment  of  the  assayer  therein  autliorized,  before  the  execu- 
tion of  the  contract  for  and  the  completion  of  the  branch  mint  building's 
therein  authorized;  but  that  the  president  is  hereby  empowered  to  appoint, 
in  the  manner  presented  by  that  act,  an  assayer  for  said  brancii  mint,  la  an- 
ticipation of  the  cotnpletion  and  establishment  thereof;  that  the  secretary  of 
the  treasury  is  here  authorized  to  procure,  by  rent  or  lease,  a  building  or 
apartments,  and  to  lease,  purchase,  or  rent  machinery  in  the  city  of  S.  1''., 
suitable  for  the  receipt,  melting,  and  assay  of  deposits  of  gold,  in  dust  nr 
otherwise,  and  for  the  custody  of  gold  coin. . .  .Anil  that  there  is  hereby  ap- 
propriated, out  of  the  money  heretofore  appropriated  for  the  establishment  of 
a  branch  mint  in  Cal.,  so  much  as  may  bo  necessary  for  the  purposes  of  this 
act.  That,  of  course,  left  nothing  for  the  mint,  and  was,  as  Marshall  said, 
equivalent  to  a  repeal;  and  it  was  slyly  introduced  in  the  long  deficiency  bill, 
where  it  was  not  likely  to  be  detected.  But  the  addition  of  '  provided,  that 
no  contract  be  made  for  the  erection  and  establishment  of  the  said  mint  till 
the  further  order  of  congress.'  t  is  impossible,  says  '  Int<!rior,' addressing 
his  letter  to  (Jwin,  •  to  doubt  tha    you  acted  corruptly  in  the  aQ'air.     No  iu- 

cover,  a  transaction  which  luis  only  to  bu 
cssness  as  a  representative.'  But  (iwiii 
cuse  that  '  defeated  office-seekers  in  tlio 


genuity  can  defend,  no  charity  ci 
understood  to  establish  your  fai 
makes  in  his  Memoirs  the  poor 
democratic  party  entered  into  a  s< 
ning  of  Pierce's  administration.' 
places  had  not  begun  when  the  n 
passed;  and  it  mattered  not,  indeci 
plish;  they  had  nothing  to  do  wit), 
question, 

'•'Two  reports  were  rendered,  the  minority  being  against  the  bill. 
Jour.  Aaaem.,  1852,  106-774;  Hayes'  Comtit.  Law,  i.  38. 


mn  pledge  to  destroy  him,  at  the  begin- 
erce  s  administration  and  the  war  for 
it  and  deficiency  bills  referred  to  were 
what  Owin's  enemies  desired  to  acc(i;ii- 
:he  draughting  or  passage  of  the  bills  in 


Oil. 


PATRIOTIC  SCOUNDREUSM. 


669 


ail  net 
8o  as  to 
the  (iXfcu- 
l)uiMiii;,'s 
upiioiiit, 
lit,  111  iiii- 
ctury  of 
Itliug  <ir 
of  S.  F., 
dust  or 
.erelty  ap- 

"llllfllt  of 

us  of  this 

hull  8ai(l, 

iicy  bill, 

ded,  that 

mint  till 

IrRsHing 

No  iu- 

uly  to  lio 

lilt  (Iwiii 

rs  ill  tiie 

he  bugiii- 

war  for 

to  WlTC 

;o  aocoai- 
le  bills  in 

bill.  Vnl. 


tlie  inequality  of  taxation  and  representation  between 
tlio  north  and  south — a  motive  in  which  there  was 
some  truth  and  much  exnjjfgeration.  The  majority 
rule  applied  as  consistently  to  the  southern  inhahitants 
as  to  any;  and  the  effort  was  at  bottom  a  pro-slavery 
movement. 

The  deliberations  of  both  houses  were  in  the  main 
harmonious,  although  an  occasional  remark  struck  fire, 
as  when  Paul  K.  Huhbs  of  Tuohnnne  attributed  the 
low  price  of  the  state's  warrants  to  the  efforts  of  cer- 
tain bankers  to  depreciate  them,  looking  significantly 
at  J.  R.  Snyder  of  San  Francisco,  a  partner  in  the 
banking-house  of  James  King  of  William.  Snyder 
asked  in  a  threatening  manner  if  it  was  to  him  that 
Hubbs'  criticism  was  directed,  when  Broderick  inter- 
posed a  hope  that  his  colleague  would  not  attempt  to 
intimidate  the  senator  from  Tuolumne.  This  remark 
was  like  a  spark  to  powder.  Snyder  sprang  at  Hubbs, 
ami  was  only  prevented  from  assaulting  him  by  the 
interposition  of  other  muscular  senators,  who  rushed 
to  seize  the  frenzied  banker. 

A  serious  debate  arose  when  Crabb  of  San  Joaquin 
presented  a  bill  to  prevent  obstructions  to  the  run  of 
salmon  in  the  San  Joaqu'n  River,  as  to  which  of  the 
committees,  of  commerce  or  agriculture,  the  bill  should 
1)0  referred,  some  sharp  language  being  used.  Frank 
Soule  of  San  Francisco  restored  good  humor  by  mov- 
ing that  the  subject  be  referred  to  a  committee  con- 
sisting of  Crabb,  Roach,  Cook,  and  Frye. 

Estill  of  Solano  and  Napa,  who  was  apparently 
incapable  of  being  honest,  had  prepared  two  speeches 
upon  a  subject  of  importance,  one  of  which  was  given 
to  the  Placer  Times  (dem.),  and  the  other  to  the  Sac- 
ramento  Union  (whig),  both  made  conformable  to  the 
(»I)inion8  of  readers  of  the  different  political  journals. 
AVhen  he  came  to  speak  on  the  question  in  the  senate, 
he  paid  little  attention  to  his  utterances  already  in 
print,  as  a  report  of  what  he  was  then  saying  on  the 
rioor.     Broderick,  who  had  read  the  papers,  upbraided 


670 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


Estill  in  the  senate  for  his  duplicity.  As  he  wa;' 
leaving  the  chamber,  one  of  his  friends  cautioned  him 
concerning  the  pugilistic  senator  from  New  York, 
saying,  "Look  out  for  Dave."  "O,  thunder  1"  wa& 
the  senatorial  response;  "I  can  clean  him  out  in  a 
minute!"  And  notwithstanding  the  exposure,  Estil) 
was  treated  by  his  fellow-senators  as  if  the  v/hcio 
matter  were  a  jest.  In  such  ways  did  this  augtist 
body  defraud  and  laugh  at  the  people,  while  spending 
$200,000  of  the  people's  money,*^  wheedled  out  of 
their  pockets  by  allusions  to  the  honest  toil  of  the 
mining  population,  which  was  being  swindled  by  the 
United  States  whig  assaying  office. 

The  administration  of  President  Fillmore  was  draw- 
ing tj  a  cl'^^e.  In  February  1852  the  California 
branches  of  tiie  great  national  parties  began  to  muster 
their  forces.  The  whigs  held  a  convention  at  Sacra- 
mento on  the  20th  and  21st,  and  the  democrats  on 
the  23d  to  the  26th,  for  the  purpose  of  electing  dele- 
gates to  the  national  conventions  to  be  held  in  Phil- 
adelphia and  Baltimore.**  The  whigs  leaned  tt) 
Webster  for  president,  and  the  democrats  desired 
the  nomination  of  Douglas,  but  both  pledged  them- 
selves to  labor  for  nominees  of  the  national  choice, 
the  democrats,  with  that  settled  determination  to 
force  the  issue  of  slavery  upon  all  occasions,  adding 
to  their  resolutions  "provided  that  said  nominees  be 
neither  free-soilors  nor  abolitionists."*^ 

The  whigs  met  again  in  June  to  nominate  candi- 

** Roach,  Statement,  MS.,  13;  S.  F.  Alta,  May  6,  1852. 

"  The  whig  delegates  elected  were:  W.  F.  Stewsurt,  El  Dorado;  J.  0.  Good- 
win, Yuba;  J.  A.  Clay  Mudd,  S.  F.;  R.  W.  Heath,  San  Joaquin;  alternates, 
B.  F.  Whittin,  Mariposa;  A.  Morgan,  Calaveras;  A.  Lyie,  Trinity;  Judge 
Davis,  Yolo.  A  new  state  central  committee  was  chosen,  consisting  of  Dr 
N.  D.  Morse,  E.  J.  C.  Kewen,  Tod  Robinson,  Sac.;  J.  N.  Hoag  of  Yolo; 
John  Wilson  of  S.  F.;  H.  A.  Crabb,  San  Joaquin;  Thomas  Robinson,  El  Do- 
rado; R.  H.  Taylor,  Yuba.  S.  F.  Alta,  Feb.  22,  1852. 

*''  Proceedings  Dem.  State  Con.,  v.  20.  The  democrats  elected  four  delegates 
to  the  Baltimore  convention:  W.  H.  Richartlson  of  Sutter;  Jose  M.  L'ovar- 
rubiasof  StaBirbara;  £.  T>.  Hammond,  Sta  Clara;  Joshua  Holden,  'luoluiune. 
For  substitutes;  Henry  A.  Lyons,  S.  J'.;  AmosT.  Laird,  Nevada;  M.  M.  Woiu- 
baugh,  Yolo;  and  Charles  I<oriug,  Solano. 


LATHAM  AND  McDOUGALL. 


671 


dates  for  election  to  conj^ress,**  and  to  state  offices;*^ 
and  the  democrats  followed  with  a  state  convention  in 
July.  The  nominees  of  the  whig  party  were  not  fortu- 
nate ones,  being  either  men  little  known  or  who  were 
questionable.  It  was  patent  that  Tingley,  with  the 
odor  of  his  coolie  bill  upon  him,  could  not  be  elected 
to  congress,  and  that  P.  L.  Edwards,  from  the  "state 
of  Pike,"*®  as  Missouri  was  desparagingly  termed,  had 
small  chance  of  being  voted  in  by  the  chivalry,  or  by 
Yankee  electors,  Missourians  being  abhorred  of  both. 
The  democrats,  according  to  their  custom,  had  trained 
men,  well  known  to  both  parties,  and  ready  and  anx- 
ious for  positions.  The  nominee  for  congressman  from 
the  northern  district  was  a  rising  young  lawyer,  not 
unknown  in  politics,  Milton  S.  Latham,  and  for  the 
southern  district,  James  A.  McDougall;  with  other 
popular  men  for  the  state  offices.*®     Between  the  two 

**Thi8  election  of  congressman,  the  ytar  following  the  election  of  McCorkle 
auil  Marshall,  was  in  pursuance  of  a  law  of  the  late  legislature  fixing  the 
times  at  which  representatives  in  congress  should  be  electeil — Cal.  Stat.,  1852, 
14ii — and  to  prevent  the  recurrence  of  a  vacancy,  such  as  had  followed  the 
expiration  of  the  terms  of  Gilbert  and  Wright. 

"  The  nominees  for  congress  were  George  B.  Tingley,  Sta  Clara;  and  P.  L. 
Edwards,  Sac.;  for  judge  of  the  sup.  court  for  the  full  term,  J.  M.  Huntiug- 
tiiii,  Tuolumne,  to  succeed  Justice  N.  Bennett,  and  8tauton  Buchiier,  judge 
for  the  short  term;  William  W.  Hawks,  clerk  of  sup.  court;  presidential 
electors,  John  C.  Fall,  Yuba;  David  H.  Haskell,  S.  F.;  T.  D.  Johns,  and  J. 
A.  Hale;  alternates,  Thomas  Robinson,  El  Dorado;  A.  Maurice,  Butte;  Wil- 
liam A.  Robinson,  Siskiyou,  and  Samuel  Barney.  S.  F.  AlUi,  June  10,  1852. 

'•"Tliere  does  not  seem  to  have  be'iu  much  point  to  the  appellation.  There 
i.s  a  county  of  that  name  on  the  eastern  border  of  Mo.,  and  a  county  of  the 
same  name  on  the  western  liordcr  of  111. ,  only  wt'parated  from  each  other  by 
the  .Mississippi  River.  There  is  nothing  to  sitciw  that  the  immigration  from 
tliese  two  counties  was  specially  numerous — ttu  the  contrary,  the  greater 
part  of  the  immigrants  come  from  the  Wistern  counties.  But  any  lean,  lank, 
lazy,  ienorant,  and  nigger-hating  drone  from  tliia  part  of  the  state  who  had 
crossed  the  plains  with  an  ox-team,  to  squat  among  tlio  foothdls  of  the  Sierra, 
was  popularly  known  as  'an  arrival  from  Pike  co.,  Missouri,' until  every 
Missourian  was  8usi>ected  of  having  been  of  the  same  brood,  'ihey  were,  in 
trutli,  the  desceud.'Uita  of  pioneers  of  the  slave  states,  who,  having  moved 
friiiii  frontier  to  frontier  for  several  generations,  had  been  unable  to  keep  up 
Willi  the  progress  of  the  times,  ami  who  were  unfit  for  the  society  of  men 
wlio  had,  but  whose  ancestral  bloo<l  was  perhaps  no  bi  tter  than  theirs. 

**The  state  nominations  were:  Hugh  C.  Murray,  of  Solano,  jmlge  of  the 
su[).  court  fvvr  the  full  term,  to  succeed  N.  Bennett;  Alexander  Wells,  of 
S.  1'".,  for  the  short  term;  Preston  K.  Woodside,  of  Monterey,  for  clerk  of  the 
sup.  court;  Andreas  Pico,  of  Los  Angeles,  T.  J.  Henley,  of  Sac,  ^Vinfield  S. 
Sherwood,  of  Butti!,  and  Joseph  W.  Gregory,  of  Gregory's  Express  (."o.,  for 
pp'.sidential  electors;  alternates,  J.  L.  Brent,  Los  Anueles;  Linsiiii;  B.  Miz- 
ner,  Solano;  J.  A.  Watson,  Shasta;  and  Seth  B.  Farwell,  of  El  Dorado.     A 


M' 


jr   iji 


hnii 


672 


POUTICAL  HISTORY, 


parties  in  the  state  there  could  not  be  any  important 
issues,  both  desiring  the  same  benefits  to  tlie  state, 
and  botli  blaming  the  general  government  for  neglect, 
though  the  democrats  charged  the  executive,  and  the 
whigs  a  democratic  congress,  witli  the  responsibility. 

The  means  taken  by  the  north  to  placate  *.he  south, 
namely  the  nomination  of  a  military  man  with  ik* 
pronounced  politics,  was  under  the  circumstances 
v/ise;  the  concession  of  the  south  in  accepting  a 
northern  democrat  for  president  looked  like  a  return 
to  confidence. 

Both  tlie  great  national  parties  had  pledged  them- 
selves to  adhere  to  the  compromises  which  had  warded 
off  imminent  disunion  when  California  was  admitted, 
and  there  seemed 'not  much  left  to  differ  about;  but 
there  was  still,  within  the  democratic  party,  a  third, 
elementary  one,  ripe  from  organization,  teeming  with 
electric  fires  which  a  touch  might  at  any  moment  dis- 
cover; and  within,  or  supposed  to  be  a  part  of,  tlic 
whig  party  was  its  opposite,  which  was  to  apply  the 
touch. 

The  first  presidential  election  in  the  state  was  an 
occasion  of  interest,  which  could  only  be  attended  with 
an  eager  desire  for  victory  by  both  sides,  each  desirous 
of  gaining  a  standing  for  the  state  in  the  national 
party  to  which  its  support  was  pledged.  The  summer 
passed  in  a  whirl  of  political  meetings  and  public  dem- 
onstrations, terminating  later  in  county  and  mass  con- 
ventions for  the  nomination  of  district  judges,  members 
of  the  legislature,  and  other  officials,  the  general  elec- 
tion being  by  act  at  the  previous  tiession  changed 
from  September  to  the  presidential  election  day  in 
November. 

The  cities  of  San  Francisco  and  Sacramento  were 
whig  in  1852,  but  the  state  gave  a  majority  for  Picreo 
over  Scott  for  president,  of  9,669,  the  whole  vote  of 

new  state  central  committee  was  appointed,  consisting  of  D.  C.  Broilerick, 
N.  S.  Petit,  F.  P.  Tracy,  David  Scannell,  1  lionias  Hayes,  and  J.  R.  Malonej', 
of  S.  F.;  (i.  W.  Colby,  Sac;  A.  C.  Bradford,  Stockton;  C.  H.  Bryan,  Marys- 
ville,  Haya'  CaL  Pol.,  i.  7. 


PRESIDENTIAL  ELECTION. 


673 


thft  state  being  71,180.  Tlie  election  of  tlic  state 
dciiKx  ratio  ticliet  was  a  matter  of  course.  It  was  not 
until  the  first  week  in  Deci'niher  that  the  overwhehn- 
inU'  defeat  of  the  wliiijfs  in  the  Atlantic  states  became 
known,  and  surprised  both  jtarties  in  California.  It 
fixed  more  fii-nily  al.so  the  hold  of  the  new  adminis- 
tration; for  who  likes  not  to  l)e  on  the  winning  side? 
J)ut  it  was  destined  to  inaugurate  some  changes  in 
j)olitics,  ten(Hng  toward  the  disintegration  of  parties. 
A  change  in  federal  offices  was  almost  universal,  'i'he 
distribution  of  juitronage  in  California  caused  dilfer- 
cnces  bitween  the  delegation  in  congress,  giving  rise 
to  factions  within  the  ruling  [>arty  itself,  which  main- 
tained a  distinct  organization,  and  carried  on  that 
hitterest  of  warfares,  that  which  disunites  the  family 
hond. 

The  man  selected  by  the  democratic  administration 
to  fill  the  office  of  collector  of  custon)s'"'  in  (\ilifornia 
was  li.  1*.  llamnioiKJ,  a  retired  army  officer,  who  had 

''"CciUier,  the  first  coUecUjr,  was  a  iinpuhir  villain,  and  recoivud  a  fine 
tcstiiiKiiiial  from  liis  friumU  and  ci)iifedi.Tati--.s  in  ( ':d.  on  Icavinj,'  the  country. 
Thu  govt  hrouuht  suit  against  him  lor  moneys  not  aecoiinted  for,  the  liuhuKO 
.ig.iiii.it  him  being  S7tK),<)00.  Altout  half  of  this  was  paid  up  before  suit  w:is 
brought  for  tliu  remainder.  In  a<Mition  to  the  irregularity  in  aeeounts,  C'ol- 
lirr  was  guilty  f>f  seizing  foreign  vessels  and  their  cargoes  under  the  pretem-e 
that  the  navigation  laws  did  not  permit  tliem  to  engage  in  indireet  trade 
with  cargoes  taken  in  at  any  ports  other  tliau  those  of  their  own  country. 
The  cargoes  were  sold  at  auction  or  private  sale,  at  ruinous  aaerilices.  It 
was  charged  that  tliese  sales  were  genvTallj"  collusive,  and  that  the  collector 
pnilited  by  them  by  a  resale  at  a  great  advance.  Tiiese  seizures  fell  jiriiici- 
(lally  upon  French  vessels,  the  gross  claims  presented  liy  the  French  minister 
amounting  to  uciirly  .*^!M);),(KJO,  which,  witii  the  other  claims  for  illegal  pro- 
ceedings, aggregated  over  .*l,(KX),<>iK).  Of  this  amount  our  tine  otlicial  paid 
!?'J()(l,000,  while  the  cost  to  tlie  government  was  .StiiMt.OiK),  after  reducing  the 
claims  to  about  one  (juarter  of  their  full  amount.  Tiiese  proceedings,  to- 
gctlier  with  the  Cal.  legislative  action  concerning  vessels  entering  S.  F.  and 
other  ports,  were  extremely  injurious  to  the  reputation  and  conunerce  of  the 
Ktate.  Collector  King  was  charged  with  omitting  to  account  for  .*l()(>,tllH)  of 
till'  public  money.  He,  too,  it  seems,  had  a  scheme  for  tilling  his  pockets, 
Kss  troublesome  to  the  govt  tlian  Collier's,  one  part  of  which  was  to  pay  an 
e\(irbitant  rent  for  a  warehou.se  leased  for  the  IJ.  S.,  when  tiie  owner  re- 
fmiclcil  a  large  part  of  it  to  King  for  his  own  use;  and  another  to  contract 
for  the  lighterage  ashore  of  goc^ls  intenclcd  for  the  bomled  warehouse,  at  a 
rate  which  the  merchants  protested  against,  being  himself  a  silent  pai'ty  in 
tile  contract.  On  complaint  I>eiug  made  to  Sec.  Corwin,  he  ordered  the  [irac- 
tice  discontinued,  and  allowed  the  impor^^rs  to  bring  their  goods  asliore  by 
tiicir  own  lighters,  under  the  charge  of  a  revenue  otiicer.  It  was  a  long  time 
l)<  lore  Kings  accounts  were  scttletL  -V.  y,  Ej-pnas,  in  S.  F,  Alta,  Sept.  9, 
Ifso.'J. 

Hist.  Cal  ,  Vol.  VL    43 


t  'i 


674 


I'OLITICAL  iriSTORY. 


been  ill  California  since  April  1840,  and  who,  for 
Colonel  tStoveiison,  laid  out  the  town  of  New  York 
that  year,  at  tlii^  mouth  of  the  San  Joaquin  river. 
William  H.  Richardson,  who  two  years  afterward  was 
kill(>d  by  an  Italian  ujambler  with  whom  he  associ- 
ated,'^  was  appointed  United  States  marshal.  S.  \V. 
Inge,  appointed  United  States  district  attorney,  ]i;i(! 
been  congressman  from  Alabama  for  several  years,  Imt 
had  recently  come  to  California  lie  had  also  been  a 
])artner  of  A.  P.  Crittenden,  a  j)r(»miiient  lawyer, 
throU'']i  whose  interest,  savs  GAviii.  he  received  (lie 
office.  John  C.  Hays,  of  Texas  ranger  notoriety,  wlio 
h.ad  been  sheritt'of  San  Fi'ancisco,  was  made  survevor- 
general;  and  Thomas  J.  Henley,  formerly  of  Indiana, 
was  oiven  the  r)ost-office.  Henlev  had  been  a  con- 
g'ressman  for  six  years })rt'vious  to  coming  to  Carifi>niia.. 
lie  was  subse(j[uently  transferred  to  the  Indian  de- 
[)artment,  and  although  he  Avas  assailed,  there  wwe 
no  charges  ever  proven  against  him  in  his  capacity 
as  superintendent  of  Indian  affairs,  whicli  position 
ho  held  during  tlie  administration  of  Pierce  and 
13uchai\an,''  the  office  h.avi'.i-'"  attached  to  it  a  lar'je 
patronage. 

The  legislature  of  1853'"  met  at  A^allejo  January 

^^ShmiDin  Mc:n.,  07,  7:!;  Oiriii,  Mciiinir";  'MS.,  lOtJ;  7*  ;».  Tri'iuwih,  ii.  •-".!, 
this  scries. 

•■- Hi'iiluywas  l)or:i  i:i  Iiuliana  in  1S07.  llo  was  eloctcd  to  the  U'lfiilatinv 
at  the  iij^iMif  'Jl,  scrvi:ijr  for  s  vcral  tei'ms,  ami  luiiii;  nicakfr  of  tliu  Icwtr 
hitUic.  Jlo  stuilicil  Ian'  Init  i\a\  \v<t  pi'at\  ic(,'.  In  1S!0  \'a:  ■\\a.;  ckitiil  to 
congress,  and  fur  two  sue;  reiV;;;<5  term-;.  In  IS  10  lie  fanio.  iivi.rlaiiil  to  (.',;!. - 
fornia,  e-tahlishing  liiniilf  iuliaiiking  liii  ine  -4  in  ^'^(  ranicnti*,  in  t'iiiti[iaMy 
witli  Mi'Kniglit  &  Co.,  ami  siiliseciuenlly  \vii.li  ^MlUmi  T.  l.atliai.i  ami  i)i'.il;'u 
S.  C.  Hastings.  In  l.'.'l!  lie  was  chosen  ]iresiil(>nl;al  oleotor,  aiul  i*eleet-'il  to 
carry  t!io  electoral  vote  of  C;iKforniii  to  Wa  hingtnn  fur  I'ieroe  ami  Kiiiu. 
I)  iring  the  M%".r  ho  took  no  part  in  ]niiir.o  atVuirs  except  to  c:invu,ss  the  stale 
f  )r  Me( 'Icllan  ill  l"ul,  lie  va-i  agi'.in  oil  tl:c  eieet^iral  teket  ia  IHliS,  when 
(rov.  Seymour  vas  tloinocratic  iioniineo  for  the  pr;'  i'.i^ney.  lie  was  a  g  itid 
pahlic  speaker  anil  songht  afrer  in  political  lampa'gns.  Ho  clieil  in  l:',';."i,  dii 
iiis  farm  in  Memlfic!:io  county,  of  softening  of  th.e  hrain.  His  son,  ll<in. 
Barclay  Henley,  resides  ( If -Sti)  in  S.  F, 

■'■^Thc  senate  was  compo  ed  of  .f.  11.  Baird,  J.  S.  Hager,  .1.  11.  SmvI'T, 
S.  F.  ;  A.  r.  Catlin,  .1.  H.  Ualt.m,  .Sao.  ;  J.  W.  (.'off roth.  P.  K.  Iluh'  .,  'lii- 
ohi-nne  ;  J.  W.  Denver,  L.  S.  Wdliams,  Trinity  ami  Klan)atli ;  .1.  Walt' :i. 
B.  F.  Keene,  Fl  Horado;  H.  A.  Crtilh,  San  Joa([ui:Kind  Con':  il  t'o-ta;  .\.  M. 

a,!  1 1  Cncrra,  S'-i  B^rhara  ami  .'^an  I.e.'  fOhi^po;  .1.  M.  K  ;t;i.  ::;i;-i  ai:d  S,  ! ; 

S.  C  Footer,  Lus  .Vu^^'eli; ; ;  J.  tJruell,   ^ta  C'luni  and  C'ou'.ra  C'ojta ;  .).  JL 


ii  . 
If    ■ 


PROPOSED  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 


67& 


hr.d 


,':,d,-itiuv 

.iti'd  to 

t..  t':'.r.- 

fuinl>;iliV 

\oct:;<l  to 
1(1  KiiiL'. 

t':o  xtaie 

•,S.    Nvl'.fU 

i :,■,.').  cm 

on,  r.on. 

SiiV'l''i% 

il.'-sTii- 

lis.  liii" 
a;.I.M 

3d,  adjourning  a  month  later  to  Benicia.  The  chief 
interest  at  this  session  centred  on  the  bill  for  a  con- 
stitutional convention,  a  measure  warmly  supported 
by  Senator  Ralston  of  Sacramento,  who  declared  a 
"new  political  era  had  opened"  in  the  state  since  the 
last  legislature,  and  that  the  time  had  "fully  arrived" 
for  forming  a  new  constitution.  Other  members 
showed  him  to  be  in  error  by  voting  down  the  meas- 
ure, which,  however,  was  discussed  with  an  unction 
tliat  made  it  evident  there  was  something  more  at  the 
bottom  of  the  project  than  appeared  on  the  surface. 
That  something  proved  to  be  a  plan  on  the  part  of 
the  whig  members  in  the  legislature  to  bring  their 
party  back  into  prominence  in  tlie  state,  and  drawing* 
to  tliem  a  certain  portion  of  the  democrats,  by  favoring 
a  convention  which  would,  on  the  pretence  of  correcting 
some  immaterial  defects  in  the  constitution,  never  ad- 
journ until  they  had  divided  the  state.  The  discovery 
of  the  plot  occasioned  much  indignation.  By  the  bill 
which  nearly  became  a  law  in  1853,  the  people  were 
required  to  vote  only  on  convention,  but  not  on  the 

Hudspeth,  Sonoma  and  Marin;  D.  B.  Kurtz,  San  Diego;  J.  Y.  Liutl,  Cala- 
veras; C.  F.  Lott,  Butto;  J.  C.  McKibben,  Yuba;  P.  A.  Roach,  Monterey; 
S.  B.  .Smith,  Sutter;  J.  H.  Wade,  Mariposa;  J.  Walkup,  Placer;  M.  M. 
Wamboiigh,  Yolo  and  Colusa;  Wni  H.  Lyons,  Nevada,  'ihe  oHicers  of  the 
senate  were:  S.  Purdy,  prest;  B.  F.  Keeno,  prest  protem.;  A.  C.  Brailford, 
sec;  J.  S.  Love,  asst  sec;  J.  L.  Trask,  enrolling  clerk;  W.  U.  Marcy,  engross- 
iiig  clerk;  G.  W.  Ten  Broeck,  aergt-at-arms;  E.  C.  Dowdigan,  door-keeper. 
The  assembly  consisted  of  F.  A.  Snyder  (resigned  in  April  ami  J.  H.  Saun- 
ders was  elected  in  his  place),  J.  M.  Taylor,  it.  H.  lilake,  J.  N.  Cordozo,  S. 
Flower,  J.  Siine,  E.  liey.lenfeldt,  of  S.  F. ;  J.  H.  Estep,  J.  W.  Ifarrison,  J. 
Noely  Johnson,  Robinson,  Sac;  J.  Connoss,  S.  (jiarfield,  A.  Wing,  S.  A.  Mc- 
Means,  El  Dorado;  J.  Brush,  J.  J.  Hoflf,  J.  M.  ilandcvillo,  W.  ^leredith,  J, 
M.  Wilson,  Tuolumne;  W.  C.  Martin,  R.  G.  Reading,  Trinity;  P.  Moore,  J. 
H.  Bostwick,  J.  T.  Crenshaw,  Nevada;  A.  B.  Caldwell,  Yolo;  T.  H.  Owen, 
Solano;  H.  P.  Halley,  S.  Kuight,  F.  Yeiser,  San  Joaouin;  C.  S.  Fairfax,  J, 
H.  (iarduer,  B.  B.  Redding,  Yuba;  S.  Bell,  Mariposa;  T.  T.  Cabaniss,  Sliasta; 
P.  Cannay,  B.  F.  Myers,  Placer;  G.  Carhart,  Colusa;  H.  W.  Carpenticr, 
Contra  Costa;  J.  M.  Covarrubias,  C.  E.  Huse,  C.  V.  R.  Lee,  Sta  Barl)ara; 
M.  P.  Ewing,  J.  McKaniy,  Sonoma;  J.  Hunt,  J.  P.  McFarland,  Los  Angeles; 
II.  Irwin,  C.  C.  Thomas,  A.  Wells,  Butte;  F.  M.  Kottredge,  W.  S.  Letcher, 
Sta  Cruz;  C.  A.  Leake,  W.  A.  Oliver,  W.  M.  Rogers,  Calaveras;  A.  G.  Mc- 
Candless,  Sutter;  E.  McGarry,  Napa;  G.  McMahon,  W.  Van  Dyke,  Klamath; 
M.  Pacheco,  San  Luis  Obispo;  W.  G.  Proctor,  Siskiyou;  A.  C.  Smith,  Sta 
Clara;  T.  W.  Tilghman,  San  DicRo;  B.  R.  Walker,  Marin;  I.  T.  Wall,  Mon- 
turey,  speaker  of  the  assembly;  B.  McAlpin  was  chosen  chief  clerk;  J.  W. 
Scol)ey,  aast  clerk;  A.  Cr.  Kimball,  enrolling  clerk;  Wm  Zabriskie,  engrosa- 
ijig  clerk;  G.  W.  Ccfl'ee,  aergt-at-arnui  John  Warrington,  door-keeper. 


1)^1 


676 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


new  constitution  which  was  to  be  made,  leaving  the 
state  entirely  in  the  hands  of  this  mongrel  party,  made 
out  of  pro-slavery  men  and  disaffec^dd  whigs/'* 

Another  legislative  iniquity  which  was  very  nearly 
perpetrated,  and  which  was  recommended  by  the  gov- 
ernor in  his  message,  was  a  project  set  on  foot  by 
George  Wilkes  and  J.  M.  Estill,  with  a  few  others,  to 
increase  the  water-lot  property  in  San  Francisco  by 
extending  the  city  front  600  feet  into  the  bay,  beyond 
the  line  established  by  law  in  1851,  and  to  which  the 
grade  of  the  city  had  been  accommodated.  The  in- 
ducement offered  to  the  governor  to  support  tlie 
scheme  was  the  proffer  of  one  third  of  the  piopcrty 
so  created  to  the  state,  which  it  was  estimated  would 
bring  $2,000,000,  and  go  far  toward  redeeming 
the  state's  credit.  But  if  the  lej^islature  had  tlie 
power  to  make  the  addition,  and  to  accept  a  thin) 
why  not  take  more,  and  cancel  the  whole  of  the  state's 
indebtedness,  or  take  all?  That  was  a  secret  between 
the  authors  of  the  measure,  and  the  governor  and 
legislature. 

The  original  beach  and  water  lot  property  had  not 
brought  to  the  state  treasury  what  it  should  have  re- 
turned, having  been  sold  under  an  attachment,  by  the 
city  physician,  Peter  Smith,  to  secure  the  payment  of 
a  bill.  The  sale  being  generally  regarded  as  invalid, 
the  lots  commanded  only  a  trifling  price,  and  the  one 
fourth  reverting  to  the  state  had  been  small  accord- 
ingly. Considering  the  condition  of  the  state's  finances, 
the  governor  earnestly  advocated  the  passage  of  the 
bill.  To  this  the  San  Francisco  delegation  was  as 
earnestly  opposed,  Snyder  and  Heydenfeldt  resign  inuf 
from  the  assembly  in  order  to  test  the  sentiment  of 
their  constituency.  They  were  immediately  reelected. 
The  bill  failed  in  the  senate,  after  passing  the  house, 
the  president,  Purdy,  giving  the  casting  vote.  From 
the  circumstance  that  Broderick's  most  intimate  pt)r- 

",S.  F.  AUa,  April  18,  1853;  Hat/es'  ComtU.  Law,  i.  40,  41,  49;  Cal.  Jour. 
■  8au,  1863,  633;  CaL  Jour.  Aasem.,  1855,  (>i)9. 


NORTHERN  DEMOCRACY. 


•77 


sonal  friend  Wilkes,  and  the  governor's  strong  sup- 
porter Estill,  were  connected  with  the  extension  bill, 
much  feeling  was  created  in  San  Francisco  against 
both  Broderick"  and  Bigler,  and  great  the  fear  that 
sliould  Bigler  be  reelected  the  next  legislature  would 
revive  and  pass  the  obnoxious  bill.  Broderick,  how- 
ever, was  not  in  pursuit  of  riches  obtained  by  ruining 
the  city  of  his  adoption.  Whatever  his  faults,  no 
spoils  clung  to  him,  though  he  walked  continually  in 
the  midst  of  those  who  lived  by  them.  His  aim  was 
now  the  high  one  of  the  United  States  senate.^  To 
secure  this  it  became  necessary  to  attach  to  himself 
the  whole  of  his  party,  or  that  wing  of  it  which,  in- 
cluding the  Bigler  following,  was  beginning  to  be 
known  as  the  Broderick  wing.  The  course  which  he 
pursued  to  that  end  will  be  presented  in  the  following 
chapter. 

''''  Hittell,  in  Hist.  S.  F.,  316,  labors  to  bring  evidence  of  Broderick's  compli- 
city to  bear  upon  thia  case.  The  circumstsmtial  proof  ia  strong;  only  one 
thing  being  against  it,  that  if  Broderick  had  beun  in  favor  of  its  passage,  the 
bill  would  have  passed.  But  Wilkes,  its  author,  explains  that  such  was 
Broderick's  liostihty  to  it  that  he,  Wilkes,  abandoned  the  cause  and  returned 
to  New  York,  Broderick  having  shown  him  that  on  account  of  their  intimacy 
he  would  be  held  responsible,  and  his  prospects  injured  in  the  race  for  the 
U.  S.  senatorship.    Wilkes'  Affidavit,  1. 

^"Wilkes  says  tliat  it  was  expected  in  1853  that  Gwin  would  1>e  t.'>ken 
into  Pierce's  cabinet,  which  apparent  opportunity  caused  Broderick  to  ask 
him  to  canvass  the  legislature  for  votes  m  favor  of  Broderick,  which  he  did. 
He  does  not  give  the  results. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

POLITICAL  HISTORY. 

1854-1859. 

Warm  and  Wicked  Election — One  Party  the  Same  as  Another,  only 
Worse — Senatorial  Contest — Broderick's  Election  Bill — Bitter 
Feups — A  Two-EixjED  Convention — Bigler's  Administration — Rise 
AND  Fall  OF  the  Knownothino  Party — Gwin's  Sale  of  Patronage 
— Broderk^k  in  Congress — He  is  Misrepresented  and  Maligned — 
Another  Election  —  Chivalry  and  Slavery — Broderick's  Death 
Deiermined  on — The  Duel — Character  of  Broderick. 

The  pro-slavery  division  of  the  democratic  party  in 
California,  managed  by  the  agents  of  Gwin,  had 
achieved  its  successes  in  a  skilful  manner,  with  mys- 
terious grace  and  gentlemanly  arts  and  accomplish- 
ments, and  by  that  eterna!  vigilance  which  is  the  price 
of  all  great  achievements  on  the  field  of  politics.  But 
when  Fillmore  went  out  and  Pierce  came  in,  the 
eagerness  for  spoils  brought  the  chivalry  and  the 
northern  democracy  into  collision,  Gwin  not  having 
any  patronage  for  men  of  the  northern  wing  of  his 
party,  all  the  places  and  fat  salaries  going  to  liis 
southern  friends.  Broderick  did  not  care  for  these 
favors,  but  he  did  care  that  the  course  pursued  by  the 
chivalry  forced  him  into  alliance  with  a  class  of  men 
whom  he  could  not  recognize  socially,  and  compelled 
him  to  join  hands  with  Governor  Bigler  for  the  pur- 
pose of  strengthening  the  opposition  to  the  southern 
faction.^ 

'  Broderick  made  use  of  McGowan  and  of  Billy  Mulligan,  both  shoulder- 
strikurs.      He  once  said  to  a  friend:    'You  respectable  people  I  ciui't  de- 

fend  oil.     You  won't  go  down  and  face  the  revolvers  of  thoMC  fellows;  and 
have  to  take  such  material  as  I  can  get  hold  of.     They  stufl'  ballu'  boxes, 

(678) 


MAGNIFICENT  FRAUDS. 


670 


Edmund  Randolph,*  Park  A.  Crittenden,  and  Tod 
liobinson,  styling  themselves  leaders  of  a  reform 
])arty,  to  cateh  the  ear  of  the  long-sufferins^  perjple, 
desiring  to  defeat  the  reiileetion  of  Bigler,  eanvassed 
the  state  in  1853,  assisted  by  E.  D.  Baker,  wliiuf,  then 
a  recent  immii^rant  to  California.  Few  rivalled  ]lan- 
dolph  in  eloquence;  few  sur})assed  Baker;  but  neither 
these  nor  the  less  impassioned  whigs  were  strong 
enough  to  prevail  against  the  Broderiek-Bigler  coni- 
l>ination.  As  chairman  of  the  state  central  eomniit- 
tce,  Broderiek  issued  an  address  to  the  peoj)le,  in 
wliich  he  denounced  as  traitors  the  seceders,  and  as 
traitors  they  were  treated. 

The  whigs  nominated  for  governor  William  Waldo, 
a  man  credited  with  pure  principles  and  a  firm  will. 
As  far  as  anv  one  could  see,  the  division  of  the  dem- 
ocrats  favored  the  election  of  a  whig;  but  the  ballot- 
box  told  a  different  story.  In  the  whig  city  of  San 
Francisco  there  was  a  majority  of  five  for  Bigler;  in 
tlie  county  of  San  Francisco  there  were  seventy-one 
for  Waldo.  The  total  vote  of  the  state  was  7(5, "77, 
and  the  whole  majority  for  Bigler  1,50.'?.  In  Los 
Angeles  men  were  disguised  and  sent  to  the  polls  sev- 

aiid  steal  the  tally  lists;  and  I  have  to  keep  tliese  fellows  to  aid  me.'  MrrriU's 
Stdtement,  MS.,  10.  Broderiek  was  the  tiri^t  man  that  made  a  successful 
Ktand  against  the  so-calle<l  chivalry,  or  southcru  element,  (iwin  hiiiiselt'  ud- 
luits  that.  McmoirK,  MS.,  117. 

*  Edmund  Randolph  was  of  the  lineage  of  the  celehrated  Riindolphs  of  V^a, 
and  a  lawyer  by  descent  and  education.  He  came  to  C'al.  in  1S40  from  N.  ()., 
lii'ing  at  the  time  of  his  leaving  that  city  clerk  of  the  U.  S.  circuit  court  for 
J^a.  In  N.  O.  he  married  a  daugliter  of  l>r  Meaux.  He  was  a  mend)cr  of  tlio 
lirst  Cal.  legislature,  but  not  being  a  politician  by  nature,  wa.s  not  prominent 
ill  party  ail'airs.  Ho  was  gifted,  eccentric,  excitable  in  temper,  and  pmiid  of 
Ills  standing  as  a  lawyer.  He  was  usually  retained  in  important  land  cases, 
and  made  a  national  reputation  in  tlie  New  Almadeu  (juicksilver  mine  case. 
He  was  opposed  to  the  vigilance  committee,  and  defied  it,  out  of  a  regard  for 
liw  in  tlie  first  and  ^lersonal  pride  in  the  second  instance.  Yet,  like  all  of 
liis  class,  he  would  break  a  law  to  gratify  a  paasion,  but  would  not  allow 
I. tilers  to  do  so  to  sustain  a  princijde.  In  the  conflict  iK-tweeu  the  two  wiii;,'s 
of  the  democratic  party  in  ISoT-S  he  espou.sed  the  cause  of  Douglas.  When 
tliu  civil  war  came  on  he  bitterly  opposed  the  Lincoln  administration,  and 
died  denouncing  it,  for  his  most  virulent  and  last  speech  w<as  nuide  in  August 
1<S(>1,  and  his  death  occurred  in  Sept.  How  futile  are  the  efl'orts  of  a  great 
iiiiinl  warped  all  out  of  place!  Cnt  Jour.  Sfn.,  1854,  52-4;  Yolo  Diniorni/, 
Aug.  14,  1879;  Cal.  Jfe,j.,  1857,  164.  It  was  allegeil  that  BigUr  owed  :{,<)00 
vntes  to  frauds  perpetrated  on  the  l>allot-box.  Jiell,  Keminin.,  21;  S.  F.  AUa, 
Nept.  9,  1853. 


!., 


■1^1 


680 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


eral  times  to  deposit  votes.  The  amount  expended  in 
Sail  Francisco  alone  in  influencing  votes  was  estimated 
to  be  not  less  than  $1,500,000  in  money  and  wator- 
front  property  This  was  exclusive  of  several  hundred 
steamer  tickets  to  the  states,  with  which  returniutr 
miners  were  bribed.  What  must  have  been  the  value 
attached  to  victory,  when  such  prices  were  paid  for 
preferment? 

There  was  little  to  choose  between  parties.  Both 
resorted  to  dishonest  practices,  although  on  the  side 
of  the  whigs  it  was  individual,  and  not  party,  acts.  A 
whig  editor  was  discovered  distributing  democratic 
tickets,  entire,  with  the  exception  of  his  own  nanie 
and  that  of  one  other  aspirant  for  the  legislature.  If 
he  could  not  get  in  at  the  door  he  might  by  the 
window. 

Gloomy  views  were  taken  of  the  political  situation  by 
the  whig  and  independent  press.'  The  state  was  indeed 
approaching  a  dark  period  in  its  history,  a  moral, 
political,  and  financial  night  out  of  which  was  to  arise 
the  morning  of  a  pure  day.  The  eternal  mutation  in 
human  events  always  gives  hope  of  mending  when 
matters  are  at  their  worst.  But  they  were  not  to 
luond  in  California  until  they  had  become  more  evil 
than  they  yet  were;  and  they  were  not  to  mend 
through  any  favorable  change  in  the  policy  of  tlie 
dominant  political  party.  When  and  how  will  mend 
these  later  times?  Governor  Bigler,  governor  now 
for  another  term,  and  perfectly  cognizant  of  the  in- 
dignant protest  of  San  Francisco  to  his  extension 
measures,  vaunted  his  opposition,  and  his  purpose  to 
recommend  the  passage  of  the  obnoxious  bill  by  tlie 
next  legislature.  According  to  his  asseverations,  in 
that  way  only  could  the  civil  debt  of  the  state  be  paid, 

'Says  the  AUa,  reproaching  those  who  failed  to  vote  at  the  election,  to 
defeat  the  extension-bill  candiaates:  'They  will  be  still  more  amazed  wliuu 
they  tind  the  second  stories  of  their  houses  below  the  level  of  the  streets,  and 
the  third  stories  sold  to  pay  the  expense  of  burying  the  others;  all  the  slips 
closed  up;  and  the  bay  piled,  and  hlled  in  200  feet  east  of  the  outer  end  of 
long  wharf.  Their  indignation  against  extension  will  then  be  as  violent  as 
need  be.' 


A  NEW  TRICK, 


681 


and  the  burden  of  taxation  lessened.  But  the 
people  of  San  Francisco  saw  in  it  a  bribe  for  politi- 
cal support;  and  with  good  reason,  tlie  water-lot 
property  having  been  secured  by  Bigler's  supporters 
with  the  expectation  that  its  extension  would  place 
$4,000,000  in  their  pockets.  Brodcrick,  though  he 
labored  for  the  reelection  of  Bigler,  did  so  as  a  means 
to  his  own  ends.  The  governor  had  also  aspirations 
toward  the  United  States  senate,  and  unless  he  should 
be  continued  in  his  present  office,  might  make  a  serious 
diversion  of  interest  from  himself  As  another  means 
to  the  same  end,  Purdy,  who  would  have  liked  to  run 
for  governor,  was  persuaded  to  content  himself  again 
with  the  office  of  lieutenant-governor.  The  vote  for 
Purdy  was  10,000  more  than  for  Bigler;  and  had  he 
not  yielded  to  Broderick's  persuasions  he  might  have 
had  the  higher  office ;  and  all  because  he  had  voted 
against  the  extension  bill.*  As  soon  as  the  election 
was  decided,  Broderick,  at  the  head  of  the  victorious 
faction,  prepared  to  secure  his  election  to  the  United 
States  senate  by  the  legislature  elect,  to  succeed  Gwin 
in  1855.^  There  was  no  precedent  for  an  election  by 
a  legislature  not  the  last  before  the  expiration  of  a 
senatorial  term;  but  Broderick  was  of  the  order  of 
men  who  make  precedents;  and  having  a  legislature" 

*Tlie  state  officers  elected  in  1853,  besides  the  gov.  and  lieut-gov.,  were 
J.  W.  Denver,  sec.  of  state  (he  resigned  in  Nov.  1850,  and  C.  H.  Huinpstuad 
Was  appointed  to  the  vacancy);  Samuel  Bell,  cont. ;  S.  A.  McMeans,  treas. ; 
J.  R.  AlcConnell,  atty-gen.;  S.  H.  Marlette,  sur.-gen.;  P.  K.  Hubbs,  supt  pub. 
iiiit. ;  W.  C.  Kibbe,  qr-maater  genl;  state  printers,  George  Kerr  &  Co. 
Tlic  contract  system  was  repealed  May  1,  1854,  and  B.  B.  Redding  elected 
by  the  legislature,  who  was  succeeded  in  Jan.  1S5U  by  James  Allen;  W.  £. 
r.  Hartnell  was  state  translator.  Cal.  Beg.,  1857,  18'J. 

^Wilkes  says  that  on  his  return  to  California  in  the  autumn  of  1853 
Broderick  consulted  him  upon  the  propriety  and  legality  of  asking  tho  legis- 
lature to  till  a  vacancy  2  years  in  advance;  and  that  his  opinion  was  that  the 
effort  if  undertaken  would  be  useful  as  a  preliminary  canvass,  and  would  give 
him,  Broderick,  a  start  in  the  way  of  organization,  over  any  otlier  aspirant 
for  the  same  place. 

*The  senate  in  1854  consisted  of  W.  W  Hawkes,  J.  S.  Hagcr,  D.  Mahoney, 
W.  M.  Lent,  E.  J.  Moore,  S.  F.;  A.  F.  Oatlin,  G.  W.  Colby,  Sac;  G.  D.  Hall, 
(r.  W.  Hook,  H.  G.  Livermore,  El  Dorado;  C.  A.  Leake,  E.  D.  Sawyer,  Cala- 
veras; J.  Henshaw,  W.  H.  Lyons,  Nevada;  C.  H.  Bryan,  J.  C.  Stebbins,  Yuba; 
C.  A.  Tuttle,  J.  Walkup,  Placer;  J.  H.  Wade,  Mariposa;  B.  C.  Whiting, 
Monterey;  S.  B.  Smith,  Sutter;  E.  T.  Peck,  Butte;  W.  B.  Macy,  Trinity  and 
Klamath;  E.  McGarry,  Napa,  Solano,  and  Yolo;  J.  P.  McFarlautl,  Los  Angeles; 


^'1 

*■  1     '• 

682 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


upon  wliic'li  lio  buliovod  lie  init;ht  dopend/  ]\o  jnircliascd 
a  noWKpaj)c'r,  tlio  Alta,  and  repaired  to  tliu  capital  ac- 

D.  B.  Kurt/.,  S.in  l)it>;<);  T.  Ki'iuliiU,  Tuolumno;  .T.  M.  Hiulrtintlli,  Siukimi.i  an.l 
Marin;  .1.  OriMill,  St.i  Clini  amU'oiitrii  Ciwta;  .1.  II.  Oanliu-r,  Si.  rr.i;  P.  .Ir  U 
(iiierra,  iSta  It.irliara  ami  Sau  Luis  ObUpo;  11.  A.  L'riibb,  >Siiii  .loiujiiiii  ami 
Contra  Costa. 

Ortiour.s  "f  tliu  seiiato:  S.  Purely,  proat;  B.  F.  Keenc,  i)r»!«t  imi  tcm. ;  ,]. 
Y.  Liiul,  sec;  .1.  11.  Stewart,  a»»t;  H.  St  Clair,  eiiroUiim  clerk;  .1.  C.  Tiicktr, 
oiigro8siiijL(  olerk;  W.  11.  Harvey,  sernt-at-ariiis;  K.  C.  l)(iW(lij,'aii,  ilmir-ki'i  |iri-. 
Members  of  tiie  atsciiibly:  J.  W.  liagley,  J.  A.  (iilbert,  A.  A.  Oncii,  .1.  (', 
llubburil,  N.  Hubert,  F.  W.  KoU,  K.  Niehols,  F  H.  Purdv,  NV.  .1.  Swea>.v, 
S.  F.;  T.  K.  Divi.lson,  F.  A.  Park,  J  M.  MeBrayer,  J.  \V.  Park,  Sac,  .linl 
at  S.  F.  in  1870;  W.  C.  Daniels,  C.  H.  Fairfax,  J.  C.  Jonon,  11.  15.  Kellogu, .(. 
Y.  McDuHie,  Yuba;  B.  L.  Fairfield,  B.  F.  Meyers,  J.  O.  N.il,  (i.  H.  \'au 
Cleft,  Placer;  E.  O.  F.  Hastings,  Sutter;  H.  B.  (lo.l.lanl,  .1.  J.  Hofi;  15.  j). 
Horr,  T.  J.  lloyt,  J.  M.  Mandeville,  Tuolumne;  A.  C.  Bradford,  J.  SteirinioiiH, 
San  Joaijuin;  J.  11.  Bostwiek,  E.  F.  Burton,  H.  P.  Sweetlaiid,  1.  N.  Daul.y, 
\V.  H.  Lin.scy,  Nevada;  S.  Ewer,  11.  Irwin,  J.  B.  Mc<ree,  Butte;  F.  Ander- 
son, J.  C.  .Fames,  Sierra;  R.  1).  Ashley,  Monterey;  W.  1>.  Aylett,  Siskiyou; 
S.  A.  Ballon,  A.  E.  Stevenson,  A.  Briggs,  J.  Conness,  E.  (r.  Springer,  l>.  1'. 
Tallmadgo,  H.  lloilister,  ii.  AIcDonald,  El  Dorado;  J.  W.  Bennett,  Sonoma; 
<T.  \V.  Bowie,  Coln-ia;  (j.  E.  Carr,  E.  Hunter,  Los  Angeles;  P.  C.  (arrilln, 
Sta  Barbara;  I).  Clingan,  Marin;  G.  N.  Cornwall,  Napa;  P.  II.  Freneli,  .'^aii 
Luis  Oi)i»po;  M.  \V.  (Jordon,  A.  J.  Hougbtaling,  C.  A.  MeDaniel,  \V.  ('. 
Pratt,  M.  llowan,  Calaveras;  H.  < Jrittitli,  Yolo;  W.  B.  llagans,  Sonoma;  J. 
C.  Henry,  P.  T.  Herbert,  Mari[>osa;  J.  Hunt,  San  Bernardino;  VV.  S.  LetditT, 
J.  McKinney,  SLa  Clara;  J.  Musser,  Trinity;  C.  P.  Noel,  San  Diego;  ,1.  A. 
Ring,  Shasta;  M.  SiK'User,  Hundioldt;  VY.  W.  Stowe,  Sta  Cru/;  J.  T.  Tivy, 
Tulare;  F.  M.  Warmciistlc,  Contra  Costa;  J.  S.  Watkins,  Alanu^da;  S.  (1. 
Whipple,  Klamath;  B.  C.  Whitman,  Solano.  C.  S.  Fairfax  was  chosen 
speaker,  J.  M.  Maudeville,  speaker  pro  tern.;  B.  McAlpiu,  chief  clerk;  .1.  \V, 
Scobey,  asst  clerk;  John  Kimmell,  enrolling  clerk;  E.  A.  Kelley,  engrossing 
clerk;  O.  H.  Blake,  sergt-at-arnis;  J.  H.  Warrington,  door-keeper. 

Charles  S.  Fairfax,  speaker  of  the  iissembly,  was  a  descendant  of  fl.e  last 
Lord  Fairfax,  and  himself  entitled  to  the  succession  as  the  lOth  Lord  Fairfax. 
He  was  born  in  Vancluse,  Fairfax  co.,  Va,  in  1820,  ami  came  to  Cal.  in  ISt'.l, 
wintering  in  a  cabin  near  (irass  Valley.  After  1854,  he  was  .^lerk  of  the  su[>, 
court  for  5  years;  was  chairntan  of  the  Cal.  delegation  to  the  tleiti.  nat.  con. 
at  N.  Y.  in  181)8,  and  died  in  Baltimore  in  April  18()9.  ('olusdSiin,  April  II, 
1874;  S.  F.  Alta,  April  6,  I8G0;  S.  F.  Cull,  April  G,  18(19;  Hiitttr  Co.  JJi-'f.,  •.'(•.; 
Field'/)  Remitm.,  107-12.  John  C.  James  canio  to  Cal.  in  1850,  being  tiien  'IW 
years  of  age.  In  18,")8  he  went  to  reside  at  Cienoa,  Carson  Valley,  then  a  part 
of  Utah,  and  from  there  he  was  elected  to  the  Utah  legislature,  the  only  ^'.  ii- 
tile  member.  In  1800  he  was  a  member  of  (.iit  Nevada  legislature,  ami 
speaker  pro  tem.  of  tiie  assembly.  He  is  spokeii  ..f  u  being  intelligent,  gen- 
erous, and  fond  of  humor.  He  died  inCarsun  iu  187*.  Loa  Angeka  iStur,  Feb. 
14,  1874;  0,M  Hill  News,  Jan.  '20,  1874. 

'  A  scandal  of  the  senate  at  this  term  watj  an  alleged  attempt  on  the  part 
of  J.  C.  Palmer,  of  the  banking  firm  of  Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co.,  to  induce  tiie 
newly  elected  senator  from  Butte,  E.  T.  Peck,  and  W.  B.  May  from  Trinity, 
whigs,  to  vote  for,  and  use  their  influence  to  bring  on,  a  senatorial  election  at 
this  session.  Peek  related  the  interview  with  Palmer  iu  the  senate.  Palmer's 
argument  to  him  was  that  the  whigs  were  in  no  way  interested  in  the 
matter,  so  it  could  be  no  treachery  to  party;  it  was  '  a  war  between  two  fac- 
tions of  the  democratic  party,'  and  if  Peek  would  do  as  desired,  he,  Palmer, 
would  count  him  down  $>5,(K)0;  but  he  '  di<l  not  wish  Broilerick  to  know  tiiat 
the  oflfer  had  been  nmde.'  Peck  declined  to  be  purchased.  Palmer  was 
brought  before  the  senate,  and  denied  everything  on  his  side,  accusing  Peck 


BRODERICK'S  SCHEME. 


683 


foin|)ani(>(l  1)V  liis  frioiicl  and  inontor,  Wilkos,  wlio  hutl 
ai'('('|)t»'<l  an  invitation  from  him  to  conio  to  Calit'ornia. 
This  scluino  of  ]iro(l«)rick'H  lias  boon,  by  his  friends, 
(l(('larod  to  he  tlio  <;roatest  error  in  liis  life.  I  do  not 
s<»  ri'fj^ard  it.  It  was  irregular;  it  was  tricky;  in  a 
ctitain  sense  it  was  unfair.  But  the  circumstanres  in 
vhicli  he  was  placed  were  remarkal)le  and  strinj^ent. 
lleoouM  not  begin  too  soon  to  meet  the  foe  which 
must  he  faced  at  every  turn.  He  was  perfectly  aware 
ot'tlie  growing  strength  of  the  pro-slavery  party,  and 
that  ( Iwin  could  only  be  defeated  at  the  next  senatorial 
clfction  by  the  most  strenuous  measures.  He  sought 
to  accomplish  by  strategy  what  he  feared  could  not  be 
done  if  the  opportunity  v»'ere  neglected,  namely,  to 
rout  the  chivalry  in  California.  They  were  routed, 
and  throui^h  this  act  of  Broderiek,  but  not  in  the  May 
he  had  contemplated." 


of  oiFiTing  liinist'If  for  sale.  After  a  trial,  in  which  tlie  ronnscl  engaged  waa 
K.  I>.  Riki-r  fur  I'vi-k,  ami  that  line  rc.-uicHUT,  Tiitinuw  H.  WilliainM,  nn  Palmers 
iiidi',  tlie  Hcnato  ilisagreeil  as  to  the  guilt  of  the  aucuxcd.  Jlall  oU'eri'il  a 
ri'soliitiou  tliat  IVok'i)  allegations  had  not  been  sustained  l>y  the  evidciu'e  a<l- 
(lured  in  tiie  investiga  ion.  Leuke,  (rardner,  and  Moore  took  this  ground, 
liiit  (Janlner  'resolved  further'  that  the  deeision.  of  the  senate  was  'not 
iiiteniled  in  any  degree  to  reflect  upon  the  honor  and  dignity  of  Mr  I'eck.' 
C.itlin  resolved  that  the  collateral  testimony  of  either  side  Wiia  not  suliieieiit 
t(i  sii|ii)ort  tlie  resju'ctivo  charges  made  l>y  each  against  the  other,  which  reso- 
liiticin  Wius  lost.  I'ralih  then  resolved  that  it  wiw  not  the  intention  of  the 
miiate  t»i  retiect  upon  the  honor  and  dignity  of  I'cck,  M'hicli  was  tinally  agreed 
to.  Cil.  Jour.  Si-ii.,  1S54,  8:t-4,  »l>-7,  118,  l'j;t-«. 

*•  In  18.SI  was  i)rinted  by  .lauies  O'Meara  The  MoKt  Extraordinary  Coiite-nl 
J'lr  II  Sc'it  in  tin'  Scniite  qf' the  United  Slates  firr  Known,  under  the  general  title 
of  lirivlfrirlc  and  (twin.  The  author,  an  Irishnuui,  was  a  chivalry  democrat 
mill  a  secessionist  during  the  rebelliou,  serving  the  southern  cause,  or  rather 
till' e;iuse  of  a  Paeilie  republic,  and  his  master  (!win,  by  starting  disunion 
iiirtspapers  in  various  idaces  on  the  coast,  which  were  sui[iressed  by  order  of 
(nil.  Wright,  wlio  excluded  them  from  the  mails.  O'Meara's  talents  as  a 
writer  were  above  the  average.  He  was  a  follower  oi  (Jwin.  He  kiu:w  tlie 
ins  and  outs  of  the  party  warfare  in  Cal.,  of  which  he  was  a  witness,  and  in 
wliich  he  was  an  actor,  and  has  well  related  them,  with  as  little  bias  as  couM 
lie  liioked  for  from  a  person  of  his  origin  and  quality.  From  his  writings  I 
ilr.iw  some  personal  sketches  of  the  legislature  of  18r)4,  an<l  the  wire-pullers 
jircscnt  at  this  session.  The  book  is  subtly  hostile  to  Broderiek,  cunningly 
ix:i- ^'orating  his  faults,  while  alfecting  impartiality  making  him  out  a  creature 
of  MO  ])rinciiiles,  but  inspired  alone  by  audiition  and  hate.  *  At  the  bottom 
of  iiroderiek's  cunning  scheme,' he  saya,  '  was  Broderick's  earliest  tutor  and 
adviser  in  New  York,  (leorge  Wilkes,  who  had  come  to  the  state  in  18.")1,  .and 
tiiiii  stood  nearer  to  him  and  closer  in  his  contiilence  than  any  other.'  This 
r>:ii;Lik  applied  to  the  plan  of  a  banquet  got  \ip  ostensibly  in  honor  of  (Jen. 
Wdiil  and  Kx-gov.  Foote  of  Miss.,  both  of  whom  were  oflfended  with  the 
aJiainistration  of  Pierce  on  personal  grounds,  but  really  to  give  Broderiek  aa 


684 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


His  plan  was  to  have  a  bill  passed  fixing  a  day  on 
which  the  legislature,  then  in  session,  should  elect  a 
successor  to  Gwin  in  the  United  States  senate.  On 
the  28th  of  January,  such  a  bill  was  introduced  in  the 
assembly  by  Gordon  of  Calaveras.  This  was  drawn 
up  by,  or  at  the  dictation  of,  Broderick.  It  was  made 
the  special  order  for  the  31st,  when  the  vote  being  un- 
favorable, it  was  tabled  to  await  the  action  of  the 
senate.  In  that  body  another  bill  was  introduced,  by 
Henshaw  of  Nevada,  whig,  which  it  was  the  interest 
of  the  Broderick  men  to  defeat,  and  which  was  in 
charge  of  the  whigs  and  Gwin  men,  with  some  aid 
from  the  agents  of  Congressman  McDougall,"  who 
also  aspired  to  the  senate  of  the  United  States  along 
with  many  others.*" 

On  the  6th  of  March,  1854,  the  election  bill  came 
up  in  the  senate,  the  legislature  having  adjourned  to 
Sacramento  from  Benicia.  Every  means  was  being 
used  on  both  sides  which  persuasion  and  intrigue  could 
render  serviceable,"  including  threats  and  imprison- 

opportunity  to  arraign  the  administratioa  an  account  of  appointments,  and 
promote  his  interests  as  against  Gwin.  Gov.  Bigler  presided  at  the  banquet, 
and  the  a£fair  did  temporarily  subserve  the  Broderick  interest;  but  a  reaction 
followed,  when  the  purport  of  some  of  the  speeches  became  known.  It 
stirred  up  the  whigs  to  defend  Gwin  and  the  administration.  O'Meara's  re- 
marks may  be  taken  with  several  grains  of  allowance,  on  account  uf  his 
prejudice  in  favor  of  Gwin. 

*  Henry  B.  Truett,  formerly  mayor  of  Galena,  111.,  was  McDougall's  chief 
supporter.  Reul)en  J.  Maloney,  of  111.,  was  another  of  McDougall's  friends, 
and  a  well-known  politician.  Gwin's  recognized  agents  were  Maj.  FoUoin, 
Capt.  Biasell,  and  the  P.  M.  S.  Co.  Broderick  was  supported  by  Pahner, 
Cook,  &  Co.,  A.  A.  Selover,  John  Middleton,  Ned  McGowan,  A.  J.  IJutlcr, 
Tom  Maguire,  Robert  J.  Woods,  a  southern  man  of  influence,  Frank  Til- 
ford,  who  was  appointed  district  judge  through  his  iuiluence,  and  James  M. 
Estill. 

'"  Early  in  the  session  W.  W.  Gift  entered  the  assembly  with  revolver  in 
hand,  crying  out  that  were  he  to  point  the  weapon  and  threaten  to  shoot  tiie 
first  one  who  should  venture  to  announce  himself  a  candidate  for  congreas, 
three  fourths  of  them  would  dodge  under  their  desks.    Grim  pleasantry,  tliij. 

'^It  is  stated  that  J.  H.  Gardner,  of  Sierra,  an  anti-Broderick  dem.,  and  a 
poor  man,  who  wanted  to  bring  his  family  from  S.  C.  and  could  not  fur  lack 
of  means,  resisted  a  bribe  of  $30,000  offered  for  his  vote.  In  another  iimtance 
a  clergyman  was  brought  from  Napa  to  plead  with  his  brother,  a  senator  froui 
a  northern  co.,  to  accept  a  still  larger  sum,  which  would  have  been  divided 
between  them;  but  this  man  also  refused  the  bribe.  On  the  other  hand, 
Wilkes  relates  how  he,  at  Broderick's  request,  solicited  the  influence  of  sev- 
eral members  by  promises  that  'there  was  nothiag  in  Mr  Broderick's  ]iower 
which  could  gratify  an  honorable  mind  he,  the  said  Broderick,  and  de|ii)neiit 
for  himself,  was  not  ready  to  pledge  to  the  service  of  said  member.'    '  Depo- 


AN  IMPRESSIVE  SCENE. 


685 


ment.  Le8s  strenuous  measures  sufficed  to  convert 
Jacob  Grewell  of  Santa  Clara,  a  whig,  and  an  anti- 
electionist,  but  susceptible  to  cajolery  by  great  men, 
having  been  an  humble  baptist  preacher  in  Ohio.  On 
the  day  before  the  senate  bill  was  to  be  considered,  he 
was  captured,  bociy  and  soul,  and  detained  until  the 
morning  of  the  6th,  when  to  the  surprise  of  his  party 
he  voted  with  the  Broderick  men  to  postpone  Hen- 
shaw's  bill  to  the  17th,  by  which  time  they  hoped  to 
secure  the  passage  of  the  assembly  bill. 

The  scenes  in  the  senate-chamber  during  this  period 
were  the  most  impressive,  for  intense  interest,  which 
ever  transpired  in  a  legislative  body  in  California. 
Every  one  was  aware  that  the  passage  of  the  election 
bill  meant  Broderick  for  senator.  Every  man  had 
done  all  that  he  could  for  or  against  it.  The  loss  of 
one  vote  on  either  side  would  defeat  one  or  the  other 
party.  By  the  loss  of  Grewell  to  the  whigs  and  Gwin 
men,  a  tie  resulted.  The  decision  rested  with  the 
president  of  the  senate.  He  voted  for  postponing  the 
Henshaw  bill.  The  star  of  Broderick  was  ascendant ! 
A  sigh  of  suppressed  excitement  suddenly  relieved 
was  heard  throughout  the  chamber.  For  a  moment 
wore  there  was  a  strange  silence,  and  then  the 
friends  of  Broderick,  whose  steel-blue  eyes  shot  sparks 
of  fire,  pressed  around  him  to  grasp  his  hand.  It 
was  not  an  immaculate  palm ;  it  was  the  hand  of  a 
stone-cutter's  son;  the  hand  of  a  rough-and-tumble 
politician,  and  man  of  the  people;  yel  to  his  friends  at 
that  moment  it  was  the  hand  of  a  king.  They  would 
have  kissed  it  but  for  shame.  As  it  was,  their  lips 
trembled,  and  Broderick  himself  was  speechless,  so 
nearly  was  he  to  the  consummation  of  his  heart's  de- 
sires. 


nent  farther  says  that  thi^  Hmsaction  occurred  at  a  time  when  hostile  rumor 
had  charged  that  votes  <-.  being  bought  for  $10,000  apiece;  but  deponent 
solemnly  avers  that  no  temptations  beyond  an  appeal  of  said  member 'snonor- 
able  ambition,  were  used  by  deponent  with  said  honorable  member. '  ^fidnvU, 
4.  Baker's  speech  in  pampnlet  form,  28  pp.,  arguea  atronijly  against  jl^ner'i 
attempt. 


«iB 


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i 

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a 

i 

1 

1 

1 

POLITICAL  HISTORY 

The  shock  of  joy  which  so  unmanned  them  was  a 
blow  bringing  surprise  and  anger  to  the  other  side.  To 
what  end  had  been  their  lavish  expend? "^  are  of  money? 
To  what  purpose  had  guard  been  kept  over  one  senator 
twenty-four  hours,  to  prevent  his  being  kidnapped, 
since  another  had  gone  over  to  the  enemy?  Ui)on 
Grewell  was  fastened  the  responsibility  of  tlie  defeat, 
and  they  determined  that  the  mischief  he  had  done 
he  should  undo. 

Henry  A.  Crabb  of  San  Joaquin ^^  was  leader  of 
the  whigs  in  the  senate.  Besides  being  a  whig,  he 
was  a  Mississippian,  a  true  representative  of  the  fight- 
ing chivalry,  and  a  strong  man  intellectually  and  po- 
litically. Crabb  called  Grewell  to  account  for  his 
action,  and  gave  him  his  choice  of  recantation  or — 
worse.  Other  senators  used  their  influence,  and 
Grewell,  after  explaining  his  defection,  agreed  to  move 
the  reconsideration  of  the  vote  of  the  Gth  of  March 
on  the  following  day,  which  he  did,  prefacing  his  mo- 
tion by  a  statement  concerning  despatches  received 
from  constituents  to  account  for  the  change.  His 
motion  was  carried  by  a  vote  of  18  to  15.  Directly 
thereafter  a  message  was  received  from  the  assembly, 
informing  the  senate  that  the  bill  fixing  the  time  of 
electing  United  States  senators  had  been  passed  by 
them  on  the  Gth.  Henshaw  moved  that  the  bill  be 
rejected.  Lent  of  San  Francisco  moved  to  postpone 
the  consideration  of  the  bill  until  the  17th.  Sprague 
of  Shasta,  a  Broderick  man,  moved  to  adjourn.  After 
a  rapid  succession  of  motions  and  balloting,  the  vote 
recurred  upon  Henshaw's  motion  to  reject  the  assem- 
bly bill,  when  the  vote  stood  17  for  to  14  against  re- 
jection. The  senate  bill  was  indefinitely  postponed, 
and  the  defeat  of  the  senatorial  election  measure  was 
final.*'     The  disappointment  of  the  Broderick  faction 

"Crabb  waa  killed  in  Nicaragua  vnile  with  Walker's  expedition.  Brod- 
erick 8i)oko  in  the  U.  S.  senate  in  'avor  of  calling  his  murderers  iu  account. 
Hac.  Union,  Aua.  1.3,  1859. 

I'  The  f riunils  of  Broderick  in  Washington  had  given  him  considerable  as- 
surance on  a  point  upon  which  doubt  was  expressed  in  Cal. ;  namely,  whutltur 


DENVER  AND  UE-PSTEAD 


687 


count.         ■ 

'■It  is  not  V 

■ 

W.IH    too    stroll'. 

ole  as-         1 

l^.'>4,  ami  High    i 

liuther         ■ 

VIS  |irc.>eiitiil  I)'. 

I 

Icir  this  |iiir])oNc. 

was  in  proportion  to  tlio  elation  experienced  by  tlie 
]tn»s[)ect  of  ])a.ssinj:f  the  assembly  bill  in  the  senate.'* 

The  extension  Itill,  whieh  tlie  governor  did  not  i'ail 
to  recommend  in  his  ainmal  message  to  the  legislature, 
was  also  defeated  by  an  adjournment  of  the  senate  be- 
fore it  reached  that  body.*^  In  a  special  message  at 
tlie  close  of  the  session,  which  lasted  four  and  a  half 
months,  he  expressed  liis  regret  for  the  failure  of  his 
favorite  project,  and  that  "all  the  more  important 
measures  recjuircd  by  tlie  ]>eople  have  been  defeated, 
cither  by  a  direct  v<»te,  or  delay  in  acting  U[»on  them." 
While  this  was  probably  true,  the  same  policy  had 
defeated  some  that  were  not  required  or  desired;  from 
v''ii<  1<  i.  appear.s  that  there  may  be  virtues  as  well  as 
l^^u'  o,        ission. 

ih}  liin  1  Itli  of  January,  the  governor  reappointed 
J.  W.  ])enver  se«Tetary  of  f-tate,  he  having  Ween  a]>- 
]M)iiited  in  IH."}:',  in  jdaeeof  W.  Van  Voorhies,  resigned. 
Jt  was  a  small  enough  return  to  make  to  a  man  who 
liad  killed  in  a  duel  Edward  Gilbert,  ex-congressman 
and  editor  of  the  Alfa,  because  he  had  ridiculed  the 
immaculate  John  Bigler.  Denver  resigned  in  185(), 
and  the  governt>r's  private  secretary,  Charles  H. 
Hempstead,  son  of  a  profesisional  gambler,  was  ap- 
pointed in  his  j'lace. 

Iio  woultl  l)u  adniittc',  l-'-rig  '^hosen  unilcr  micli  conditions.  It  was  said  tliat 
flic  sec.  of  tlio  sciifi!  aa  i  fiven  it  as  liis  opinion  that  tlio  action  of  the  legis- 
litiire  woiiM  I»c  su.-i  ttrifc  1;  liui  sonic  of  the  altlcst  men  in  the  senate  were  of 
till'  same  oi>ii  ior  iii.-!u  iij.^{  tlie  Hontiicrn  wiiigs;  and  the  rcpulihcaiis  wonhl 
\i'te  tor  I'i.s  a'iiii  iU'  ■  '■!■  "  j'oiiiit  of  Iiis  antagmiisin  to  the  Kansas-Nchraska 
li.ll,  at  til. it  tiin«;  the  ^,r  <  .•ipn'  Milijtct  lic'r'rc  coritjrcss.  The  assurance  that  he 
1;  id  I'owerful  fricul  •  in  '\u  I'  r.  senate-  made  lirodcrick's  dcfi'at  in  C'al.  the 
iiiore  liittcr.  Among  hi.»  .-.iijioitcrs  in  tlio  staie  were  (Jeorge  Wilkes,  A.  .1. 
I'.utler,  J.  '. '.  I'aliner.  Stephen  .J.  Field,  .John  Midillcton,  A.  A.  Selover,  I'raiik 
'liltonl,  Col  l)irk  .Siiowden,  Tlioiiias  Maguirc,  Ned  .Mellowan,  V.  Turner, 
i'liarles  (ialia-hcr,  aii-l  C.  H.  Hempstead.  The  governor,  with  his  powerful 
piitronau'c,  vas  a  ntrong  riglit  arm. 

"(J'.Meara  is  in  eiror  when  lie  says  tliat  the  senatorial  ehiction  liill  jiassed 
in  the  senate,  and  vim  reconsidered  next  day.  It  never  passed  in  the  senate. 
The  asseinhly  hill  was  rejected,  aud  the  aenutc  bill  never  came  to  a  vote  on 
its  passage. 

baldc  the  hill  could  li.ave  pajised,  the  remonstrance  of  .S,  F. 
*.  inuKiori.-il  of  8  i>ages,  addressed  to  the  legislature  in 
>  'iift  mayor,  and  coinmittei^s  from  the  hoard  of  alckirnieii, 
!  .•jialcofnmitteu  appointed  to  visit  tiie  capita!  in  May 
.jx  -  litmouttmnri:  of  Ihc  City  of  San  Fruiicinvo,  iu  J/int.  anil 


\\ 


I'-ithuU,  S.  F.  Dor.,  8. 


68S 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


Whatever  the  feuds  in  the  democratic  pa^ty  provions 
to  the  senatorial  election  bill  fiasco  in  the  le'-islatiuc, 
the  factions  had  voted  together  at  elections.  But  tlie 
Broderick  and  Gwin  supporters  could  no  Ioniser  (Id 
tliis;  and  as  the  reirular  senatorial  election  would  occur 
at  the  next  session,  tliere  was  a  Waterloo  in  prospci  t 
for  one  or  the  other  faction.  Efforts  were  made  tj 
unite  them,  but  in  vain. 

After  many  preliminary  meetings  and  county  con- 
ventions, the  state  conventions  of  whigs  and  democrats 
came  off  in  July  1854.  The  democrats  met  in  Sacra- 
mento on  the  l^^^i  .  Broderick,  being  chairman  of 
the  state  central     <  ttee,  used  his  position  to  ex- 

clude the  delegates  K)sed  to  hhn,  bv  securin-'-  a 
l)uildiMg,  the  baptist  ciiurch,  and  arranging  the  seat- 
ing of  the  delegations  so  as  to  bring  his  friends  innno- 
diately  about  him,  and  to  leave  no  j)lace  for  tlu; 
unfriend! V  deleu^ates.  Further  than  this,  he  had  liis 
friends  admitted  by  a  private  entrance  in  advance  of 
the  time  appointed,  so  that  when  the  doors  wcio 
thrown  open,  the  other  delegations  would  be  dispos- 
sessed of  seats.  He  had  determined  every  particular 
of  the  proceedinijs  in  caucus  with  his  manaij:ers  to  aivo 
him  control  of  the  convention.  The  Gwin  deleiratis, 
on  the  other  hand,  had  concocted  a  counter-plan.  The 
Broderick  men  had  selected  Ned  McGowan  for  presi- 
dent of  the  convention;  the  Gwin  men  had  chosen 
John  jMcDougal,  and  made  other  preparations,  includ- 
ing an  armed  guard  to  conduct  their  nominee  to  tlio 
chair. 

At  the  hour  of  meeting,  the  anti-Broderick  dele- 
gations were  punctually  at  the  door  of  the  chureli, 
and  in  spite  of  the  thorough  management  inside, 
forced  an  entrance,  a  picked  number  making  their 
way  to  the  front.  In  the  centre  of  this  party  was 
the  person  selected  to  nominate  McDougal  for  presi- 
dent.*"    Almost  in  the  next  instant,  when  Broderick 

'* O'Meara  gives  the  namca  of  Billy  Mulligan,  James  P.  Casey,  Mortiiiur 
J.  iSniith,  '  and  others  of  similar  courageous  or  desperate  character, '  as  su j- 


SCENE  IN  A  CONVENTION. 


had  called  the  convention  to  order,  and  befoie  Brod- 
crick's  man  found  his  tongue,  the  motion  to  nominate 
McDougal  was  made.  The  nomination  was  a  fair  one, 
at  least  as  fair  as  the  other  would  have  been ;  a  mem- 
l)or  of  the  Broderick  faction,  however,  in  a  moment 
collected  his  wits  and  nominated  McGowan.  This 
man  Broderick  declared  that  he  knew  and  recognized 
as  a  delegate,  but  the  other  he  did  not  know  and  could 
not  recognize,  pronouncing  his  seat  contested.  His 
right  to  decide  a  matter  of  this  kind  was  denied;  and 
the  friends  of  McDougal  putting  the  motion  declared 
it  carried,  and  hurried  him  forward  toward  the  chair. 
M>;Gowan  was  also  declared  ^hosen,  and  borne  up- 
ward upon  the  platform.  Soon  the  two  were  seated 
side  by  side,  each  playing  his  part  as  chairman.  This 
duplex  administration  wasi  as  exciting  as  it  was  annoy- 
ing, pistols  being  freely  brandished  on  both  sides. 
But  yet  more  mad  nmst  these  men  become  before 
the  gods  should  destroy  them,  for  no  blood  was  shed, 
although  the  explosion  of  a  pistol  nearly  brought  on  a 
catastrophe. 

After  a  trying  session  which  lasted  until  darkness 
fell,  during  which  mutual  accusations,  confessions,  and 
defiances  were  hotly  interchanged,  and  during  which 
the  trustees  and  pastor  of  the  church  vainly  implored 
the  convention  to  leave  the  sacred  edifice  which  their 
conduct  desecrated,  a  temporary  truce  was  obtained, 
and  the  two  chairmen  left  the  church,  which  the 
trustees  would  not  sufller  to  be  lighted,  arm-in-arm,  to 
n»oet  upon  the  same  platform  no  more  tlmt  year.  The 
cl lurch  was  closed  against  them,  and  next  day  sepa- 
rate halls  were  obtained  for  the  two  factions.  The 
only  subject  touched  upon  during  the  afternoon  ses- 
sion of  the  18th,  not  of  a  personal  or  factional  char- 
acter, was  when  William  Walker,  the  filibuster,  and  a 

taininff  Broderick.  Amonff  the  30  men  who  pressed  forward  to  the  piatform 
w  re,  he  says,  Mai.  Bidwell,  Judge  Terry,  Sam  Brooks,  William  U.  lioss, 
Muj.  Hook,  Ben  Marshall,  G.  W.  Coulter,  W.  A.  Nunallv,  Charles  S.  Fair- 
fax,  V.  E.  (reiger,  Jo  McKibbcn,  M.  Taliaferro,  Maj.  Solomon,  and  George 
S.  Kvans.  Broderkk  and  Otoin,  92. 
Hist.  Cai,.,  Vol.  VI.    44 


I 


'I 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


Broderick  man,  uttered  freesoil  sentiments,  McAlpin, 
on  the  Gwin  side,  declaring  that  no  freesoil  or  aboli- 
tion men  should  be  permitted  to  sit  in  democratic 
councils. 

When  the  division  had  been  made,  it  was  found 
that  the  anti-Broderick  convention  was  most  com- 
plete. It  nominated  for  congressmen  James  W.  Den- 
ver and  Philip  T.  Herbert.  The  Broderick  faction 
nominated  James  Churchman  of  Nevada,  and  renomi- 
nated James  A.  McDougall.  The  whigs  who  met 
in  state  convention  on  the  26th,  J.  Neely  Johnson, 
president,  nominated  Calhoun  Ben  ham — who  during 
Buchanan's  administration  was  United  States  district 
attorney  for  California,  and  during  the  civil  war  was 
arrested  for  treason,  and  confined  in  Fort  Lafayette — 
and  G.  W.  Bowie,  of  southern  proclivities,  for  con- 
gressmen. 

When  the  election  came  on  in  September  there  was, 
as  usual,  a  surprise.  The  whigs  had  confidently  ex- 
pected to  profit  by  the  division  among  the  democrats. 
But  they  were  defeated,  and  the  Gwin  wing  of  the 
democratic  party  carried  the  election  by  2,000  votes 
over  them,  and  by  27,000  over  the  electionists,  who 
had  in  all  little  moro  than  10,000  votes.  There  was 
small  reason  to  be  proud  of  their  congressmen.  Den- 
ver had  already  killed  his  man,  as  I  have  said;  and 
Herbert  slew  an  Irish  waiter  at  a  hotel  when  he  went 
to  Washington.  We  soberly  begin  to  wonder,  so 
fiimiliar  was  murder  to  San  Franciscans,  that  wIumi 
after  having  been  indicted  by  the  grand  jury  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  and  imprisoned,  Herbert  re- 
turned to  this  city,  he  was  indignantly  warned  away 
by  the  public  press.  Denver  fought  for  the  union, 
and  became  a  brigadier-general  of  volunteers.  Ho 
was  also  governor  of  Kansas,  and  had  the  honor  to 
have  the  capital  of  Colorado  named  after  him. 

Ballot-box  stuffing  was  resorted  to  in  San  Fran- 
cisco at  this  election;  but  so  far  as  I  have  found  any 
evidence,  it  was  in  the  interest  o(  city  officials.     The 


KNOWNOTHINO  PARTY. 


691 


honorable  Edward  McGo wan,  judge  and  gentleman, 
a  true  law-and-order  man,  and  model  for  aspiring 
politicians,  was  the  one  to  offer  bribes  to  corrupt  tlie 
judges  of  election,  who  were  instructed  how  to  stuff 
the  boxes.  The  legislature  elect  was  believed  to  be 
so  divided  between  the  parties  that  in  the  senate,  at 
the  session  of  1855,  the  Broderick  men  outnumbered 
the  Gwin  men  by  two  votes,  aggregating,  however, 
on  the  democratic  side  25,  wliile  the  whigs  were  but 
seven.  In  the  assembly  the  Gwin  men  numbered  31, 
and  the  Broderick  men  14,  while  the  whigs  were  35 
strong,  showing  that  in  some  counties  they  had 
gained  considerably  at  the  last  election.  Three  dis- 
tinct parties  were  recognized,  under  the  names  of 
olectionists,  anti-electionists — or  as  they  were  termed 
by  some,  bolters — and  whigs.  In  joint  convention 
there  would  be  43  anti-electionists,  28  electionists, 
and  42  wliigs.  It  was  seemingly  in  the  power  of  tlie 
whigs  to  give  the  victory  to  either  faction  or  to  with- 
liold  it,  at  the  senatorial  election  of  1855. 

And  now  fortune  threw  in  Broderick's  way  an 
opportunity  of  opposing  himself  to  the  chivalry  upon 
a  national  issue.  This  was  the  repeal  by  congress 
of  the  Missouri  compromise  bill.  The  north  in  the 
national  legislature  was  gradually  giving  way  before 
the  continued  assertions  of  the  south  that  it  was 
unfairly  treated  in  the  matter  of  the  public  lands. 
Certain  whig  leaders  advocated  the  repeal  of  the  re- 
sti'iction  of  slavery  in  the  territories  north  of  latitude 
3G"  30';  but  they  were  in  the  minority;  and  while  they 
destroyed  the  whig  party  by  this  measure,  they  caused 
the  organization  of  a  new  one  upon  its  ruins — the 
native  American  or  knownotliing  party.  The  coni- 
])laint  of  the  slave-holders  and  slavery  extensionists 
was  that  the  north  encouraged  immigration,  and  the 
population  so  acquired,  anti-slavery  in  sentiment,  filled 
up  the  new  territories,  acquiring  title  under  the  laws 
to  land  which  belonged  as  much  to  the  south  as  the 


A. 


e92 


POUTICAL  HISTORY 


north.  There  were  many  in  the  north  no  less  inimi- 
cal to  a  foreign  population,  largely  made  up  of  a  turbu- 
lent class,  and  very  many  of  whom  were  of  the  catholic 
faith,  which  at  bottom  is  opposed  to  r^iiblicanism. 
On  this  issue  the  north  and  south  could  unite,  and 
did  temporarily  unite,  for  party  purposes. 

In  San  Francisco,  and  throughout  California,  there 
was  a  P.trong  sentiment  against  foreigners,  both  from 
the  southern  point  of  view,  and  on  account  of  the  gold 
carried  out  of  the  country  by  foreign  miners;  conse- 

3uently  the  San  Franciscans  were  quick  to  adopt  the 
octrines  of  the  native  Americans,  or  knownothings, 
as  the  new  party  was  named  from  the  secrecy  main- 
tained concerning  the  proceedings  of  its  meetings,  to 
which  the  public  was  not  at  first  admitted.  In  a  city 
made  up  largely  of  foreigners,  the  success  of  the  party 
was  something  anomalous,  but  depended  upon  tlie 
hope  that  a  reform  was  to  be  worked  in  the  govern- 
ment. To  the  new  party  it  was  to  be  ascribed  that 
the  following  of  Broderick  in  1.854  was  only  10,000. 
But  it  was  also  out  of  this  turn  in  politics  that  he  was 
to  recover  what  he  had  lost. 

When  the  senatorial  contest  again  began  in  the 
legislature  of  1855,"  the  balloting  opened  February 

"  The  state  senate  in  1855  consisted  of  E.  T.  Burton,  J.  T.  Crenshaw, 
Nevada;  O.  W.  Colby,  A.  S.  Gove,  Sac.;  S.  Day,  Alameda  and  Sta  Clar;-.; 
W.  Flint,  W.  W.  Hawkes,  D.  Mahoney,  E.  J.  Moore,  S.  F.;  A.  French,  <  . 
W.  Hook,  G.  D.  Hall,  R  T.  Keene,  El  Dorado;  J.  C.  Ha^home,  C.  A.  Tr.t- 
tlc.  Placer;  H.  P.  Heintzelman,  Sonoma  and  Marin;  T.  Kendall,  J.  W.  ilan- 
(loville,  Tuolumne;  C.  A.  Leake,  Calaveras;  W.  B.  Norman,  Calaveras  a:.d 
Amador;  C.  E.  Lippincott,  J.  G.  Stebbins,  Yuba;  W.  H.  McConn,  San  Joa- 
quin and  Contra  Costa;  P.  C.  Rust,  Yuba  and  Sutter;  J.  P.  Mclarlaud,  Lus 
Auijcles;  E.  McGarry,  Napa,  Solano,  and  Yolo;  J.  A.  McNeil,  ^lariposa;  Vt'. 
B.  May,  Trinity  and  Klamath;  E.  T.  Peck,  Butte;  J.  D.  Scellen,  Sierra;  R. 
T.  Sprague,  Shasta;  B.  C  Wliiting,  ^lonterey.  Preat,  S.  Purdy;  prest  pro 
toiu.,  R.  T.  Sprague;  sec,  W.  A.  Cornwall,  removed  March  22d,  ana  C.  Dick- 
inson elected  to  vacancy;  asst  sec,  C.  Dickinson,  succee<led  by  £.  O.  F.  Ha.';- 
tiugs,  on  promotion;  enrolling  clerk,  J.  H.  Gardner;  engrossing  clerk,  J.  F. 
Van  Hagen;  sergt-at-arms,  jTT.  Knox;  door-keeper,  J.  C.  Newman.  Tlie 
asaenibjy  consisted  of  E.  G.  BufiFam,  J.  Cammett,  W.  A.  Daita,  W.  B.  Far- 
well,  BL  B.  Hasmer,  E.  W.  Taylor,  G.  P.  Johnston,  W.  Whitney,  R.  C. 
Rodgera,  ot  S.  F.;  J.  G.  Brewton,  P.  L.  Edwards,  H.  B.  Merideth,  J.  R. 
Vinegard,  Sac.;  £.  Bogardus,  J.  L.  Boles,  W.  F.  Cunningham,  T.  Foster,  J. 
C  JohnBon,  J.  N.  Smith,  H.  McConnell,  E.  A.  Stevenson,  El  Dorado;  D.  O. 
Adkinson,  C.  S.  Chase,  E.  S.  Gaver,  W.  Geller,  Clayton,  Yulw;  M.  Andrews, 
W.  Carey,  R.  F.  Oragg,  T.  Moreland,  Placer;  R.  B.  Sherrard,  Satter;  N.  C. 


LBOISIATURE  OF  1855. 


17th,  with  42  votes  for  Gwin,  12  for  Broderick,  36  for  P. 
L.  Edwards  (whig),  14  for  McCorkle,  2  for  McDougal, 
and  1  each  for  Heydenfeldt,  Sould,  Sprague,  and  Bil- 
lings. Fifty-six  votes  were  necessary  to  a  choice. 
Thirty-eight  times  the  convention  balloted,  with  at  no 
time  any  important  loss  or  gain  to  its  three  principal 
candidates.  Gwin  and  Edwards  ran  evenly ;  Edwards, 
it  was  said,  might  have  had  the  sunatorship  if  he  would 
have  pledged  certain  federal  offices  to  persons  proposed 
to  him  for  the  places,  which  he  refused.  But  Gwin 
could  not  get  it,  because  Broderick's  supporters  were 
too  well  trained  to  go  over  to  his  rival  for  any  cause. 
After  the  thirty-eighth  ballot,  the  joint  convention 
adjourned,  and  Gwin's  seat  in  the  United  States 
senate  was  left  vacant. 

This  humiliation  of  his  enemy  was  not  an  empty 
triumph  to  Broderick.  It  gave  him  time,  which  was 
tlie  important  object.  Gwin's  defeat  in  convention 
balanced  his  of  the  previous  year.  He  had  the  ad- 
vantage of  being  not  too  nice  to  descend  to  the  man- 
agement of  the  primaries,  where  his  early  training 
made  itself  felt.  To  the  wonder  of  his  foes  he  was 
able,  at  the  state  convention  of  that  year,  to  regain  tlie 
control,  and  govern  the  nominations  for  the  state  of- 
fices.^* 

Cunningham,  W.  *£.  Ferguson,  Sierra;  F.  AmjTC,  K  R.  Galvin,  T.  J.  Oxley, 
J.  M.  Quia,  Tuolumne;  E.  T.  Beatty,  J.  Pearson,  S.  B.  Stevena,  T.  W.  Talia- 
i^TTo,  Calaveras;  D.  T.  Douglass,  T.  J.  Keys,  San  Joaquin;  J.  T.  Farley, 
Amador;  W.  W.  Jones,  F.  Mellui!,  Los  Angeles;  A.  Wells,  C.  Gr.  Lincoln, 
Butte;  K  A.  Rowe,  Trinity;  J.  J.  Arrington,  Klamath;  R.  D.  Ashley,  Mon- 
terey; K  M.  Burke,  T.  C.  Hournoy,  Mariiiosa;  H.  M.  C.  Brown,  E.  H.  Gay- 
lord,  J.  Knox,  E.  G,  Waite,  J.  W,  D.  Palmer,  J.  Plielps,  Nevada;  H.  P.  A. 
Smith,  Marin;  N.  Coombs,  Napa;  J.  H.  Ujwlegraff,  Yolo;  J.  Doughty,  So- 
lano; W.  Brown,  Contra  Costa;  J.  S.  Watkins,  Alameda;  T.  Baker,  Tulare; 
H.  Bates,  Shasta;  J.  Cook,  Stanislaus;  J.  M.  Covarmbias,  Sta  Barbara;  E. 
J,  Curtis,  Siskiyou;  W.  C.  Ferrell,  San  Diego;  W.  R.  Gober,  C.  T.  Ryland, 
fjta  Clara;  W.  J.  Graves,  San  Luis  Obispo;  A.  Kinney,  Plumas;  S.  L.  Mc- 
Cutcheon,  Colusa;  A.  H.  Mordock,  Humboldt;  J.  Singley,  J.  8.  Stewart, 
-Sonoma;  W.  W.  Stowe,  Sta  Cruz,  speaker;  J.  J.  Hoff,  a^ieaker  pro  tern. ;  J. 
M,  Anderson,  clerk;  J.  W.  Scoliey,  asst  clerk;  C.  Danuels,  enrolling  clerk; 
E.  A.  Kelly,  engrossing  clerk;  B.  McAlpin,  sergt-at-amis;  T.  P.  WT  Price, 
door-keeper. 

'"Some  say  that  Broderick  offered  to  merge  the  two  state  central  con- 
ventions into  one,  with  one  half  of  each  retained,  the  other  half  dropped,  and 
the  choice  of  chairman  to  be  decided  by  a  method  of  his  own;  ana  that  his 
offer  was  accepted,  though  the  other  factions  outnumbered  his  4  to  1.     The 


694 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


For  this  there  were  other  reasons  besides  Broder- 
ick's  skill  in  managing  the  masses.  The  democratic 
party,  which  was  largely  made  up  of  Irish  and  Ger- 
man naturalized  citizens,  felt  itself  insulted  by  the  tone 
of  the  chivalry  toward  foreigners.  The  western  men 
and  northern  democrats  were  offended  at  being  made 
to  bow  to  the  southern  democrats,  and  also  that  all 
the  federal  patronage  was  given  to  the  needy  south- 
erners, who  crowded  into  place  in  California.  Gwin 
had  managed  so  adroitly  in  his  public  measures  that 
he  might  have  continued  indefinitely  in  the  senate, 
had  it  not  been  for  his  devotion  to  southern  principles 
and  southern  men,  to  the  complete  ignoring  of  the 
north.*'  But  beinj5  somewhat  sore  on  this  ground, 
and  remembering  that  Broderick  was  a  northern  man 
with  anti-slavery  principles,  they  rallied  to  his  stan- 
dard in  the  state  convention. 

To  whom  could  the  anti-electionists  appeal  for  pur- 
poses of  retaliation,  if  not  to  the  knownothings  ?  To 
them  they  turned,  and  the  result  was  a  defeat  of  the 
democratic  party  at  the  general  election,  though  they 
voted  solid  for  Bigler  for  a  third  term,**  giving  him 

alternative  he  offered  was  relentless  ever,  and  they  knew  him  too  well  not  to 
accept  the  terms.  Brotterkk  and  Owiit,  103. 

'"Hittell,  in  his  J/int.  i>.  /'.,  291,  points  out  that  S.  W.  Inge  of  Alabama, 
U.  S.  ilistrict  atty  for  (."al.,  and  Volney  S.  Howard  of  Texas,  law  agent  of 
the  land  commission,  had  as  members  of  congru.ss  voted  against  the  admisi- 
fiioa  of  the  state,  because  by  its  constitution  slavery  was  excluded;  that  Iiigo 
was  succeeded  by  Delia  Torre  of  S.  C;  that  Juilge  Hoffman,  who,  as  I  have 
explained,  was  accepted  by  Gwiu  after  he  had  quarrelled  with  Fillmore  over 
his  nomination  of  a  whig  to  the  place,  was  lowered  by  having  a  liigher  court 
placed  over  him,  with  Judge  McAllister  of  Alabiima  presiding;  and  that  the 
number  of  impecunious  southerners  of  noted  families  provided  for  in  the  S.  F. 
custom-houses,  had  given  it  tlie  sobri(juet  of  the  Virginia  poor-house.  Frink, 
MS.,  10,  refers  to  the  saute  exclusion  of  northern  men  fniiu  ofBce  in  Cal. 

*"•  Bigler  came  to  Cal.  with  his  wife  and  daughter  in  1849,  and  aa  I  have 
said,  scorned  not  manual  labor,  although  bred  a  lawyer.  He  was  a  good 
neighbor,  and  kind  to  strangers  in  sickness,  of  whom  tliere  were  many  at  Sao. 
After  his  defeat  in  1855  he  resumed  the  practice  of  law.  During  Buchanan '.s 
administration  he  received  an  appointntent  as  minister  to  Chile,  returning  at 
tlie  close  of  his  term  to  Cal.  Pres.  Johnson  gave  him  an  appointment  to 
inspect  for  the  U.  S.  the  sections  of  the  Pac.  11.  R.  as  it  was  completed;  and 
also  gave  him  the  office  of  collector  of  internal  revenue.  He  died  at  Sac.  in 
Nov.  1871,  aged  68  years.  Sac.  Kejmrt,  Nov.  .30,  1871;  Sac.  Bee,  Feb.  8,  1873; 
Plunuis  (Quinqf)  National,  Dec.  9,  1871;  Placermlk  Democrat,  Dec.  9,  1871; 
San  Bernardino  Ow^rtiinH,  Dec.  9,  1871;  San  Jmii  Mercury,  Dec.  7,  1871; 
Solano  Pretu,  1865,  in  Hayes'  CoU.,  Cal.  NoUe,  ii.  289;  Tulare  Times,  Dec  16, 


BIGLER'S  ADMINISTRATION. 


695 


auaii  s 
ling  at 
ent  to 
1;  and 
lac.  in 

1873; 

1871; 

1871; 

c   16, 


40,220  votes;  but  the  new  party  gave  their  candidate, 
J.  Neely  Johnson,"  51,157.  It  has  been  said  that 
Estill,  the  governor's  whilom  chief  friend,  but  with 
whom  he  had  quarrelled  on  account  of  the  state  prison 
contract,  had  gone  over  to  the  knownothings  with  a 
following,  in  order  to  defeat  Bigler ;  but  Estill  could 
not  have  carried  5,000  with  him  for  any  purpose. 

The  administration  of  Bigler  brought  forth  no  re- 
forms in  the  state's  affairs.  While  his  messages  show 
that  he  was  conscious  of  the  corruption  about  him, 
while  he  could  not  have  been  ignorant  of  all  that  was 
unceasingly  complained  of  in  the  public  prints,  he  was 
unable  to  stem  the  tide  of  misrule.  Over  and  over 
he  advocated  economy,  and  reprehended  the  criminal 
profligacy  of  the  legislatures.  But  rather  than  lose 
his  office  he  lent  himself  to  schemes  as  crooked  as  any. 
Like  the  man  who  mortgages  his  farm  to  raise  money 
with  which  to  speculate  in  stocks;  he  endeavored  to 
repair  some  of  the  state's  losses  by  the  beach  and 
water  lot  extension,  and  by  the  recovery  of  escheated 
estates,  of  which  there  were  manv  "^     The  money  to 

1871;  Or.  Statesman,  Aub.  18G8;  San  JoKi  Pioneer,  Nov.  10,  1877;  Choina 
Memoirs,  MS.,  71-3;  Shuck,  HeprexentiUii^  Men,  47-02. 

''"  J.  Neelv  Johnson  was  born  in  soutliurn  Iiiil.,  and  came  to  Cal.  overland 
iit  1849,  studying  and  practising  law  at  Sac.  He  was  industrious,  and  be- 
came l>oth  city  and  district  attorney.  Soon  after  the  close  of  his  term  as  gov. 
lie  settled  in  Carson,  Nev.,  and  had  charge  of  the  estate  of  Sandy  Bowers 
during  the  absence  of  that  wealthy  ignoramus  in  Europe,  growing  ricli  out  of 
the  fees  he  charged.  He  was  elevated  to  the  sup.  bench  in  Nev.,  and  died  in 
S.  L.  City  in  Aug.  1872.  His  wife,  whom  he  married  in  1852,  was  a  daughter 
of  J.  C.  Zabriskie,  an  eminent  counsellor  and  compiler  of  the  Land  Lawn, 
U.  S.  Oakland  Transcript,  Sept.  1,  1872;  WatmnvUle  Pajaro  Times,  Fob.  18, 
1805;  Carsm  Stnte  Reu.,  Sept.  1,  1872;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Aug.  31,  1872;  Sac. 
Union,  Sept.  2,  1872;  Placer  Times,  April  13,  1850;  Hayes'  Scraps,  Cal.  Notes. 
ii.  289;  Brown's  Statement,  MS.,  22. 

'"  The  Leidesdorff  estate,  the  estate  of  Augustus  Decker  and  the  Jacinto 
El  Moro  estates,  worth  at  that  tima  $2,500,000,  were  believed  to  have  escheated 
to  the  state;  but  the  governor's  recommendation  to  take  steps  to  secure  them 
were  unheeded.  Ann.  Mess.,  in  CaL  Jour.  Sen.,  1855,  39.  The  legislature  of 
1850  passed  an  act  relative  to  escheated  estates,  permitting  aliens  to  inherit  and 
hold  property,  if  claimed  within  five  years.  Wheu  not  claimed  in  that  time 
the  property  was  to  be  sold,  and  the  money  deposited  in  the  state  treasury; 
and  if  not  claimed  in  five  years  to  be  placed  to  the  credit  of  the  school  fund. 
Cal.  SUU.,  1866,  137-S.  The  Leidesdorff  estate  was  claimed  by  Joseph  L. 
Folsom,  who  purchased  it  of  the  heirs,  the  sup.  court  deciding  in  his  favor. 
The  Deske  estate  was  also  claimed  by  heirs  in  Prussia,  and  recovered.  The 
El  Moro  case  was  dismissed,  claimants  having  appeared.  Thomas  Hardy 
owned  a  Spanish  grant  of  6  square  leagues,  which  was  supposed  to  have  ea- 


\>m 


606 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


be  derived  from  any  of  tlie  plans  for  raising  a  revcnuo 
out  of  state  property  was  for  the  purp»)8e  of  payiiiff 
debts  which  never  ceased  to  accumulate.  Wlien  tlio 
reform  party  threatened  him,  he  grew  querulous  in 
his  utterances;  and  in  the  struggle  to  redeem  himself, 
lost  the  support  of  some  of  his  political  friends. 

A  measure  frequently  reconnnended  by  Bigler  wa.s 
the  discontinuance  of  annual  sessions  of  the  legislatuio, 
and  therewith  the  yearly  expenditure  of  ^800,000. 
The  legislature  of  1855  [)roposed  amendments  to  the 
constitution,  making  the  sessions  of  that  body  biennial, 
the  next  legislature  to  be  elected  in  1857,  to  meet  in 
January  1858,  with  other  regulations  connected  with 
the  change.  Another  proposed  amendment  provided 
for  submitting  to  the  people  the  que8tit)n  of  altering 
the  entire  constitution,  with  the  manner  of  conducting 
an  election  on  this  subject.  Still  another  amendment 
proposed  an  oath  to  be  subscribed  to  by  senators  and 
assemblymen,  that  since  the  adoption  of  such  amciid- 
ment  they  had  not  sent  or  accepted  a  challenge,  or 
fought  a  duel,  or  assisted  or  advised  others  in  duel- 
ling. The  first  and  the  third  of  these  were  not  con- 
sidered worthy  of  notice,  and  were  probably  intended 
to  carry  the  second;  for  the  legislature  of  1856,  com- 
posed largely  of  southern  knownothings,  agreed  only 
to  this  one,  and  passed  an  act  submitting  the  question 
of  amending  the  manner  of  calling  for  a  constitutional 
convention  to  the  people  at  the  next  general  election. 
The  people  voted  in  favor  of  the  amendment,  but  no 
call  was  made  under  it  at  that  time. 

The  legislature  of  1855  also  passed  an  act  concern- 
ing seiiatorial  elections,  to  the  effect  that  all  regular 
elections  for  United  States  senators  should  be  held 
"after  the  first  day  of  January  next  preceding  the 


cheated,  bnt  it  was  taken  possession  of  by  virtne  of  a  pretended  administra- 
tor's sale.  The  estate  of  James  Beckett  was  claimed  by  his  widow.  Tho 
aggregate  amount  of  all  this  property  was  estimated  at  several  millions.  Tlio 
legislature  appropriated  $30,000  for  the  prosecution  of  these  cases,  whicli  was 
divided  among  tne  lawyers,  the  state  gaining  nothing.  Jiept- qfAUu-Oen.,  iu 
Vai  Jour.  Sen.,  1856,  189-91. 


LEfUSLATURE  OF   1866. 


WI 


« .tmmcncement  of  the  term  to  be  filled,''  and  all  special 
t'loctions  at  any  session  at  which  a  vacancy  or  execu- 
tive appointment  should  be  reported  by  the  governor; 
a  majority  of  all  the  votes  given  being  necessary  to 
an  election,  and  the  presence  of  a  ujajority  of  all  the 
nionibers  of  the  senate  and  assembly  required.  As 
the  senatorial  contest  would  be  renewed  at  the  next 
session,  it  was  well  to  have  an  understanding  of  the 
law  on  the  subject. 

The  knownothin*j  party  at  the  opening  of  1850  liad 
every  prospect  of  electing  a  senator  to  succeed  (jrwin ; 
tliere  were  three  candidates,  either  of  wiioni  possessed 
much  personal  popularity;  namely,  H.  A.  Crabb  of 
San  Joaquin,  E.  C.  Marshall,  and  Ex-governor  Henry 
S.  Foote  of  Mississippi,  who  like  the  rest  of  the  gov- 
erning race  had  come  to  California  to  find  an  oiKcc  f 
lionor  and  profit.  The  two  latter  were 'democrats, 
H'ho  had  joined  the  knownothings  for  no  other  purpose 
\an  to  gain  ])lace  and  power.  They  had  yet  to  learn 
.lat  there  were  many  more  deserters  from  the  demo- 
cratic ranks,  who  like  themselves  x)wed  only  a  fictitious 
allegiance  to  the  new  party.  In  tlie  assembly  elected 
by  the  knownothings,  there  were  those  who  needed 
not  much  persuasion  to  betray  the  new  leaders.  In 
short,  a  party  made  of  the  discontented  of  two  organ- 
ized and  trained  parties  could  not  be  expected  to  hold 
together  a  moment  after  any  material  inducement  was 
offered  them  to  return  their  former  faith. 

The  law  required  that  "on  such  a  day  as  might  be 
agreed  to  by  both  houses"  they  should  meet,  and  by 
joint  vote  proceed  to  the  election  of  a  senator;  but 
there  was  nothing  in  it  compelling  them  to  agree,  or 
to  go  into  an  election.  Both  Broderick  and  Gwin  had 
among  the  knownothings  old  followers  whose  habits 
of  obedience  were  second  nature,  and  to  these  they 
appealed  to  prevent  an  election.     They  were  saved 


^Thia,  says  Tuthill,  was  to  keep  Weller's  seat  open  for  a  democrat.  Hist. 
Col.,  424;  Rycknum,  MS.,  18-20. 


POLTTiCAL  HISTORY. 

all  anxiety  by  the  knownothing  logislature,  wluch  did 
not  go  into  joint  convention^*  on  a  senatorial  electitm. 
Foote  had  been  nominated  in  caucus,  but  Wilson 
Flint,  democrat,  of  San  Francisco,  who  was  opposed 
to  Broderick  on  the  senatorial  question  at  the  previous 
session,  defeated  the  motion  for  convention  in  the 
senate,  on  the  ground  that  Foote  was  a  pro-slavery 
politician  who  would  never  have  come  to  California 
except  to  obtain  office.  In  this  action  he  was  governed 
by  his  own  convictions,  but  approved  and  encouraged 
by  Broderick,  to  whom  he  went  with  the  matter. 
According  to  Flint's  testimony,  given  in  1860,  at  a 
dinner  of  the  republican  members  of  the  legislature, 
he  said  to  Broderick  that,  feeling  as  he  did  about 


»The  senate  of  1856  was  coutpoaed  of  W.  Flint,  F.  Tilford,  W.  W. 
Hawkes,  W.  J.  Shaw,  S.  F.;  W.  I.  Ferguson,  A.  S.  Gove,  Sac;  J.  C.  Haw- 
thoriie,  C.  Westinorelantl,  Placer;  W.  C.  Burnett,  P.  C.  Rust,  Yulw,  ami 
Sutter;  H.  M.  Fiske,  A.  French,  G.  W.  Hook,  J.  G.  McCallum,  El  Dorado; 

D.  R.  Ashley,  Moutfirey  and  Sta  Cniz;  E.  F.  Burton,  E.  G.  Waite,  Nuvailu; 
S.  Byuum,  Napa,  Sclano,  and  Yolo;  J.  D.  Cosby,  Triuity  and  Klainut'n;  1). 
CrandiUl,  W.  B.  Nornian,  Calaveras  and  Ainador;  S.  Day,  Alameda  and  Siu 
Clara;  S.  H.  Dash,  Shasta  and  Colusa;  H.  P.  Heintzelman,  Sonoma,  Mai-iii, 
etc.;  C.  E.  Lippiucott,  Yuba;  W.  H.  McCoun,  Contra  Costa  and  San  .Ina- 
quin;  J.  B.  AIcGee,  Butte  apd  Plumaa;  J.  A.  McNeil,  Mariposa;  J.  D.  Sexl- 
len.  Sierra;  B.  D.  Wilson,  San  Diego,  Los  Angeles,  and  San  Bernariliim. 
Prest  of  the  senate,  ].l.  M.  Anderson;  prest  pro  tern.,  D.  R.  Ashley;  sec,  ^V. 
Bausman;  aast  sec,  R.  Biven;  enrolling  clerk,  A.  £.  Waite;  eugrosKing 
clerk,  W.  Miller;  i<«^rgt-at-arm8,  J.  W.  Koss;  door-keeper,  J.  McGlencliy. 
The  .Tsembly  was  composed  of  J.  Kwalt,  J.  George,  T.  Gray,  H.  Uawes,  N. 
Holland,  B.  S.  Lippincott,  E.  W.  Mouiiliron.  S.  A.  Sharp,  H.  Wohler,  S.  F.; 
G.  H.  Cartter,  G.  Cone,  G.  W.  LeUiy,  J.  N.  Pugii,  Sac;  J.  Borland,  E.  Bowe, 
S.  T.  Gage,  T.  D,  Heiskell,  J.  W.  OUver,  W.  H.  Taylor.  L.  S.  Welsh,  J.  D. 
White,  El  Dora<lo;  T.  H.  Reed,  S.  Sellick,  L.  Stout,  R.  L.  Williams,  Plaour; 
J.  W.  Hunter,  B.  S.  Weir,  San  Joaquin;  V.  G.  Bell,  S.  W.  Boring,  D.  Ihis- 
tin,  T.  B.  McFarkud,  G.  A.  F.  Reynolds,  Nevada;  J.  Dick,  Butte;  R.  15. 
Shcrrard,  Sutter;  J.  T.  Farley,  (r.  W.  Wagner,  Amador;  T.  C.  Bruuton,  -M. 
Mc(rehee,  T.  J.  Oxley,  J.  T.  Van  Dusen,  Tuolumne;  A.  J.  BatcheLlor,  .1. 
Shearer,  J.  Sterritt,  R.  M.  Turner,  W.  B.  Winsor,  Yuba;  H.  A.  Gaston,  A. 
A.  Hoover,  Sierra;  R.  C.  HaUe,  Napa;  A.  R.  Andrews,  Shasta;  W.  McDon- 
ald, Klamath;  E.  J.  Curtis,  Siskiyou;  R.  Swan,  Tulare;  T.  W.  Taliafeno, 

E.  T.  Beatty,  Calaveras;  R.  B.  Lamon,  G.  H.  Rhodes,  Mariposa;  E.  J.  Lewis, 
Coluaa;  G.  R.  Brush,  Marin;  J.  M.  Covarrubias,  Sta  Barbara;  J.  J.  Kundrick, 
San  Diego;  J.  L.  Brei\t,  J.  G.  Downey,  Iios  Aneeles;  A.  M.  Caatro,  San  Luii 
Obispo;  R.  L.  Matthews,  Monterey;  W.  Blackburn,  C.  Davis,  G.  Peck,  Sta 
Clara;  K  Bynum,  Yolo;  J.  C.  Callbreath,  Sbinislaus;  T.  M.  CoomLs,  Ala- 
meda; H.  G.  Heald,  J.  S.  Rathbum,  Sonoma;  R.  G.  Kelly,  J.  Wiuatou, 
Plumas;  A.  R.  Meloney,  Contra  Costa;  C.  S.  Ricks,  Humboldt;  A.  M.  >Sti- 
venson,  Solano;  W.  W.  Upton,  Trinity.  Speaker,  J.  T.  Farley;  speaker  pi  o 
tern.,  T.  B.  McFarland;  chief  clerk,  J.  M.  Anderson;  asst  clerk,  A.  M.  Uay- 
den;  enrolling  clerk,  J.  Powell;  engrossing  clerk,  T.  Moreland;  sergt-at-aruis, 
K  Gates;  door-keeper,  J.  D.  G.  Quirk.  CaL  Reg.,  1857,  191. 


TENOR  OF  THE  TIMES. 


690 


slavery,  he  conceived  it  to  be  his  duty  to  aid  the 
kiiownothings;  to  which  Broderick  rephed  that  he 
agreed  with  him  that  such  was  his  duty;  adding, 
"Flint,*  I  will  load  the  democratic  party  down  with 
three  tons  of  lead  in  this  canvass."  And  he  nominated 
^rr  Bigler.  This  episode  I  introduce  here  to  explain 
what  followed  later. 

The  knownothings  stormed  and  threatened,  but 
Flint  was  firm.  Convinced  there  would  be  no  elec- 
tion, Crabb  withdrew  in  favor  of  W.  1.  Ferguson,  a 
young  lawyer,  with  nothing  to  recommend  him  but 
a  handsome  person,  active  brain,  finished  education, 
and  dissolute  habits.  He  was  mortally  wounded  in  a 
duel  in  August  1858  by  George  Pen  Johnston,  having 
gone  back  to  the  democratic  jmrty  and  aspired  to  con- 
gressional honors.  Foote,  a  few  years  later,  found  his 
appropriate  place  in  the  confederate  senate. 

Sarshcl  Bjmum  was  bom  in  Ky,  and  came  overland  to  CaL  in  IS49.  He 
was  the  first  clerk  of  Solano  co.,  and  representi-'d  Yolo,  Napa,  and  Solano  in 
tlie  lejjislature.  He  removed  to  Lakeport  in  1802,  where  Im  became  clerk  of 
Like  CO.,  holding  the  office  until  1875.  He  died  the  following  year.  y\itlejo 
(  hmnicle  and  Xoni  lieimler,  Nov.  25,  1870. 

R.  C.  Haile,  born  in  Tenn.,  educated  at  Nasliville,  was  a  merchant  in 
Sumner  CO.  from  1836  to  1839,  when  he  removed  to  Mips.,  and  thence  to  Cal. 
ill  1849,  enjraging  in  mining  in  Nevada  City.  After  a  year  in  the  mines  he 
settled  in  N:ipa  valley,  at  farming  and  laboring,  to  which  he  added  merchan- 
dising in  1857.  Again  in  1858  he  removed,  this  time  to  Suisun  valley,  where 
lie  purchased  510  acres  of  land.  He  was  elected  to  the  legislature  from  So- 
lano CO.  in  1808  and  1876.  Solum  Co.  lliM.,  410-11. 

Horace  Hawes,  a  native  of  one  of  tiie  eastern  states,  came  to  Cal.  in  1845, 
as  consul  to  some  of  the  Polynesian  groups  of  islands.  In  lS44i  he  resided 
at  Honolulu,  but  returned  to  Cal,,  and  was  prefect  of  the  district  of  S.  F.  in 
1S49.  Unfiound  Dock.,  57.  He  had  trouble  with  alcaliles  Colton  and  (J wiry, 
whose  land  grants  he  opposed.  By  profession  a  lawyer,  he  resumed  practice 
on  the  establishment  of  the  state  govt.  He  was  the  framer  of  the  ctwisolida- 
tion  bill,  which  effected  a  great  reform  in  the  govt  of  S.  F.  He  represented 
the  CO.  of  S.  F.  and  San  Mateo  in  the  senate  in  18(13-4.  In  18(H>  he  drew  up 
tlic  registry  law.  He  was  a  shrewd  business  man,  and  accumulated  a  large 
estate.  His  death  occurred  in  1871.  He  wiis  the  first  man  of  wealth  in  Cal. 
to  offer  to  give  any  considerable  portion  of  it  tt>  a  public  institution;  but  the 
conditions  of  his  gift  of  S1,000,(K)0  were  such  tiiat  it  Wwj  iMit  practicable  to 
accept  it,  and  the  property  reverted  to  his  heirs.   6'.  F.  AUn,  March  10,  1871. 

"Wilson  G.  Flint  '.vas  a  native  of  Oliio,  born  18l20.  He  in),'aged  in  mer- 
cantile pursuits  in  New  York  at  an  early  age,  and  afterward  \-ent  to  Texa.s, 
wliencc  he  came  to  Cal.  in  1S49.  He  erected  a  warehouse  at  Nin'i!<  Point,  in 
which  he  conducted  business  for  several  years.  In  1854  he  turned  his  atven- 
tion  to  farming,  making  experiments,  and  writing  many  treatises  \\\m\  the 
Mil)ject.  He  was  an  ardent  and  firm  frion<l  of  freedom,  as  his  course  in  the 
K'gislature  gave  proof.  He  died  at  S.  F.  in  Jan.  1867.  S.  F.  CtUl,  Jan.  6, 
1867. 


m 


700 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


The  state  officers  who  came  in  with  the  knownoth- 
ings  were  expected  to  bring  in  some  reforms.^  Tlie 
governor  promised  very  solemnly  in  his  inaugural,  and 
gave  much  earnest  advice  to  the  legislature.  But  it 
required  a  man  of  extraordinary  nerve  and  a  powerful 
personal  magnetism  to  impress  himself  upon  the  tur- 
bulent and  evil  times  to  which  the  state  was  reduced 
by  politicians  who  cared  nothing  for  the  welfare  of  the 
people,  and  everytliing  for  money  and  personal  {tg- 
grandizement.  The  welfare  of  the  people!  Wliy, 
these  lawyers,  judges,  and  fire-eating  politicians  were 
the  scum  of  the  state  1  They  were  thieves,  gamblers, 
murderers,  some  of  them  living  upon  the  proceetls  of 
harlotry,  and  all  of  them  having  at  heart  the  same 
consideration  for  the  people  that  had  the  occupants  of 
the  state  prison,  where  these  ought  to  have  been ;  yet 
they  were  no  whit  worse,  and  could  not  possibly  be, 
than  the  politicians  of  to-day.  Johnson  was  a  very 
weak  individual.  He  could  no  more  control  the  hvhrid 
legislature  than  could  a  child.  Even  Bigler  could 
have  done  little,  as  it  was  here  too  much  like  what  lie 
had  C(jmplained  of  in  his  farewell  messiige,  that  to  be 
"made  responsible  for  the  acts  of  others,  or  for  mat- 
ters over  which  he  could  exercise  no  direct  control," 
was  bitter  injustice.  He  advocated  economy  and  pro- 
bity, and  the  legislature  did  what  it  could  at  that  l;ite 
day,  and  yet  the  state  treasurer  elected  with  him  was 
a  defaulter  to  the  amount  of  $124,000.  He  point,  d 
out  the  illegality  and  unconstitutionality  of  the  fund- 
ing acts  by  which  the  state  had  sustained  its  credit, 
and  thus  led  to  an  examination  of  the  subject,  and  to 
the  decision  by  the  people  to  pay  the  debt  and  save 
the  honor  of  California. 

The  knownothing  legislature  enacted  the  law  drawn 

**  R.  M.  Anderson  was  lieut-gov. ;  David  F.  Douglass,  sec.  of  state;  Cit.'or^.'e 
W.  Whitman,  controller,  suspended  in  Feb.  18."»7,  when  E.  F.  Burton  w.>j 
appointed;  Henry  Biites,  tresisurer  (rcHigned  in  1857,  and  James  L  Eni.u>li 
apptiintcd  in  liis  place);  William  T.  Wallace,  attygen. ;  John  H  Bn-wstir, 
8ur. -gen. ;  Paul  K.  Huhbs,  supt  pub.  instruction,  succeeded  by  A.  J.  MonMcr, 
in  18.'»7;  W.  C.  Kiblie,  quartcr-maMter-goii. ;  state  printer,  James  Allen;  slate 
translator,  Augistin  Ainsa.  t\iL  I{e<j.,  1857,  180. 


RISE  OF  TEE  REPUBUCANS. 


701 


up  by  Horace  Hawes,  by  which  San  Francisco  city 
and  county  governments  were  consohdated,  the  old 
charter  repealed,  and  the  whole  list  of  city  and  county 
officers  given  their  conge  at  the  next  general  election ; 
and  they  were  forbidden  to  contract  any  debt  in  the 
interim  not  authorized  by  the  act."  The  consolidation 
act,  and  the  benefits  which  flowed  from  it,  gave  great 
relief  to  San  Francisco,  and  together  with  the  acts  of 
the  vigilance  committees,  produced  a  revolution  and 
reform,  the  greatest  ever  achieved  with  so  little  blood- 
shed. The  most  important  and  exciting  events  of  the 
new  administration  I  have  reserved  for  a  separate 
cliapter.  Under  all  the  circumstances  of  this  remark- 
able period,  it  was  no  doubt  fortunate  that  no  Charles 
the  First  occupied  the  executive  office  in  California, 
and  that  Johnson  subsided  before  that  moral  force 
which  resides  in  the  soul  of  an  aroused  people.  It 
was  the  providence  of  almighty  power  among  a  suffer- 
ing people  that  California  at  this  juncture  should  have 
i)nly  the  semblance  of  a  man  for  governor.  Had  he 
l)een  of  better  metal,  it  had  been  worse  for  him  and 
all  concerned. 


The  knownothing  party  enjoyed  but  a  brief  exist- 
ence.^ As  a  native  American  party  it  secured  no 
standing  m  California,  appropriated  as  it  was  for  the 
slielter  of  hopeless  whigs  and  disaffected  chivalry. 
It  was  divided  by  the  rise  of  the  republican  party  in 
I80G.  This  year  there  were  three  parties  in  the  field, 
and  a  president  of  the  United  States  to  be  elected. 
There  were  three  st'xte  conventions  in  California,  su[)- 
porting  three  candidates  for  the  presidency:  Fremont, 
republican;  Fillmore,  native  American;^  Buchanan, 

"Cal.  SbU.,  1866.  145-178.  San  Mateo  co.  was  created  out  of  the  south 
eric  I  of  8.  F.  co.  by  the  same  art 

»*  Fillmore  ha»l  3«,165  votes  in  Cal.:  Buchanan,  53,365;  Fremont,  20,093; 
Tiilhill,  Hid.  Cat.,  428.  Joseph  McKil>ben  and  Charles  Scott  were  ek-ctecl 
coii^n-essmun,  over  Whitman  and  Dibble,  native  Ameriuans,  and  Raukiu  and 
Ttinier,  republicans. 

^^  The  knownothing  used  to  meet  in  a  hall  on  Sac.  street  near  Montgom- 
crv.  Coleman,  Vhj.  Com.,  MS.,  33;  Morrell,  in  Roman's  Kewtmivpfr  vuttter, 
7i>  7;  Site  UnioH,  Jau.  5  and  '£i,  and  Sept.  1,  3,  U,  1850;  S.  /'.  Bulktin,  Sept. 
3,  4,  and  Oct.  22,  1850. 


702 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


democratic.  The  whigs  had  some  organizations,  in 
clubs,  and  gave  their  support  to  Filhuore.  The  re- 
pubHcans  made  their  maiden  effort  in  California  this 
year,*"  but  the  candidate  they  had  to  indorse  was  not 
popular  with  any  party  in  the  state.  No  bear-tlag 
reminiscences  could  suffice  now  to  extenuate  certain 
other  and  more  secret  deeds  connected  with  beef 
contracts  and  Mariposa  estates.^*  Republicanism,  too, 
at  this  time,  was  regarded  as  sectional,  and  therefore 
not  to  be  encouraged.  The  election  of  Fremont,  it 
was  urged,  would  bring  on  disunion.  Southern  whigs, 
who  deplored  the  attitude  of  the  chivalry,  whom  they 
denounced  as  misrepresenting  southern  character,  could 
not  be  drawn  into  the  republican  ranks,  fearing  that 
in  the  event  of  disunion  they  should  be  found  taking 
sides  against  their  own  kindred  and  friends.  The 
times  were  indeed  out  of  joint  in  the  political  arena. 

^  Merrill  claims  to  have  organized  the  first  republican  club  in  Cal.  '  They 
gave  thoir  iiitluoiice  to  Broderick  because  he  was  anti-chivalry.'  Merrid, 
Stnteimiit,  MS.,  10.  In  San  Joaquin  co.  the  chivalry  said  tl»e  reijublicims 
would  not  lie  iwrniitted  to  organize  or  sit  in  convention.  'The  convention 
was  held,  for  all  that.'  Staples,  SUitement,  MS.,  15-16. 

"  Says  the .9.  /'.  Mortiimj  OMie,  Aug.  19, 185C:  'Fremont's pleading imluced 
congress  to  pass  a  bill  for  his  relief,  and  flush  again,  he  redeemed  his  M.tri- 
po.sa  estate,  and  bullied  Corcoran  and  Riggs,  who  held  the  claim  of  King  <if 
William  for  ^),000,  advanced  on  tiie  beef  contract,  to  accept  ^),(MK)  to 
§30,000  less  than  their  due.  Through  Palmer,  Cook  &  Co.  he  shaved  tlu: 
patient  Califomians  M'ho  had  w'lited  for  the  beef  contract  money,  forcing 
tliem  to  take  half.  Tlie  cunning  Palmer  made  the  Mariposa  deed  over  to 
himself,  and  then  took  a  confession  of  judgment  from  Fremont  for  upward  of 
g73,0(K)  at  3  per  cent  per  month  interest.  Hence  Fremont's  creditors  had  to 
take  wluit  Palmer  offered.  In  this  way  most  of  the  congressional  appropria- 
tions fell  into  Palmer,  Cook,  &  Co. 's  hands,  and  8ave<l  them  from  baukruptcy 
in  1854.  After  that  Fremont  received  i^l,000  per  month  as  Palmer's  agent  tn 
aid  them  in  their  negotiations  in  the  east,  to  raise  money  on  tl-.e  Mariposa 
and  IWton  &  Barron  claims,  but  failed.  Palmer's  fortunes  were  iiard  preNscd, 
and  he  «)rdereil  Fremont  and  WriL'ht  to  bribe  a  black  republican  speaker  into 
pLicc.  Tlius  Banks  became  speaker,  and  he  made  a  conanittee  report  a  bill 
to  confirm  the  Bolton  &  Barron  claims  without  ordeal  of  the  U.  S.  courts. 
Herl>ert  was  the  UhA  to  lobby  the  bill,  which  he  would  have  passed  had  lie 
not  killed  the  Irish  waiter.  £nd>oIdened  by  success,  Fremont  struck  for  tliu 
bl.-wk  republican  nomination.  Selover  alone  spent  $4!I,(K)0  to  get  the  nomi- 
nation, says  the  Pliuxr  Herald,  and  the  state's  money,  placed  in  Palmer's  iiands 
to  pa,-  ilic  interest  on  her  bonds,  w;v8  so  used.  Unable  to  borrow  money  to 
cover  the  ;J102,0J0  of  Cal.  bond  money,  tlieir  game  collapsed,  and  Cal.  was  dis- 
honored. If  Fremont  were  elected,  Pahner  would  be  sec.  of  treas.,  Wright 
8ul)-trea8.,  and  Selover  collector  of  the  port.'  Such  were  the  charges  and 
revelations  which  the  reimblican  nominee  for  the  presidency  lu-id  to  meet  in 
Cal.  The  various  capitalists  with  whom  Fremont  had  to  deal  finally  deprived 
him  of  his  Mariposa  estate,  valued  at  $10,(MK),0(M),  according  to  his  ov>ra  testi- 
mony. X.  Y.  World,  Deo.  22,  16ti4;  Jluj/at'  Hcnijn),  Jliitinj,  iv.  25. 


VIGILANCE  COMMITTEES. 


703 


The  democratic  party,  feeling  itself  hard  pushed  by 
the  two  others  in  the  field,  again  united,  and  assessed 
office-holders  ten  per  cent  upon  the  income  of  heads 
of  departments,  and  five  per  cent  upon  the  incomes  of 
subordinates,  to  meet  the  expenses  of  the  campaign 
and  election.  Thus  in  a  circuitous  manner  the  admin- 
istration paid  out  of  the  public  funds  largo  sums  of 
money  for  continuing  itself  in  power;  and  either  the 
salaries  of  the  officials  assessed  were  too  large,  or  the 
holders  of  offices  were  oppressed  to  serve  the  purposes 
of  the  managers  of  their  party. 

State  politics  partook  of  the  excitement  of  the  late 
acts  of  the  vigilance  committees,  and  the  legislative 
candidates  of  the  native  American  party  were  called 
upon  to  define  their  position  upon  this  question.^"  A 
pledge  was  required  that  such  candidates,  if  elected, 
should  vote  for  the  passage  of  a  law  granting  a  gen- 
eral amnesty  to  the  vigilance  committee  of  San  Fran- 
cisco and  their  coadjutors;  and  against  expending  the 
public  money  to  pay  improvident  bills  made  for  the 
purpose  of  suppressing  or  exterminating  the  conmiit- 
teo.  The  outrageous  frauds  perpetrated  at  former 
elections,  and  particularly  in  San  Francisco,  by  bullot- 
bt)x  stuffing,  and  which  had  been  one  of  the  crimes 
against  which  the  vigilance  committee  warred,  was 
car-jfuUy  guarded  against  in  the  general  election  of 
this  year.*^  The  municipal  election  in  this  city,  in 
the  spring,  had  been  so  managed  tiiat  the  city  govern- 
ment was  retained  in  the  hands  of  the  same  corrupt 
officials  against  whom  the  honest  citizens  had  for  years 

".9.  F.  BuUelh',  /iu2.  30,  1850;  Fm/'it  Jlhtorirnl  Fartu,  MS.,  21-2;  Snr. 
riiion,  Oct.  10,  1K5G.  Kobert  Robinson,  Htiiiy  I'alloy,  L.  W.  Ferris,  J. 
I'owell,  A.  P.  ratlin,  Robert  V.  Clark,  anil  W.  (.'.  Wallace,  of  Siuiiinicnto 
CO.,  declared  their  intention  to  give  their  support  to  the  vigilance  eoinniittfe. 

''The  Sac.  Union  of  Oct.  22,  18r><i,  has  a  description  of  a  plate-glass  buUot- 
box,  with  a  brass  frame,  a  small  ojiening  for  the  ftallot  in  a  brass  lap  or  con- 
trivance that  seized  the  same  inside  and  rang  a  bell.  Anotlier  ballot-box, 
.U'soribed  in  the  issue  of  the  29th  of  Sept.,  was  made  of  strong  brass  wires, 
ti^litly  woven,  but  which  allowetl  of  seeing  the  ballot  introduciMl.  The  false 
liallot-boxes  used  by  the  stuffcrs  are  described  in  my  P<yjmlar  TrilmnaU,  ii. 
pp.  7,  8;  in  Frink,  MS.,  22-3.  Dempster  sjjeaks  of  them  in  manuscript,  55-7; 
aUo  Siii/ward,  MS.,  33-4;  JJrown,  HMeineut,  MS.,  20. 


1-  .<' 


I 


\m\ 


704 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


had  no  redress  and  no  protection  until  the  vigilanoo 
coniniittee  assumed  the  temporary  government.  By 
the  consoHdation  act,  these  men  wouki  go  out  and  new 
officers  be  elected  under  tlie  act.  To  nominate  compo- 
tent  and  honorable  men  was  the  care  of  the  people's 
party,  an  organization  without  reference  to  national 
affairs,  which  was  bent  upon  correcting  local  abuses. 
Such  was  the  political  situation  in  185G.  The  elec- 
tion went,  as  it  was  sure  to  go,  to  the  now  united 
democrats.  Buchanan  received  a  large  vote  in  Cali- 
fornia, more  than  double  that  of  Frt^mont.'"**  The 
peo{)le's  party  effected  some  important  reforms  in  city 
government;  the  whigs  and  knownothings  and  the 
republicans  had  received  a  lesson  which  was  useful  to 
them  in  18 GO. 


The  potency  of  Broderick  was  shown  in  the  spring  of 
1850,  wlien  he  seized  upon  the  democratic  convention 
and  welded  the  two  factions,  thus  securinLC  democratic 
presidential    electors  and  a    democratic    legislature.^' 

"The  ]>rcsiJcutial  electors  chosen  were  Delia  Torre,  native  of  S.  C;  Oli- 
vera,  of  Cal. ;  Uratlford,  of  Pa;  Fri-anor,  of  Md.  Of  the  coiigrcssinen,  Scutt 
was  from  Va,  and  McKild)eu  from  Pa.  Fairfax,  clork  of  tlio  siiji.  court,  Mas 
from  Va,  and  also  Moulder,  supt  of  jmhlio  instruction.  .S'lic.  (Jiiion,  Sept.  1."), 
185(>.  This  impartial  (!)  distribution  of  otiices  was  a  timely  device  of  the 
party  to  unite  it. 

^'Tho  senate  in  1837  waa  composed  of  W.  .1.  Shaw,  S.  Soula,  K.  L.  Sulli- 
van, F.  Tilford,  resijj;ned,  and  F.  A.  Woo<lwortli  el-cled  to  vacancy,  S.  1".; 
W.  I.  FiTjiuson,  .r.  Johnston,  Sac;  J.  W.alkup,  ('.  Westmoreland,  Placer;  .1. 
W.  < 'otl'roth,  J.  W.  Mindevillo,  Tuolumne;  (i.  J.  Carpenter,  H.  M.  Fiske, 
S.  iM.  Johnson,  J.  (J.  McCallum,  Kl  iKirado;  J.  li.  Me  ice,  Butte  and  Pluniius; 
P.  lie  1 1  (iuerni,  NIj,  Barbara  and  San  Luis  Obispo;  B.  1).  Wibou,  San  l>ii'gi>, 
L<)S  Angeles,  and  San  Boruardino;  1).  R.  Ashley,  Slonterey  and  Sta  C'l-uz;  S. 
B.  Bell,  Alameda  and  Sta  Clara;  V>'.  I'.  Burnett,  J.  O.  (Jo<Mlwin,  Yuba  a;iil 
Sutter;  S.  Byuum,  Niiiia,  Solano,  and  Yolo;  S.  II.  Cliase,  K.  (r.  W^aite,  Mi- 
vada;  J.  D.  Cosby,  Trinity  and  Klamath;  D.  Crandall,  W.  B.  Nt>riuaii, 
Calaveras  and  Antador;  S.  H.  Dosh,  Shasta  and  Colusa;  A.  R.  Meloney, 
Contra  Costa  and  San  Joac^uin;  S.  A.  Mervitt,  Mariposa;  11.  S.  Mesick,  Yub;i; 
A.  W.  Taliaferro,  Sonoma  and  Marin;  W.  T.  Ferguson,  SiiTra.  Prost,  11. 
M.  Anderson;  prest  pro  tern.,  S.  H.  Dosh;  sec,  (t.  S.  Kvans;  asst  sec,  T. 
Ward;  enrolling  clerk,  J.  C.  Shipman;  engrossing  clerk,  J.  JI.  Webstir; 
sergt-at-arms,  A.  Hunter;  door-keei>er,  J.  Mc(ilenehy.  The  assembly  was 
composed  of  Si.  C.  Blake,  R.  Chonery,  V.  J.  Fourgeaud,  R.  M.  Jcssup,  K. 
Miro,  R.  Murphy,  C.  Palmer,  T.  O.  Phelps,  W.  W.  Shepard,  S.  F.;  A.  1'. 
Cntlin,  R.  C.  Clark,  L.  W.  Ferris,  J.  W.  McKune,  Sao.;  (J.  D.  Hall,  J.  Car- 
penter, S.  F.  Hamni,  J.  Hume,  <J.  McDonald,  C.  Orvi.*,  M.  N.  Mitchill,  J. 
Turm^r,  Kl  Dorado;  H.  Barrett,  W.  Burns,  M.  Puller,  D.  W.  C.  Rice,  (J.  \. 
Swezy,  Yulwi;  C.  <iilinan,  O.  W.  Patrick,  O.  H.  Rtigcrs,  J.  R.  UnderwcMnI, 
Tuolumne;  W.  W.  Carpenter,  J.  0.  Neil,  A.  P.  K.  Safford,  S.  B.  Wymau, 


LEGISLATURE  OP  1857. 


706 


The  latter  he  depended  upon  to  elevate  him  to  the 
United  States  senate,  and  the  former  to  give  him 
standing  with  the  president. 

The  expiration  of  Weller's  term  would  leave  two 
]>laces  to  be  filled  in  the  senate,  and  remove  one  diffi- 
culty in  the  way  of  continuing  unbroken  the  <lomo- 
cratic  patronage  in  California.  If  Broderick  could  be 
brought  to  relinquish  the  pursuit  of  Gwin's  place,  and 
content  himself  with  Weller's,  harmony  might  be  re- 
stored, and  the  friends  of  one  might  work  for  the  other. 
That,  indeed,  was  the  compact  entered  into  early  in 
the  spring  between  Broderick's  managers  and  the 
chivalry,  and  which  secured  harmony  in  the  demo- 
cratic ranks  through  the  campaign. 

The  legislature  met  on  the  5th  of  January,  1857, 
which  w^as  to  decide  the  senatorial  contest  now  in  its 
third  year.  The  aspirants  were  several,  Ex-senator 
Wellcr,  Kx-congressman  Latham,  who  as  collector  of 
customs  had  a  rather  numerous  following,  Ex-c(ingress- 
nian  McCorkle,  B.  F.  Washington,  Stephen  J.  Field, 
Frank  Tilford,  J.  W.  Denver,  and  1*.  A.  Crittenden. 
The  agents  of  the  four  principal  candidates,  Gwin, 
Broderick,  Weller,  and  Latham,  were  industriously 
at  work  long  before  the  legislature  met.  Broderick, 
in  summing  up  the  results  of  his  labor,  ascertained 
that  he  lacked  two  votes  in  the  legislative  body. 

But  now  a  bold  idea  presented  itself,  which  was  no 

I'lacer;  K  T.  Boatty,  (J.  L.  Shuler,  J.  S.  Watkiiis,  Calaveras;  M.  CiWHiii,  E. 
M.  Davulsoa,  1*.  Moore,  1".  H.  Pierce,  W.  C.  WcmmI,  Novatla;  J.  S.  Loug,  J. 
S.  Morrison,  Butte;  B.  J.  Coil,  S.  M.  Miles,  Sierra;  W.  J.  llowanl,  I>.  Who- 
walter,  Maripoxa  ami  Merced;  S.  R.  Warrington,  Sutter;  B.  F.  Variw-y,  Sis- 
kiyou; I.  Hare,  Sliiwta;  B.  H.  Miles,  Sta  Cruz;  W.  J.  (rraves,  San  Luis 
OliisjK);  K.  Castro,  Monterey;  J.  M.  Covarnibias,  Sta  B&rliara;  J.  L.  Urcnt, 
K.  Hunter,  Los  Angoles;  J.  J.  Kendrick,  San  l>icgo;  J.  Hunt,  Sua  Bti-nar- 
tliuo;  O.  K.  Smith,  Tulare  and  Fresno;  N.  I'ahner,  J.  A.  Quiniby,  Sta  Clara; 
J.  B.  Larue,  Alameda;  J.  M.  Estill,  Marin;  T.  H.  Anderson,  Napa;  T.  M. 
AuU,  T.  Jenkins,  San  Joaquin;  J.  C.  Burch,  Trinity;  J.  S.  Curtis,  Yolo;  U. 
KIwards,  R.  Harrison,  Sonoma  and  Mendocino;  W.  Holilen,  Stanislaux;  A. 
Ininan,  Contra  Costa;  R.  Irwin,  Plunias;  J.  Livermore,  W.  M.  SeawcU, 
Amador;  C.  S.  Ricks,  Humboldt;  D.  M.  Steele,  Colusa  and  Tehama;  A.  M. 
Stevenson,  Solano;  S.  (}.  Whipple,  Klamath.  Speaker,  E.  T.  Beatty;  8p«aker 
pro  tern.,  J.  O'Neil;  chief  clerk,  W.  Cainpltell;  asst  clerk,  J.  W.  Scoliey; 
enrolling  clerk,  R.  Lambert;  engrouing  clerk,  S.  B.  Harris;  sergt-at-amu^ 
S.  F.  Brown;  dcn.r-kecper,  J.  J.Trarier.  CaL  IU<j.,  1867,  191-90. 
HiHT.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    45 


'11  ai 


706 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


less  than  to  prevail  upon  his  friends  in  the  lej^islature 
to  make  the  nominations  in  caucus  before  goin*;  into 
convention,  and  to  nominate  the  successor  to  Weller 
first.  Such  a  proceeding  had  never  been  heard  of,  as 
electing  a  successor  to  a  man  still  in  office,  while  the 
place  vacant  two  years  before  remained  unfilled ;  but 
original  methods  were  quite  in  Broderick's  line.  The 
more  ho  thought  of  it,  the  more  fortunate  it  seemed 
that  it  had  occurred  to  him.  Bargaining  was  not 
neglected,  some  of  Latham's  friends  being  brought 
into  the  arrangement  by  intimations  that  Latham  was 
his  choice  for  a  colleague. 

A  resolution  was  adopted  in  caucus,  "that  in 
making  the  nominations  for  United  States  senators, 
the  following  order  of  business  shall  be  observed:  1st. 
The  nomination  of  a  senator  to  fill  the  long  term,  to 
succeed  Hon.  John  B.  Weller;  2.  The  nomination  of 
a  senator  to  fill  the  short  term,  to  succeed  the  Hon.  Wil- 
liam M.  Gwin."  The  vote  stood  42  to  35  for  adoption, 
only  Mandeville  of  Tuolumne  moving  a  substitute  to 
nominate  first  for  the  short  term.  The  caucus  thru 
balloted  for  a  nomination  for  the  long  term,  when 
Broderick  had  42  votes,  Weller  34,  and  Tilford  3.  The 
nomination  was  then  made  unanimous.  But  the  nomi- 
nee for  the  short  term  was  not  decided  upon,  no  (»iic 
having  more  than  20  votes,  and  40  were  necessarv  to 
a  choice.  On  the  9th  the  legislature  went  into  joint 
convention,  and  elected  Broderick  as  the  successor  oi' 
Weller,  his  commission  being  immediately  made  out 
by  the  governor. 

Thereupon  Broderick  resolved  upon  another  bold 
movement.  The  election  of  the  senator  for  the  short 
term  would  be  as  he  should  direct,  and  the  aspirants 
were  openly  anxious  for  his  friendship.  This  led  him 
to  reflect  upon  the  combinations.  To  Jonathan  Car- 
penter, who  had  voted  for  him,  and  who  desired 
Latham  for  the  next  place,  he  said:  "If  I  go  to  the 
senate  with  Latham  as  my  colleague,  and  Scott  atul 
McKibben,  being  his  friends  in  the  lower  house,  I 


SENATORIAL  BARGAININO. 


707 


shall  be  a  mere  cipher ;  but  if  I  go  with  the  other  man 
[Gwin],  I  can  have  things  my  own  way." 

How  could  he  have  things  his  own  way  ?  Confer- 
ring with  Latham  and  Gwin,  he  found  both  willing  to 
renounce  the  federal  patronage  to  him  for  the  sake  of 
the  senatorship.  Latham,  indeed,  made  a  show  of 
stipulating  that  three,  or  at  the  least  one,  of  the  most 
important  offices  should  be  at  his  disposal.  This  was, 
perhaps,  because  he  had  promised  in  writing  that 
Frank  Tilford  should  have  the  collector's  office,  in  the 
event  of  his  election;  but  finding  Broderick  quite 
serious  about  the  patronage  being  left  to  him,  he  caused 
this  writing  to  be  abstracted  from  Tilford's  desk,^  com- 
plaint of  which  being  made  to  Broderick,  the  latter 
made  this  treatment  of  Tilford,  who  was  his  friend,  as 
friends  go  in  the  political  arena,  a  reason  for  deciding 
against  Latham.'^  Gwin  managed  more  adroitly,  and 
made  what  appeared  to  be,  and  what  he  asserts  in  his 
Memoirs  was,  a  voluntary  surrender  of  a  privilege 
which  had  only  brought  him  ingratitude  and  anxiety.** 

^'Tilford,  bom  1822,  was  of  Scotch-Iruh  descent,  but  a  native  of  Lexing- 
ton, Ky.  He  came  to  Cal.  overland  with  a  comiKiny  of  young  men  in  1849. 
He  was  elected  recorder  of  S.  F.  in  1850,  and  was  candidate  for  mayor  in 
ISol,  but  was  beaten  by  the  whig  candidate.  He  then  formed  a  law  partner- 
ship with  Edmund  Randolph  and  R.  A.  Lockwood.  He  was  nominated  for 
juifgu  of  t)ie  superior  court  in  S.  F.  in  1854,  and  again  defeated,  this  time  by 
tlie  knownothings.  In  1856  he  was  a  candidate  l>efore  the  democratic  con- 
vention for  congressman,  but  Scott  was  chosen  instead.  In  1857  he  supported 
Bro<1erick,  anil  received,  not  the  collector's  office,  but  tlie  appointment  of 
naval  officer  of  the  port  of  S.  F.  for  4  years.  He  was  a  Breckenridge  demo- 
crat in  18G0.  He  removed  to  Nevada  c<>.  in  1808,  editing  the  Sun  at  Meadow 
Ijake,  but  finally  returned  to  S.  F.  Shurt,  ReyrvMentiUive  Men,  277-87. 

^'  In  the  campaign  of  1858,  Latham  endeavored  to  exonerate  himself  from 
the  blame  of  purloining  a  letter  fn>m  another  man's  desk,  and  had  written 
evitlence  in  his  behalf.  But  there  was  just  as  much  written  evidence  on  the 
other  side;  and  Tilford,  wlien  on  the  stand,  would  say  nothing  more  definite 
than  that  he  '  believed  Mr  Latham  to  Ite  entirely  innocent  of  all  wrong  and 
all  criminality  in  relation  to  the  transactions  referred  to  in  that  letter,  and 
mentioned  by  Mr  Broderick. '  DemornUir  Stitndnrtl,  in  Hnyi'ii  Coll.,  CuL  Pol., 
ii.  43.  It  was,  in  fact,  only  one  of  the  thousand  politiciil  scandals  from  which 
no  man  in  the  politics  of  Cal.  was  entirely  free. 

^ Menioim,  131-2.  To  Bro<U'rick  he  said:  'Provided  I  am  elected,  you 
shall  have  the  exclusive  control  of  this  patronage,  so  far  as  I  am  concerned, 
and  in  fts  distribution  I  shall  only  ask  that  it  may  be  used  with  magnanimity, 
and  not  for  the  advantage  of  those  who  have  l>een  our  mutual  enemies,  and 
unwearied  in  their  exertions  to  destroy  ns.  This  determination  is  unalter- 
able; and  in  making  this  declaration  I  do  not  expect  yon  to  support  me  for 
that  reason,  or  in  any  way  to  1>e  governed  by  it.  But  as  I  liave  been  '>e- 
trayed  by  those  who  shotdd  have  been  my  fnends,  I  am  powerless  myself, 


708 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


As  the  price  of  this  renunciation,  he  was  elected  to 
succeed  himself  on  the  13th,  receiving  82  out  of  112 
votes.  On  the  following  day  he  published  an  address 
to  the  peoj)le,  acknowledging  his  obligation  to  Broder- 
ick  for  his  election,  and  again  renouncing  the  federal 

{latronage,  on  the  ground  that  those  whom  he  had 
jenefited  had  been  false  to  him,  that  the  distribution 
of  offices  had  been  a  source  gf  discord,  and  a  weari- 
some care  of  which  he  was  glad  to  be  disburdened. 
This  letter  was  intended  to  forestall  any  possible  reve- 
lation by  Broderick  of  the  bargain  and  sale. 

But  the  device  was  apparent,  and  the  chivalry  loudly 
indignant.  That  their  leader  should  have  to  purchase 
his  seat  in  the  senate  of  Boderick,  the  stone-cutter's 
son,  a  man  of  the  lower  stratum  of  the  people,  a  mud- 
sill'" of  the  north,  was  an  outrage  to  their  sensibilities 
not  to  be  endured.  And  strangely  as  it  seemed  to 
Broderick,  the  majority  of  his  party  sympathized  with 
them.  He  was  intensely  mortified  and  disappointed. 
Latham  chose  to  consider  himself  badly  used ;  and  Til- 
ford  through  him  was  also  wounded.*"     He  was  no 

aud  dependent  on  your  magnaniuiity.'  Ifittell,  Hint.,  S.  F.,  298.  It  was  true 
that  his  friends  had  betrayed  him;  but  it  was  not  tnie  that  ho  was  anxious 
to  1)0  entirely  relieved  of  the  patronage  which  had  kept  him  in  place  ever 
since  CaL  was  a  state,  as  his  appeal  to  Broderick's  magnanimity  rendered 
evident.  The  Gazette,  issued  at  Monitor,  in  June  1SC4,  published  the  follow- 
ing correspondence  between  Gwin  and  Broderick,  in  1854,  when  the  great 
contest  began.  If  it  be  authentic,  Gwin  was  the  first  to  offer  a  trade.  Both 
communications  were  marked  confidential:  '  Dear  Sir:  If  you  will  consent  to 
withdraw  your  name  for  the  U.  8.  senate  I  will  use  my  influence — and  you 
know  its  value — to  have  you  nominated  for  governor.  The  nomination  is 
equivalent  to  an  election.  Your  obedient  servant,  W.  M.  Gwin.'  To  which 
Broderick  replied:  'D.  0.  Broderick  presents  his  compliments  to  Senator 
Gwin,  and  begs  to  inform  him  Broderick  is  in  the  habit  of  making  the  gov- 
ernor of  California  himself.     To  W.  M.  Gwin.' 

'*This  famous  term  'mudsill,'  applied  to  the  laboring  classes,  orisinated 
with  Senator  J.  H.  Hammond  of  S.  C.,  in  a  speech  as  follows:  'In  all  social 
systems  there  must  be  a  class  to  do  the  menial  duties,  to  perform  the  drudgery 
of  life;  that  is,  a  class  requiring  but  a  low  order  of  intellect  and  but  httle 
skill.  Its  requisites  are  vigor,  docility,  fidelity.  Such  a  class  ]^ou  must  liave, 
or  you  would  not  have  that  other  class  which  leads  progress,  civilization,  and 
refinement.  It  constitutes  the  very  mudsill  of  society,  and  of  political  gov- 
ernment, and  you  might  as  well  attempt  to  buiUl  a  house  in  the  air  as  to 
build  the  one  or  the  other  except  on  tnis  mudsill.'  Broderick  quoted  this, 
and  ntore  of  the  speech  in  which  it  occurred,  in  a  speech  of  his  own  to  which 
I  shall  refer  later.    For  Hammond's  speech,  see  Cong.  Olobe,  1857-fi;  Afp.,  69. 

**In  a  speech  made  at  Nevada,  Aug.  1st,  Latham  gave  the  history  of  the 
senatorial  bargainings  so  far  M  he  was  concerned  in  it.    He  said  he  told 


SYMPATHY  FOR  OWIN. 


709 


better  friend  witli  Gwin  than  formerly ;  and  was  led 
to  have  a  contempt  for  him  which,  with  the  renewed 
hostility  of  the  chivalry,  resulted  in  a  complete  estranj^e- 
ment,  so  that  no  communications  passed  between 
them. 

There  were  doubtless  other  reasons  for  Broderick's 
final  decision  besides  the  love  of  power,  or  the  pecca- 
dilloes of  his  rivals.  Like  all  democrats  of  the  ante- 
bellum type,  party  unity  was  a  governinj^  motive.  He 
wished  to  be  on  good  terms  with  the  new  administra- 
tion, (xwin  had  his  implied  promise  to  support  the 
party.  He  was  aware  of  the  hold  which  (iwin  had 
upon  the  people  of  the  state,  who  generally  regarded 
him  as  having  done  a  great  deal  for  California,  and  ho 
felt  a  pride  in  not  taking  a  mean  revenge  on  his  polit- 
ical foe. 

But  in  demanding  the  resignation  of  the  patronage 
to  him,  he  saw  no  injustice.  For  all  the  years  that 
Gwin  had  been  in  the  senate  of  the  United  States, 
none  but  pro-slavery  men  had  received  the  gift  of 
office  from  his  hand,  except  in  the  case  of  Hoffman, 
of  which  I  have  before  spoken ;  and  during  most  of 
that  period  he  had  enjoyed  the  patronage  alone. 
Broderick,  being  now  in  a  position  to  make  terms, 
thought  this  a  good  opportunity  to  give  northern 
democrats  a  chance,  and  to  reward  his  political 
friends,  as  well  as  to  remove  the  odium  from  (Cali- 
fornia of  being  a  Virginia  poor-house.  From  his 
point  of  view,  there  was  no  reason  for  the  howl  that 
went  up  all  over  the  state,  that  he  had  taken  advan- 
tage of  Gwin,  and  that  he  had  done  so  out  of  revenge. 
Admitting  that  he  had,  was  there  not  sufficient  j)rov- 
ocation  in  the  sneering  tone  of  the  chivalry  toward 
the  Broderick  men?*^ 


i;i '■"■'! 


An  acknowledged  trait  of  this  genius  of  the  people 

Broderick  that  he  had  agreed  to  go  for  Tilford  for  collector,  CranduU  fur  sur- 
veyor of  the  port,  and  iSolomon  for  U.  S.  iiiarahal.  JIaye.a  Coll.,  Cal.  PoL, 
ii.  33. 

**  It  was  oi>enIy  reported  that  Gwin  declared  lie  would  not  associatu  with 
Broderick  if  he  shoulu  be  elected. 


710 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


was  tho  strength  of  his  own  convictions,  without 
wliich,  indeed,  he  could  never  have  risen  from  tho 
trade  to  which  he  was  bred  to  he  a  senator  of  the 
United  States,  Knowinuf  that  he  had  associated 
with  New  York  rouu^hs,  and  tiiat  he  had  used  a  sinii- 
Uir  class  in  San  Francisco  to  elevate  himself  to  j)owi'r, 
it  is  natural  to  look  for  in  him  some  habits  of  profli- 
gacy or  wildness  of  dejmrtment.  On  the  contrary,  1  c 
was  known  among  his  friends  as  one  who  smiled  but 
seldom;  who  mourned  because  he  had  no  kindred  left 
on  earth;  a  man  of  few  confidences,  often  gloomy,  and 
never  gay.  His  loves  and  hates  were  intense,  as 
was  his  power  to  inspire  others  with  similarly  strong 
sentiments.  His  personal  adherents  were  lovers 
more  than  friends.  Proud  with  the  consciousness 
of  his  abilities,  with  wcmianly  sensibilities  held  in 
control  only  by  a  powerful  will,  to  those  who  knew 
him  best  he  was  a  mystery. 

This  "lone,  strange,  extraordinary  man"*^  was 
struck  dumb  with  surprise  that  so  much  sympathy 
should  be  awakened  for  Gwin.  He  cculd  not  see 
any  good  reason  for  it;  nor,  I  confess,  do  I.  But  if 
he  was  pained  and  angered  at  this  sudden  defection  in 
California,  he  was  stung  in  his  innermost  nature  to 
find  in  the  national  capital,  the  goal  of  his  long  strife, 
an  organized  hostility  to  him  in  the  democratic  sen- 
ate, presumably  upon  the  ground  of  the  bargain  witii 
Gwin;  wiiile  Gwin,  who  had  condescended  to  pur- 
chase his  place,  was  attitudinizing  as  u  martyr. 
Wliat  he  had  ex[)ected  for  his  services,  in  the  party 
of  which  President  Buchanan  was  a  lead«?r,  was 
friendliness,  even  approbation;  but  on  calling  upon 
the  president  at  Wheatland,  he  was  undeceived.  "It 
was  cold  outside  the  house,"  he  said,  "  but  it  was  ice 
within."*^  He  had  yet  to  learn  that  chivalry  had 
captured  the  president,"  and  that  his  free-state  de- 

*-S.  F.  Argonaut,  April  28,  1878. 
«,/o/*w  H'.  Forney,  in  S.  F.  Post,  March  8,  1879. 

**  Nothing  could  better  illueitrate  the  perfect  ami  tyrannical  syHtetn  of  tho 
democratic  party  of  tliia  puriod  than  thu  fact  that  a  regular  evpioiiage  had 


BUODERICK  AT  \VA.SHIX(;TON. 


711 


niorracy  had  no  Htaiuling  in  the  senate.  As  to  the 
fWltii-al  patrcnai^o,  while  (xwin  kept  to  the  letter  of 
his  a«{reen»ent,  Hroderiek  found  his  r»  'Oininendations 
i<^niored,  and  the  president  making  his  ap[)ointnK'nts 
through  (fwin's  advice,  which  he  asked,  and  of  course 
obtained.*'  This  peculiar  relative  position  of  the  sena- 
tors left  the  congressmen  the  better  o[)portunity  t'» 
bring  forward  their  friends.  The  graml  prize  of  the 
collector's  otKce  was  given  to  11  F.  Washington,  an 
ohl  friend  of  Gwin,  who  approved  of  McKibben's 
choice.  J.  ]).  Fry  became  postal  agent;  Tliomas  J. 
Herili^y,  su|>erintendent  of  Indian  affairs;  Kichanl 
Houian,  ai)praiser-general ;  Michael  Kane  of  IVnn- 
sylvania,  appraiser  at  8i^'\  Francisco;  P.  L.  Solomon, 
United  States  marshal ;  ])ella  Torre  of  South  Caro- 
lina, United  States  district  attorney;  and  Charles 
ilen)j».stcad,  a  young  man  who  had  been  Governor 
]^igler's  private  secretary,  was  made  superintendent 
of  the  mint.  Bigler,  who  had  gone  to  Wa.shington 
in  th  •  1  ope  of  the  collectorship  for  himself,  failing  of 
thii^^^.'Wis  consoled  by  a  mi.ssion  to  Chili;  and  men 
of  lesser  pretensions  had  to  be  satisfied  with  what 
thev  could  jjfet.  Of  tiie  office-seekers  who  had  built 
tin  ir  lio[)es  upon  Broderick,  few  received  anything, 
and  they  not  the  first  places.*" 

i^rotlerick's  was  not  a  nature  to  be  cowed  by  the 
president's     disapproval.     Highly    incensed,    he    re- 

ln!eii  oxerciHeil  over  t'al.  ever  since  fJwiii  liad  been  in  the  genato.  .Tii<l^t,- 
Crane,  in  his  iiani])hlet,  The  PumI,  the  I'rewnt,  mul  the  Fiiturf  of  th'  I'm-ijir 
('(XMt,  ci)ni).laiiiM  of  this  eiipiouage,  and  remarks  that  no  sueh  thing  iia<l  rvrr 
l>een  tlionglit  of  or  pnictised  concerning  the  other  states.  It  Uc-ver  would 
have  Ikjcu  in  L'al.,  had  not  the  Hlii\e  power  detttrmined  to  control,  hy  any 
and  every  means,  the  atfairs  of  this  coast.  'The  reports,' said  <Jrano,  'are 
kept  a  profound  secret  from  the  public  and  the  ])arties  coneenteil.  Ilnw 
do  we  know  hut  what  our  people  are  grossly  lilxiUed  and  maligned  l>y  these 
secret  agents?  The  character  of  some  of  them  was  most  grossly  traduced 
under  Mr  Fillmore's  administration,  by  the  secret  a},'ent  tlien  in  CaL'  .1.  H. 
Clay  held  this  ofhce  under  Fillmore,  and  .J.  Koss  Browne  under  I'ier.  e. 
Browne's  commission  required  him  to  examine  the  accounts  of  federal  othcer^ 
and  to  ilirect  their  ottic'al  iicts.  S.  F.  BuUftin,  Oct.  8,  IS.'HJ.  Another  part  of 
Browne's  duty  wius  to  dismiss  from  otlice  any  man  suspecte<l  of  not  Ix-ing  a 
supporter  of  the  administration.  Fillmore  w.-vs  nearly  as  much  under  (jrwiu's 
innuonee  as  was  I'ierce,  and  removed  or  appointetl  whom  he  wouliL 

*'<!mm,  MitmoirH,  MS.,  Xi. 

**Hi8  return  to  New  York  was  celebrated  with  the  tiring  of  KM)  guns. 


^:        l] 


...  IS! 
ijl  It' 


m 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


turned  in  April  to  California  to  explain  his  failure  as 
a  patron  to  his  friends,  and  to  labor  for  the  control  of 
the  state  convention  which  was  to  nominate  a  gover- 
nor and  lieutenant-governor.  By  the  steamer  whicli 
brought  him  came  a  letter  from  Gwin  to  a  political 
friend  who  would  know  how  to  use  it,  stating  Brod- 
erick's  purpose  to  nominate  his  followers  to  the  state 
offices,  and  to  censure  the  administration  for  the  fed- 
eral appointments. 

Any  attack  on  a  democratic  administration  by 
democrats  was,  according  to  party  usage,  treason,  and 
Broderick  was  at  once  called  upon  to  state  his  position. 
The  questions  he  was  asked  to  reply  to  were,  whether 
he  had  declared  himself  hostile  to  the  administration 
while  in  Washington;  whether  it  was  true  that  he 
had  entered  into  any  contract  with  Gwin  concerning 
the  federal  patronage ;  whether  the  rumor  that  Gwin 
had  secured  several  appointments  in  the  face  of  his 
address  from  Sacramento  was  well  founded;  and 
whether  he  had  any  intention  to  disrupt  the  party  in 
the  state  convention. 

Broderick  treated  these  allegations  as  calumnies. 
He  replied  that  he  did  not  return  to  make  war  upon 
the  administration  of  Buchanan.  He  declared  that 
his  election  was  effected  by  the  free  choice  of  his 
friends,  "without  bargain,  contract,  alliance,  combina- 
tion, or  understanding  with  any  one;"  that  after  his 
election  Gwin  sought  his  aid  to  secure  his  own. 
"Regarding  him  as  the  acknowledged  leader  of  the 
other  wing  of  the  party,  I  believed  his  election  would 
heal  dissensions  and  effect  a  reunion."  "  Between  Mr 
Gwin  and  myself  there  was  no  condition  whatever  in 
regard  to  the  distribution  of  patronage."  He  defended 
Gwin  from  the  imputation  of  controlling  the  recent 
federal  appointments,  in  the  face  of  his  public  declara- 
tion that  he  would  not  do  so.  "  Surely,"  said  he,  "  the 
combination  at  Wash'  gton  of  the  late  and  present 
members  of  the  lower  house  of  congress,  of  the  senator 
whose  term  has  expired,  of  the   three   presidential 


LEGISLATURE  OF  1858. 


713 


electors,  and  a  throng  of  active  supporters,  well  prac- 
tised in  the  trade  of  soHciting  offices,  all  against  me, 
would  seem  to  be  enough  without  the  personal  interfer- 
ence of  my  colleague.  In  the  absence  of  positive  evi- 
dence, I  must,  therefore,  regard  the  repoi-t  of  which  you 
speak  as  a  mistake.  I  am  not  here  to  distract  the 
party,  nor  to  control  its  nommations."*^ 

Broderick's  motive  for  this  denial  of  all  the  charges 
was  probably  the  single  oue  of  preserving  the  unity 
of  the  party.**  .He  had  now  more  powerful  enemies 
than  ever  before.  Ex-senator  Weller,  whose  friends 
regarded  him  as  having  been  tricked  out  of  a  reelection, 
was  unfriendly.  Latham,  who  was,  as  he  t'lought, 
not  fairly  treated,  was  also  unfriendly.  Til  ford,  who 
expected  a  fat  office,  was  disappointed,  and  of  coui-se 
not  friendly;  and  there  were  others  disaffc  ted  on  ac- 
count of  the  rumors  sent  in  advance  of  ]f  oderick  from 
Washington.  Finding  affairs  in  this  state,  he  refrained 
from  any  strenuous  eftbrt  to  control  the  state  politics. 
In  convention  he  nominated  McCorkle*®  for  governor; 
but  Weller,  who  had  been  welcomed  back  to  California 
with  effusion  by  the  chivalry,  was  the  favorite  of  the 
party,^  received  the  indorsement  of  the  convention 

*'  Corre^pomleiire  of  Alfred  Reddington  and  J.  P.  I>yer,  with  L>.  C.  Brotl- 
erick,  in  S.  F.  Pogt,  March  8,  1879. 

*"<  iwiu  denies  that  there  was  any  bargain,  and  declares  that  he  renrmnccd 
the  feileral  jtatronaue  Ijeoause  he  was  exasixiratud  by  having  liis  ri'vluetion 
opiNwd  'by  some  of  the  most  influential  men,  whose  promotion  to  otiiee  he 
ha<l  8ocur<^d.  In  his  cooler  moments,  no  one  regretted  it  more  than  (i win 
himself.'  Memoirs,  MS.,  133.  But  even  his  champion,  O'Meara,  declares  that 
he  8<»]d  the  patronage  to  Broderick  for  his  inthience  in  reelecting  liiin. 

♦•Md'orkle  was  the  leader  of  the  democracy  in  Butte  co.,  said  the  O.-oville 
North  i'lillfbrrtian.  'He  gives  the  cue  to  the  young  cockerels  who  ar>!  just 
learning  to  crow,  and  allows  them  to  strut  and  swell,  and  flap  tiicir  wings, 
aud  jostle  him  about  with  the  utmost  familiarity.  The  old,  full-fledged 
fowls  he  clacks  into  a  corner,  and  explains  to  tlicm  with  owl  like  gravity  the 
idots  and  mysteries  of  the  party.  He  then  clucks  the  whole  brocMl  up  to  the 
bar,  and  they  take  a  drink.    Siw.  Union,  Nov.  '21,  18ot). 

^  Mr  O'Mcara  does  not  like  vigilance  conmiittees.  There  have  l>een  many 
men  in  Cal.  who  felt  the  same  way.  He  says  that  John  Nugent,  iitlitor  of  the 
•V.  F.  J/milU,  whose  business  had  been  ruined  by  the  conunitteu,  war,  jire- 
sented  in  candidacy,  on  account  of  his  dett-nnined  hostility  to  tlu-  committee, 
'  in  order  to  vindicate  his  course ;  but  his  name  had  been  withilrawn  before  the 
iKtUoting  as  his  friends  found  it  impossible  to  prevail  against  WcIKt.  I>uring 
the  discussion  on  a  proposed  platform  restdutum  denouncing  tht;  vigilance  or- 
ganization, Cohmel  Joseph  P.  Hoge,  the  acknowledged  leaiter  of  the  conven- 
tiou,  stated  tliat  the  committee  had  hanged  i  men,  banished  28,  aud  arrested 


If 


^i 


.»i 


i 
I  ii 


i : '  i 


.j> 


714 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


by  a  vote  of  254  to  Gl,  and  was  elected.  Joseph 
Walkuj*  of  Placer  was  chosen  lieutenant-governor. 
TIk'  only  Broderick  man  on  the  ticket,  of  more  tliaii 
local  prominence,  was  Stephen  J.  Field,  elected  su- 
preme judge.  John  O'Meara,  another  of  Broderick'n 
friends,  was  elected  state  printer.  The  knownothinys 
ha<l  <lisappeared,  and  the  opposition  to  democracy  was 
ill  a  chaotic  state. 


The  legislature  chosen  for  the  session  of 


1858/' 


280;  ami  that  these  were  nearly  nil  «leniocrat8. '  This  was  certainly  \)mI  fur 
the  tlenioerats.  The  truthful  colonel  might  have  gone  further  in  his  iiivisti- 
Rations,  antl  have  hacertaineil  tliat  tlie  eriininals  scnteneetl  hy  the  regularly 
organi/Aid  eourtu  were  tlenioorattt  almost  to  a  man.  It  M'hh  l)ee;iu.se  the  courts, 
ill  tlie  interest  of  tluit  party,  had  olwtructcd  the  course  uf  ordinary  justicu 
that  the  committee  was  <;rgaui/ed. 

■''The  senate  of  18r>.S  consisted  of  hold-over  memlxjrs,  S.  A.  Merritt,  Aaron 
II.  Mcloney,  tlosiah  .lohnson,  Allred  W .  Taliaferro,  S.  II.  Chicse,  Sannul  M. 
Johnson,  <ieorge  J.  Cari)enter,  Wm  B.  Norman  (vacancy  tilled  hy  Win  ],. 
Ixrwi.t),  Wm  I.  Ferguscin,  Uicliard  S.  Mesi<-k,  .lease  ().  «loodwin,  Samuel  iti  11, 
Samuel  Soule,  Kugenu  L.  Sullivan.  Senators  newly  elected,  Camemu  K. 
Thom,  Los  Angeles,  San  Ikrnanliun,  and  San  Diego;  Komualdo  Pacheco, 
Santii  liiirhara  and  San  Luis  Ohispo;  !>.  S.  (Jretfory,  Sta  (.'ruz;  Wm  ilolileii, 
<teorge  H.  Utigers,  Stanislaus  and  Tuolumne;  Wm  I.  Ferguson,  Sac.;  lluni- 
phr-'y  <lrillith,  Napa,  Solain),  and  Yolo;  .J.  Berry,  Del  Norte,  Klamath,  i\:ti 
Siskiyou;  K.  <iarter,  Colusii,  Shasta,  and  Tehama;  A.  .S.  Hart,  .John  (ulttr, 
Butte  and  I'lumas:  Isaac  Allen,  Vulia;  J.  H.  Baker,  James  Amlerson,  I'laci  r; 
S.  Il:uum,  W.  B.  Dickinson,  Kl  Dorado;  L.  N.  Ketclnim,  Amador  aii<l  Cala- 
venu*;  .John  ('.  Burch,  Huud>ol<lt  and  Trinity;  K.  F.  Jturton,  Nev.ul.;  (idhrrt 

A.  <i  nt,  T.  O.  1 'helps,  S.  F.  I'rest,  U.  M.  Anderson;  prei.t  |iro  teni.,  S.  ,\. 
.Merritt;  sec,  Thomas  N.  Caznetiu;  i:is.st  sec,  Jaint.'S  1'.  Kwing;  enrolli";.' 
clerk,  J.  T.  Shipman;  engrossing  clerk,  |j«iuis  Iturtlctt;  sergt-at-arms,  J.  W . 
Hawkins;  d(Mir -keeper,  John  Mc4!lenchy. 

The  assendily  consisted  of  Homer  King,  U.  M.  Bri>:gs,  Amador;  J.  II. 
lio1>art,  Alameda;  .lames  Hitchens,  Butte;  It.  F.  Marshall,  K.  I'-irkcr,  T. 
0"Bru:ii,  Talaveri.*;  F.  .M.  Warmcastle,  Contra  Costa;  K.  .1.  l..ewis,  Colii.->.i 
and  T'hama;  U.  V.  Hurst,  Del  Norte  and  Klamath:  David  K.  Buell,  .1.  II. 
Calliraith,  .1.  Craliam,  .1.  S.  Tipton,  H.  A.  Mos«!s,  C.  W.  I'earis,  Harvey  I,rc, 

B.  F.  l.rfNifliourrow,  Kl  Dorado;  A.  H.  Mitchell,  Fresno,  Tulare,  and  Huen.i 
Vista;  H.  W.  Haveii.  ,  Hunduildt;  Henry  Hancock,  Andreas  I'iio,  ]...■* 
An.i'h's;  James  T.  Stocker,  Marin;  f.  N.Ward,  .lohn  H.  Tatiium,  Maripos.i; 
Hosca  Alirego,  .Monterey;  Thomas  H.  Amlerson,  Nana;  Wm  lldl,  .1.  Caiil 
W«  11,  .1.  r.  Wareticld,  .lames  K.  Siiulli,  «ieorge  A.  Voung,  Nevada;  D.  H. 
(.'urtis,  A.  1",  K.  Sart'ord,  Nicholas  Kal.ler,  W.  C.  Stratton,  Placer;  .F.  L.  C. 
.Sherwin,  S.  1^.  Ballon,  I'lunias;  E.  A.  Sheridan,  11.  D.  Ferguson,  C.  S. 
Howell,  Moses  Stout,  Sac;  J.  W.  .Smith,  San  livrnardino;  llohert  .M.  Crooin, 
San  Ihego;  H.  C.  Holman,  A.  U.  Stakes,  .San  .lo;t<iuin;  H.  M.  O.'igood,  Saii 
Luis  OliisiHi;  S.  B.  Corilon,  San  MattJti;  Uus.sell  Htuith,  StJi  Bdrliara;  Solon 
Simons,  W.  W.  McCoy,  i^ta  Clara;  il.  C.  Wilson,  Sta  Cruz;  Charles  K. 
Street,  Shasta;  .1.  A.  i'lark,  U.  D.  Hii",  Siorra;  A.  II.  Walked,  Si.skiyou;  N. 
H.  Davis,  Solano;  Uriah  Kdwar  Is,  J.  .S.  Ornishy,  Stmoma  and  Mendocino; 
•  ieorge  W.  TiiomaM,  .StAnisIaus;  .1.  O.  Harris,  SutttT;  Kilwiird  Xehlett,  Tun- 
ity;  ,\.  A.  H.  Tuttie,  W.  J.  Markley,  V.  M.  HaMuman.  T.  Hamhiin,  Tuoj- 
uiiuic;  Win  Miiinis.  Yolo;  N.  tL  Whitvsidus,  F.  L.  Ord,  U.  K.  S.  Kly,  C.  K. 


FUGITIVE  SLAVES. 


715 


which  the  Bulletin  called  the  reconsideration ists,  from 
their  vacillating  course,  adopted  a  resolution  indors- 
JMi;  the  president's  Kansas  policy,  which  reco«;nized 
the  rifjht  of  slaver V  to  he  extended  uito  th  i  ,'rritories, 
under  the  laws  <»f  the  United  States,  and  which  could 
not  be  excluded  until  after  the  state  had  been  admit- 
tt'd  into  the  federation,  and  J^roderick  was  instructed 
to  vote  fe  it.  It  happened  also  that  the  fu^^itive 
slave  law,  as  applied  to  California,  was  tested  in  the 
courts  this  year,^'  creatin*^  much  excitement  among 
the  colored  fxipulation,  and  not  much  less  among  the 
white  inhabi\tiints,  the  law  being  so  construed  by  the 
I  nitcd  States  conunissituicr  that  the  negro  claimed 
was  liberated.  This  was  not  the  only  case  since  1851, 
l)ut  it  was  decisive,  and  the  last  fugitive  slave  case  in 
tlie  courts  of  California. 

In  1H52  Peachy  of  San  Joaquin  intr  .duced  a  reso- 
lution in  the  a.ssend>ly  to  allow  Hfty  southern  families 
to  immigrate  to  California  with  their  slaves.  Some, 
indred,  did  come,  who  on  finding  they  could  not  legally 
hold  their  slavi-s,  sent  a  part  of  them  back,  while 
others  becanu;  free.     In  18a5  two  men,  named  Chase 

!»«•  Long;  I).  K.  S|ii||eii,  Vulm;  J.  W.  Cherry,  J.  liniikx,  J.  H.  Mnore,  Cyrus 
■  '.'iliiiur,  CaKtl*  BiirUuik,  W.  W.  Sli(.>|ipiir<l,  S.  W.  Holliday,  Tlu>iii;i.t  Oray, 
S.  F.  S|>vaker,  X.  K.  \Vliit4'tiiilfH;  cliu'f  clurk,  J.  M.  ScolH'y;  iwxt  cli'rk,  .1. 
W.  hiii>;ay;  itcr>;t-at-ariiiii,  Jaiiiert  F.  t^wiii;  unrolling  clfrk,  T.  J.  MitoliuU; 
I'ngroM.'tiii^  i-lt-rk,  W.  Mc<"oiiih'I1;  door-kft'iicr,  A.  F.  \Viin<'r. 

'-'This  w.-id  the  citM:  of  tlie  slave  Arehy,  claiiiieil  liy  a  Mr  Stovall,  from 
MiKM.,  who  came  to  Cal.  in  iH.'iT,  ami  tall^lit  Hchool  at  Sae.  In  .Ian.  \H'iH  he 
IM'i'parccl  t<i  iH,-nil  Arcliy  lack  to  Miss.,  hut  tliu  chattel  refusoii  to  go,  and 
I  -^eaiH-tl.  He  Hax  arnMUtl.  ainl  hiri  friemU  HUeil  out  a  writ  of  liahea.i  eorini^, 
I'll  the  ^onnd  that  St4>vall  wax  not  a  travelhr,  nor  Ariliy  a  fugitive  \imler 
tlif  actn  of  I.S.V2,  IS.VI,  an<l  IS.">4.  He  wan  rearrested  as  hooii  as  diseharged, 
and  his  caM-  liaHt«-ueil  ii|i  to  the  siqi.  eourt,  Ituriutt  hiiiig  tlien  n|>on  the 
li'iieh,  having;  Iteen  apiHnnted  to  lill  the  vueaney  eaused  hy  the  resignation  of 
Ti'rry.  Streteliini;  at  once  eonxeienee  and  the  eonHtitution,  Ihirnett  deeri'eil 
till-  lilaek  man  to  lie  tlie  i>ro|ierty  of  the  white  man,  and  StoviiU  took  him  on 
liii.ird  the  Mteamer  for  tlie  utateit;  Imt  wlien  outside  the  eiitrauee,  Stovall  was 
.iirested  for  kidna|>|iing,  and  Arehy  hrouglit  haek  hy  writ  of  halxNis  <'or|>iii«. 
I'!.  O.  liaker  wa«  oouniH.-l  for  Arehy,  and  •!.  A.  Hardy,  afterward  im|>eHehed 
tor  treaHonalde  utt«-ranc-«t«,  |ilea<ied  Stovall's  eause.  (ieorge  Pen  ■lohnston, 
himself  a  Miuthern  pro-Klavcry  man,  was  V.  S.  eonnnissiom^r,  hut  heard  tin^  easu 
iinpartially,  and  onlereil  .\rehv  lilierated.  The  ilviHion  wa8  upon  the  ground 
that  hill  former  inajit«?r  c«>ul<l  not  plead  that  I.e  was  a  traveller  passing 
through  tiic  country  with  hi*  proixTtv,  for  ho  had  Ik'cu  a  year  in  the  stJito 
engaged  in  huiiituiut.  knowing  that  Cat.  waa  a  free  state.  T uthill,  HUl.  Cut., 
Vxt  I :  .V.  /'.  HuUrtin,  Jan.  13  aud  March  5,  U,  8,  lU,  1858;  Onwii  Valley 
t'nion,  Nov.  9,  1873. 


=  iif; 


716 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


and  Day,  were  ridden  on  a  rail,  ducked,  and  otherwise 
maltreated  in  Alameda  county  for  being  abolitionists. 
In  this  year  expired  the  fugitive  slave  law  of  Califor- 
nia, draughted  toenable  the  slave-holders  to  reclaim  any 
negroes  brought  into  California  before  its  constitution 
was  framed.  It  had  been  twice  extended,  but  was  now 
inoperative ;  and  the  colored  population,  feeling  tliat 
they  were  really  free,  held  a  convention  in  San  Fran- 
cisco, at  which  they  discussed  their  rights,  treatment 
by  white  people,  politics,  and  principles,  and  necessity 
of  education.  This  convention  was  repeated  in  185(1, 
and  an  effort  made  to  secure  the  repeal  of  the  law  pro- 
hibiting negro  testimony  in  cases  where  white  persons 
were  parties.  In  December  of  this  year  a  negro 
named  Cottee  purchased  his  freedom,  paying  $1,000 
for  himself,  and  sending  the  money  to  his  former  mas- 
ter in  Missouri,  who  sent  him  his  manumission  papers. 
This  self-sacrifice  was  entirely  unneces-sary,  but  [>roh- 
ablv  dischart'ed  in  the  mind  of  the  man  trained  to 
slavery  some  sense  of  obligation,  and  secured  for  him 
the  legal  evidence  that  his  freedom  was  not  in  dispute. 

At  the  same  time  in  San  Bernardino  county,  two 
negro  families,  comprising  fourteen  persons,  were 
claimed  as  slaves  by  a  former  master  who  wished  to 
take  them  to  Texas.  An  appeal  was  made  in  tlieir 
behalf  to  the  United  States  tlistrict  court.  The  [)lt'a 
oiiered  was  that  they  were  going  of  their  own  free- 
will, the  mothers  being  willing  for  the  children;  but 
the  court  decided  that  the  children  should  not  be  taken 
unless  after  being  made  fully  aware  of  the  ct)ndition 
awaiting  them,  and  the  marshal  was  ordered  to  pre- 
vent their  abduction. 

In  1858  there  was  introduced,  or  revived  for  the 
benefit  of  Americans,  the  long-disused  practice  of  In- 
dian slavery  in  southern  California.  The  person  em- 
ployed in  the  purchase  of  Indians  was  Francisco 
Castillo,  who  carried  goods  to  the  San  Pedro  Martin 
mis.sion,  in  Lower  California,  where  he  exchang«d 
them  with  the  chief  latiniel  for  young  Indians  to  I 


)0 


SLAVERY  AND  THE  CONSTITU'lION. 


717 


sold  in  Los  Angeles.  Castillo  made  several  of  these 
trading  excursions  to  procure  slaves.^  Mr  Tuthill,  in 
his  History  of  California,  written  with  the  advantages 
which  a  newspaper  man  possesses  of  collecting  con- 
temporary history,  makes  tlie  somewhat  singular 
statement  in  his  otherwise  almost  faultless  narrative, 
that  "the  negro,  though  the  staple  topic  of  congres- 
sional legislation,  did  not  much  trouble  that  of  Cali- 
fornia." 

While  it  is  true  that  California  had  not  to  bear  the 
burdens  of  congress,  being  only  a  thirty -first  part  of 
the  union,  and  having  a  free  constitution,  there  had 
never  been  a  session  in  which  the  negro,  in  some  shape, 
or  under  some  disguise,  had  not  been  the  subject  of 
legislation.  Even  while  the  constitution  was  forming 
to  which  he  subscribed,  Gwin  was  plotting  against  the 
freedom  of  at  least  a  portion  of  the  state,  assisted 
afterward  by  the  chivalry  in  the  legislature  and  out. 
Such  was  the  meaning  of  the  law  passed  in  1856  and 
1857,  providing  for  the  submission  to  the  people  of 
certain  amendments,  and  recommending  to  each  of  the 

ctors  to  vote  for  or  against  a  convention  to  change 


010 


the  constitution.  The  result  of  the  election  in  1857 
was  that  only  48,906,  out  of  93,881,  voted  on  the 
quest.  jU.  Of  those  who  did  vote  upon  it,  30,226 
were  m  favor  of  calling  a  convention,  and  17,680  were 
oj)f)osed  to  it.  Thus,  taking  the  vote  for  lieutenant- 
governor  for  a  basis,  namely,  93,881,  there  were  not 
one  third  of  the  electors  who  desired  or  consented  to 
tlie  proposition  for  a  constitutional  convention.  This 
caused  Governor  Johnson  to  doubt  the  obligation  im- 
posed upon  the  legislature  to  summon  a  convention, 
and  he  left  it  to  that  body  to  decide  for  themselves 
their  duty  on  this  point;  "yet  despite  my  wishes,"  he 

'^St<iplM  Shttement,  MS.,  lG-17;  S.  P.  IferaUl,  June  10  and  19,  1852;  S.  F. 
AUn,  Feb.  8,  .\ug.  31,  Sept.  22,  Oct.  6,  1852;  /«/.,  Feb.  18  and  March  1.3, 
l^'):{;  March  20  and  30,  April  13,  Aug.  21  and  28,  Sept.  1  and  27,  1854;  and 
Dio.  11,  1850;  S,  F.  BuUetm,  l>ec.  1855;  Frwefd.  Colored  ritivw'  Sd  Ann. 
<  'imjefititm;  S<u:  Union,  Deo.  10,  1856;  Sne.  Union,  Dec.  .'!<;,  18.50;  ChnntUer, 
-MS.,  3067;  H»yt»'  /^on  Anrffle*,  i.  519-27;  Ooitua,  MS.,  85-4};  Stephen  Bar- 
tuii,  iu  Vi«iliii  Dtlta,  Sept.  10,  1874. 


1  *  \i 

m 


718 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


said  in  his  message,  "I  am  constrained  to  believe  the 
result  of  that  vote  does  not  invest  you  with  the  recjnl- 
eite  authority."  The  mana'uvring  for  a  division  of  tlu; 
state  was  a  failure  to  secure  in  its  favor  a  majority  of 
all  those  voting  at  the  election,  as  the  law  required, 
and  tliose  persons  who  had  been  induced  in  the  ex- 
pectation of  a  different  result  to  bring  into  the  soutlurn 
counties  young  negroes,  who  could  be  held  as  minors, 
had  now  to  return  them  to  the  slave  states  or  let 
them  go  free.  This  episode  of  California  history  will 
be  treated  of  separately  in  a  future  volume,  and  I 
hasten  to  the  conclusion  of  the  Broderick-Gwin  con- 
test. 


Broderick  returned  to  Washington  filled  with  that 
bitterness  which  possesses  a  man  when  he  feels  liini- 
self  treacherously  or  unfairly  dealt  with.  It  was  not 
in  his  nature  to  admit  himself  beaten;  and  it  was  ex- 
ceedingly painful  to  be  baffled  at  the  beginning  of  his 
senatorial  career  by  the  influence  of  men  in  his  own 
party,  and  even  by  a  man  whom  he  had  placed  in 
power. 

The  first  session  of  the  thirty-fifth  congress  opened 
with  the  discussion  of  the  Kansas  question.  Ever  since 
the  establishment  of  the  territory,  there  had  been  a 
struggle  between  the  slave-soil  and  free-soil  inhabi- 
tants for  the  control  of  the  future  state.  A  free-state 
constitution  was  adopted  by  the  people  in  1855  in 
convention  at  Topcka.  The  general  government^ 
under  the  administration  of  President  Pierce,  dis- 
missed the  free-state  governor  and  appointed  one  of 
pro-slavery  views.  Voters  were  imported  from  ^lis- 
souri  to  elect  pro-slavery  legislatures.  Free-state  men 
were  charged  with  treason  and  imprisoned,  United 
States  troops  keeping  guard  over  them.  Another 
pro-slavery  constitution  was  framed  by  a  convention 
which  met  at  Lecompton  in  1857,  under  which  admis- 
sion to  the  union  was  demanded,  and  was  being  argued 


BLEEDING  KANSAS. 


719 


In  1858.  The  condition  of  Kansas  and  the  qucst'ums 
it  involved  were  in  all  nioutliH  in  and  out  of  coiiijre.ss.^ 

If  there  was  a  subject  on  which  Broderiek  was 
more  positive  than  another,  it  was  on  that  of  free 
lahor.  He  was  from  the  people  of  the  laborinj^  class, 
unck'rstood  them,  and  was  ever  their  ready  cham{>ion. 
In  the  senate  of  the  United  States.  Stephen  A.  I)ou«^- 
las  stood  ahme  for  a  free  constitution  f(»r  Kan>as, 
fraud  havinor  been  clearlv  shown  in  the  elections  of 
the  [)ro-slavery  legislatui'es  with  forciljle  measures  and 
some  bloodshed.  ()p[)osed  to  him  was  the  stren<,'th 
of  the  senate  and  President  Buchanan.  Broderick 
innnediately  raiiijfed  himself  on  the  pf)pular  sover- 
eignty or  IJ«»u«,das  side.  In  doing  so  he  had  two 
powerful  motives,  one  to  champion  free  labor  and  an- 
other to  attack  his  enemies,  including  the  president. 
Sewanl  called  him  "the  brave  young  senator." 

Brotlerick  was  not  an  orator.  Flourishes  of  rheto- 
ric and  graces  of  gesture  were  unpractised  by  him. 
But  in  his  blunt  way  he  made  some  hard  hits;  too 
hard,  too  rude  and  caustic,  fv/r  his  own  personal  good 


55 


**Tlio  qiu;8tion  was  finally  settled  by  tl>e  people  in  an  election  hi-M  Auj?. 
4,  ISoJS,  wlien  tlio  slave  statu  constitution  waa  rejected  by  a  vote  of  II,:UM) 
against,  auil  1,788  in  favor.   Bm-lirr,  lliitt.   WtMern  Sdih-ii,  445. 

''' There  arc  portions  of  Broderick's  speecheH  on  the  admission  of  Kansas 
under  the  L<;conipton  constitution,  wliich  should  not  lie  lost  to  lii.stor^',  and  I 
make  hero  a  few  extracts:  'In  the  passage  of  this  hill — the  Kansas-Neliranka 
aet  of  I8.")4,  by  which  the  Missouri  couipromi^ie  lino  of  'Mi"  lUf  w.is  removed  ia 
tlie  territories — tiio  {Nioplc  of  the  nortii  felt  that  a  greut  wrong  had  Im-c-u  com- 
mitted against  tiieir  rights.  Tliis  was  a  mistaken  view;  the  ni>rth  should 
]i:ivo  rejoiced,  and  applauded  the  senator  from  III.  for  accepting  Mr  1  Axon's 
amendnuMit.  Tliu  south  ghouM  have  nionrnc<l  the  removal  of  that  barrier, 
tlie  removal  of  wliicli  will  let  in  upon  her  feeble  anil  decaying  institutions 
niilliiins  of  free  laborers.  In  the  passage  of  the  Kansas-Nebniska  bill,  thu 
rampart  that  protected  slavery  in  the  southern  territories  was  broken  down. 
Northern  opinions,  northern  idea.s,  and  nortiiern  institutions  were  invited  to 
thu  contest  for  the  possession  of  tlu'so  territories.  How  f<Nilish  for  the  south 
to  hoi»e  to  contenil  with  success  in  such  an  encounter  1  Slavery  is  oM,  de- 
crepit, and  consumptive;  freedom  is  young,  strong,  and  vigorous.  One  is 
naturally  stitionary,  and  loves  case;  the  other  is  migratory  ami  enterprising. 
Tiicre  are  l>,OiK),000  of  people  interested  in  the  extension  of  slavery.  There 
are  20,(K)U,<MN)  of  freemen  to  contend  for  tliese  territories,  out  of  whieb  to 
carve  for  theni.selves  homes  where  lalmr  is  honorable.  Up  to  the  time  oi  the 
passage  of  the  Kansas-Nebniska  act,  a  largo  majority  of  the  }>eople  of  the  north 
dill  not  quc'itioii  the  right  of  the  south  to  control  the  ilestinics  of  the  terri- 
t'Ories  south  of  the  Missouri  line.  Tlie  ]M>oplo  of  the  north  Mbotdd  have 
Welcomed  the  ]>assago  of  the  Kansas-Nebraska  act.  I  am  astonisheil  that 
republicans  should  call  for  a  rcsturatiuu  of  the  Missouri  compromise.     With 


790 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


He  denounced  the  president  for  his  attitude  toward 
Kansas,  and  his  encouragement  to  the  Lecoinptonites. 
Speaking  of  the  troubles  in  Kansas,  "  I  regret,"  saiil 
he,  "that  I  am  compelled  to  ditifer  with  him  on  this 
question;  but,  sir,  I  intend  to  hold  him  responsible 
for  it  [the  condition  of  Kansas].  I  do  not  intt^nil,  be- 
cause I  am  a  member  of  the  democratic  party,  to  per- 
mit the  president  of  the  United  States,  who  was 
elected  by  that  party,  to  create  civil  war  in  Kansas. 

the  terril)lR  odtia  that  are  against  her,  the  south  Bhould  not  have  rejioaled  it, 
if  slie  dusireil  to  retain  her  rights  in  the  territories.  Has  it  never  oouurr«'<l 
to  southern  gentlemen  that  millions  of  lalwring  freemen  are  Inirn  yeurly 
who  demand  suhsistenue,  and  will  have  it?  that  as  the  marts  of  lalH>r  l>ec-«)iiii! 
crowded  they  will  crowd  into  tlie  territories  and  take  posseiwiitn  of  them  * 
Tlie  senator  from  South  Carolina  [Hammond]  undervalues  the  strcngtli  and 
intelligence  of  theMO  men  when  he  denounces  them  '.^  slaves.  Would  a  dis- 
solution of  the  union  give  these  southern  territories  to  slavery?  No,  sir. 
It  is  a  mistake  to  su^tpose  it  would.  A  dissolution  of  the  union  would  nut 
lessen  the  amount  of  immigration,  or  the  number  of  free  white  men  seeking 
for  homes  an<l  a  market  for  their  labor.  Wherever  there  is  land  for  settle- 
ment they  will  rush  in  and  occupy  it,  and  the  compulsory  Libor  of  slaves  will 
have  to  give  way  Iwfore  the  intelli^ront  ial>or  of  freemen.  Ha<l  the  Mi^ssoun 
line  l>een  retained,  the  northern  lai>!'>i!r  would  not  have  sought  to  go  south  ot 
it.  But  this  line  having  been  abolished  by  the  south,  no  complaint  ean  l>.t 
made  if  the  north  avails  herself  of  the  concession.  Senators  had  Itetter  con- 
sider before  they  talk  of  dissolution,  and  first  understand  if  the  |>erpetuity  of 
their  beloved  institution  will  be  nutre  securely  guaranteed  by  it.  The  ques- 
tion of  dissolution  is  not  discussed  by  the  people  of  California.  I  am  not  at 
liberty  to  say  if  the  people  I  in  part  represent  are  denied  by  congress  tlu- 
legislation  they  require,  they  will  consitler  it  a  blessing  to  renuiin  a  p:irt  of 
this  confederation.  The  senator  from  South  Carolina  very  bosistingly  told  ni 
a  few  days  since  how  much  cotton  the  south  exported,  and  that  cotton  wiis 
king.  He  did  not  tell  us  that  the  price  of  cotton  fluctuatetl,  and  that  tlie 
south  Wiis  at  the  mercy  of  the  manufacturers.  Suppose,  sir,  the  l(i  free  8tJit<''i 
of  the  union  should  see  tit  to  enact  a  high  protective  tariff,  for  t!io  purpose  of 
giving  employment  to  free  labor,  wouldcotton  bo  king  then?  Why,  sir,  tlio 
single  free  state  of  California  exports  the  product  for  which  cotton  is  raise  I 
to  an  amount  of  more  than  one  half  in  value  of  the  whole  exiiorta  of  the  cot- 
ton of  the  slave  sttites.  Cotton  king!  No,  air.  Oold  is  ki:ig.  I  represent 
a  state,  sir,  where  labor  is  honorable;  where  the  judge  has  left  his  boiieli,  the 
lawyer  and  doctor  their  offices,  and  the  clergyman  his  pulpit,  for  the  purpose 
of  delving  in  the  earth;  where  no  station  is  to  high  and  no  position  so  grejit 
that  its  occupant  is  not  proud  to  boast  that  he  has  laUired  with  his  own 
hands.  There  is  no  state  in  the  union,  no  place  on  earth,  where  labor  is  so 
honored  and  so  well  reworded;  no  time  and  place  since  the  AlmiKhty  doomed 


the  sons  of  Adam  to  toil,  where  the  curse,  if  it  be  a  corse,  rests  so  liahtly  > 
now  on  the  people  of  California.  Many  senators  have  complaine«i  of  tlio  sena- 
tor from  South  Carolina  for  hia  denunciatiioa  of  the  laborers  of  the  north  as 
white  slaves,  and  the  mudsills  of  society.  I  am  glad,  sir,  that  the  senator 
has  spoken  thus.  It  may  have  the  effect  of  arousing  in  the  working  men 
that  spirit  which  has  been  lying  dormant  for  eantnriaa.  It  may  also  have  the 
effect  of  arousing  the  200,000  men  with  pnro  white  tkiiia  in  south  Carolina 
who  are  now  degraded  and  despisetl  by  80^000  aristoeratie  slaTea-holdon.' 
Oomg.  Globe,  1857-8,  App.  191-3;  Hayes'  ColL,  Cat.  PoL,  ii.  1,  2. 


LEGISLATURE  OF  1859. 


721 


TIio  only  thing  tliat  has  astonished  me  in  this  whole 
matter  is  the  forbearance  of  tlie  people  of  Kansas. 
If  they  had  taken  the  delegates  to  the  Leeompton 
convention  and  flogged  them,  or  cut  off  their  ears  and 
driven  them  out  of  the  country,  I  would  have  ap- 

{)lauded  them  for  the  act"  Keferring  to  the  frauds 
)y  which  the  Leeompton  constitution  had  been  forced 
upon  the  people  of  Kansas,  he  went  further  in  denun- 
ciation of  the  president  "  Will  not  the  world,"  said 
ho,  "believe  he  instigated  the  commission  of  those 
frauds,  as  he  gives  strength  to  those  who  committed 
tliem  ?  This  portion  of  my  subject  is  painful  for  me 
to  refer  to.  I  wish,  sir,  for  the  honor  of  my  country, 
the  story  of  these  frauds  could  be  blotted  from  exist- 
ence. I  hope,  in  mercy,  sir,  to  the  boasted  intelli- 
gence of  this  age,  the  historian,  when  writing  a 
history  of  these  times,  will  ascribe  this  attempt  of 
the  executive  to  force  this  constitution  upon  an  un- 
willing people,  to  the  fading  intellect,  the  petulant 
passion,  and  trembling  dotage  of  an  old  man  on  the 
verge  of  the  grave." 

The    legislature   elected    in    1858**   was    strongly 

^  Owins  to  the  nealcct  of  the  sec.  of  the  senate  to  give  the  full  names  and 
(liHtriota  of  uuiiilivra  for  1859,  the  list  will  a|>|iear  here  iiiiiHirfuct.  Thu  fi»l- 
lowing  are  the  Henatora,  as  a|ipeur8  from  the  jouriialH:  Jaiiiea  Aiuleraon,  Isafio 
Allou,  J.  Berry,  J.  H.  Baker,  H  T.  Bra«lley,  S.  A.  Ball.m,  J.  C.  Biirch,  <;. 
W.  Dent,  W.  R  Dickinson,  A.  St.  C.  IVnver,  G.  A.  Grant,  K.  (Jartcr,  D.  S. 
(ireRory,  H.  (iritiith,  A.  8.  Hart,  S.  F.  Hanini,  W.  HoKlon,  L.  N.  Ketohani, 
M.  Kirkpatriik,  C.  T.  Lansing,  J.  M.  McI>oiial<i,  8.  A.  Morritt,  J.  O'Furrell, 
II.  Paolieco,  W  H.  Parks,  8.  H.  Parker,  T.  G.  'M,olt,i,,  J.  Price,  1.  N.  Quinn, 
IC  A.  He.lnwin,  V.  K.  Thoni,  I.  S.  Titus,  E.  I».  Wlieeler,  V.  H.  S.  WilUanis. 
Prest,  J.  Walkiii);  prest  pro  teni.,  W.  R  Uickinsou;  see.,  E.  C  Palmer;  a«st 
Huo.,  John  T.  Pennington;  enrolling  clt-rk,  Julin  ('.  Keitl;  engrossing  clerk, 
Win  S.  Letcher;  8ergt-at-arnis,  Jauit-s  W.  liawkins;  asst  sergt-at-arnis,  G. 
P.  Sauuilera. 

The  assembly  consisted  of  Wm  P.  R^Hlgers,  Alameda;  W.  W.  Co|m,  Jnlm 
\.  ]<^gon,  Amador;  James  Bunlick,  ('.  W.  Lightner,  Charles  E.  Mount,  Cal- 
averas; H.  VV  Dunlap,  Colusa  and  Tehama;  Benjamin  S.  Hinus,  Contra 
Costa;  H.  C.  8hms,  J.  8.  Tipton,  Williani  Coleman,  Ogden  Hquires,  (Jeorgu 
M.  Condee,  George  N.  Douglass,  Alfrcl  Briggit,  George  A.  Douglas,  Kl  Do- 
rado; James  M.  Koane,  Fresno,  Tulare,  and  Buena  Vista;  Manuel  Torres, 
Marin;  Amlrew  J.  Gregory,  <ieorue  11.  Creuithaw,  MariiHwa  and  Merced; 
Mariano  Malorin,  Mon^rey;  Wm  B.  MattlawH,  Napa;  Wm  U.  ArniHirong, 
•lohn  Caldwell,  Christopher  Cohalon,  Philip  MiMirc,  George  A.  Young,  Ncviula; 
Win  P.  Barcliij,  Philip  Lynch.  Wm  «'.  Stratton,  \V.  P.  Wing,  Placer;  K.  H. 
KIlis,  James  E.  Sheridan,  Charles  Duncondiv,  A.  R,  Jackson,  Sac;  (r.  N. 
Whitman,  Nan  Beriuinlino;  A.  8.  Ensworth,  San  Diego;  G.  €.  Holman, 
Thomas  Lospeyre,  San  Joatpiin;  Walter  Murray,  San  Luis  Obispo;  David  W. 
Ui8T.  Cau,  Vol.  VI.    46 


722 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


Lecompton  as  to  the  federal  administration,  and  Gwin 
and  eliivalry  as  to  California.  It  passed  resolutions 
when  it  met  in  1859,  condemning  Broderick  as  not 
obeying  the  instructions  of  the  legislature  which 
elected  him,  and  characterizing  his  remarks  in  the 
senate,  touching  the  president,  as  a  disgrace  to  the 
nation,  and  humiliating  to  the  people.  It  was  a  pity, 
seeing  the  truth  contained  in  them,  that  the  tongue 
had  never  learned  the  subtle  niceties  of  speech  by 
which  an  insult  becomes  unanswerable  by  the  victim, 
and  innocence  to  the  speaker;  for  thereby  he  would 
have  made  his  enemies  fear,  w'lereas  they  now  only 
censured,  harassed,  and  plotted  against  him,  From 
the  day  when  he  uttered  his  fearless  invective,  he  was 
a  marked  man;  a  man  devoted  to  evil  doom." 

In  1859  there  was  another  gubernatorial  election 
in  California,  and  Broderick  returned  to  organize  tlio 
anti-Lccompton  wing  of  the  democratic  party  in  his 
state.  He  was  accompanied  by  Congressman  AIcKib- 
ben,  also  a  Douglas  democrat;  Scott,  his  colleague, 
being  an  administration  man.  Both  factions  had 
their  candidates  in  the  field,  and  the  republicans 
theirs.  Before  election,  however,  the  Broderick  wing 
liad  fused  with  the  republicans  on  McKibben  ^or  con- 

Connelly,  San  Mateo;  Eugono  Lies,  Sta  Bdrl>ara;  James  Springer,  £.  C. 
Tully,  Sla  Clara;  Charles  K.  Street,  Shastii;  Josiah  Lefover,  Sierra;  Nathan 
Cutler,  Solano;  John  S.  Uohbcrson,  Jose})h  B.  Laiiiar,  Sonoma  and  Mendo- 
cino; (ii'drgo  \V,  Thomas,  Stanislaus;  C  Ij.  N.  Vaughn,  Sutter;  Fordyce 
Bates,  Trinity;  S.  M.  Buck,  Wm  Dow,  llobert  Howe,  (T.  W.  Whitney,  Tuol- 
amne;  Harri-son  Owiim,  Yolo;  Francis  L.  Aud,  James  L.  Slin^crlaud,  Mor- 
timer Fuller,  John  Whealdon,  Charlua  K.  Do  Long,  Yulta;  PInlip  P.  Caiue, 
F.  £.  Caiinnii,  Butte;  T.  B.  Shannon,  Plumas:  James  A.  Banks,  John  W. 
Cherry,  Allnrt  A.  Hill,  Louis  R.  Lull,  William  W.  Sheitard,  S.  F.;  Wm  F. 
Watkiiis,  Sii^kiyou.  Speaker,  VVni  C.  Stratton;  chief  clerk,  Caleb  C'ilnuui; 
asst  clork,  Richard  R.  McUill;  enrolling  clerk,  Henry  C.  Kib1)e;  engrossing 
elcrk,  W.  Ciisey;  sergt-at-arms,  James  Moore;  asst  sergt-at-arms,  Julius 
Shultz. 

"  Wilkes  relates  that  when  Broderick  was  in  New  York,  before  sailing 
for  Cul.  in  1S59,  and  while  they  were  in  conversation  in  the  bar-room  of  the 
Jones  house,  at  a  late  hour,  two  southerners,  Paul  K.  Leeds  of  N.  O.  and 
Richard  Runshaw  of  S.  C,  interrupted  Bro<lcrick  M'ith  insulting  sounds,  and 
that  when  this  was  repeated,  Broderick  sprang  upon  them,  and  caned  thuin 
both  suveruly.  He  was  afterward  troubled  alwut  the  affair,  and  labored  to 
keep  it  out  of  the  newspapers.  It  was  his  opuiion  that  a  plot  was  laid  to 
bring  on  a  dueL  Croaby,  Early  EvenUt,  MS.,  66-7,  expresses  the  same  opinion. 


NOTABLE  CAMPAIGN. 


72$ 


grcss.  John  Currey,  formerly  a  district  judge,  and 
a  personal  friend  of  Broderick,  but  who  had  turned 
republican,  was  nominated  for  governor  at  his  sugges- 
tion, perhaps  with  a  view  to  fusion.  John  Conness 
was  nominated  for  lieutenant-governor;  Samuel  A. 
Booker  of  San  Joaquin  for  second  congressman; 
Royal  T.  Spri^ue  for  judge  of  the  supreme  court ; 
and  Edmund  Bandolph  for  attorney-general. 

The  republicans  nominated  Leland  Stanford  for 
governor;  James  F.  Kennedy,  lieutenant-governoi  , 
O.  L.  Shaffer,  supreme  judge;  McKibben  and  E. 
D.  Baker  for  congressmen.  The  Lecomptonites 
nominated  Latham  for  governor;  John  G.  Downey, 
lieutenant-governor;  W.  W.  Cope,  supreme  judge; 
attorney-general,  Thomas  H.  Williams;**  and  for 
congressmen,  John  C.  Burch  and  Charles  L.  Scott. 
Gwm  had  returned  to  California,  and  the  campaign 
opened  with  these  personal  and  acrimonious  attacks, 
which  soon  made  ''-  evident  that  the  Lecomptonites 
meant  to  provoke  a  resort  to  the  code  of  the  duello. 

Said  a  leading  journal:  "We  speak  the  convictions 
which  have  been  forced  upon  the  minds  of  all  men 
who  have  read  the  speeches  of  Broderick  and  Gwiii, 
that  a  bloody  termination  of  this  controversy  is  ex- 
pected by  the  friends  of  both  senators,  and  that  it  is 
one  for  which  one  or  both  are  prepared.  Commencing 
with  Gwin's  second  speech  in  the  canvass,  there  has 
been  a  pointed  avowal  of  his  readiness  to  'settle  their 
private  griefs  in  a  private  manner,*  coupled  with 
sneers,  insults,  and  personal  affronts  on  every  occa.sion 
on  which  the  elder  senator  has  alluded  particularly  to 
his  younger  rival.     The  organs  on  that  side  do  not 


ailing 
{  tho 
anil 
and 
thuni 
dt(> 
id  to 
nioiu 


^Williams  was  born  in  Ky,  in  1828,  and  educated  at  Centre  College, 
Danville,  btudyiui;  law  afterward  at  Louiaville.  He  came  to  California  over- 
land in  IStV),  settling  in  El  Dorado  co.  After  tlie  expiration  of  his  term  of 
office  he  removed  to  Sac.,  where  ho  practised  law.  When  the  Conistock  lo<le 
came  into  notoriety  he  removed  to  Nevada,  where  he  was  a  menilier  of  the 
legislature  in  1864.  He  purchased  a  valuable  property  in  Oakland,  Cal.,  which 
latter  became  his  home.  He  married  Mary  Bryant  of  S.  F.  in  1866,  who  died 
i-i  186G.  They  had  6  children,  4  of  whom  were  sons.  Sac  Uition,  Aug.  13, 
1859. 


1M 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


(liaj^uiso  the  wish  to  force  Brtnlorick  into  a  private 
ciK'ountcr.  We  have  hail  diiwertationg  on  the  eodo, 
on  the  characteristics  of  chivalry,  on  what  constitutin 
an  affront,  and  how  far  personal  responsihiUty  may  or 
may  not  be  evaded.  These  imputations  upon  the 
personal  courage  and  honor  of  Broderick  have  been 
carried  on  since  the  Perley  affair,  and  socm  fully  to 
corroborate  his  view  of  that  matter,  and  that  it  was 
arranged  by  his  enemies  to  provoke  a  iuwiile  collision." 

A  Lecompton  journal  said :  "  Irritated  by  the  man- 
ner and  substance  of  Broderick's  remarks  about  him 
at  different  points)  in  the  state,  Senator  Gwin,  at  For- 
est Hill,  ridiculed  Broderick  most  mcrcilesnly,  and 
spoke  of  him  contemptuously,  and  somewhat  offens- 
ively, without  being  absolutely  insulting  in  his  lan- 
guage. Broderick  about  the  same  time,  in  another 
]K>rtion  of  the  state,  told  all  he  knew  about  the  famous 
senatorial  contest  of  1857;  and  notwithstanding  pre- 
vious contrary  insinuations,  exculpated  Gwin  from  any 
serious  accusation  in  the  premises.  The  speech  at 
Forest  Hill  was  delivered  before  he  learned  the  pur- 
port of  Broderick's  revelations  at  Nevada.  Perhaps, 
had  these  revelations  reached  him  earlier,  his  offensive 
lemarks  at  Forest  Hill  would  not  have  been  uttered. 
These  remarks  were  made  under  the  impression  rest- 
ing upon  Gwin's  mind  that  Broderick  designed  being 
personally  abusive  toward  him  in  his  speech  at  Ne- 
vada.    It  turned  out  that  Broderick  was  not  so."* 

The  Perley  affair,  alluded  to  in  the  first  of  the  alK)ve 
quotations,  occurred  on  the  29th  of  June.  David  S. 
Terry,  who  had,  in  vigilance  couunittec  times,  been 
sustained  by  Broderick  against  the  wrath  of  the  peo- 
ple, but  who  now  was  a  devoted  follower  of  Gwin,  and 
consequently  a  foe  to  Gwin's  rival,  said  in  convention 
that  Broderick's  professed  following  of  Dougks  meant, 
not  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  the  statesman,  but  Fi'ederick 
Douglass,  the  mulatto.  This,  in  the  days  of  siaveiy, 
and  coming  from  a  pro-slavery  man,  was  an  insult. 

-8.  P.  Nationat,  in  Hayr^'  CoU.,  CaL  Pol.,  u.  63 


PERLEY'S  CHALLKNOE. 


BrcMlcrick  ntail  the  speech  at  tlie  breakfast-table  of 
Die  International  Hotel,  and  as  he  watt  without  doubt 
t'X|)eet«'d  to  do,  uttered  a  remark  cixprt^asive  of  hi.t 
irritation.  He  Haid  ho  had  upheld  Terry  as  the  only 
honoMt  man  upon  the  beneh,  but  he  now  took  back  his 
former  opinion,  or  words  Ui  that  eflVt't.  At  the  same 
table  sat  I).  W.  Perli^y,**  a  friend  of  Terry,  whoiso 
ears  wi>re  open  to  catch  l^roderick's  coiiimentH  on 
Terry's  spxich,  utt«'red  sotto  voce  though  they  were. 
There  was  hardly  ji^round  for  a  deadly  encount*^r 
between  J*erley  and  Bpnierick  in  the  remark,  but 
Perley  pent  a  challenifc,  which  Hnnlerick  declined, 
on  titc  ('round  that  Perley  was  a  British  subject  whose 
political  ri«rhts  would  not  be  af}cct<Hl  by  duelling,  and 
also  that  he  w)is  not  entitled  to  have  his  challen^^e 
accepted  on  account  of  his  inferiority  of  position.  "  If 
I  were  to  accept  your  challenge,"  said  he,  **  there  are 
probably  many  gentlemen  who  would  seek  similar 
opportunities  for  hostile  meetings,  for  the  purjMise  of 
accomplishing  a  political  objtx-t,  or  to  obtain  public 
notoriety.  I  cannot  afford,  at  the  present  time,  to 
descend  to  a  violation  of  the  constitution  and  the 
state  laws  to  subserve  either  their  or  your  purposes" 
In  the  same  note  he  intimated  that  when  the  cam- 

{)aign  was  over  he  would  not  refuse  to  fight.  This 
anguage  soon  l>econiing  known  throughout  the  state 
fave  intenser  meaning  to  the  utterances  on  all  sides, 
li  one  of  his  speeches,  Bnxlerick  said:  "I  have  given 
my  reasons  for  not  meeting  Mr  Perley ;  and  I  state 
to  you  that  he  had  no  more  expectation  of  a  quarrel 
with  me  than  I  have  of  killing  you  all  to-night.  He 
was  put  forward  by  designing  men  who  desired  to  get 
rid  of  me.  The  prompting  parties  themselves  hafl  no 
desire  to  engage  in  the  afiair,  so  they  sent  this  little 
wretch  to  insult  me,  and  if  possible,  involve  me  in  a 
difficulty." 

**  Perley  was  a  lawyer  of  Stocktoa  in  ISfiO,  hnt  remnred  to  S.  F.  He 
came  from  New  Bmnawick,  and  <li(l  not  enjoy  a  high  reputation  in  the  coiii> 
nmnitv.  Hia  attachment  to  Terry  pmlwltfy  came  from  the  circa nmtanoe 
that  Terry  had  acted  aa  hia  aecond  m  a  duel  in  18S0. 


■ 


720 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


The  taunting  style  of  attack  and  defence  assumed 
by  the  Lecomptonitcs  stung  Broderick  to  the  depths 
of  his  silent  and  gloomy  soul ;  and  whatever  thoughts 
he  had  entertained  of  preserving  a  dignified  course, 
and  conducting  the  campaign  on  important  issues, 
were  dissipated.  At  Weaverville  he  said,  July  28tli, 
in  reply  to  insinuations  that  he  did  not  hold  himself 
responsible  for  what  he  uttered :  "  If  I  have  insulted 
Dr  Gwin  sufficiently  to  induce  him  to  go  about  the 
state  and  make  a  blackguard  of  himself,  he  should  seek 
the  remedy  left  every  gentleman  who  feels  offended." 
This  was  the  very  state  of  mind  to  which  it  was 
sought  to  bring  him. 

Meanwhile  the  contest  raged  fiercely.  Gwin  had 
taken  great  credit  to  himself  for  his  advocacy  of  the 
Pacific  Railroad  bill  in  congress,  and  the  people  of 
California  had  been  grateful  to  him  for  it.  His  bill 
introduced  in  1852  was  for  aid  in  constructing  a  rail- 
road and  telegraph  line  from  the  Pacific  to  the  At- 
lantic ocean,  starting  from  the  bay  of  San  Francisco, 
passing  around  it,  striking  the  foothills  near  Stockttin, 
running  down  the  coast  to  Walker's  Pass,  across  the 
Sierra  Nevada,  and  east  to  Albuquerque  in  New  Mex- 
ico, having  branches  thence  to  St  Louis,  Dubuque, 
Memphis,  and  New  Orleans,  and  providing  f)r  a 
branch  to  Oregon,  on  the  Pacific  end.  The  history 
of  this  undertaking  will  be  presented  in  its  })roper 
pla<'f.  I  give  this  outline  here  to  show  the  direction 
of  Gwin's  thoughts,  as  well  as  of  the  proposed  rail- 
road. 

In  December  1855,  Senator  Weller  gave  notice  of 
a  bill  t«)  authorize  the  p<i^<tma8ter-general  to  contract 
for  ihe  transportation  of  the  United  States  mails,  in 
ftmr-horse  coaches,  tri-weekly,  from  St  Louis  to  San 
Francisto.  The  act  was  not  passed  until  March  '.], 
1857,  nor  was  the  Hne  put  in  ojieration  until  1S58, 
when  another  act  gave  the  contractors  a  choice  of 
routes.  About  the  same  time  a  mail  line  was  estab- 
lished from  Placcrville  to  Salt  Lake,  connecting  with 


OWIN  AND  BRODEMCK. 


727 


•  8, 
of 
,b- 
tb 


tlie  mail  from  Salt  Lake  to  St  Joseph.  The  con- 
tractors, under  the  act  of  March  3,  1857,  chose  the 
roiit'^  fr«>m  Memphis  and  St  Louis,  by  El  Paso,  the 
mouth  of  the  Gila,  and  San  Diego,  to  San  Francisco. 
Tlic  postmaster-general  resided  in  Memphis,  a  very 
cogent  reason  for  the  choice  of  this  distinctly  south- 
ern route,  which  by  a  long  and  circuitous  line  reuched 
the  populous  counties  of  Ctlifornia  from  the  extreme 
soutli-east  corner  of  the  state,  three  times  a  week,  at 
a  cost  of  $600,000  a  year.  It  was  shown  by  Broder- 
ick,  and  some  of  the  western  senators,  that  the  rout*} 
from  St  Joseph  to  Placerville  was  shorter,  clieaper, 
and  more  convenient  than  the  southern  route,  and  it 
was  asked  that  the  time  on  the  Salt  Lake  route  bo 
sliortened  eight  days  by  an  increase  of  compensation 
to  tlie  contractors  to  enable  them  to  ])ut  more  stock 
upon  the  road,  and  a  resoluti»m  to  that  effect  was 
finally  passed  in  June  1858.  In  the  discussion,  which 
became  rather  warm,  Gwin  spoke  favorably  of  the 
Salt  Lake  route,  acknowledging  it  to  be  better  than 
the  southern  one,  SJiying  that  he  "expected  to  see  it 
run  in  twenty  days."" 

In  the  campaign,  however,  Gwin  attacked  Broderick 
for  proiKising  the  removal  of  the  mail  line  from  the 
southern  to  t)ie  central  route,  representing  his  action 
to  be  governed  by  sectional  j)rejudice,  making  much 
capital  thereby,  while  lauding  himself  with  little 
enough  modesty  fur  his  ex  rtlons  in  behalf  of  a  rail- 
road, declaring  he  did  not  favor  one  route  above 
tvnother.  Gwm  sti,*^  matized  Broderick  as  disgraced 
bv  his  refusal  to  obey  the  instructions  of  the  legisla- 
ture of  1858,  directing  him  to  vote  for  the  admission 
of  Kansas  under  the  Lecompton  constitution,  asserting 
that  he  had  been  n-ad  out  of  the  democratic  party  for 
his  a(  tion.  Brotlerick  replied  that  it  was  true  that 
Dou'  las,  Stuart  of  ^liclugan,  and  himself  had  been 
exclu  ird  from  democratic  caucus  for  refusing  to  sup- 


acnes 


•>  /,.'</■«.  nU.  S.  F.,  ."MMV-?;  Otrin,  Mernoirn,  MS.,  M;  Hut.  A'nw/a,  thw 
ies,  i)|..  228-1);  Comj.  GM>e,  1857-58,  pt  iiL,  p.  3,««. 


m 


728 


POUTICAL  HISTORY. 


port  the  prcsulont^H  jx»licy  with  rogaril  to  Kansas;  hut 
tluit  duriii|^  the  luHt  days  of  tho  last  soshioii  he  had 
iHHjn  invited  aiul  ur<^ed  to  attcMid  the  caucus,  l>y  sucli 
distintj^uislied  soutliern  sonatora  as  Touiuhs  of  Greorgia 
and  Davis  of  Mississippi. 

linnlerick  was  no  orator,  as  I  have  said;  ho  wus 
made  for  action;  hut  lie  luid  nervotl  himself,  alhcit  lie 
was  surtcrinjjf  from  a  prostrating'  bixlily  ailment,  to 
s)M'ak  in  tliis  eamiiaign.  lie  ridiculed  Gwin's  louif 
written  speechvs  with  which  he  read  eveir  one  out  of 
the  senate,  "except  Doolittle  of  Wisconsm  and  him- 
self," and  spoke  off-hand  to  larj^e  audiences.  He 
called  att«-5ntu>n  to  the  attempted  Lime  Point  Hwin<lle, 
declared  (irwin  (»p|)osed  to  tho  homestead  hill,  and 
a^ri»!ultural  and  mechanical  collejjfe  hill,"*  aiul  that  he 
was  a  paid  a^ent  of  the  PaciH(;  Mail  Steamship  (^>m- 
pany.  No  very  (ilear  d«'fence  was  ever  set  up  aj^aiiist 
thes«»  charjjfes;  hut  true  or  false,  they  were  savage 
wea|M>ns  wielded  hy  the  atn>i»g,  relentless  hand  of 
Brtnlerick. 

It  wtM  tho  senatorial  ltar<^ain,  however,  which  most 
severely  cut  G  win.  8t»  far  as  Jiroderiek  was  <'onccnu'd, 
the  har^ain  litul  Ikh^u  treated  confidentially  for  two 
vears.     He  hail  even  denied  its  existence  and  exoner- 


*'(iwiii,  ill  hi:*  Mcmnrin,  MS.,  fuarltuMly  (irniMUK  hiiiiiuilf  for  hin  iu1vm;iii-y 
of  tli<!H«  ImIIh.  11(1  cttrtiiinly  liiul  a  way  of  Mciitiiiiig  t4i  do  wliitt<!V(tr  Cal.  <lii- 
iiirtMl  until  Knxlvrii'k  Ituuiui  Ui  ux[Miiie  iiJH  iiictliixlM.  Tliu  aiiutli  Wiin  ii|i|mh4ciI 
to  ^riuitiii^  till)  ]iiililiu  liinilii  fur  uny  imr|MiHU.  aM  1  liitvu  iiu'.ntioiuHl.  (iwiii, 
U'iiig  iiiHtrurt«-il  to  viit«  for  tlio  lioiitdHUiiul  and  a^ric. •colluuu  Itillt,  iniud-  a 

tn-tuncu  of  givinfj  Uuuii  Iiih  aid,  while  liiH  action  wan  rtially  not  frii-ii<lly. 

''•>r  uiHt4inv<t,  l<K>k  at  tliiH  aniiindniunt  to  tliu  a^rivultural-oolli-gu  liill:  'That 
tht-ro  lie  grant^Ml  to  thu  iwivural  HtittuH  and  turritorieH,  for  tliu  iiuriNMi)  ht-n-in- 
tiiU'.T  inttntioned,  6,*.KMI,<NIU  acnm  of  liuul,  Ut  lie  a|iiNirtionud  in  tho  com* 
iMiiind  ratio  of  the  ^iMigraiihii^al  area  luid  rt!|in-wntati<in  of  oaid  HtutuH  and 
IttrritoritMi  in  th«  m'uate  ami  houaii  of  r«'|iri!M<>titutivui4;  |iroviilt>i|,  that  Kiid 
a|)|Mirtiontm!itt  Hhall  lie  niailu  after  lirxt  allotting  to  each  Hta*4j  and  tt-rritory 
IhMMN)  atTfi*;  and  providxil  further,  that  tlie  8tJite  of  C'al.  may  liK'aUi  her  |ior- 
tion  of  the  wild  laniU  uiNin  any  of  the  una|i|ironriated  lamia  in  that  Mtjite 
other  than  mineral  laniU,  ami  not  then  ottcujiiiul  hy  aotual  MettlerH.'  //iW/t, 
MrimtirH,  MS.,  I4!S.  The  teni|M>r  of  the  Miutn  wait  not  Huoh  iih  t<i  allow  thin 
lilH>ral  diM|MMitioii  of  the  |iulilie  lantU,  with  Uiea|>|iortioiiiiieutiir«>viMolN)NideM. 
Hr«Mliiriek  <leHcrilN><l  (iwiiiN  manner  toward  the  hoineMt<*ad  hill,  naying  he  Hat 
ipiietly  ti|i(iing  the  tliNir  with  hiii  fiMit  in  ajiproval  of  the  reuiarkM  o?  Mouth- 
«rn  KcnatorH  againnt  it,  hut  that  afttT  it  wiui  killoil  he  voted  for  it.  It  m 
oertAin  Owin  naid  uutbiug  iu  the  deltatun  «in  thu  bill.  Sue  i'ontj.  tiUtttt; 
iHiiT  TiM,  index. 


X^ 


SLAYIXi;   OF   FKIWJUaON. 


729 


ated  Gwiii,  until  (iwin's  trcutinont  of  him  in  the  cani- 
{tciif^n  incited  him  t<>  anger,  and  oanHod  him  to  tt^U  the 
whi>le  humihatin^  story  in  a  manner  to  make  it  moHt 
liumiHatin*^,  readinj^  tlio  contract  letter  from  the  Bt;uul, 
with  HarcoHtic  comments.  The  Loconjpton  n(!Ws|)U|)erH 
and  H|)cakers  pointed  out  tiic  contradiction  Hnnply  as 
wilful  falsifyinj^  without  motive,  to  the  great  disadvan- 
tiigc  of  BnMlerick.  Tliis  was  a  matter  in  which  Latlium 
also  was  involved,  ;;;iving  damaging  accounts  of  Jirod- 
erick's  treatment  of  him,  without  denying  that  he 
would  have  rchigneil  the  fed«  lal  ])atroiiage  to  the  more 
exiH*rienced  politician,  except  tiie  tliri^o  chitif  oflices. 
In  tiiis  notahle  campaign,  in  short,  the  dianocratic 
haders,  or  a  majority  of  them,  were  at  enmity  with 
]ir<Mlerick;  the  cause  of  tliat  enmity  heing  anti-Le- 
comptonisia,  veiled  un<ler  tiie  Himsy  prett>xt  tliat  it 
was  a  ]M'rs«mal  quarrel  between  the  two  senators. 

In  his  s|Meches  Jiro<Ieri<"k  was  provoked  i:»to  men- 
tion «>f  a  matter,  which  from  its  suggest! vcnesK,  proh- 
ahl;  .  ^^  well  as  because  he  had  lost  a  friend,  lay  near 
his  lieai  t.  This  wjis  the  killing  of  State  Senat«>r  Wil- 
liam 1.  Fergus<»n,  in  a  duel,  by  George  Pen  Johnston, 
on  the  21st  of  September,  1858.  Ferguson  liad  join<'<l 
the  knownothing  ]>arty  in  1855,  but  had  gone  back 
to  the  denHK-mcy  in  IH5(».  When  the  ruptun^  occurred 
between  J)ouglas  and  jiuchanan,  on  the  Kansas  (pies- 
tion,  Ferguson  t4M»k  tlie  side  of  Douglas,  iiike  J^rod- 
erick,  he  thenceforth  Iteeame  a  marke<l  man  in  his 
party,  and  ix-ing  on  a  visit  to  San  Fraiuisco,  a  quarrel 
with  him  w.'is  sought,  a  ciiallenge  sent  liy  an  exiie- 
rienced  duellist,  accepted  by  a  man  who  knew  nothmg 
of  fire-arms,  or  any  otlier  deadly  wea|M»ns,  and  Fer- 
gus<»n,  who  had  stootl  three  shots,  was  mortally  wountled 
at  the  fourth. 

Hnnlerick  connected  Ferguson's  death  with  the 
(»win-lir«»tlerick  i-ontract,  and  stated  that  he,  Ferguson, 
was  the  jH-rson  who  arranged  the  bargain;  charging 
that  he  Uml  In^en  murdered  in  cold  blood,  in  order  to 


790 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


get  rid  of  his  testimony  in  the  premises ; "  citing  the 
breaking  open  of  Ferguson's  desk  after  his  deatii,  in 
the  search  after  the  original  of  the  famous  contract, 
but  which  had  been  confided  to  Estill  before  this 
event.  The  eftect  of  these  utterances,  which  the  Le- 
compton  press  distorted  to  serve  a  purpose,  was  more 
damaging  than  helpful  to  Broderick.  His  friends,  or 
at  least  those  who  were  not  his  enemicH,  were  puzzled 
by  something  seemingly  contradictory  in  his  s|)eeches, 
and  were  led  to  doubt,  while  his  foes  triumphed  in 
the  unfavorable  construction  placed  upon  them. 

The  explanation  of  the  whole  mystery  was  exceed- 
ingly simple,  and  is  contained  in  this  frank  avowal  of 
BrtKlerick  at  Napa,  that  he  set  out  uix>n  the  canvusH 
with  the  resolve  to  abstain  from  personal  remarks; 
and  that  it  was  not  until  after  Gwin  had  ridiculed  hmi 
at  Nevada  and  Forest  Hill,  and  said  that  he  dared 
not  present  himself  before  the  people,  that  he  was 
roused  to  tell  what  he  knew.  Since  that  time  he  had 
said  that  Gwin  was  "dripping  with  corruption,"  and 
had  given  proofs  of  the  statement.  Had  Broderick 
made  the  first  attack,  although  his  chance  of  escaping 
the  toils  would  have  not  been  lessened,  the  charge  of 
prevarication  could  not  have  been  brought  against 
liim.  In  his  desire  to  have  the  campaign  not  a  per- 
sonal one,  he  placed  himself  still  further  m  the  power 
of  his  enemies. 


The  election  occurred  on  the  7th  of  September,  and 

"Snc.  Demorriitir  Stiitiilnnl,  Aug.  1,  1859.  The  i9<«w/a«K/ comnienttxl  u|)ori 
this  Htateiiiont,  tiiiit  Bnxlerick  ha<l  tieclared  unequivocally  that  the  iiiatUr 
WAN  arrtuigud  Itetwuen  hiiiiiielf  ami  Owin.  In  regard  to  that,  there  inuat  huM- 
Ijoen  a  timt  iiiuiiiatnr.  If  not  Fergutum,  no  one  has  over  told  who  he  was. 
Brotlurtck'M  wii8  not  the  only  voice  to  condemn  the  killing  of  FergUMoii  an  a 
political  murder.  It  was  notoriouH.  K.  L>.  Baker,  who  pronounced  nis  funeral 
oration,  more  than  hinted  at  it.  '  If  I  were,  under  any  circumutancea,  an  ail- 
vo«tte  for  a  <lui>l,  it  should  Ite  at  leavt  a  fair,  c<|ual,  and  honorahle  duel,'  saiil 
Baker;  and  under  the  circumstances  it  was  enougli.  Hev.  Benton,  in  a  (lix- 
courite  on  the  death  of  Ferguson,  said:  'This  duel  gn.>w  primarily  out  of  a 
political  difference  and  disousaion  in  the  midst  of  a  social  aoene.  It  is  only 
the  latest  and  not  the  (irst  duel  fought  in  our  state  that  haa  had  a  similar 
origin,  and  a  ixilitical  signiticance.  If  I  am  not  mistaken,  political  reasons 
wen-  at  the  bottom  of  the  dmds  l>etween  Oenver  and  OillMTt,  Broderick  and 
•Snnih,  (twin  and  Met'orkle,  Washington  and  Washburn— others,  also,  it  may 
be — and  tiually  Johnston  and  Ferguaon.' 


SLAYING  OF  BIU)DERICK. 


731 


and 

U)>llll 

imttvr 
huvi.' 
was. 
aii  a 
iicriil 

Ml  ml- 

of  a 

only 

niilar 

UMOIIi 

Ic  aiitl 
t  may 


the  chivalry  were  triumphant.  On  the  following  day 
Terry  resigned  his  seat  on  the  supreme  bench,  winch 
he  had  occupied  for  four  years,"*  to  violate  the  consti- 
tution and  laws  he  expounded,  and  was  sworn  to  obey, 
by  challenging  to  mortal  combat  BnKlerick,  United 
States  senator.  The  provocation  was  the  utterance  of 
an  unfriendly  sentiment  three  months  before,  under 
the  exasperation  of  injurious  remarks  by  Terry  in 
open  convention.  To  remove  all  the  objections  made 
to  fighting  Perley,  a  social  equal,  and  a  day  after  the 
close  of  the  campaign,  were  selected. 

It  is  true  that  Broderick,  or  that  any  man,  could 
have  declined  a  duel  on  legal  and  moral  grounds.  But 
to  have  done  so  would  have  subjected  Brodorick  to 
tlie  sneers  of  his  enemies,  and  to  the  contempt  of  aoiue 
of  his  pf)litical  friends,  who  were  anxious  tliat  he  should 
show  an  unterrified  front  to  the  foe.  Thcv  had  great 
confidence  in  his  skill  with  the  pistol,  this  oeiiig  a  part 
of  his  education  acquired  after  coming  to  California, 
in  order  to  place  himself  on  a  social  lev.;!  with  the 
duelling  southrons;  and  he  himself  is  said  to  liave  re- 
plied to  one  who  feared  for  him,  "Never  fear;  I  can 
shoot  twice  t<i  Terry  once." 

But  he  was  fiot  a  duellist  at  heart,  and  moreover  did 
not  wish  to  kill  Terry.  If  he  had  that  kind  of  enmity 
against  any  nmn,  it  was  toward  Gwin.  Therefore  lie 
hesitated  about  his  reply  to  the  challenge,  whicli  injulo 
his  officious  seconds  only  tiie  more  eager  to  have  him 
fight.  Said  the  linllctin:  "It  api)eared  to  be  a  eom- 
mon  belief  among  those  wlio  recognize  tiie  code,  tliat 
he  had  to  fight  them  all.  Perhaps  not  in  detail,  per- 
haps not  one  after  aiiotlier,  Imt  when  lie  presented  liis 
Itreast  to  tiie  pistol  of  Terry,  it  would  sei-ni  that  he 
braved  the  whole  coneentrated  httt«i  of  those  who  felt 
aggrieved  by  his  attacks,  K«'W  believed  that  if  he 
had  escaped  that  issue  he  wouM  have  Ixen  left  unmo- 
lested by  others.     Such  appiar  to  luive  been  his  own 

*^Terry  litt<l  Innjii  ilff;-iit<>il  in  tlxt  noniinntionn  in  convention,  ami  )ia<l  hut 
a  fuw  weukii  to  nurvu,  tluTuforu  htit  Haorilice  wa>t  iimnattrial  to  liiui. 


732 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


dying  convictions;  and  altliough  he  was  conscious  of 
tlje  feeling  of  liis  advorftaries,  he  seeni.s  to  have  suc- 
cumbed under  the  behef  at  last  that,  in  his  own  person, 
either  l)y  Terry  or  some  one  else,  he  was  to  bo  made 
a  sacrifice."  What  wonder  that  he  hesitated  about 
his  answer. 

However,  destiny  and  the  duel  were  allowed  to  hav(3 
their  way.  A  meeting  was  arranged  to  take  place  in 
San  Mateo  county,  ten  miles  from  San  Francisco. 
Broderick's  seconds  were  Ex-congressman  McKil»lHii 
and  David  1).  Colton,  of  Siskiyou  county.  Terry's 
were  Calhoun  Beidiam  and  Thomas  Hayes.  The  first 
meeting  on  the  1 2th  was  interrupted  by  the  officers  of 
the  law;  but  on  the  following  morning  the  parties 
again  met  and  proceeded  to  the  final  act.  Every  carr 
was  apparently  taken  to  place  the  combatants  on  an 
equality,  except  as  to  choice  of  position,  which  was 
Broderick's,  as  were  also  the  terms.  His  seconds 
had  stipulated  that  there  should  be  no  more  firing  after 
the  giving  of  the  word  "one — two."  Two  circum- 
stances were  against  Broderick.  First,  he  was  ill  and 
weak,  and  consequently  nervous;  second,  his  pistol 
was  (quicker  on  the  trigger  than  Terry's.  When  the 
word  was  givtni,  before  it  reached  a  level,  it  was  <lis- 
charged,  and  the  ball  struck  the  earth  in  a  direct  line 
with,  but  some  distance  from,  his  antagonist,  who  stood 
cool  and  firm — so  cool  that  he  noted  exactly  where  liis 
ball  struck  his  adversiiry's  breast.  In  a  moment  more 
Brodi'rick  sank  to  the  ground,  mortally  wounded,  and 
Terry  went  to  breakfast  with  his  friends.*'     The  vic- 

^' 1 1  WiiM  Hitiil  tliat  Urotluriek  wjih  nervnuo,  1)ut  nil  hiH  octinnn,  liis  cotii- 
prtiHstiil  li|)M,  ami  ri^id  iiiuhuIuh  hIiowimI  that  Win  iiurvouHiiuHM  wiui  not  tint  reMiilt 
i>f  fi'iir,  Imt  (if  intiMDie  ruaolutinn.  Terry,  ineiiuwliilu,  Mt«HHl  erect,  witlumt  a 
wink  or  a.  iiiotion,  like  a  man  who  nuule  hitman  Hlaiiuht«r  a  ]>rofuiuii(iii  Am 
the  secim.U  Mtijiped  Itaik  and  C'oltou  gavo  the  wnnl,  the  princiiiaN  raimii 
tlu'ir  jii-itdls,  winch  they  iiehl  ]ininteil  to  tlie  ground.  Ou  the  rixu,  BrcMli-rick's 
wcajKiii  won,  ,tir,  the  hall  Htrikin^  the  j^rounaa  few  feet  short  of  his  opiioneiit. 
Till!  next  instant,  Terry,  who  had  fully  raisfml  his  weaimn,  dineharg"d  it  and 
cxilaiinid:  'The  shot  i«  not  mortal,  I  have  stnick  two  inches  to  the  riuht 
Hroilerick  Kuddenly  turned  a  few  in'dies,  and  was  seen  to  hraco  him-telf  lor  a 
nioment,  then  jjradually  lowtved  hiinsclf  down  to  a  reclininu  poHition  on  tin- 
ground,  and  then  fell  over  at  full  length.  He  did  not  Kpeiik  a  word  during; 
thin  time,     \\  iiile  BriMlorick  thus  fell,  ntdl  cl.ispiug  his  pistol,  Terry  stotxl 


A  VILE  MURDER. 


733 


tim  was  conveyed  to  the  house  of  Leonidas  Haskell, 
at  Black  Point,  where  after  lingering  three  days,  he 
expired  on  the  16th,  having  said  but  little  after  the 
first  few  hours,  and  that  little  chiefly  the  incoherent 
niutterings  of  a  semi-consciousness.  Among  his  broken 
sentences  were  these:  "When  I  was  struck,  I  tried 
to  stand  firm,  but  the  blow  blinded  me  and  I  could 
not,"  to  Colonel  Baker.  To  others  he  said:  "They 
killed  me  because  I  was  opposed  to  the  extension  of 
slavery,  and  a  corrupt  administration."  How  8t)on 
the  significance  of  tiiese  words  became  apparent  I 

What  a  strange  thing  is  the  public — stupid  and 
stolid,  or  wild  with  unreasoning  rage!  For  months  it 
had  Ijeen  known  that  Broderick  would  have  t<>  fight 
one  or  more  duels.  All  the  world  looked  on  as  at  a 
play;  wondering,  hissing,  applauding,  but  waiting  ex- 
citedly for  tlie  catastrophe.  When  it  came,  liad  the 
heav(;ns  fallen  the  on-lookors  could  not  have  been  more 
surprised  api>arently.  What,  Broderick  kille<l!  Oh, 
infamous!  Show  us  the  scoundrel  wlu)  has  defied  the 
laws;  who  has  nmrdered  the  purest  man  ar !  »ng  us. 
Let  him  be  punished!  So  the  sheep  bleat  li,  louving 
the  destroyer  with  the  mark  of  Cain  upon  lu.^  :>row  to 
go   free.     Evervthinjj  connected  with   the  nmrdered 


senator  seemed  a  surprise, 
dead  than  he  was  u  lion. 


M 


No  soontT  was  Brotlerick 
The  faults  uf  his  career 


with  an:iB  foMoiI  till  Iuh  hocohiIh  advanceii,  atul  with  Ht«ni  he  left  the  Held 
niihiirniud.  Hroilerick  n'^r«tt«<l  tliu  i>hyHioiil  uontiitiou  which  had  inadi-  hiiii 
si-um  to  faltiT.  <S.  /'.  HiilUtiii,  Sept.  li), 'iU,  IHiVJ.  .Nu»*  nmrk  the  iiiiiwitfiife 
Mild  Ixweiii'MH  of  the  law  in  the  liiiiidM  of  tins  great  hi>,'h-|>ne8t  of  the  litw. 
'I'l-rry  wiitt  arrested,  and  adiiiitteil  to  l>ail  \n  tiiu  miimi  <>t  I^IO.CNN).  The  triitl 
u'iM  put  off,  and  ill  <lnno  IMM)  In;  applied  tor  a  cliaiiguof  vuinu!,  on  the  ground 
tliat  lie  I'Duld  not  have  a  fair  ami  impartial  trial  in  S.  F.,  iM-causeoi  hi«  courxe 
duriiii;  the  active  exiHtence  of  the  vi^^ilaiicu  oDiniiiittct'.  The  criaiige  of  veiiuu 
wan  graiit«<l  hy  Judge  Hasor,  to  Mariii  county.  On  the  day  Hft  tor  trial,  the 
wituoMseii,  lieing  liecalnieir  on  the  hay,  ami  not  arriving  jtroiiiptly,  tin- i»ni.->e- 
ciitiiig  attorney  moved  a  nolle  proxequi,  and  the  laree  wait  euiletl.  TuthUl, 
U,M.  Cni,  .%7-8. 

"«Sai.l  the  MUi  of  Sept.  24,  ISM:  'The  cliaao  is  done.  The  f|uarry  i^  laid 
low,  and  the  dogs  have  gone  to  kennel.  Itavid  (  .  Broderick  is  nu  niort-  I 
Me  waH  the  hunted  lion,  and  they  who  Ii.hvc  ^irceil  him  into  the  i|uarr«d 
M'liich  made  a  Hacritice  of  liiit  life  were  the  hungry  pai^k  •>>  jiickaU  that  now, 
from  the  dark  cornerH  to  which  they  have  retired,  are  rontemnli>.ting  their 
loul  deed  of  murder.  There  ix  oiiough  in  thin  iiu'lancholy  allair  to  call  tor 
the  hitteruat  co'  .lomnatioii  that  the  tongue  can  utter  or  the  heart  cmi  \wA. 


734 


POLITICAL  HIvSTORY. 


were  seen  to  be  the  results  of  his  origin,  his  early  or- 
phanage, and  his  youthful  associations;  but  the  nmii 
himself  stood  revealed  as  one  whom  God  had  endowed 
with  personal  incorruptibility,  a  grave,  earnest,  hon- 
est, brave  man,  who  in  the  midst  of  unparalleled  cor- 
ruption in  his  own  party,  kept  his  hands  dean  and 
his  record  straiglit.  By  his  tragic  death  his  errors 
were  expiated,  and  all  at  once  California  recognized 
the  truth  that  in  the  balance  of  |K>wer  held  by  her 
"lirave  younj'  senator"  against  the  encroachments  of 
slavery  had  lain  her  safety.  By  the  hand  of  tliat 
power  he  lay  dead,  and  Broderick  in  his  grave  wa.s 

Thure  is  tMumgh  to  justify  us  in  heaping  maleilictions  uimn  the  authors  nnd 
iiiilerx  ill  tills  foul  trugudy,  hut  wu  will  forlHiar.'  The  BnlUtin  of  Sept.  Ititii 
mjikI:  'Not  tor  iiuiiiy  years  has  the  popular  heart  hix-n  so  thoroughly  inovtil 
as  it  wiw  tliis  morning  when  it  lieuaniu  generally  known  that  Mr  Br<Mlvri<'k  h.ul 
breatheil  liin  latit.  Since  the  early  ilays  of  C'al.  Mr  KriMlerick  hits  plnvi'd  a 
proiiiiiiuiit  part  in  her  polities.  His  name  wa«  familiar  to  all.  Uug^'e<l  uiiil 
poNitivu  as  fiis  character  un<louhte<lly  was,  he  possesscil  no  half-way  fri<-iiil.s 
or  fmm.  With  the  former  he  was  almost  Worsliipiie<l;  with  the  lattvr  he  Mas 
uuiloiiliti'cljy  fuiireil  as  well  as  hate<l— hut  at  the  same  time  re8|iecte(l.  \\\a 
frit^iiiU  ami  lollowera  are  stricken  <lown  by  the  hlow  that  felled  their  leader 
anil  eliaiiipiiiii  to  the  earth;  while  many  of  those  who  were  his  enemies  while 
living,  Hlioeked  hy  his  untimely  euttiiig  off,  express  sincere  sorrow  and  deep 
regri-t  nt  liis  death.  Thousands  of  others,  who  heretofore  have  not  taken 
liart  fur  or  .i^ainst  him,  now  see  only  his  murdered  and  hleeiling  form,  recall 
only  hi.i  li.iii^lity  contempt  of  danger,  and  mourn  his  loss  as  a  piildic  calam- 
ity of  till'  li-'avicHt  import.'  Baker,  at  his  olisequies,  said:  'Fellow-citizens, 
tlie  man  that  lies  hefiire  you  was  your  senator.  From  the  moment  of  \\\a 
election,  liis  character  has  heen  maliuned,  his  inotivita  attacked,  his  conraire 
iniiM!aeli(iii,  his  patriotism  assailed.  It  has  lieen  a  system  tending  to  hut  oii>.- 
end,  and  that  end  is  here.  And  what  was  his  crime?  Review  his  history; 
consider  his  public  acts;  weigh  his  private  character;  and  tiefore  the  grave 
encloHes  him  forever,  judge  lietweon  him  and  his  enemies.  As  a  man  to  lie 
jiidgiMl  ill  liiM  private  character,  who  was  his  superior  ?  It  was  his  boast  that 
and  aniiil  the  general  license  of  a  new  country,  it  was  a  proud  iMtjuit — that 
his  iiiost  scniliiii/.iiig  enemy  could  fix  iiu  single  act  of  immorality  upon  hiiii. 
Temperate,  decorous,  self- restrained,  he  passed  through  all  the  excitements 
of  (.'aliforiiiu  unstained.  No  man  could  cnarge  him  with  broken  faith  or  vin- 
lated  tniMt.  Of  habits  simple  and  inexpensive,  he  had  no  lust  of  gam.  Me 
overrearlieil  no  mail,  he  witliheld  from  no  man  his  just  dues.  Never,  never, 
ill  the  lii.stiiry  of  the  state,  has  there  been  a  citizen  who  has  borne  public 
relations  iiin.-e  stainlessly  in  all  these  respects  than  he.'  After  s|ieaking  of 
his  public  life,  the  eulogist  concluded:  'Of  his  last  hours  1  have  no  heart  to 
speak.  He  wan  the  lost  of  liis  race.  There  was  no  kindred  hand  to  siiuMith 
hi.i  couch,  or  wipe  the  death-damps  from  his  brow;  but  around  tliat  dyiii^ 
IkmI,  strong  men,  the  friends  of  early  manhoiHl,  the  devoted  adherents  nt 
later  lite,  bowed  in  irrepressible  grief,  and  like  the  {latriarchs  of  uhl.  h'ted 
up  tlu.'ir  voices  and  wept.'  S.  F.  Alta,  Sept.  '21,  1859.  For  commeiits  mi 
Broderick'.'  death,  see  S.  F.  HuUfUn,  Sept.  13,  14,  15,  17,  IH,  h».  "JU.  Jl.  '23, 
IS.'>1>,  and  March  H,  IWK);  Siurnii'ii  Fiir  Yearn,  etc.,  15  IH;  S.  /'.  A'.ifvi.- 
\.  y.  S>i„i/<nj  Thnt.'i,  ill  Yirln  Uuinn,  Feb.  10,  \mi;  Parkin-nn,  J'ea  Por- 
tmctn,  6'J;  CaL  Jour.  Stn.,  1801,  «'20-7. 


THE  DEAD  CHAMPION  AVEN(iED. 


7SS 


more  a  king  than  ever  he  could  have  hoped  to  be  in 
life.  His  great,  solemn,  burning,  aspiring  soul  went 
marching  on  as  did  Joini  Brown's  in  J3eceinbor  follow- 
Hig,  to  a  victory  greater  than  even  he  had  ever  con- 
ceived; for  the  I)arty  which  had  warred  on  him  so  re- 
lentlessly, as  the  reprewntative  of  freedom,  was  dead 
and  damned  in  California  forever  and  forever  1 

Wilson  Flint,  who  had  been  opposed  to  him  in  pol- 
itics, but  who  had  his  confidence,  said :  "  He  came 
back  here  to  lie  a  republican  in  18(J0,  because  there 
was  no  other  way  to  break  down  the  pro-nlavery  party 
and  save  the  unicm.  He  told  mo  that  it  wa.s  not  in 
the  power  of  Mr  Douglas,  or  all  the  democrats  of  the 
north,  to  resist  the  insidious  tyranny  of  the  federal 
administration  under  Mr  Buchanan.  If  the  demo- 
cratic party  succeeds  to  power  this  time,  the  union  is 
gone.  There  is  no  resriurce  but  to  defeat  that  party — 
to  break  it  up.  It  has  i)erformed  its  mission ;  it  must 
go  to  history." 

The  pro-slavery  party,  with  its  lynx  eyes,  saw  this 
conviction  in  Bnxlerick.  Tlu'y  dreaded  his  organizing 
power,  and  so  doomed  him,  as  they  doomed  many  an- 
other man  afterward.  Said  Terry,  in  that  8[)e(!(!h 
which  roused  the  resentment  of  Broderick,  speaking 
of  the  anti-Lecompton  party  in  California:  "A  miser- 
able remnant  of  a  faction,  sailing  under  false  colors, 
trying  to  obtain  votes  undt'r  false  pretences.  They 
have  n(»  distinctit)n  they  are  entitled  to;  th<y  are  the 
followers  of  one  man,  the  personal  cliattels  of  a  single 
individual,  whom  they  are  ashamed  of.  They  belong, 
heart  and  soul,  body  and  breeclies,  to  David  C.  Brod- 
erick. They  are  yet  asiiamed  to  acknowledge  their 
master,  and  are  calling  themselves,  forsooth,  Douglas 
deuKKTats.  .  .  .  Perhaps  1  am  mistaken  in  denying  their 
right  to  claim  Douglas  as  their  leader.  Perluips  tiiey 
do  sail  under  the  Hag  of  Douglas,  but  it  is  tlie  l)anner 
of  the  black  Douglas,  whose  name  is  Frederick,  not 
Stephen."     These    utterances  show  conclusively  the 


730 


POLITICAL  HISTORY. 


reason  of  tljo  liato  wliich  pursut'd  Broderick.     But 
everything  was  altered  by  tlie  pistol  of  Terry. 

Brmleriok's  obsequies  were  the  most  imposing  that 
had  yet  been  seen  in  San  Francisco.     The  eloquent 
Baker  delivered  an  oration    filled  with   pathos  and 
eulo«ify,  and  few  were  found,  if  their  liearts  did   not 
respond,  bold  enough  to  utter  opposing  sentiments. 
The  conscience  of  the  people  had  been  galvanized  into 
life,  and  from  their  threatening  frown  political  assas- 
sination  shrank  abashed.     When  the  news  reached 
New    York    the    funeral    solemnities    were    repeated 
there,    the    procession    lieing    two    miles    in    length 
which  followed  the  catafal(|ue  drawn  by  eight  gray 
horses  caparisoned  in  rich  black  velvet.     The  oration 
was  pnmounced  by  John  W.  Dwindle,  who  referred 
to  the  fact  that  Broderick's  friends  had  advised  him 
to  si>end  his  vacation  in  Europe,  thus:  "A  less  brave 
or  less  conscientious  politician  would  have  evaded  the 
struggle  of  the  coming  election  in  California,  in  which 
he  could  have  hardly  hoped  to  succeed.     Not  so  with 
BnKlerick.     He    not  oidy  renounced   the   cherished 
pleasure  of  his  life,  but  accepted  the  alternative,  al- 
though he  clearly  saw  defeat  in  the  issue,  and  death 
in  the  vanishing  j)oint  of  the  vista.  .  .  .  Against  all  the 
weapons  that  would  surely  seek  his  life,  he  could  not 
even    hope    to   stand;    it   was   even   almost    hoping 
against  hope  to  expect  that  he  could  defer  the  per- 
sonal sacrifice  until  after   the  political  contest   had 
been  terminated. ...  *  You  will  see  me  no  more/  was 
his  mournful  prediction  to  a  friend  who  grasped  his 
hand    for  the  last   time  on   the   departing  steamer. 
Alas,  how  his  heart  was  wrung  to  utter  those  words 
of    hopeless    farewell !      So    when    the    death-bolt 
reached    him,   and    his   mournful   presentiment   was 
fulfilled,  how  noble  was  the  feeling  which  prompted 
him  to  suppress  all  personal  resentment,  and  to  ex- 
press only  the  regret  that  the  leadership  of  his  party 
was  struck  down  with  him:  'Let  my  friends   take 
courage  by  my  example,  and,  if  need  be,  die  like  me. 


im(>l>KKl(K'.S  SU«  CKSSOK. 


TM 


Let  it  not  1>e  bt'lic'Vt'il  tliut  my  (hath  ri'sultrd  fium  a 
tVw  idh;  \V(»r«ls,  «>r  tV«nn  anythiii*;  Imt  my  jn>hticul 
|H>siti(>ii."'  Il»'  Haid  ill  th«'  sciiatc:  "When  I  coiin' 
in  It'  iit'Xt  winter,  if  1  shouhl  live  so  hnii^  ami  not  ic- 
si;;ii  in  the  mean  time"  —show inif  how  his  stusitiv*.' 
mind  ilwrlt  npon  tlie  "insidious  tyranny  '"  of  tlie  ad- 
ministiation. 

Said  .Fohii  W.  Fonu'V,  in  IS7'.),  nvifwiny  IJrod- 
friik's  lit'f,  tlu'  Kansas  qurstioii,  and  Douglas:  ••They 
stood  aioiK" ;  and  althou^^h  there  were  mot(  o|>|M»,siiijMr 
V()tes  aiiionj^  tlie  denio«'rats  in  the  iirmse,  the  south  pei- 
seveied  ill  theii"  poHey  till  tli«'  (Ic^liioerats  Welt  routed, 
liorse,  toot,  jind  th^aj^oons.  in  tlie  elections;  till  they  lost 
till'  presideiuy.  and  hotli  h(»uses  of  eoiiLjri'ss;  till  se- 
(•essi(tn  ripened  into  wai",  and  war  end*  d  in  dei'eat  and 


the  I 


tiirial  o 


r  si 


averv 


Hut   liroderielv  was  s^iNcd  the 


saddest  sequel.  He  Went  to  his  lilial  colllltt  heiore  his 
lull  ostracism  and  exclusion  iVoiii  the  adiiiiiii^n^atioii .... 
jie  worshijiped  freedom  ahove  all  things,  and  J  never 
saw  him  intolerant  (except  when  he  douhtrd  the  in- 
teijjrity  of  those  who  refused  to  .sc(>  the  truth  as  he 
saw  it,  and  he  lirmly  ht'lievi'd  that  ail  men  must  he 
^iehed  themselves  who  eould  not  or  would  not  reje».'t 
the  wronu'  as  he  did." 


X- 

ty 

ke 
■ue. 


Kumor  immediately  heranie  rife  with  speculation 
coiieerniiiii^  the  a|>|»oiutment  of  a  successor  to  iJroder- 
iek's  place  in  the  senate.  It  was  e\tii  whispen  d  that 
Terry  would  ^ct  the  commission.  There  could  hardly 
ha\e  heeii  so  hold  an  indecency  eontt'inplated.  'I'ho 
appointment  must  now  he  of  a  man  on  whoiii  no  sus- 
picion could  rest  of  i-nmity  or  intri*.;iie  toward  the 
senator  whos«!  place  he  would  take.  Such  a  man  was 
found  in  J  lenry  i*.  Ilaim,"'  of  Maiys\ille,  a  |)ro-sl;ivery 
democrat,  hut  who  had  not  heeii  prominently  hefon; 

*'  lleiiiy  P.  Ila  ii  oaino  t<>  Cal.  across  Uiu  plainx  in  I84!l,  aii"l  sriilcil  liitn- 
self  at  Marj'.svillc,  wlicri'  lu' was  soon  alter  clci'tuil  <.'<iimty  jinl^'i  .  Il<^  ilifl 
at  tilt'  I'lul  (if  liis  lirst  si'Shinii  in  tlic  MMiatc,  1  licliivi>  at  .liT.-t  >  City.  Ills 
vidovv  ri'tui'iiuil  til  Cal.  with  tlifir  only  surviving  ciiilil,  u  ilauglitcr,  Kutv, 
later  Mrs  W  .  S.  I>.wcy  of  S.  F. 
Hist.  Cm..,  Vol.  VI.    47 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


A 


A 


:/. 


16 


1.0 


I.I 


If  iM  m 


I:  1^  lillio 


1.8 


L25  IIIIII.4   IIIIII.6 


1 


Va 


0% 


W    ^  "=#  ^'>' 


7 


em    *^^i     ^^' 


V 


/^ 


Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


3:  MIST  MAIN  STRUT 

WSBSTER.N.Y.  MfdO 

(yio)  87  J  4503 


■ 


c<? 


%s 


738 


POLITICAL  HISTORY 


the  state  as  an  adherent  of  Gwin.  Mr  Hann  made 
tlie  usual  announcement  to  the  senate,  on  the  13th  of 
February,  of  Broderick's  death.  The  manner  of  it, 
he  said,  was  engendered  "by  the  use  of  unguarded 
expressions  by  the  deceased,  personal  in  their  charac- 
ter toward  another  distinguished  gentleman.'  Ho 
intimated,  of  course,  that  on  the  dead  rested  the  odium 
of  the  encounter.  Otherwise.  Senator  Hann's  re- 
marks were  kindly,  even  eulogistic.  Douglas,  who 
had  prepared  a  eulogy,  was  prevented  from  delivering 
it  by  illness.  Senators  Crittenden,  Seward,  Foote, 
and  Toombs  made  brief  but  friendly  speeches.  Said 
Toombs:  "He  conducted  himself  here,  notwithstand- 
ing the  many  prejudices  thrown  around  his  name, 
which  a  partisan  opposition  had  cast  upon  him,^  in 
such  a  way  as  to  win  my  respect  and  admiration.  1 
trusted  him  as  a  faithful,  honest,  and  fearless  senator, 
Avho  never  hesitated  in  the  performance  of  his  duty." 
Seward  placed  him  "among  the  organizers  of  our 
American  states,"  with  such  men  as  Winthrop,  Wil- 
liams, Raleigh,  Penn,  and  Oglethorpe,  and  imputed  to 
him  the  lionor,  in  a  great  degree,  of  shaping  the  free 
and  loyal  public  sentiment  of  California. 

Thus  ended  the  senatorial  conto-f  between  Gwin 
and  Broderick.  When  Gwin  *"  ( I  ted  from  the  state 
to  return  to  Washington,  say.N  )'Meara,  "he  had 
flouted  in  his  face  a  large  canvas  frame,  on  which  was 

**Iii  the  House  of  Representatives  Mr  Burlingame  said:  'I  never  knew 
a  man  wlio  was  so  misunderstood — who  differed  so  much  from  his  common 
fame.'  Morris  of  111.  said:  'A  truer  man,  a  more  distinguished  patriot,  a 
firmer  hater  of  wrong  and  oppression,  a  more  devoted  and  consistent  friend, 
and  purer  public  servant,  never  lived.  No  suspicion  was  ever  whispered  that 
corruption  liad  tampered  with  him,  that  bribery's  base  coin  had  adhered  to 
his  tingers,  or  that  he  was  in  any  way  implicated  in  schemes  of  puiilic  plun- 
der. Temperate,  moral,  simple,  and  frugal  in  his  habits,  and  addicted  to  no 
vices,  with  all  his  aims  his  country's  good,  he  trod  life's  path,  not  as  society's 
spawn,  but  as  one  of  nature's  noblemen.'  Sickles  of  N.  Y.  said:  'No  man, 
I  venture  to  say,  lives  wlio  ever  approached  David  C  Broderick  as  a  legisla- 
tor, or  in  any  public  or  private  capacity,  with  a  corrupt  or  dishonGst  sugges- 
tion.' Sue.  Union,  March  19,  1860. 

"*  Charles  L.  Scott,  a  native  of  Richmond,  Va,  a  lawyer  by  profession, 
came  to  Cal.  in  1849,  and  after  trying  his  fortunes  in  the  mines,  resumed  the 
practice  of  law.  UiUon  Democrat,  in  Hayea'  CoU.,  Pol.,  ii.  298. 


AN  OMINOUS  WARNING. 


739 


painted  a  portrait  of  Mr  Broderick,  and  this:  *It  is 
the  will  of  the  people  that  the  murderers  of  Broderick 
do  not  return  again  to  California;'  and  below  were 
also  these  words,  attributed  to  Mr  Broderick:  'They 
have  killed  me  because  I  was  opposed  to  the  extension 
of  slavery,  and  a  corrupt  administration.'" 

Behold,  now,  the  irony  of  church  charity!  The 
body  nmst  be  cast  out  by  the  priests — his  body,  who 
had  been  the  grandest,  noblest  of  all  their  saintly  so- 
ciety, the  body  of  the  man  martyred  for  his  high  poli- 
tical morality,  for  principles  which  were  soon  to  shake 
the  nation  to  its  very  foundations,  and  become  estab- 
lished by  the  shed  blood  of  a  million  of  its  sons. 
Broderick,  whose  life  had  been  a  battle  for  the  higher 
progress  against  a  vile,  iniquitous,  but  cherished 
relic  of  savagism,  was  denied  burial  in  'consecrated 
ground,'  because  he  died  on  the  'field  of  honor.'  His 
mortal  remains  now  lie  under  a  stately  monument  in 
Lone  Mountain  cemetery,  erected  by  the  grateful 
people  of  California."" 

'"  A  man  who  had  much  to  do  in  forming  loyal  sentiment  in  San  Joaquin 
county  was  David  Jackson  .Staples.  Staples  w;i8  born  in  iledway,  Mass., 
May  3,  1824,  and  was  tlosceuded  from  early  New  England  ancestors.  Ho 
came  to  California  in  1849,  and  settled  on  the  Mokelunme  river,  where  he 
purchased  laud,  and  eng-iged  in  farming  and  stock-raising.  He  was  tlie  first 
justice  of  the  peace  in  liis  precinct,  and  the  tirst  postmaster.  He  used  his 
iuliueuce  to  soften  the  hostility  of  liis  southern  ueiglihors,  as  well  as  his 
courageous  will  to  repel  the  tyranny  of  their  leaders,  and  witli  great  ctl'cct, 
considering  the  people  he  had  to  deal  witli  in  tliat  county — 'Tlie  South  Cirn- 
lina  of  California-'  Tlie  tirst  repuhlican  sjieech  in  the  county  was  delivered 
on  Ills  premises.  In  18.")2  he  ran  on  the  whig  ticket  for  the  legislature,  and 
was  beaten  on  account  of  anti-slavery  sentiments.  In  18(50  he  was  elected  as 
an  unpledged  delegate  to  the  national  convention  at  Chicago,  ami  voted  for 
Jjincoln.  Fremont  selected  him  as  his  representative  to  decline  for  him  the 
complimentary  iiomiaatiou,  which  it  was  uiiderstooil  he  would  there  receive, 
anil  he  executed  his  commission.  On  returning  to  California,  he  was  solicited 
to  run  for  joint  senator  for  San  Joacjiiiu  ami  Contra  Costa  counties,  and  came 
within  125  votes  of  an  election,  running  400vote.-'  ahead  of  his  ticket.  (Joing 
to  Washington  to  attend  Lincoln's  inauguration,  he  was  there  during  the  tii'.>t 
days  following  the  President's  tirst  call  for  troops,  and  was  active  in  the 
deieiice  of  the  capital  at  that  cntiual  time.  On  again  returning  to  Caliloriiii 
lij  encountered  the  disasters  by  tlood  wliich  ruined  many  less  able  to  bear 
t'lcir  losses,  in  18G1-2.  This  determined  him  to  remove  to  San  Francisco. 
H^  was  appointed  port-warden  by  Governor  Stanford,  which  otlice  he  held 
until  1800,  when  he  was  displaced  by  Governor  Low  fcjr  political  purposes. 
Soon  after  he  became  president  of  the  Fireman's  Fund  Insurance  conipauy, 
which  was  saved  from  dissolution  at  the  time  of  the  great  Chicago  and  Bos- 
ton fires  by  his  arduous  and  well-direeteil  eB'orts.  He  was  inttuential  in  giv- 
ing a  proper  direction  to  the  beipiests  of  J  antes  Lick,  who  sought  his  advice. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

POPULAR  TRIBUNALS. 

1849-1850. 

State  of  Society — Miners'  Courts — Crimes  akd  Punishments — Ckiminal 
Class — The  Hounus — Beruue  anu  Wildked — Okoanized  Rikkias- 
isM— Committees  ok  Vi(;ilan«;e— Tub  Jenkins  Akiaik — Villancx  s 
Law  Coiins — .James  Stuakt — Political  and  Jidk  ial  Cokkuption — 
James  Kino  of  William — His  Assassination — Seizure,  Trial,  anu 
Execution  of   Criminals— A    Vacillatino    (Joveknor — A    BL(M)lp^ - 

MINDED  JUDdE — ATTri'UDE  OF    UnITED    STATES    OFFICIALS — SUCCESS    of 

THE  San   Francisco  Vioilance  Committee  under  Trying  Circum- 
stances— DISB.U.DMENT. 


In  tlie  abnormal  state  of  early  California  society, 
marked  by  a  singular  variety  of  races,  classes,  and 
characteristics,  the  people  almost  exclusively  intent 
on  gold-harvesting,  with  little  regard  fur  the  country 
or  thought  of  home-building,  less  than  ordinary  atten- 
tion was  given  to  the  public  duties  of  a  citizen  by  the 
mass  of  men  on  whom  good  government  depends;  so 
that  the  formal  barriers  to  crime  and  corruption  were 
either  lacking  or  lamentably  weak.  The  ever-shifting 
current  of  mining  life  prevented  the  creation  of  local 
authorities.  Practical  common  sense  was  employed 
to  reach  direct  results.  Justice  was  not  allowed  to 
become  subordinate  to  circumlocution  or  technicalities. 
A  smattering  of  home  precedents  sutHci-d  for  forms; 
and  for  the  settlements  of  disputes  and  the  suppres- 
sion of  outrages  the  miners  improvised  courts,  with 
judges  and  juries  selected  from  among  their  own  num- 
ber, who  rendered  their  verdict  with  promptness  and 
equity.     In  the  absence  of  prisons  or  permanent  guards, 

(740) 


EAIILY  CALIFORNIA  SOCIETY. 


741 


chastisement  for  crime  ranged  chiefly  between  whip- 
j;ing,  banishment,  and  hanging.  Stealthy  inroads 
upon  property  ranked  here  as  a  more  punishable 
oft'ence  than  personal  violence;  for  property  was  un- 
protected, while  men,  for  the  most  part  well  armed, 
were  supposed  to  be  able  to  take  care  of  themselves; 
and  so  meanness  became  a  greater  crime  than  murder. 
They  were  a  self-reliant  class,  these  diggers;  of  rough, 
shaggy  appearance,  bristling  with  small-arms  at  the 
belt,  yet  warm-hearted;  with  mobile  passions  and 
racy,  pungent  language;  yet  witlial  generous  and  gen- 
tle. Cast  adrift  on  the  sea  of  adventure  in  motley 
companionship,  each  man  held  life  in  his  own  hand, 
prepared  for  storm  or  shoal,  and  confident  in  finding 
means  and  remedies  when  needed. 

This  element  permeated  also  the  large  fixed  settle- 
ments ;  but  here  the  people,  with  some  reverence  for 
established  law  and  authorities,  generally  abstained 
from  interfering  in  the  administration.  Congregating 
largely  in  these  centres  of  population  were  the  idle 
and  vicious,  who  took  advantage  of  the  preoccupation 
of  the  industrial  classes  for  gaining  control  of  power, 
which  was  then  used  as  a  shield  for  nefarious  opera- 
tions against  the  comnmnity,  by  officials  in  the  diver- 
sion of  public  property  and  traffic  in  juptice  and 
privileges,  and  by  ruffians  and  criminals,  singly  or  in 
bands,  in  more  or  less  glaring  raids  on  life  and  prf)[)- 
erty.  Thus  two  strong  factions  were  preying  upon 
society,  assisted  by  such  dele('tal)le  elements  as  Sydney 
convicts,  who  had  been  allowed  to  take  their  departure 
from  England's  penal  settlement.  As  allies,  tools,  or 
clients  of  the  officials,  the  others  could  generally  rely 
on  their  efficient  cooperation  for  eluding  punishment. 
If  arrested,  there  were  always  at  hand  tricky  advo- 
cates to  distort  law  and  protract  trials  till  witnesses 
had  been  spirited  away  or  bought;  finally,  com})liant 
judges  and  packed  juries  could  be  counted  upon  for 
acquittal  or  nominal  punishment,  the  latter  to  be 
quickly  nullified  b^'-  additional  bribery. 


742 


POPULAR  TRIBUNALS. 


The  rising  of  San  Francisco  in  1849  against  the 
Hounds,  in  vindication  of,  justice,  had  served  only  as 
a  momentary  check  on  crime,  which  with  growing 
opportunity  increased  apace.  At  last,  on  February 
19,  1851,  the  long-smothered  indignation  was  kindled 
into  a  flame  by  the  robbery  and  maltreatment  of  a 
prominent  merchant.  Excited  throngs  gathered  within 
the  city,  with  its  tribunal  and  jail,  wherein  lay  two 
persons  just  arrested  on  suspicion.  The  persuasive 
appeals  of  the  officials  were  drowned  in  jeers,  and  vio- 
lence was  feared  from  the  mob.  Then  some  respected 
men  stepped  forward  with  a  propitiatory  suggestion 
to  organize  a  court  of  citizens  for  trying  the  prisoners. 
This  was  acted  upon,  but  so  conflicting  proved  the 
testimony  concerning  the  identity  and  guilt  of  the  ac- 
cused, that  the  improvised  and  perplexed  tribunal 
surrendered  them  to  the  regular  judges,  despite  the 
sullen  growl  of  the  masses.^ 

This  partial  discomfiture  of  popular  justice  served 
to  dampen  the  ebullition  of  the  masses,  and  crime 
emboldened  swelled  both  in  spirit  and  extent.  The 
rising  had  not  been  fruitless,  however.  The  merchants 
formed  a  patrol,  and  began  to  agitate  the  question  of 
a  popular  tribunal  for  the  punishment  of  crime  in  gen- 
eral. This  took  shape  on  the  9th  of  June,  when  the 
Committee  of  Vigilance  was  organized  under  the  fiery, 
coarse-grained,  and  erratic  yet  resolute  and  influential 
Sam  Brannan,  as  president  of  the  executive  commit- 
tee, or  directing  council  and  court.  Subject  to  this 
was  the  general  committee,  embracing  every  respect- 
able citizen  who  chose  to  join  and  act  as  guard  and 
detective,  reporting  all  suspicious  characters  and 
occurrences  to  headquarters.  In  grave  cases  certain 
taps  on  the  fire  bells  should  be  the  signal  for  a  general 


'  The  merchant  robbed  was  C.  J.  Jansen,  and  the  two  persons  charged  with 
the  robbery  were  Burdue  and  VVildred.  Under  the  pressure  of  popular 
anger  the  regular  judges  condemned  them  to  imprisonment.  Wildreil  made 
his  escape;  the  other,  after  further  trials  elsewiiere,  and  narrow  escaj)e  from 
being  hanged,  was  proved  an  innocent  man.  Full  account  of  the  afiair  is 
given  iu  uky  Popular  TributtaU,  i.  170  et  seq. 


VIGILANCE  COMMITTEE  OF   1851. 


743 


assembling,  to  take  action  as  determined  by  the  exec- 
utive.^ 

The  efficiency  of  the  body  was  to  be  tested  on  the 
day  following  its  organization,  when  the  significant 
bell  taps  summoned  the  members  to  try  a  notorious 
robber  just  captured.  A  few  hours  later  the  same 
bell  sounded  the  death-knell  of  the  man,  as  he  was 
hanged  from  the  veranda  of  the  old  City  Hotel.^ 
Roused  by  this  action,  and  smarting  under  recent  cruel 
incendiarisms,  the  people  manifested  their  approval  in 
public  meetings,  and  rallied  round  the  vigilance  com- 
mittee till  the  enrolment  number  reached  71G,  one 
fifth  of  which  force  figured  constantly  on  guard,  police, 
or  C(jramittee  duty.  Soon  afterward  the  association 
marked  its  career  by  the  execution  of  three  more 
prominent  members  of  the  Sydney  brood.* 

All  this  was  effected  not  without  show  of  opposition, 
and  dissent  even  from  respectable  quarters,  from  men 
whose  reverence  for  legal  authority  had  been  stamped 
into  their  characters  since  early  youth.  Officials, 
lawyers,  and  all  that  class  depending  on  the  patronage 
of  criminals  objected  to  this  profanation  of  time-hon- 

Conceming  the  originators  and  chief  members  of  the  bo<ly,  the  constitu- 
tion and  rules,  quarters,  district  committees,  and  land  and  water  police  s(  juads, 
some  of  them  paid,  I  refer  to  the  full  history  of  the  movemuut  m  my  I'njmUir 
Trilnuuilx,  i.  207  et  sen.  For  couvenience,  secrecy,  and  safety,  members  were 
known  by  their  enrolling  number.  Each  contributed  $5;  further  donations 
came  from  the  more  liberal  members  for  rent,  pay  of  a  few  constantly  en  i 'aged 
men,  ami  expenses  of  trials  and  deportation.  Arrested  persons  were  IcKlgod 
in  cells  at  the  headquarters,  in  two  large  buildings  on  Battery  st,  between 
California  and  Pine;  after  a  preliminary  examination  by  a  sub-committee,  they 
were  tried  by  the  executive  committee,  ami  convicted  only  on  evidence  sutli- 
cient  to  convict  before  ordinary  courts,  yet  with  procedure  weeded  of  all 
needless  technicality  and  form.  The  verdict  was  submitted  to  the  general 
committee  for  approval. 

3  John  Jenkins,  as  he  was  called,  had  snatched  a  small  safe  from  Virgin's 
shipping  office  on  Long  Wharf,  and  sought  to  escape  with  it  in  a  boat.  He 
Wiis  quickly  overtiiken  and  carried  to  the  committee  rooms.  Being  an  old 
oflFender  of  the  Sydney  brood,  lie  was  quickly  condemned  and  hanged  at  2 
A.  M.,  June  11th,  despite  the  efforts  of  tlie  police  ami  desperadoes  to  interfere. 
Details  in  Id. 

*Ja8  Stuart,  the  real  culprit  of  the  Jansen  outriige,  was  hanged  July  11th, 
the  committee  forming  in  military  array  for  the  purpose.  Flags  were  hoisted 
and  guns  fired  by  the  ships  in  the  harbor.  The  other  two  victims,  Sam 
VVhittakcr  and  Rob.  McKen/ie,  the  former  a  knightly  scoundrel,  the  smart- 
est of  the  Sydney  thieves,  the  latter  a  churlish  coward,  were  captured  by  tlie 
police,  but  retaken  from  the  prison  and  banged. 


744 


POPULAR  TRIBUNALS. 


orcd  tonots.  Tlio  fact  that  the  committee  \/a.s  so  in 
ti mutely  connected  with  the  money-making  order,  uiid 
di.sphiyed  a  (Uctatorial  attitude  toward  mobs,  and 
all  species  of  lawlessness  except  their  own,  naturally 
commanded  the  contidence  of  the  laboring  class.  On 
the  other  hand,  all  non-producers,  especially  southern- 
ers, whose  chivalric  ideas  soared  above  connnon  indus- 
trial pursuits  to  the  realms  of  gt>vernment  and  the 
learned  professions,  deemed  it  to  their  interest  to 
oppose  all  popular  justice.  The  law-and-order  party, 
as  these  opponents  termed  themselves,  had  also  re- 
c(jurse  to  public  meetings  and  loud  declamation, 
wherein  they  waved  the  tattered  eniblems  of  author- 
ity, and  conjured  up  phantoms  of  bloody  anarchy. 
The  mayor  was  induced  to  issue  a  proclamation 
against  the  unlawful  reformers;  the  grand  jury  con- 
denmed  them;  and  the  governor  pronounced  a  warn- 
ing against  arbitrary  acts,  though  tacitly  approving  of 
them. 

Meanwhile  the  committee  held  bravely  to  its 
course,  n'gistering  daily  notices  of  crime  and  felons, 
searching  for  criminals,  and  taking  testimony  for  the 
trial  of  [)risoners,  of  whom  more  than  half  a  dozen 
were  at  times  awaiting  their  turn.  The  sentences 
now  passed  were  either  hanging  or  banishment.^ 
Only  four  executions  took  |)lace  in  San  Francisco  at 
this  time,  yet  these  four  had  greater  eftect  than  ten- 
fold that  number  of  ley;al  death-dealinos.  More  than 
fifty  notorious  criminals  and  susjiected  characters  were 
condenmed  to  banishment,  most  of  them  being  sent 
back  whence  they  came,  chiefly  to  Sydney."  Bribery 
and  distortion  of  evidence  availed  nothing  before  this 
inflexible  tribunal,  which  startled  the  guilty  with  the 

*  Continued  imprisonment  could  not  have  been  enforced  by  a  tcniporary 
iMkly,  although  the  lash  miglit  have  proved  ctfective.  Passacu  money  for 
exiles  was  providud  by  the  committee  unless  the  prisoner  had  means.  In- 
quiries and  apjR'als  from  all  parts  had  to  receive  attention,  although  many 
were  foreign  to  the  cninmitteo's  object.  The  riglit  it  claimed  to  enter  jtriv  ito 
liouses  in  search  of  evidence  created  some  liostility.  • 

*'  Some  were  examined  on  arrival  ut  their  dcstinatiou,  and  not  permitti  d 
to  land. 


COUNTUY   COMMITTEKS  OF   VKilLANCi:, 


745 


^Aviftness  and  cortaiiity  of  retribution.  ^Morcovrr,  tlio 
mliiioiiitions  to  evil-doers,  and  the  ^vilt(']l  kept  over 
courts,  so  aroused  public  oflices  to  zeal  and  alaerity  as 
ijj'reatly  to  promote  the  reform  in  hand. 

The  connuittee's  aim  beinj^  thus  aceoinplished  in 
the  main,  it  retired  from  active  duty  on  September 
Dth,  after  three  njonths'  existence*;  yd  in  order  to 
sustain  the  eflect  t)f  his  work,  a  conunittee  was  ap- 
pointed for  six  Uionths  to  contiinie  the  wateji  over  tlie 
political  and  judicial  administrations,  and  in  case  of 
need,  to  jjfive  tlie  sijxnal  for  a  general  meetinjjf.'^ 

The  example  of  San  Francisco  was  widely  imitated 
throughout  the  state  an<l  beyond,  partly  because  the 
criminal  afiliction  in  the  interior  had  l)et'n  increased 
by  the  exodus  of  fugitives  from  the  metrojiolis.  Ow- 
ing to  the  absence  of  courts  and  jails  throughout  the 
country,  summary  justice  became  indispensable.  ]>y 
July  vigilance  committees  had  Ix^en  formed  in  diflerent 
places,  and  more  were  rapidly  organizing  after  the 
model  of  the  city  by  the  gat(;,  and  associated  with  her 
in  a  measure  for  the  exchange  of  criminal  records  and 
occasional  cooj»eration.  In  the  larger  towns,  such  as 
Sacramento,  Stockton,  Marysviile,  Sonora,  San  Jose, 
and  Los  Angeles,  were  standitig  associations  of  the 
best  citizens,  as  complex  and  eifcictlve  as  the  })roto- 
type,  although  less  extensive.  In  the  smalUr  towns 
and  in  the  mining  camps,  conunittees  organi/A'<l  only 
for  the  particular  occasions  demanding  them,  usually 
to  try  some  despc^rado  just  caught.  With  less  facility 
for  effectual  banishment,  they  inclined  to  the  severer 
j)enalties  of  lash  and  noose,  with  corresponding  effect. ** 

'  III  Marcli  185*2  the  goneral  coiiunitteo  tli<l  oiico  iiiori!  irifnt  to  iiitimitlato 
tliu  einlKililoncd  criininal.-i.  In  .Juno  tliu  rcconltt  of  tlii'ir  nicotiiig.s  ci'iLsed. 
i'»!t  (luring  tlio  winter  18.52-3  Uu-y  insuud  olYcru  of  reward  for  tiio  arrest  of 
incendiaries.  I'lq).  Trih.,  ii.  3D4  et  acq. 

"It  Was  proposed  to  unite  the  connnittccs  into  one;,  ciMitriiij'  in  San  Fran- 
cisco, and  Hevcral  country  OHHociationa  oil'ercd  tiieuiHelvctt  us  hranclu's;  but 
the  ori|/inal  body  ducline<l  to  uhhuiiio  the  reHponsibility  that  nii^ht  ari.-iu  from 
inevitable  exccHses  beyond  its  control.  It  expatriated,  linwt^ver,  many  crim- 
inals sent  in  from  the  country.  The  Sacramento  committt'c,  created  .Juin'  25, 
1851,  numbered  213  members  at  its  iir»t  meeting,  and  Ktirred  the  courts  to 


740 


rOPUL.VU  TUlliUNALS. 


The  sweeping  purification  of  1851  served  lon,^  to 
restrain  many  evils,  but  as  watchfulness  relaxed  thuy 
sprang  uj)  again,  changed  somewhat  in  their  nature, 
however,  from  the  former  predominant  outrages  on 
property  and  life,  to  the  less  glaring  phases  of  politi- 
cal corrui)tion.  It  was  deemed  safer  and  more  profit- 
able to  steal  from  the  public,  under  cover  of  law,  than 
to  rouse  the  outcry  that  must  result  from  individual 
spoliation.  Thus,  at  a  time  when  commercial  prosper- 
ity was  on  the  decline,  taxes  were  increased  tt)  four 
per  cent  to  furnish  dissolute  and  scheming  officials 
with  money,  even  the  funds  not  embezzled  being  di- 
verted into  channels  most  conducive  to  sustaining 
tliem  in  authority.  And  to  this  end  public  positions, 
requiring  able  and  trusted  men,  were  distributed 
among  the  subservient  tools  of  domineering  bullies, 
knaves,  and  ruffians,  who  manipulated  the  ballot,  and 
reduced  judicial  investigation  to  a  farce. 

An  ominous  frown  of  discontent  had  for  some  time 
been  gathering  on  the  public  brow,  when  on  !May  14, 
185G,  the  community  was  startled  by  the  predeter- 
mined assassination  of  James  King  of  William,  editor 
of  the  Evening  Bulletin,  a  man  of  fearless  nature,  who 
had  assumed  the  task  of  exposing  roguery  and  pro- 
moting administrative  reform.  The  murderer,  James 
Casey,  also  an  editor,  was  a  noted  politician,  whose 

greater  zeal.  On  Aug.  22(1  it  hanged  a  reprieved  robber.  As  the  centre  of  a 
district  overrun  by  horse-tliieves,  and  entrciJcit  for  the  southern  mines,  Stock- 
ton suffered  greatly,  and  on  June  13th  a  citizen  police  was  organized  by  170 
volunteers,  preliminary  to  a  vigilance  committee.  Marysville  had  its  com- 
mittee, which  adjourned  in  Oct.,  only  to  meet  in  the  following  month  for  tlie 
pursuit  of  Alurieta's  band.  In  July  1C52  it  was  revived  by  incendiarisms, 
and  continued  to  act  as  late  aa  1858,  when  five  desperadoes  were  sent  away, 
Sliasta,  Nevada  City,  Grass  Valley,  Eureka,  and  Mokelunme  Hill  figure  la 
the  list,  the  last  two  applying  the  noose  in  1852  and  1853.  Sonera  was  among 
the  most  busy  in  the  daily  dispensation  for  some  time  of  whipping  and  ban- 
ishment, wiih  shaving  the  head  and  branding  H.  T.,  even  on  the  cneck.  At 
the  same  time,  she  displayed  a  generous  charity  in  efforts  to  save  the  less 
culpable  from  temptation.  San  Jose  and  Santa  Clara,  Santa  Cruz,  San  Luis 
Obispo,  Santa  Barbara,  and  San  Die^o,  were  represented  in  the  south.  At 
Los  Angeles  robber  gangs  and  riots  kept  the  place  in  a  turmoil.  In  suveral 
towns  were  uprisings  at  a  later  period,  as  at  Monterey,  Truckee,  and  Visalla, 
tho  last  named  doing  sweeping  work,  and  Truckee  obtaining  martyrdom  for 
one  of  its  defenders.  For  details  of  vigilance  work  in  and  beyond  California 
in.early  days,  with  its  exciting  and  romantic  episodes,  I  refer  to  my  Popular 
Tribunalu,  passim. 


VIGILANCE  COMMiriEE  OF  1850. 


747 


eastern  record  as  a  convict  had  been  exposed  by  his 
victim.  This  slaying  of  a  champion  of  the  afflicted 
citizens,  and  by  a  pronounced  public  swindler,  roused 
in  the  breasts  of  all  good  men  the  greatest  indignation, 
and  set  on  foot  measures  which  were  to  raise  King  of 
William  to  the  rank  of  a  martyr,  while  dealing  destruc- 
tion to  the  public  foes.  The  long-silent  bell  was 
quickly  sounded,  and  a  new  work  of  reform  was  begun. 
Recognizing  as  before  the  danger  lurking  in  a 
maddened  crowd,  the  remnant  of  former  vij^ilauee 
members  determined  on  May  15th  to  revive  the  old 
committee  on  a  plan  more  suited  to  the  changed  con- 
dition of  affairs,  and  the  prospective  encounter  with 
greater  op2)onents.  An  executive  committee  of  forty" 
members  was  chosen,  under  the  presidency  of  William 
T.  Coleman,  a  prominent  merchant,  a  model  Californian 
for  enterprise  and  integrity,  and  a  man  possessed  of 
practical  sense,  presence  of  mind,  and  determined  cour- 
age. The  members  of  the  general  committee,  which 
quickly  mustered  6,000  men,^"  and  later  increased  to 
8,000,  were  organized  into  a  military  body,  mainly  in- 
fantry, armed  with  muskets  and  clubs,  compl*  uicnted 
by  some  cavalry,  flying-artillery,  and  a  marine  battery, 
with  commissary,  medical,  and  police  departments,  and 
patrol  service."  Subscription  soon  reached  $75,000, 
and  several  hundred  thousand  flowed  in  due  time  into 
the  treasury  from  dues  and  voluntary  subscriptions, 
to  cover  the  outlay  for  prmament,  police,  testimony, 

>At  first  of  26.  For  names  of  oificers,  see  Pap,  Tnb.,  il.  113  et  seq., 
with  biographic  traits  of  leaders. 

w  During  the  first  24  hours  1,500  enrolled,  and  in  July  6,000  stood  ou  the 
list,  with  many  more  ready  to  join  in  case  of  emergency. 

"  Employing  constantly  300  or  400  men-  When  4,000  strong  there  were 
40  companies,  including  two  companies  of  cavalry,  three  of  flymg-artillury, 
one  marine  battery,  and  one  pistol  company.  The  police  numbered  200  or 
300  men,  partly  from  the  city  police,  and  several  under  pay;  the  medical 
dcpt  had  a  hospital;  the  commissary  attended  also  to  rations  for  the  patrol. 
The  companies  elected  their  own  oiBcers,  and  niany  possessed  tlieir  special 
armories.  C.  Doane  was  chosen  marshal  or  general,  with  Col  Gluey  as  second. 
No  uniform  was  required,  but  most  members  wore  a  dark  frock-coat  and  cap. 
In  Aug.  they  possessed  1,900  muskets,  2.')0  rilles,  4  brass  six-poumlcrs,  2  iron 
nine-pounders,  5  smaller  pieces,  a  portable  barricade  on  wheels,  alao  swonls, 
pistols,  etc.  A  board  of  delegates,  composed  of  three  members  from  each 
company,  had  to  confirm  verdicts. 


748 


POPULAR  TRIBUNALS. 


HEADyUAKTEKS  OF  TUE    VIGILANCE  COMMiriEK. 


CASKY  AND  CORA. 


749 


doport.'itlon,  and  otlur  (IciiijukIs.  IFt-iulquartcrs  wtro 
8il('<'t»'(l  on  Sju'rauu;nt(>  str-ect,"  cast  of  l''n»nt  stfcrt. 

In  tlie  ranks  of  the  refoi'mi'iH  wrro  pcr-Hons  of  n!l 
classes  and  eroculs,  laborers,  iniirdiants,  and  nii'dianics, 
mastiT  and  man  alike  slionldciini^  a  innski-t,  standinijf 
j^uanl,  and  niarcIiinL;'  side  by  side  Tliey  (litlrrcd  tV<ini 
tlu'ir  Krctlin-n  of  1^51  in  liavinii;  anionij^  their  nuniher 
more  solid  business  men,  with  a  suttieient  majoiity  <>f 
sedate,  deHh(!ratlve,  and  hroad-niinded  conservatives 
to  control  the  liot-lu!ad(!«l  radicals.  Seldom  has  been 
seen  an  array  of  patriots  jjlaying'  soldier  who  combined 
moi'e  inteHiLifen((>  and  Z(\  !.'' 

'^i'he  iirst  task  was  to  secure  and  try  (U.  i  r.  wlio  to 
escape  popular  fury  had  eagerly  availed  hini.si  If  of  the 
prot(>ction  of  the  jail,  there  to  wait  till  tiie  storm 
ai)at(!<l  sufliciently  to  permit  the  usua'  ii'cunivent'  ii 
of  justi'-(\  Ifis  voluntary  surrender  being  liopdcss, 
the  vt'ii.iuittee  mustered  en  masse  to  enforc'  ii,  aibaiie- 
ing  in  sections,  by  diiferent  at)})roach(  s,  toward  the 
jail.  It  was  Sunday,  jVIay  18th.  A  sabbath  .  tllhicss 
reigned  throughout  the  city,  broken  only  by  the  nu.'as- 
ured  tread  of  the  reformc^i-s  and  the  call  to  worship 
of  church  bells.  The  law-and-order  party  was  also 
abroad,  confident  in  the  stout  walls  of  the  prison;  but 
as  the  lino  of  tjfleaniiiifr  bavonets  ufrew  densc'r  aiound 
it  their  smile  of  dcrisi(jn  faded,  and  it  was  with  serious 
ap[)rehcnsions  that  they  l)eheld  the  yawning  nmz:do 
of  a  gun  uncovered  btsforc  th<3  entraneo.  They  saw 
th(!  hopelessness  of  o[)position.  Casey  was  surrendered, 
together  with  another  murderer  named  C'ora." 

liebellion !  was  the  cry  of  the  law-and-order  party, 

'^OMno.  41.  It  was  the  oil  aiipiaisciM' Ktf)rfl.  Description,  ■willi  ji1,i:ih 
ami  viows  in  my  /'(>;).  Tri'i.,  ii.  'JT-lxS.  'J  lie  first  ti'm)iiirary  (piartrrs  vi  ro 
at  IO."i.\  Sacraniiuito  st.  Tlie  constitulion  of  I.S.'jI  was  rovi  I'cl  and  ailoptcl. 
Text  in  A/.,  ll'J-J3.     TIio  inspection  of  jails  vas  an  earl/  ta.-k. 

'Tit  to  'found  a  state  organi/iition,  a  nation,' as  tlio  /.(hk/hh  Timcji  ex- 
claims. Men  of  nerve  an  1  lionor,  aiming  for  no  rfn\;u'il.  Amcriciais  from 
the  northern  states  predominateil,  then  'wosU'rners,  followed  hy  son'.herners 
and  for(M;,'ners.  Many  sympathizers  gave  pecuniary  aid  M-]iilo  holding  per- 
sonally aloof. 

**  Cheers  lief^an  to  roll  iij)  from  the  exult.4iii  spectators,  hut  a  sign  of  ad- 
mouition  hushed  thcni  into  mute  approval. 


750 


POPULAR  TRIBUNALS. 


which  founc'i  itself  batHod  in  many  respects.  Its  ap- 
peal for  volunteers  had  brought  only  a  feeble  response, 
chiefly  on  the  part  of  lawyers  and  politicians.^"  The 
local  authorities  nevertheless  planned  a  campaign.  A 
habeas  corpus  for  a  certain  prisoner  being  evaded  by 
the  committee,  the  attitude  was  construed  into  defiance 
of  state  authorities,  and  Governor  Johnson,  a  man  of 
narrow  views  and  vacillating  character,  thereupon 
ai)i)ealid  to  the  United  States  troops  for  arms,  de- 
clared San  F'-ancisco  in  a  state  of  insurrection,  and 
called  out  the  militia.  But  the  arms  were  refused, 
and  the  militia  held  back.'" 

^[eanwhile  the  committee  had  tried  the  two  pris- 
oneis  with  all  fairness,  and  condenmed  them  to  death. 
The  sentence  was  carried  out  on  j\Iay  22d,  at  the  time 
tlie  remains  of  the  assassinated  editor  were  on  the  way 
to  the  cemetery  with  solemn  and  imj)osing  pagean- 
try.'" The  reformers  followed  up  their  task  by  ferret- 
ing crime,  watching  officials,  collecting  testimony,  and 
driving  out  malefactors;  but  the  greatest  test  was  yet 
before  them.  On  June  21st,  during  the  arrest  of  a 
noted  political  trickster,  a  scullie  ensued,  wherein  a 
connnittee  officer  was  stal)bed  by  Terry,  judge  of  the 
state  sui)reme  court,  who  leaving  his  duties  at  the 
capital  had  come  to  drag  his  already  soiled  ermine  in 
tlui  demajxoiiical  slums  of  San  Francisco.  A  moment 
later  the  significant  tap  was  lieard,  and  within  a  few 
miimtes  the  reformers  were  flocking  up  and  falling 
into  line.  The  law-and-order  men  had  noted  the 
signal;   but  while   they   ^xere    still   gathering,   their 

'■' A.-isisteil  l)y  a  iiuiuIkt  iif  calliolios  and  soulhenii'M  wliom  King  liiid 
assiiili'il.  Ruth  liic  inilitury  liattalioiis  of  tlio  oily  dislKindi'd  to  av<ii,l  Hi-rviiig 
a;,Minst  their  fcUdW-ci.izuiis.  'Not  oiio  iu  ten  responded,'  reported  tlio  gov- 
oniors.  J'liji.  Tri'i.,  ii.  3.11), 

"'Uyorili-Tsof  .Juiio'_M  aud.'Jd,  W.  T.  Sherinau,  apjiointed  major-ginend  of 
militia  ami  given  tliu  military  eoiiiiuaiid  iaSau  I'ranei^ico,  promised  to((ni('kly 
<lis|ierse  the  vi;jilanco  men.  Sherman  soon  resigneil,  di-i;,niste(l  with  the  gov- 
oriior's  attitude,  and  was  succced.'il  hy  Volney  E.  Howard,  who  tallied  much 
ami  I'oiijht  little.  U.  S.  (Jen.  Wool  and  t'apt.  B'arnigut  deelined  to  inter- 
fv'tv.  Li'iid  appeals  come  in  vain  from  Sacramento  ami  eluewhero  against  the 
proelaniation. 

'•  Tlie  procession  was  two  miles  in  h:ngtli.  Places  of  Imsine.n  w.  re  closed; 
distant  towns  lul  I  sim\d!:iMeon<  ol)se(|nie  :,  and  joined  in  snliscrihing  a  fund 
for  the  willow,  v.hich  reached  alxmt  Jn'O.OO:). 


FORT  GUNNY I5A0S. 


T.-)! 


prompter  opponents  were  u|)on  tlitin  with  hayonots 
fixed  and  artillery  in  limber.  One  Ix'dy  arrested 
Terry,  and  others  enforced  the  .surren<l(r  of  dif- 
ferent strongliolds,  thus  seizing  the  i»iet(n<o  and 
opportunity  to  cripple  the  foe.*"*  Terry's  stal)  had 
stricken  down  his  own  party,  while  crowning  tlie 
victors  with  triumph. 

For  a  time  the  life  of  the  chief  iustir(>  huntjf  on 
a  thread;  but  the  disabled  otHctr  n  coVLiing,  the 
offender  was  arraigned  on  minor  charges.  The  ex- 
ecutive committee  found,  after  a  trial  of  twenty-five 
days,  that  while  Terry  undoubtedh'  deservt-il  expatria- 
tion, he  was  too  strong  politically  to  be  tnated  like 
an  ordinary  criminal.  The  state  and  federal  authori- 
ties mig]»t  join  to  interfere  in  behalf  of  a  supreme 
judge,  and  failure  would  injure  the  prestige  of  the 
con)mittec.  The  success  of  their  cause  demanded  an 
acquittal,  and  so  it  was  decreed,  dispite  the  disap- 
pointment of  the  unreilecting  members  against  the 
seeming  lack  of  equity  and  firmness.  The  decision 
was  wise,  for  a  sentence  of  banishment,  which  could 
not  have  been  enforced,  wouhl  have  entailed,  not  only 
serious  litigation  against  the  city,  but  the  annulment 
of  other  sentences  and  general  discomfiture.'' 

The  struggle  with  the  state  «::overnment  brought 
another  victory  for  the  reformers.  The  governor  had 
prepared  to  carry  out  his  protlimation,  partly  by  trans- 
mitting armament  from  the  interior;  but  the  c<»m- 
mittee  boldly  boarded  the  vessels  laden  therewith  and 
seized  the  weapons.^"  They  nevertheless  toi»k  meas- 
ures for  defence  by  intrenching  themselves  at  luad- 


I 


"  A1)OHt  1,000  stand  of  arms  were  taken,  Iiesiile.s  i>i.st(>ls,  sw-onls,  and  am- 
Tnunition,  ami  '200  priaonerM,  inclndiii);  L'.  S.  naval  aireiit  K.  A.<!n\  Tlie 
irisoniTs  wen;  soon  rele  iHed.  (len.  Hnwaicl  Idnstcred  ntr\-<.iii*ly  t<i  jirop  liis 
alien  iirestige  and  i>lunu38. 

'•'llie  boanl  of  vigilmco  oolugates  held  out  for  some  time  against  tlie 
acquittal.  Terry  took  refuge  on  Itoard  tlic  U.  S.  h1«m>[i  of  war  t/oA/i  Ailnnix, 
whoHo  commander  liad  been  ])lu»tering  again.st  tlie  reformers  tdl  liis  superior 
quieted  him.     The  judge  thereupcm  returned  to  his  court  at  .Saeramento. 

'^Their  officers  were  arraigned  for  jiiracy,  Mhich  implied  death;  Imt  a.s  it 
was  shown  that  the  arms  M'cre  seized  temporarily  to  preveut  bluu<lslied,  the 
jury  aequitteil  them. 


752 


POPULAR  TRIBUNALS. 


quarters,  with  guns  planted  and  protected  by  a 
broastwoi'k  of  sand-bags,  wlience  the  appellation  i\trt 
Gunny bags.''^^  Humors  of  possible  results  Hew  thick 
and  fast,  some  hinting  even  at  secession,  though  none 
were  iMore  loyal  than  these  men."'"  They  had  been 
driven  further  than  had  been  anticipated,  yet  their 
courage  rose  according  to  the  magnitude  of  the  peril 
and  responsibility,  and  they  stood  resolved  to  carry 
the  issue  to  tlic  end.  Their  course  was  approved 
by  numerous  popular  demonstrations  in  dilferent 
towns,  and  l>y  additi(»nal  enrolments."''  The  opposition 
claimed  a  force  of  0,000,  but  had  in  reality  only  one 
tenth  that  number,  for  most  of  military  companies 
summoned  by  the  governor  disbanded,  and  the  presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  to  whom  application  had 
been  made,  re[)lied  evasively."*  Thus  ignominious 
failure  stam|)ed  the  elibrts  of  the  opposition  and  the 
gubernatorial  ]»restige  saidc  into  derision."^'' 

Striding  firmly  along  in  the  task  of  purification, 
the  connnittee  saw  it  piactically  accomplished  witiiin 
three  months.  It  had  been  marked  by  the  execution 
of  four  men,  the  de])ortation  of  twenty-five,  and  the 
order  for  a  immber  of  others  to  leave,  a  lesson  wliich 
led  to  the  voluntary  departure  of  some  800  malefac- 
tors and  vagabonds."^     Stirred  by  fear  and  example, 

2' III  lieu  of  tlic  baptismal  name  of  l'\irt  Vigilance.  View'  and  (k'scri[)tiim 
in  Poji.  Tii'i.,  ii.  i)8,  etc.  Sue  a  iirevidns  note  for  armament.  Passwords 
wvYti  frL'i[U('iitly  I'liaugoil,  a  rally-cry  was  given,  ami  a  distinctive  wjiito  riblxm 
pimicd  to  the  lajjel.  The  city  was  sconred  for  arms  that  might  be  used  by 
the  law  party. 

'•'-Some  proposed  an  extra  session  of  the  legislature  to  take  measures  to 
meet  tlie  emergency. 

'^■'San  .Jose  ottered  1,000  volunteers;  Sacramento  formed  a  committee  of 
vigilance;  at  Sonora  .5,(KH)  men  gathered;  the  people  of  San  Francisco  clamored 
for  the  vesigiiation  of  otiicials,  who  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  the  demand;  even 
ehildrtii  formed  in  miudc  battle  array.  Pop.  Viij.,  ii.  '20H,  'XVi,  '.\'A)-'l,  44."),  etc. 
Oil  .luly  4th  tlie  committee  stood  prepared  to  adjourn,  when  further  menaces 
roused  it  to  defiance. 

^'lle  saw  not  sufficient  danger  to  justify  interference.  Urged  partly  by 
Texan  resolutions,  he  linally  did  .send  tlic  refjuired  order  for  federal  aid 
to  tlie  ('"Vernor,  when  a.ssured  that  the  danger  was  past.  This  lenient  course 
was  piiimpted  greatly  by  the  approaching  general  election  and  concerned 
party  interests.  Id.,  3(JS-4,  GTIl,  etc. 

'■"'J'he  insurrection  proclamati<m  remained  a  d'.td  letter. 

■•"'iJetails  and  names  in  /'«;>.  7'c('..,  ii.  271-82,  34S  ,">:<,  r.OO,  J^SS,  591-8. 
Besides  Casey  and  Cora,  Philander  Brace,  a  political  virtuperative  rowdy,  and 


WORK  ACCOMPLISHED. 


753 


ac- 

le, 


itidii 

.1  l,y 
•eg  to 
teo  fif 

etc. 
[ices 


aid 
Durse 
;riied 


)l-8. 
and 


officials  had  moreover  responded  to  duty  with  the 
most  gratifying  result  in  economic,  judicial,  and  gen- 
eral administration.  In  the  formerly  well-filled  county 
jail  not  a  prisoner  remained  awaiting  trial.  On  the 
21st  of  August,  therefore,  the  committee  deemed  it 
proper  to  adjourn,  with  a  closing  parade,  their  only 
vaunt  over  the  happy  achievement  of  great  reforms — 
a  thanksgiving  for  deliverance.  Most  of  the  com{)a- 
nies  retained  their  organization,  however,  and  a  few 
officers  remained  to  watch  the  effijct  of  their  work.''^ 
And  now  were  proven  how  baseless  the  croaking 
predictions  of  thoughtless  or  scheming  agitators,  that 


Medal. 


Jos.  Hetherington,  a  dissolute  though  gentlemanly  English  gambler,  wore 
haagod  for  iiuirder.  Tlie  adventures  of  the  unsavory  Judge  Ned  Mo(iowan 
while  eluding  the  pursuing  committee,  and  his  ultimate  escape  from  sentence, 
are  told  in  his  own  Narnttive.  See  Pop.  Trih.,  ii,  245  et  seq.  The  conduct 
and  treatment  of  a  branded  member  of  the  committee  is  instiinced  in  the 
case  of  A.  A.  (ireeu.  Appeals  for  reilressing  private  wrongs  liud  to  be 
ignored.  The  abused  Chinese  received  prutectiou.  Tliu  bani.slied  were  for- 
bidde!i  to  return  under  penalty  of  death;  but  some  came  l)ack  after  the  com- 
mittee had  retired,  claimed  damages,  and  certain  compromises  had  to  be 
arranged.  Committee  meiidjers  were  vXmi  persecuted  when  recognized  by 
their  victims  in  eastern  cities,  and  unsuccessful  though  costly  suits  were 
instituted  against  thenu  /(/.,  5i)5-til4,  li21.  The  expatriation  order  was 
resciniled  in  Sept.  1857. 

'■"  For  parade,  list  of  companies,  closing  address,  and  finances,  see  Id., 
531-46.  The  vigilance  record  was  kept  up  till  Nov.  3,  1859.  The  governor 
maintained  in  print,  till  Nov.  3d,  his  proclamation,  declaring  the  city  in  a 
state  of  insurrection,  partly  for  election  purposes,  under  plea  that  the  com- 
mittee still  refciined  the  state  armament.  This  was  then  surrendered. 
About  the  same  time  highway  robberies  became  so  frequent  that  tlie  gov- 
ernor joined  in  the  spreading  alarm,  protesting  his  ic-ibility  to  suppress 
them. 

Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    48 


t  il 


I '  il 


754 


POPULAR  TRIBUNALS. 


California,  with  a  fostered  spirit  of  revolt,  would 
foment  at  slight  provocation,  and  become  a  vortex  of 
lawlessness  under  a  rule  of  terror,  driving  back  capi- 
tal and  settlers.  This  formal  vigilance  organization 
was  not  to  be  compared  with  the  rash,  vindictive, 
mob-like  risings  which  had  so  often  disgraced  the 
mining  region,  though  even  here  there  were  many 
calm  and  dispassionate  popular  tribunals,  resulting  in 
great  good.  A  slight  industrial  disturbance  was  the 
only  evil  effect  of  the  committee  movement,^^  while 
the  benefits  were  incalculable,  in  many  respects  per- 
manent, and  far  surpassing  the  superficial  results  of 
the  year  1851.  Crime  never  again  reached  danger- 
ous proportions  in  the  city.  Expenditures  fell  from 
$2,G4G,190  in  1855  to  $856,120  in  1856  and  $353,292 
in  1 8  5 7.  A  people's  reform  party  was  organized,  wh ich 
for  at  least  ten  years  did  good  service  in  maintaining 
an  honest  administration,  and  urging  the  people  tp  a 
performance  of  the  political  duties  so  disastrously  ne- 
glected. San  Francisco  purified  became  famed  as  one 
of  the  best  governed  among  cities.  Real  estate  ad- 
vanced in  price,  immigration  received  fresh  impulse, 
and  trade  and  industry  flourished.  The  dignity  and 
worth  of  this  vigilance  committee  lie  vindicated  in 
the  glorious  results  of  its  labor,  and  in  the  lofty  prin- 
ciples by  which  it  was  actuated. 


29 


**  A  few  timid  people  left  the  city,  a  court  or  two  adjonmed,  and  some 
industries  had  temporarily  to  suspend. 

''Firmness  and  moderation,  admirable  equity  and  self-abnegation,  marked 
its  every  act,  with  not  cue  serious  error  of  judgment,  not  one  sigual  failure 
of  purpose. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 


ANKALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

1851-1856. 

A  Pemod  of  Tbials — Land  Titles — City  Limits — Mexican  Grants — 
Spurious  Claims — Water  Lots — ^Fluctuations  of  Values — The  \aa 
Ness  Ordinance — Villanous  Administration — A  New  Charter — 
Municipal  Maleadministration — Popular  Protests — Honest  and 
Genial  Villains  —  Increased  Taxation — Vigilance  Movements — 
Keforms — Another  Charter  —  Real  Estate  Sales — The  Baptism 
BY  Fire  and  Blood — Material,  and  Soclal  Progress — Schools, 
Churches,  and  Benevolent  Societies — ^The  Transformed  City. 

The  six  years  following  the  birth  of  San  Francisco 
as  a  city  formed  a  period  of  herculean  achievements 
in  face  of  discouraging  obstructions — the  trials  and 
temptations  of  the  youthful  giant.  Hills  were  tum- 
bled into  the  bay,  and  on  mud  flats  was  made  solid 
ground.  On  the  sites  of  smouldering  ruins  were 
erected  substantial  buildings,  streets  were  paved,  and 
a  metropolis  was  formed  which  within  throe  years 
took  rank  with  the  leading  mercantile  centres  of  the 
world.  Meanwhile  was  maintained  a  constant  struijirle 
with  corruption  and  disorder,  against  unscrupulous 
anL  "asping  officials  and  lawless  ruffians,  by  whom, 
midst  sore  affliction,  the  city  was  despoiled  of  her  heri- 
tage, and  burdened  with  heavy  debt. 

A  fundamental  trouble  appeared  early  in  the  title 
to  lands,  of  which  the  city  in  common  with  other 
pueblos  had  inherited   her  share,^  besides  obtaining 

^  As  shown  in  my  special  chapter  on  land  titles,  and  in  the  preceding 
vol.  iii.  TO'-'-S,  etc.  By  a  decision  of  1854  the  laud  commission  contirmed  to 
the  city,  instead  of  the  claimed  four  leagues,  or  17,000  acres,  only  about 
10,000  acres,  that  is,  the  land  north  of  the  Vullcjo  line,  running  from  near 

(755) 


756 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


Bac'he's  Maf  of  Hah  Francisuo.  18d(>-7. 


LAND  TITLES. 


:s7 


from  the  state  and  union  valuable  water  lots;*  but 
the  extent  and  validity  of  these  grants  were  quickly 
assailed  under  the  shadow  of  legal  decisions.  Irregu- 
larities had  also  crept  in,  by  permitting  one  purchaser 
to  acquire  many  lots;  by  the  sale  of  land  through  jus- 
tices of  the  peace  in  opposition  to  the  council ;  by  the 
Pecer  Smith  execution  sales;  and  by  the  vagueness 
hivolving  several  e^rly  grants  within  the  city  limits.* 
With  such  favorable  opjwrtunities  the  many  land- 
sharks  afflicting  the  country  ventured  to  nibble  at  tho 
choice  peninsula,  and  so  rose  successively,  in  1850-3, 
tho  claims  of  Stearns  and  Slierreback  to  sections  south 
of  Market  street,  of  Santillan  to  three  leagues  of  land 
radiating  from  the  Mission,  and  of  Limantour  to  four 
leagues  around  the  central  part  of  the  city,  and  in- 
cluding many  of  the  settled  blocks.  All  except  the 
first  received  such  confirmations  by  courts  and  land 
commission  as  to  rouse  consternation  among  property 
holders.* 

the  iiiteraection  of  Brannan  and  Fifth  streets  over  the  snmmit  of  Lono  Moun- 
tain to  the  ocuan.  la  1800  the  four-league  claim  was  coiiucilcd  by  the  cir- 
cuit  court,  and  five  years  later  yielded  by  congreas,  but  with  tho  concUtioix 
that  the  land  not  needed  for  public  or  fctlerul  reservation  purposes,  or  not 
<lisx>o9ed  of,  should  be  conveyeci  to  the  parties  in  ^tossessioa.  This  conlirma- 
tion  to  a  few  large  holders  of  valuable  pueblo  domains  was  incoiisistcnt  with 
thu  original  Mexican  pueblo  law  and  its  general  acceptance  by  tli«  U.  8. ;  but 
the  (-'lement  and  McCoppiti  ordinaneea  aihrmed  the  alienation,  and  the  city 
gained  little  more  than  a  park  of  sand  Iiills  under  tlic  decree.  For  city  and 
county  boundaries,  see  notes  on  city  charters. 

*  Gen.  Kearny  in  18^1:7,  perhaps  unauthoritatively,  relinquished  to  tho  town 
the  U.  S.  claim  to  the  pueblo  lots  and  beach  and  water  lots,  wliich  wore  not 
conveyed  under  Mexican  laws,  and  tlie  state  by  act  of  MareJi  20,  1851,  ceded 
for  99  years  all  rights  to  beach  and  water  lots  against  25  per  cent  on  side 
money,  previous  sales  being  contirmcd.  By  act  of  May  I,  1854,  the  stite 
proposed  to  cede  such  lots  forever,  on  condition  that  the  city  should  coulirni 
to  hobiers  certa'^i  other  lots,  such  as  the  obnoxious  (.'oltou  grants.  Tliis  was 
decliued;  but  in  1852  interested  speculators  prevailed  on  tlie  alderman  to  ac- 
cept the  proposition.  Mayor  Harris,  however,  sustained  l»y  the  indignant 
people,  succeeding  in  having  this  act  repealed.  Concerning  water  lota,  see 
Cal.  Jour.  House,  1851,  p,  1329-3;$,  1S53,  p.  ()<M-5;  Id.,  As».,  1S.')4,  ap.  9,  etc.; 
1855,  ap.  9;  1856,  66-70;  1858,  503-G;  Id.,  Sen.,  1855,  84-0,  482-3;  1859, 
23-4;  S.  F.  Mawial,  2(W-9. 

'To  Bernal,  Guerrero,  etc.,  which  in  due  time  were  confirmed.  Tlie 
Smith  sales  are  spoken  of  later. 

*See  chapter  on  land  titles.  Limauttour,  BlrWa-eye  Vietc,  1-24;  (/.  S.  !« 
Limantour,  with  photographs  of  documents;  (f.  S.  Gov.  Doe.,  Cong.  39,  8ess. 
1,  Sen.  Rept  92.  See  also  newspaper  notices,  especially  at  tho  time  of  tlie 
several  pleadings  and  decisions,  till  1859,  when  it  was  finally  rejected,  to- 
gether with  the  Santillan  claim.     The  latter  was  made  additionally  interest- 


7» 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


As  a  natural  result  of  the  irregularities  and  conflict- 
ing decisions,  almost  any  concocted  or  presumed  title 
could  be  made  available  for  temporary  possession,  and 
so  squatters  began  to  overrun  the  city,  seizing  upon 
every  desirable  unimproved  lot,  even  upon  public 
•squares  and  cemeteries,  perhaps  fencing  it  during  a 
night,  and  bidding  armed  defiance  to  the  original 
owners;  at  times  backed  by  a  squad  of  ruffianly  retain- 
ers. Pitched  battles  with  bloodshed  became  frequent, 
but  judges  could  not  interfere  effectually,  nor  would 
juries  convict  a  presumed  owner  for  defending  his  prop- 
erty/ This  impaired  confidence  and  hindered  improve- 
ments, and  with  the  prospect  of  a  usury  bill,  lenders 
of  money  for  such  purposes  held  back,  so  that  the 
value  of  real  estate  was  seriously  reduced,  falling  from 
about  seventeen  million  dollars  in  1850-1  to  eleven 
millions  in  1851-2." 

The  title  to  water  lots  was  fortunately  settled  in 
1851,  and  their  value  rapidly  advanced,  until  four 
small  blocks  on  Commercial  street  sold  for  over  a  mil- 
lion dollars  in  December  1853,^  when  speculation  and 

in^  from  the  purchase  by  the  vigilance  committee  of  18%  of  documents  re- 
Iritiug  to  the  Mission  lands  throngh  A.  A.  Green,  and  suliseqnent  litigation  for 
the  monev.  See  Oreen's  Ly'e,  MS.,  30-85;  S.  F.  Henilil,  March  28,  1857; 
.V.  /'.  BidlHin,  July  21,  1857;  Jan.  27,  1859;  July  19,  18G0;  S.  F.  Foxt,  June 
28,  Aug.  21,  1878,  etc.;  S.  F.  Call,  etc.;  S.  F.  Post,  June  19,  1878;  and  nota- 
bly the  testimony  of  Coleman,  Viij.,  MS.,  120  et  seq.,  and  Dempster,  Vij., 
Ms. ,  1  et  seq. ,  the  vigilance  leaders.  The  Gulnac,  Rincon  Point,  Point  Lobos, 
C'olton  grants,  were  among  minor  claims.  Although  the  Shcrrcback  contir- 
niation  decree  was  vacated  in  I8U0,  claimants  long  harasse<l  holders,  while 
the  Santillan  speculators  were  seeking  compensation  from  the  government. 
The  .Steams  claim  was  early  rejected. 

^  .Siieculators  hired  men  to  hold  possession  till  they  could  by  legal  quib- 
bUng  and  bribery  acquire  legal  right.  The  lot  where  later  stood  the  Grand 
Hotel  was  the  scene  of  lively  encounters,  as  related  by  Farwell,  Stat.,  M.S., 
10.  See  also  ^  »*«<i/«  S.  F.,  45G-7,  540-1.  Property  holders  forme<l  in  1854 
an  a.s8ociation  for  protecting  themselves.  Capt.  Folsom's  lots  were  especially 
exjKtsed  to  seizures. 

•"  Values  and  fluctuations  are  considered  by  Williams,  Rec,  MS.,  7;  Clark, 
Slat.,  MS.,  1;  Gluey,  St^U.,  MS.,  2-3;  see  also  AUa  Col.,  S.  F.  Hemld,  etc. 

^  This  sale  proved  the  means  for  one  of  the  numerous  raids  uiKtn  the  city 
treasury.  The  owners  of  the  Sacramento  and  Commercial  st  wharves  claimed 
tliat  the  blocks  had  been  intended  for  a  dock,  to  the  advantage  of  their  prop- 
erty, and  were  appeased  with  $185,000  of  the  sale  money.  Soon  after  paying 
most  of  the  instadment  money,  values  fell  with  the  spreading  business  de- 
pression, and  the  buyers  picked  a  flaw  in  the  title,  on  the  ground  of  an  in- 
aufficient  vote  for  the  sale  ordinance.  Although  this  ordinance  was  confirmed 
and  the  flaw  readily  overcome,  the  courts  after  five  years'  litigation  decided 


THE  PUEBLO  LANDS. 


760 


business  excitement  culminated.  But  influenced  by 
certain  speculators  who  had  invested  in  the  Peter 
Smith  execution  sales,  and  by  other  prospective  gains, 
the  assembly  in  1853  passed  a  bill  for  extending  the 
water-front  six  hundred  feet  beyond  the  line  established 
in  1851,  on  the  ground  that  state  finances  sadly  needed 
the  one  third  of  tlie  expected  six  millions  of  sale 
money.  Seeing  little  benefit  to  themselves  in  this 
scheme,  the  city  authorities  joined  the  citizens  in  loud 
protest  against  the  proposed  violation  of  riglits  guar- 
anteed to  the  present  front-owners,  an  infraction  which 
nmst  also  injure  property  holders  in  general,  by  in- 
volving a  costly  change  of  grade  for  drainage,  and 
imperil  the  port  by  driving  vessels  beyond  the  existing 
headland  shelter.  The  clamor  had  the  effect  of  equal- 
izing votes  in  the  senate,  so  that  Lieutenant-governor 
Purdy's  casting  vote  was  able  to  defeat  the  bill.**  In- 
terior lots  remained  longer  under  a  cloud.  In  1854, 
however,  the  land  commissioners  confirmed  the  city 
title  to  land  north  of  the  Vallejo  line,  under  a  mistaken 
idea  as  to  the  extent  of  the  pueblo  lines;  and  in  1855 
the  Van  Ness  ordinance  assured  titles  to  possessors 
within  the  corporate  limits  of  1851.     It  took  another 

ill  favor  of  the  buyers.  By  thia  time  values  had  again  risen,  and  now  35  of 
tlie  buyers  compromised  by  keeping  the  lota  and  accej)tiiig  about  one  million 
— or  more  than  they  had  paid — as  compeusation,  chiefly  interest  on  the  par- 
tial purchase-money.  Encouraged  by  this  succeaa,  a  few  remaining  buyern 
claimed  similar  restoration;  but  now  an  iugenioua  lawyer  found  thut  the  in- 
sbdmunt  money,  while  received  by  the  city,  liad  not  been  in  legal  possession 
of  the  treasury,  so  that  it  must  be  souglit  through  some  undutined  channel. 
Tlie  last  claimants  evidently  lacked  means  to  win  over  the  weather-cock  justice 
for  further  spoliation.  Meanwhile  iniprovemeuta  in  the  region  concerned 
had  languished  under  the  litigation.  Fur  detaila,  see  Coon's  AnmUn,  M8.,  22 
-5;  Cal.  Jour.  Sm.,  1856,  608-52,  ap.  18;  S.  F.  Rqit  City  LUlj.,  1-W;  Id., 
Opinions:  S<k.  Union,  Dec.  18,  185C;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  28,  1859;  AlUCal., 
Aug.  7,  1806,  etc.  These  authorities  refer  also  to  state  sales,  in  Dec.  1853 
for  5^350,000,  in  March  and  June  1854  for  ^241,100,  and  $100,000  also  in  1855, 
the  latter  especially  being  unfairly  managed  with  a  loss  to  the  state,  and  with 
a  cloud  upon  titles. 

*  Roach,  Stat.,  MS.,  15-16,  points  to  Guerra'a  vote  as  having  tied  the 
measure.  The  prospective  coat  to  the  8tat«  of  building  a  breakwater  had  its 
eflfect  on  votes.  Protesta,  etc.,  in  8.  F.  llemomt.,  1-8;  8.  F.  Hint.  Incid.,  viii.; 
Cal.  Jour.  8en.,  1853,  629-30,  ap.  no.  28-31,  41,  49,  65,  74;  M.,  Am.,  1854, 
15-18,  652;  AUa  Cat.,  Apr.  13,  1853;  May  4,  1854,  etc.  The  bill  was  revived, 
but  in  vain.  See  a.\m  Far  melts  8lat.,  MS.,  4-6;  Piirkitt's  Letter  on  Water 
Front,  1-32;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Apr.  16,  May  1,  5,  7,  June  12-16,  1856;  Weak 
Amer.,  Jan.  31,  1852. 


760 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


decade  to  obtain  recognition  for  the  city  of  the  usual 
four-league  grant  under  Mexican  laws,  and  the  several 
claims  of  Slierrehack,  Santillan,  and  Limantour  hav 
irig  by  this  time  been  finally  rejected,  additional  ordi- 
nances confirmed  also  outside  holdings,  and  so  restored 
general  confidence." 

The  glaring  raalcad ministration  and  abuses  of  the 
common  council  of  1850  roused  the  citizens  to  an  ap- 
peal for  a  remedy,  and  on  April  15,  1851,  San  Fran- 
cisco received  a  new  charter,  which  enlaroed  her  limits 
half  a  mile  to  the  south  and  west,  and  placed  a  whole- 
some check  on  finn.cial  extravagance,*"  n<)tably  by 
reducing  or  abolishing  salaries  in  every  direction,  and 
seeking  to  restrain  the  accumulation  of  debts.     The 

*Tlie  final  decree  of  confirmation  wosi  issned  in  18C7  through  the  circuit 
court,  and  in  1807-8  the  Stratton  survey  was  made  in  .accordance,  (.'oncern- 
ing  city  titles  in  general,  see  also  Pioneer  Mmj.,  i.  ID."},  *J57,  321,  etc.;  iS.  F. 
OT  U.  S.,  Doc.,  etc.,  1-70;  S.  F.  MUcd.;  TH/brd'a  Anjuntent,  1-17;  Browne's 
Stat.,  MS.,  15.  Among  journals,  AlUt  Cal.  is  especially  full  of  comments 
about  the  tiates  of  decisions,  as  iiidicatc<I  in  prcceiliug  references.  In  BiarCa 
Rainbkn,  81-0,  is  the  story  of  the  fate  of  a  S.  F.  claimant.  Among  claims 
lately  surviving  is  one  by  settlors  for  the  govt  reservation  at  Point  San  .Jose. 
Sue  8.  F.  Bulletin,  June  17,  1878.  Coon's  ettbrts  for  promoting  the  settlement 
of  titles  are  highly  creditable.  AnnaU,  MS.,  28-31. 

'"lioundarics:  on  the  south,  a  line  parallel  with  Clay  st,  two  miles  and 
a  half  distant  from  Portsmouth  square;  on  the  west,  a  line  parallel  with 
Kearuy  st,  two  miles  distant  from  Portsmoutli  square;  on  north  and  south, 
same  as  county.  Tlic  wards  remained  ciglit  in  number,  but  with  redi.striution 
to  equalize  the  number  of  their  inhabitants.  OlHcials  remained  unchanged, 
except  that  the  two  assessors  for  each  ward  were  changed  into  a  total  of  three 
for  the  city.  The  first  election  under  this  charter  was  to  take  place  in  April, 
a. id  thereafter  annually  at  tlie  general  election  for  state  officers.  No  debts 
were  permitted  to  accrue  wliich  together  with  fonner  debts  should  exceed 
the  annual  revenue  by  ^50,000,  unices  for  specific  objects,  authorized  by  pop- 
ular votes,  and  duly  provided  for,  in  interest  and  redemption,  within  12 
years.  Loans  in  anticipiition  of  the  year's  reveime  could  not  exceed  $50,000. 
Loans  for  extinguishing  existing  debts,  etc.,  must  be  autiiorizc<l  by  the  peo- 
ple, and  early  steps  taken  for  funding  such  debts.  Creditors  of  tlie  city 
might  funtl  the  debts  due  them,  at  a  rate  of  interest  not  exceeding  ten  per 
cent,  and  payable  within  ten  years.  The  net  proceeds  of  city  real  estate  and 
bonds,  from  the  occupation  of  private  wharves  and  basins,  wharfage,  rents, 
and  tolls,  to  constitute  a  sinking  fund  for  the  debt.  Salaries  of  cliarter  offi- 
cers not  to  excee<l  $4,000  a  year,  the  treasurer  and  collector  receiving  instead 
of  salary  not  over  half  per  cent  and  one  per  cent  respectively  on  money 
handled  by  them;  assessors,  not  exceeding  $1,500  each.  Aldermen  received 
no  compensation.  No  clerks  and  deputies  were  allowed  beyond  the  number 
stated  uy  the  charter.  Further  details  in  Cal.  Comp.  Laws,  1853,  944-55. 
Compare  above  and  other  salary  changes  with  the  aHowances  for  1850-1  of 
$64,000  to  10  aldermen,  $8,000  or  $10,000  each  to  the  leading  officials,  from 
$4,000  to  $6,000  each  to  a  host  of  clerks  (now  redncetl  to  $2,000  and  less), 
showing  a  salary  list  for  the  city  of  more  than  $800,000  prior  to  this  charter. 


MARKED  KEFORM. 


761 


more  prudent  aflininistratioii  of  the  county  was  sus- 
tained by  placing  the  financial  control  vvitli  a  board  of 
supervisors,  composed  chiefly  of  the  city  board  of  al 
dernien."  Under  the  new  charter  was  cU'cted  a  mu- 
nicipal body  of  high-class  meii,''^  chiefly  indopondeiit 
candidates  of  different  political  creeds,  intent  upon 
reform.  Headed  by  Charles  J.  Brenham'"*  as  mayor, 
they  proceeded  to  carry  out  this  aim,  nndst  general 
commendation,  and  in  so  thorough  a  mainu!r  as  to 
reduce  expenses  for  the  fiscal  year  to  one  fiftli  of  the 
amount  wasted  by  their  predecessor,  from  $1,700,000 
to  $;J40,000,  besides  paying  (>f!"  $i)2,000  of  the  debt, 
fostering  education  and  other  measures,  and  still  leav- 
ing a  balance.  In  order  to  do  this,  however,  taxation 
had  to  be  more  than  doubled,  partly  owing  to  the 
lessened  value  of  property,  which  sank  with  the  abat- 


'•  And  mayor,  Buppletnented  by  one  member  from  each  of  the  three  town- 
ships into  wliich  the  county  outside  of  S.  F.  was  divideil.  A  tax  of  outs  lialf 
per  cent  was  authorized  for  payiiiu  the  accrued  debt  of  tlio  cimnty.  Meinbcrs 
of  tlio  board  were  to  receive  $.'1  for  each  day  of  necessary  attcudance.  Text 
in  S.  F.  iMiinwil,  235-7.  Other  regulations  for  city  ancl  county  olHcials,  in 
lit.,  passim;  S.  F.  O  'Imiiicvs,  185:i-4;  Cal.  Cntle,  ()()2-78;  Cnl.  Sliitntpx,  1851, 
etc.;  A/.,  Jour,  llouxe,  1851,  p.  1857,  etc.  Tlie  legislative  rcpresenbition  of 
S.  F.  was  reduced  from  one  eighth  to  one  ninth. 

''Tlio  election  took  place  on  Apr.  28th,  0,000  votes  being  polled.  Tlie 
other  ofhciuls  were  (1.  A.  Hudson,  controller;  T.  D.  (!recnc,  c<dleetor;  R. 
H.  Sinton,  treasurer;  R.  H.  Waller,  recorder;  R.  <}.  Cro/ier,  marshal;  F.  M. 
rixley,  attorney,  etc.  R.  S.  Dorr  and  J.  F.  Atwill,  a  successful  nnisic  and 
fancy -goods  dealer,  became  presidents  of  the  two  boards  of  aldermen,  wherein 
W.  Greene  was  the  only  rcelcctetl  mend>er.  For  the  county,  Hayes  was 
reelected  sheriff.  See  Bluxomv'n  Viij.,  MS.,  12-13;  FanoeWs  SUU.,  MS.,  8-9; 
AUa  Cnl.,  CuL  Courier,  etc.,  for  the  month. 

"Born  at  Frankfort,  Ky,  Nov.  6,  1817,  and  well  known  on  the  Mississippi 
for  nearly  a  dozen  years  as  a  steamboat  captain,  he  came  to  Cal.  in  1849  and 
assumed  command  of  the  McKiin,  running  lietween  S.  F.  and  Sac.  Able  and 
genial,  he  quickly  became  a  favorite,  and  received  in  1850  the  unsolicited 
nomination  of  the  whig  party  for  the  mayoralty,  altiiough  talking  no  part  in 
politics.  Geary  held  the  position,  however,  and  Brenliani  continuuil  a  cap- 
tain, now  of  the  Oold  Hunter,  which  he  partly  owned.  In  1851,  he  took  part 
in  the  canvass,  and  succeeded  in  defeating  F.  Tilford.  His  term  ended,  ho 
joined  B.  C.  Sanders  in  the  banking  business,  and  was  chosen  president  of 
the  whig  state  central  committee.  Reelecteil  mayor  in  1S.'>2,  ho  declined  the 
appointment  of  mint  treasurer,  and  displayed  throughout  his  otiicial  career  an 
unimpeachable  integrity,  together  with  a  laudable  hrmness  and  sound  judg- 
ment. Henceforth  he  devoted  himself  to  business,  notably  as  agent  with 
J.  HoUaday  for  the  North  Pacific  Transport  Co.,  althougli  accepting  in  the 
seventies  the  appointment  of  director  and  commissioner  of  public  nistitutions. 
He  died  of  apoplexy  on  May  10,  1876,  leaving  five  children  by  the  daughter 
of  Gen.  Adair  of  Or.  AlUi  Cal.,  May  11,  1876;  S.  F.  Coil,  id.;  S.  F.  BiMetin, 
May  12,  1875;  portrait  iu  Annah  S.  F.,  735. 


782 


ANNAI^  OP  SAN  FRANCISCO, 


iii^  gold  excitement,  and  chiefly  to  provide  for  the 
interest  end  cost  of  the  debt-funding  scheme.^* 

The  election  as  well  as  zeal  of  those  men  was  greatly 
due  to  the  popular  spirit,  which  gave  a  first  sig- 
nal manifestation  in  February  1851,  roused  by  the 
startling  increase  of  robberies,  murders,  and  incendi- 
arism, by  Sydney  convicts  and  other  scum,  and  by  the 
apathy  aiiil  negligence  of  officials.  This  outburst  was 
followed  by  a  scathing  report  from  the  grand  jury,  and 
by  June  it  unfolded  into  a  formal  committee  of  vigi- 
lance. While  mainlv  directed  against  criminals,  and 
for  the  better  administration  of  justice,  the  movement 
left  a  salutary  if  short-lived  impression  in  other  quar- 
ters, after  a  vigorous  purification  of  three  months." 

Owing  to  a  vagueness  in  the  charter,  the  question 
arose  whether  the  next  municipal  body  should  be 
chosen  at  tlie  first  succeeding  state  election,  or  whether 
the  April  officials  should  retain  power  until  September 
1852.  Eager  for  spoils,  the  democratic  party  dccidt^d 
upon  the  former  interpretation,  and  took  steps  for  se- 
lecting a  new  government.  The  existing  authorities, 
as  well  as  the  majority  of  the  people,  took  a  contrary 
view,  and  abstained  both  from  presenting  candidates 
and  from  voting.  With  the  field  wholly  to  themselves, 
the  opposition  thereupon  proclaimed  the  election,  by 
a  meagre  partisan  vote,  of  a  ticket  whose  doubtful 
aspect  stood  relieved  by  few  creditable  names  besides 
that  of  Stephen  R.  Harris,^"  the  mayor  elect.     The 

^^The  regi  ar  tax  was  still  limited  by  charter  to  one  per  cent,  but  paciKc 
objects  raised  t  to  $2.45  per  cent,  besides  50  cts  for  state  purposes  and  $1. 15 
for  county,  t<  il  $4.10,  upon  an  assessed  value  of  $14,000,000,  reduced  from 
$21,000,000  i'  the  preceiUng  year.  Compare  later  financial  siiowing  with 
the  former  ch      er  on  S.  F. 

'^  A  criticis.  on  the  inactivity  and  inefficiency  of  Judge  Parsons  of  the  dis- 
trict court  at  H  '!'.,  by  Editor  Walker  of  the  herald,  caused  the  irate  judge 
to  condemn  tht  sditor  to  fine  and  imprisonment.  Newspapers  and  people 
rose  in  behalf  ol  .he  liberty  of  the  press,  and  Parsons  narrowly  escaped  im- 
peachment. T)  superior  court  reversed  Parson's  judgment.  Parsons  Irn- 
peae/U,  Kept  Co..u;  Alia  Cal.,  March  10  etseq.,  1851;  Sac.  Trdnscript,  March 
14,  1851,  etc.  Shortly  before,  the  Gold  Bluff  excitement  had  led  to  a  rush 
from  and  through  S.  F.  for  the  northern  coast  of  Cal.  This  was  the  year  of 
the  greatest  and  final  sweeping  conflagrations. 

'®0f  Poughkeepaie,  N.  Y.,  born  in  1802,  and  a  physician  of  25  years'  stand- 


MUNICIPAIi  GOVWINMENT 


703 


existing  official  at  first  .gnorod  the  domocratic  claim- 
ants, but  when  these  were  sustained  by  a  deciHion  of 
the  superior  court,  at  the  close  of  tiie  year,  they 
withdrew." 

Finding  themselves  obnoxious  to  circumvented  peo- 
ple, the  so-called  accidental  officials  had  loss  scruple  in 
seeking  to  promote  their  own  ends;  and  but  for  the 
firmness  and  integrity  of  the  mayor  in  vetoing  several 
obnoxious  schemes,  the  abuse  might  have  become 
extensive.  As  it  was,  the  popular  indignation  turned 
upon  them  for  the  purchase  of  the  Jenny  Lind  thea- 
tre for  a  city  hall,  rsnt  only  was  the  price  excessive, 
but  costly  changes  were  required  to  fit  the  place  for 
offices,  and  then  it  [)roved  so  inadequate  as  to  call  lor 
speedy  extension  and  additional  purchases. ^^ 

ing.  Ho  had  lieltl  severttl  public  trusts  in  N.  Y.,  as  licalth  commissioiuir,  etc., 
uiitl  arriveil  ia  Cal.  in  184'J  with  a  hi^^h  remitatinn  for  lumor,  moral  M-ort'i, 
able  zeal,  and  generosity.  After  a  brief  mining  experience  lie  opciUMl  at  8.  F., 
iu  partnership  with  Ponton,  the  most  extensive  drug  business  in  tlie  county, 
but  was  repeatedly  overwlielnied  by  lires.  His  opposition  to  the  obnoxious 
measures  of  his  ofBcial  associates  contirmed  the  popular  estimation,  and  wo 
find  him  later  selected  for  other  municipal  chargL's,  as  controller  and  coro. 
ner;  al»o  as  president  of  the  Pioneer  Soc.  iu  1855-6.  He  died  at  Napa  asy- 
lum on  Apr.  27,  1879.  5.  /'.  Jiulidin,  Apr.  28,  1879;  St<K-k  Ejrh.,  Apr.  29, 
May  1,  18/9;  S.  F.  Vail,  Apr.  2tt,  1879.  Portrait  in  AnnaU  S.  F.,  74*);  S.  J. 
Pioneer,  May  10,  1879;  S.  F.  Po«t,  Apr.  29,  1879. 

"  Although  they  might  have  retained  oirice,  for  the  courts  had  adjourned 
when  the  surrender  took,  place.  The  district  court  had  decided  that  officials 
elected  in  Sept.  should  take  possession  in  April,  so  as  to  leave  tlie  old  board 
a  year  in  power.  The  old  officials  offered  to  resign  if  the  new  body  would  do 
likewise,  and  so  permit  a  more  general  and  valid  election;  but  tliis  did  not 
suit  the  rapacious  claimants.  The  new  government  embraced  J.  W,  Hillman, 
K.  Clarke,  V.  McD.  Delany,  D.  W.  Thompson,  (I.  W.  Biiker,  1>.  S.  Linnull,  for 
controller,  treasurer,  attorney,  marshal,  recorder,  and  collector,  respectively. 
I.  H.  Blood  and  N.  Holland  headed  the  aldermen,  auu>ng  whom  were  four 
reelected  members,  including  Meif.'gs,  later  notorious  as  Honest  Harry. 

'"  The  former  purchase,  similarly  undorlianded,  was  burned  in  Juno  1851, 
and  offices  being  scattered  at  a  high  rental,  of  about  $40,0vK)  a  year,  a  new 
hall  was  require<l,  and  an  act  of  Apr.  10,  1852,  aithorized  the  imrcliase  or 
erection  of  one  at  a  cost  not  exceeding  ^12.">,0lJ0.  Cul.  Stdtitfes,  J8>"2.  Yi^t, 
by  bringing  jn  th"  county  for  a  half-interest,  §200,000  was  jjaid  for  the  Parker 
House,  including  the  theatre.  This  wa.s  the  stone  structure  on  tlie  east  side 
of  the  plaza,  of  great  beauty  and  comfort,  seating  2,000  pi^ople,  \\iiich  had 
opened  on  Oct.  4,  1851,  at  a  cost  of  §100,000,  but  proved  a  losing  speculation. 
The  §200,000  represented  little  more  than  tlie  bare  walls,  for  tiio  interior 
was  torn  down  and  reconstructed  at  a  cost  of  over  §40,000.  Harris  vetoed 
the  purchase,  but  it  passed,  sustiiined  by  the  superior  court.  One  result  was 
a  duel  between  Alderman  J.  Cotter  and  Editor  Nugent  of  the  Herdhl,  wherein 
the  latter  had  a  leg  broken  for  his  insinuations  against  aldcrmanic  probity, 
as  McGowan  testifies  in  the  S.  F.  Post,  Feb.  8,  1879.  See  AUa  Cal.,  Placer 
Times,  and  other  journals  for  June  1852,  etc.    In  1854  the  Altti  Cal.  office 


764 


.\NNALS  OP  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


Popular  outbursts  like  the  denunciation  of  the  city- 
hall  purchase  proved  too  ephemeral  to  frighten  legally 
fortified  officials,  and  by  proper  collusion  it  was  easy 
to  overcome  the  veto  or  opposition  of  a  solitary  mayor. 
Accordingly,  by  propitiating  tax-payers  with  the  de- 
serving Brenham  once  more  for  chief  city  magistrate, 
and  a  few  other  respectable  men,  politicians  smuggled 
into  his  train  a  number  of  their  own  fold  more  unsa- 
vory than  the  preceding,**  with  whose  aid  extravagance 
steadily  increased  Nevertheless  the  conscientious 
few  suppressed  any  very  glaring  abuse  that  might 
have  disturbed  the  pervading  lull.  The  democratic 
faction  herein  saw  its  opportunity,  and  by  further 
deluding  the  public  with  a  reduced  rate  of  taxation, 
thev  foisted  upon  the  city  at  the  following  election  a 
lar^-^r  horde  of  creatures,  under  w^hose  voracity  the 
expenditure  rose  to  $1,441,000,  or  double  that  of  the 
preceding  year,  and  more  than  quadruple  the  amount 
for  1851-2,  and  far  in  excess  of  the  receipts.** 

Corruption  and  disorder  permeated  every  depart- 
ment. Even  reforms,  like  the  reconstruction  of  the 
police  deoartment,^*  were  distorted  to  serve  for  plun- 

adjoining  on  the  north  was  bought  for  $50,000  as  a  hall  of  record  and  occa- 
pied  in  July,  and  a  building  on  the  south.  The  place  became  a  sink-hole 
of  corruption,  the  prison  in  the  basement,  with  its  refuse  of  humanity, 
and  healkh  and  police  offices.  On  the  first  floor  were  the  offices  of  sheriff, 
clerics,  and  collector  around  the  mayor's  court-room,  with  its  calendar 
of  dissipation.  The  second  story  was  occupied  by  the  upper  and  lower 
house  of  aldermen,  the  treasurer's  office,  and  the  district  court.  One  flight 
higher  led  to  the  jury -rooms  and  offices  of  the  surveyor,  engineer,  boartlof 
educ,  the  whole  surmounted  by  the  bell-ringer  watching  in  his  cupola  for 
fires.  The  same  council  sought  to  arrange  with  the  state  for  foisting  the 
Colton  grants  upon  the  city. 

"The  aldermen  were  presided  over  by  J.  P.  Haven,  the  pioneer  insurance 
agent,  and  J.  De  Long.  The  officials  embraced  R.  Mathewson,  L.  Teal,  H. 
Bowie,  G.  W.  Baker,  R.  G.  Crozier,  and  J.  K.  Hackett,  as  controller,  col- 
lector, treasurer,  recorder,  marshal,  and  attorney,  respectively. 

*♦  Adding  county  expenses,  which  had  grown  from  $115,700  in  1851-2  to 
$292,700  in  1852-3,  and  to  $391,000  in  1853-4,  the  total  was  $1,831,800,  while 
the  receipts  amounted  to  $1,200,000  from  a  tax  rate  of  $2  for  the  city,  and 
$1.28J  for  the  county,  while  the  state  tax  was  60  cts.  Under  the  general 
prosperity  culminating  in  1853,  the  assessed  value  of  property  had  risen  to 
$28,900,000.  Corruption  entered  into  every  branch  of  administration,  as 
may  be  seen  from  the  item  of  $265,300  for  wharf  purchases,  $479,000  for 
streets,  $213,400  for  hospitals,  $149,300  for  police  and  prisoners,  $126,600  for 
the  volunteer  fire  department.     Salaries  were  $253,000. 

*'  By  ordinance  of  Oct.  28,  1853.  The  force  to  be  composed  of  66,  each 
alderman  appointing  three,  to  be  confirmed  in  council;  one  district  and  ata- 


HONEST  HARRY  MEIGGS. 


W 


(ler.     Money  was  spirited  away  among  controlling 
men  and  partisans,  and  business  transacted  on  trust, 
contractors  and  employes  being  paid  in  warrants  or 
municipal  promissory  notes.     Without  definite  pros- 
pects for  payment,  these  naturally  depreciated,  and 
creditors  sought  compensation  by  adding   losses   to 
their  bills,  so  that  the  city  had   frequently  to  pay 
double  or  treble  for  work  itself,  besides  other  filch- 
ings.     Warrants  were   moreover    signed    loosely   in 
blank,  and  allowed  to  circulate  as  security  or  as  dis- 
counted paper,  without  inquiry  as  to  their  extent  or 
nature,  till  the  accumulation  of  funds  brought  forward 
a  part  for  redemption.     This  neglect  on  the  part  of 
officials,  as  well  as  business  men,  favored  such  frauds 
as  were   perpetrated    in  1854   by  Alderman   Henry 
Meiggs,  who  decamped  after  victimizing  the  commu- 
nity for  about  a  million,  chiefly  on  forg^  warrants.^^ 

The  success  of  spoliators  whetted  the  appetite  of 
the  opposition  element,  which,  uniting  with  a  number 
of  earnest  men  to  form  the  knownothmg  party,  raised 

tion  house  in  the  city;  payof  54  policemen,  $150  per  montib,  captain  &nd  his 
assistant  $200.  In  Dec.  fSOO  per  month  was  added  for  a  detective  police. 
S.  F.  Ordin.,  1853,  183-5,  199,  171.  Names  of  men  in  S.  F.  Direct.,  1854, 
209.     The  office  of  city  engineer  was  abo  created  in  Sept. 

2^  Honest  Harry,  as  he  was  called,  had  become  a  general  favorite,  owing 
to  his  genial  luanners,  generous  disposition,  and  tact.     In  1850  he  was  a 

Srominent  man  iu  S.  F.,  notably  as  a  lumber-dealer  and  mill-owner,  with  his 
epOt  at  North  Beach,  in  which  region  he  conseqnenUy  become  interested  by 
large  purchases  of  lots.  He  sought  to  direct  the  city  extension  that  way,  and 
to  this  end  expended  large  sums  on  improvements,  grading,  wharf,  etc.,  aided 
by  hiji  position  a  alderman  during  three  administrations.  This  proved  a 
heavy  drain  upon  his  resources,  and  just  as  he  expected  to  recuperate  by  sell- 
ing lots,  real  estate  began  to  drop  rapidly.  Deeply  involved,  he  sought  relief 
by  forging  purloined  warrants  aud  other  notes,  and  borrowing  money  upon 
them  at  several  per  cant  per  mouth,  $75,030  being  raised  on  $300,000  over- 
issue of  stock  for  the  lumber  company  of  which  he  was  president.  I'rospects 
growing  darker,  and  ugly  rumors  starting,  Meiggs  fitted  out  a  vessel  in  a 
lavish  manner,  and  departed  in  Oct.  1854  for  Chile  with  his  family  and 
brother,  the  latter  having  just  l)een  elected  controller,  with  a  view  of  cov- 
ering the  manipulationa  of  the  other.  The  extent  of  hu  failure  was  at  first 
magnified  to  about  $2,000,000,  and  by  others  reduced  not  below  $750,000. 
Rich  and  poor,  merchants  and  toiling  workmen,  suffered.  Many  preferred  for 
their  own  credit  to  hide  their  loss,  others,  including  CMifederated  aldermen,  took 
advantage  of  the  incident  to  repudiate  as  forgeries  genuine  indebtedness,  and 
so  the  case  remained  involved  in  mystery.  Meiggs  gainetl  riches  and  renown 
as  a  railway  contractor  in  Thile  and  Peru,  and  bought  up  most  of  his  notes  at 
a  low  figure,  and  the  California  leffislatare  pswad  aa  nnconstitntional  acc  of 
pardon,  which  the  governor  vetoect 


766 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


the  cry  for  reform,  and  so  won  adherents  in  every 
direction.  Under  the  plea  of  gaining  indispensable 
support  for  their  young  party,  the  scheming  lead- 
ers introduced  an  additional  proportion  of  tools  upon 
the  ticket,  upon  which  a  number  of  influential  names 
also  of  the  existing  regime  served  to  insure  a  de- 
lusive confidence.  Then  with  cunning  manoeuvres 
calculated  to  defeat  the  democratic  ballot-stuflers  at 
their  own  game,  they  wrested  the  victory  at  the  polls, 
and  S.  P.  Webb  replaced  C.  K.  Garrison^  as  mayor 
in  October  1854. 

During  the  preceding  term  there  had  been  some 
justification  for  expenses  in  the  general  prosperity 
and  demand  for  improvements,  but  midst  the  settling 
gloom  of  1854-5  retrenchment  should  have  followed. 
Instead  of  this,  however,  the  expenditures  for  the  city 
and  county  increased  more  than  one  third,  with  a 
doubling  of  the  street  department  bills,  and  a  large 
increase  in  the  accounts  for  salaries,  hospitals,  and  fire 
and  police  departments.**  Expenses  for  the  following 
year  decreased  for  lack  of  accessible  means  and  fall- 
ing credit,*^  but  corruption  in  judicial  and  civic  ad- 

"  A  self-made  man,  though  born  of  a  Knickerbocker  family,  near  West 
Point,  March  1,  1809.  He  rose  from  cabin-boy  to  builder  of  houses  and  ves- 
sels, and  to  the  command  of  steamboats.  The  gold  excitement  induced  him 
to  establish  a  banking  house  at  PanamA,  and  in  1852  he  received  the  agency 
at  S.  F.  of  the  Nicaragua  steamship  line,  and  of  two  insurance  companies. 
Despite  the  loss  of  steamers,  he  ac(|uired  a  princely  fortune,  with  which  he 
transferred  himself  in  1859  to  his  native  state,  there  to  continue  fieuring  as 
a  magnate.  Larkin'a  Doc.,  vii.  222;  S/ierman'a  Mem.,  100;  portrait  in  Annals 
S.  F.,  744;  and  Shuci'a  Rep.  Men.,  143;  AUa  CaL,  July  8, 18()9,  etc.  Despite 
the  many  promises  in  his  messages  and  v:<?t8,  he  failed  to  check  the  extrava- 
gance and  corruption  around  him.  The  can;er  of  Webb  turned  in  another 
direction,  and  in  1877  he  was  reported  as  living  in  blindness  and  poverty  at 
Audover,  Mass.  8.  J.  Pioneer,  Mav  12,  1877.  Among  the  political  associ- 
ates of  Garrison  were  S.  R.  Harris,  W.  A.  Mathews,  H.  Bowie,  G.  W.  Baker, 
B.  Scguin,  S.  A.  Sharpe;  and  of  Webb,  W.  Sherman,  £.  T.  Batturs,  D.  S. 
Turner,  R.  H.  Waller,  J.  W.  McKenzie,  L.  Sawyer;  both  parties  rcspect- 
ivelv  as  controller,  collector,  treasurer,  recorder,  marshal,  and  attorney. 
J.  F.  Atwill  was  president  of  the  aldermon  in  1863-4  and  1864-5,  and  F. 
Turk  and  H.  Haight  successive  presidents  of  the  assistant  board.  For  Webb's 
inatwund  speech,  see  A  Ita  Cal ,  Oct  3,  1854. 

**The  total  swelled  to  ^,640,200,  upon  an  assessed  valuation  of  $34,763,- 
000;  the  city  tax  was  $2.16  per  cent,  plus  (1.70^  for  state  and  county,  and 
the  city  and  county  receipts  $1,076,000,  more  than  $120,000  less  than  for 
the  preceding  year. 

'^  The  city  and  county  revenua  falling  to  $702,000. 


VIGILANCE  REFORM. 


767 


ministration  grew  more  flagrant  than  ever  in  other 
respects.^ 

The  city  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  political  dema- 
gogues from  New  York,  which  formed  the  majority  of 
the  dominant  factions,  and  came  versed  in  all  the  arts 
of  Tammany  Hall  for  manipulating  elections.  With 
farcical  party  conventions  and  a  subsidized  press  they 
hoodwinked  the  public,  while  offering  votes  to  the 
highest  bidder  or  to  their  own  adherents.  Then,  with 
the  aid  of  the  interested  and  corrupt  officials  and 
judges  who  stood  ever  ready  to  sell  their  influence  to 
schemers  and  criminals,  they  tampered  with  the  ballot- 
boxes,  and  enrolled  ruffians  to  intimidate  honest  voters, 
and  to  repeat  their  own  illegal  balloting  in  different 
wards.  *"  These  creatures  were  subsequently  rewarded 
either  with  city  money  or  patronage,  and  with  ap- 
pointments on  the  police  force  or  in  other  departments, 
in  order  to  sustain  the  installed  plunderers. 

This  state  of  affairs  was  mainly  due  to  the  indiffer- 
ence of  respectable  citizens  for  their  political  duties, 
intent  as  they  were  on  amassing  wealth,  for  enjoyment 
in  an  eastern   home.*^     But  even  their  apathy  was 

'^The  officials  for  1855-6  were  Jas  Van  Ness,  mayor;  A.  J.  Moulder, 
controller;  £.  T.  Batturs.  collector;  W.  McKibben,  treasurer;  J.  Van  Ness, 
recorder;  H.  North,  marshal;  B.  Peyton,  attorney.  J.  M.  Tewksbury  and 
H.  J.  Wells  presided  over  the  two  boards.  For  the  county  Tlios  Hayes  held 
the  position  of  county  clerk  since  1853,  as  successor  to  J.  E.  Wainwright  and 
J.  h.  Addison  for  1851  and  1850,  respectively.  H.  H.  Byrne  had  been  at- 
torney since  1851,  succeeding  Beuhaui.  The  sheriff  for  1850  had  been  J.  C 
Hayes,  reelected  in  1851  and  succeeded  by  T.  P.  Johnson;  W.  P.  Gorham 
acted  in  185S-4,  D.  Scannell  in  1855-0.  The  successive  treasurers  in  1850, 
1851,  1853,  and  1856  were  G.  W.  Endicott,  J.  Shannon,  G.  W.  Greene,  and 
R.  E.  Woods;  recorders  for  the  same  periods,  J.  A.  McGlynn,  T.  B.  Russum, 
Jas  Grant,  and  F.  Kohler.  Van  Ness,  who  is  well  remembered  for  his  land 
ordinance,  and  through  the  avenue  named  after  him,  was  the  son  of  a  Ver- 
mont governor,  born  at  Burlington  in  1808.  As  an  able  lawyer,  he  quickly 
assumed  prominence  in  S.  F.,  and  held  repeatedly  the  office  of  alderman  be* 
fore  becoming  mayor.  He  subsequently  moved  southward  to  pursue  agricul- 
ture, and  was  in  1871  chosen  state  senator  for  S.  L.  Obispo  and  8ta  Barbara. 
He  died  on  Dec.  28,  1872,  at  S.  L.  Obispo.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Jan.  2,  1873;  Santa 
Clara  Anjus  Jan.  4,  1873;  S.  L.  Ob.  Tribune,  Jan.  4,  1873'  S.  Dkuo  Union, 
Jan.  16,  187a 

"  As  more  fully  explained  in  my  PoptUar  TribwuUa,  iL,  with  iUustrationa 
of  false  ballot-boxes. 

**  And  so  they  neglected  voting,  jury  calls,  etc.,  and  left  ruffians  to  hold 
■way,  often  allowing  a  momentary  caprice  to  decide  their  choice.     For  in- 


7«8 


ANNALS  OP  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


overcome  at  last.  The  assassination  on  May  14, 1856, 
of  J.  King  of  William,  who  in  the  Bulletin  had  under- 
taken to  expose  official  corruption,  gave  tl.\e  decisive 
impulse.  The  people  rose  almost  en  masse  to  avenge 
their  champion.  A  vigilance  committee  formed  again 
to  supervise  and  purify  the  city,  especially  the  political 
and  judicial  administration,  chiefly  by  driving  forth 
the  miscreants  through  whom  politicians  carried  out 
their  election  trickery,  by  calling  upon  the  people  to 
nominate  candidates  of  high  character,  and  by  guard- 
ing the  ballot-box  from  fraud.  So  effectually  was 
this  task  performed,  thp.t  after  a  vigilance  session  of 
three  months,  San  Francisco  stood  transformed  from 
among  the  most  corrupt  and  insecure  towns  in  the 
union  to  one  which  within  a  year  came  to  be  lauded 
as  a  model  for  wise  and  economic  government.^ 


The  reform  secured  a  sound  basis  in  the  Con- 
solidation Act,  the  chief  aim  of  \vhich  was  municipal 
retrenchment  by  merging  the  double  city  and  county 
governments  into  one,  and  reducing  the  pay  and  fees 
as  well  as  number  of  officials.  The  combined  county 
and  city  limits  were  by  it  restricted  to  the  tip  of  the 
peninsula,  north  of  a  line  skirting  the  southern  extreme 
of  Laguna  de  la  Merced,  and  divided  into  twelve  dis- 
tricts, equal  in  population,  each  of  which  elected  one 
member  to  the  governing  board  of  supervisors.     The 

stance,  Robinson  of  the  amphitheatre  received  a  large  vote  for  alderman 
simply  because  his  metric  ridicule  of  local  authorities  caught  the  public  fancy. 
See  Annals  S.  P.,  338-40.  Citizens  in  general  smiled  at  the  advantage  se- 
cured by  otiicials,  and  so  kept  rogues  in  countenance.  Party  spirit  will  be 
considered  under  state  politics.  McGowan's  version  of  local  politics  in  S.  F. 
Post,  Sept.  12,  1878.  Special  points  are  given  in  Coons  Annals,  MS.,  2-5; 
Manrow^s  Suit.,  MS.,  2-3;  FaneeWs  Stat.,  MS.,  13-14. 

'^This  grand  and  beneticent  vigilance  movement  stands  fully  recorded,  in 
the  corruption  wliich  caused  it,  in  its  extent,  method,  work,  and  glorious  re- 
sults, in  my  special  work  on  Papular  Tribunals,  2  vols.,  this  series,  and  the 
brief  synopsis  in  a  previous  chapter,  which  are  chiefly  based  on  the  state- 
ments and  hitherto  secret  records  intrusted  to  me  by  the  men  who  figured 
as  leaders  of  the  committee,  and  by  several  score  of  its  supporters.  Tlio 
proffress  of  reform  growing  out  of  it  will  be  noticed  in  my  next  volume,  based 
on  the  MS.  records  of  such  men  as  Coon,  who  reformed  the  police  department, 
of  Coleman,  Bluxoine,  and  others.  The  Bulletin  follows  among  journals  most 
closely  the  entire  movement.  In  its  issues  of  July  14,  1856,  etc.,  it  gives 
the  suminou  to  and  refusal  of  the  city  otBciaia  to  resign. 


CJONSOUDATION  ACT. 


708 


renie 
dis- 
one 
The 


fuicy. 
,ge  Bii- 
rill  bo 

S.  F. 
2-5; 


mayor  was  replaced  by  a  president  of  this  board,  chosen 
by  popular  vote,  together  with  the  necessary  staff  of 
officials,  among  them  a  police  judge  with  special 
powers,  a  chief  of  police  to  relieve  the  sheriff  of  the 
police  management,  and  two  dock-masters  to  replace 
the  harbor-master;  all,  with  four  minor  exceptions, 
elected  for  two  years  in  order  to  abate  the  evil  of  rapid 
rotation.  Taxes,  aside  from  the  state  levy,  were  lim- 
ited to  one  dollar  and  sixty  cents  per  centum,  of  which 
thirty-five  cents  were  for  schools.  The  contraction  of 
debts  by  the  government  was  prohibited,  and  the  ex- 
penditure of  d^erent  departments  specified  and  limited, 
with  no  allowance  for  rent,  fuel,  and  other  incidentals. 
The  police  force  was  reduced  to  thirty-four,  and  offend- 
ers were  awed  by  greater  strictness,  including  sen- 
tences to  public  labor.** 

'*>The  charter,  approved  April  19,  1856,  contains  the  following  features: 
Art.  I.  Sec.  1.  The  Loundaries  of  the  united  city  and  county  of  S.  F.  remain 
as  before  (defined  in  1857),  except  on  the  south,  where  the  line  begins  on  tb.e 
eastern  border,  due  east  of  Shag  Rock,  which  lies  o£F  Hunter's  Point,  and 
running  west  through  a  point  on  the  county  road,  one  fourth  c  f  a  mile  n.  e. 
of  Lilly's  county  house  to  the  8.  B.  extremity  of  the  south  arm  of  Laguna 
de  la  Merced;  thence  due  west  out  into  the  ocean.  Sec.  4.  Existing  regula- 
tions for  county  ofRcers,  excepting  supervisors,  remain  in  force  unless  chatigcd 
by  this  charter.  Taxes  to  be  uniform  throughout  the  city  and  county.  Sec. 
6.  The  city  and  county  to  be  at  once  formed  into  twelve  districts,  equal  in 
population,  and  each  constituting  an  election  precinct.  Sec.  6.  At  the 
time  of  election  for  state  o£Scers,  S.  F.  shall  elect  hereafter  a  president  of  the 
board  of  supervisors,  a  county  judge,  clerk,  police  judge,  chief  of  police, 
sherifif,  coroner,  recorder,  treasurer,  auditor,  collector,  assessor,  surveyor, 
superintendent  of  common  schools,  superintendent  of  streets,  district  attor- 
ney, two  dock-msfiters,  who  shall  continue  in  office  two  years;  the  office  of 
harbor-master  is  abolished;  further,  for  each  district,  one  supervisor,  one 
justice  of  the  peace,  and  one  school  director,  to  continue  in  office  two  years; 
also  one  constal^le,  one  inspector  and  two  judges  of  election,  to  hold  office  for 
one  year.  Each  elector  to  vote  only  for  one  inspector  and  one  judge  of  elec- 
tion, those  having  the  highest  votes  to  receive  the  offices.  Sec.  8.  Hours  at 
public  offices  to  be  from  9  A.  M.  to  5  v.  M.  from  March  to  Sept. ;  in  the  other 
months  from  10  to  4.  Sec.  9.  Vacancies  in  elective  offices  to  be  filled  by  ap- 
pointment from  the  board  of  supervisors  till  the  following  election;  except 
for  office  of  dock-masters,  to  which  the  governor  appoints,  and  for  sheriff,  to 
which  the  court  appoints.  Sec.  10.  The  fees  and  compensation  of  sheriff, 
clerk,  county  judge,  recorder,  surveyor,  treasurer,  assessor,  and  dock-mas- 
ters remain  as  before,  yet  that  of  assessor  not  to  exceed  $5,000  a  year,  inclu'l* 
ing  expenses  for  clerks,  etc.;  dock-masters  to  receive  $4,000  each  a  year; 
treasurer  to  receive  commissions  only  on  receipts,  not  on  payments  or  trans- 
fers, and  no  allowance  for  clerks  ana  incidentals;  surveyor  to  receive  $1,000 
salary  for  all  city  and  county  work.  Sec.  11.  Auditor,  police  judge,  attorney, 
and  chief  of  police  to  receive  $5,000  each;  supt  of  streets  and  of  schools,  $4,000 
each;  president  of  supervisors,  $2,000;  no  fee  or  salary  to  school  directors  or 
supervisors;  inspectors  and  judges  of  election,  $12  each  for  each  election.  No 
Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VL    49 


770 


ANNAU3  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO 


P:1A. 


The  vigilance  movement  not  only  affected  the  choice 
and  conduct  of  the  officials  who  held  power  under 

further  aUowance  to  any  official  ror  rents,  fuel,  etc.,  yet  the  necessarv  books 
for  auditor,  assessor,  and  supt  ot  streets  may  be  supplied  by  order  of  super- 
visors upon  the  treasury.  Sec.  12.  No  board  or  official  can  contract  any  debt 
against  the  city  or  county.  Sec.  13.  The  term  of  office  under  this  act  to  com- 
mence on  the  Monday  following  the  election,  unless  otherwise  provided  by 
law.  Sec.  14.  All  officers  must  give  bond,  to  be  approved  by  jutlge,  auditor, 
and  supervisors;  no  banker,  or  liis  agent  or  relative,  to  be  surety  for  any 
officer  naving  the  control  of  money;  the  surety  must  be  worth  twice  the 
amount  of  his  undertaking,  above  all  other  liabilities. 

Art.  II.  Sec.  15.  The  police  dept  to  be  under  direction  of  the  chief  of 
police,  with  the  powers  hitherto  conferred  on  sheriffs.  Sec.  19-20.  The 
police  judge  to  have  the  powers  of  recorders  and  justices  of  the  peace,  fol- 
lowing recorder's  court  proceedings;  and  to  try  offences  against  tlie  regulations 
of  supervisors.  No  appeals  from  his  fines  when  not  exceeding  $20;  his  court 
to  be  a  court  of  recorct,  with  a  clerk  appointed  by  the  supervisors,  at  $1,200 
a  year.  Sec.  22.  Fines  from  the  courts  of  police  judge,  sessions,  and  justices, 
to  be  paid  into  the  treasury  as  part  of  tne  police  fund.  Courts  have  the 
option  of  imposing  labor  on  public  works,  instead  of  fines  and  imprisonment, 
counted  at  the  rate  of  $1  per  day.  Sec.  23-4.  The  chief  of  police,  in  con- 
junction with  president  of  supervisors  and  police  judge,  to  appoint  four  police 
captains,  each  from  a  different  district,  and  not  exceeding  30  police  officers, 
from  the  different  districts,  each  recommended  by  12  freehohlers.  Sec.  25. 
Pay  of  captains,  $1,800;  of  officers,  $1,200  a  year.  Sec.  27.  *  "ovisional  polic 
may  be  appomted  for  24  hours,  without  pay,  in  cases  of  emergency. 

Art.  lU.  Sec.  30-5  concern  schools.  Of  the  school  act.  May  3,  1855, 
sees.  19-24  are  inapplicable.  The  petition  of  50  heads  of  white  families  in 
any  district  justify  the  establishment  of  a  school. 

Art.  IV.  Sec.  3G-C4  concern  streets  and  highways.  The  grading,  paving, 
planking,  sewering,  etc.,  of  streets  to  be  done  at  the  expense  of  the  lots  on  each 
side  of  the  street;  gradiitg  may  be  opposed  by  one  third  of  interested  prop- 
erty holders.  Property  seized  for  money  due  on  street  work  to  be  sold  for  a 
term  of  years. 

Art.  V.  Sec.  65-74  concern  supervisors.  Their  president  must  sign  all 
ordinances,  yet  such  may  be  passed  over  his  veto  bv  two  thirds  of  the  super- 
visors. All  contracts  for  building,  printing,  prison  supplies  (the  'latter  not 
exceeding  25  cts  per  day  for  each  person  daily),  to  be  awarded  to  the  lowest 
reliable  bidder.  The  taxation,  exclusive  of  state  and  school  tax,  shall  not  ex- 
ceed $1.25  per  cent  on  assessed  property.  The  school  tax  must  not  exceed 
35  cents  per  cent.  Appointments  ot  public  agents  or  officers,  which  so  far 
have  l>een  made  by  nomination  from  the  mayor  with  confirmation  from  the 
common  council,  are  to  be  made  by  confirmation  of  the  supervisors  on  nomi- 
nation of  their  president.  In  addition  to  regular  duties  and  powers,  the 
supervisors  may  provide  ways  and  means  for  sustaining  city  claims  to  pueblo 
lands. 

Art.  VI.  Sec.  75-98  relate  to  finance.  Fines,  penalties,  and  forfeitures 
for  offences  go  to  the  police  fund;  likewise  40  per  cent  of  the  poll-tax,  or  such 

Eroporticn  as  may  be  assigned  to  the  city  and  county;  this  fund  to  be  aided 
y  the  general  fund  of  S.  F.,  if  required,  the  latter  fund  consisting  of  unas- 
signed  moneys  and  the  surplus  from  special  funds.  Taxes  may  be  paid  at 
one  per  cent  above  par  value,  with  audited  salary  bills  of  school-teachers, 
interest  coupons  on  funded  debt  of  S.  F.,  and  audited  demands  on  the  treas- 
ury as  per  sec.  88.  Expenditures  for  fire  dept,  exclusive  of  salaries,  are  lim- 
ited to  $8,000  a  year;  expenditures  not  specified  by  the  act  must  not  exceed 
$70,000  a  year  from  tht:  surplus  fund  of  the  corresponding  year  alone.  Sched- 
ule, sec.  I-IO.  Until  the  next  general  election  the  present 'county  auditor 
shall  act  for  S.  F.,  and  the  present  city  marshal  to  act  as  chief  of  police,  and 


PEOPLE'S  PARTY. 


771 


this  charter  from  July  to  November,'^  but  out  of  it 
sprang  the  people's  party,'*  composed  of  vigilance  sym- 

the  present  city  surveyor  as  snperint.  of  streets,  and  the  present  mayor  aa 
police  judge,  and  the  present  justices  of  the  peace  as  supervisors,  electing 
president  and  clerk,  all  with  the  power,  duties,  and  compensation  prescribed 
in  this  act.  The  police  force  to  be  immediately  reduced  according  to  this  act. 
The  Iward  of  education  of  the  city  to  act  till  the  general  election.  Then  shall 
be  elected  for  city  and  county  a  president  of  supervisors,  police  judge,  chief 
of  police,  auditor,  tax  collector,  and  superint.  of  streets,  and  for  the  several 
districts  the  supervisors,  school  directors,  justices  of  the  peace,  constables, 
and  inspectors  and  Judges  of  election,  and  all  vacancies  in  elective  offices  are 
then  to  l)e  tilled.  This  act  to  take  effect  on  and  after  July  1st.  Sec.  9.  San 
Mateo  county  to  be  formed  out  of  the  southern  part  of  S.  F.  county;  county 
seat  and  county  officers  to  be  elected  on  the  second  Monday  in  May  18.5G,  as 
per  subdiv.  5-15;  a  special  tax  levy  not  exceeding  50  cents  on  $100,  to  be 
applied  to  a  jail  and  county  house;  the  ordinary  taxation,  exclusive  of  state 
and  school  tax,  must  not  exceed  50  cents  on  $100;  no  debt  to  be  contracted. 
For  text,  see  Col.  Statutes,  1856,  145  et  seq.;  S.  F.  ConsolUl.  Act. 

The  main  object  of  the  charter,  economy,  is  insured  by  several  provisions, 
such  as  the  specification  of  items  of  expenditure,  the  legal  restriction  on  pay- 
ments, the  exclusion  of  contingent  expenses,  the  offer  of  contracts  to  lowest 
bidder,  the  assignment  of  street  work  to  owners  of  property  concerned,  so  as 
to  restrict  price  as  well  as  extravagance.  Aside  from  the  guardianship  pos- 
sessed by  each  district  in  its  supervisor  and  recommended  police,  each  party 
obtaine<i  representation  through  the  manner  of  electing  election  judges.  The 
several  good  points  of  the  document  do  not,  however,  excuse  its  defects,  which 
have  subsequently  found  recognition  in  a  host  of  material  amendments,  as 
will  be  noticed  in  my  next  volume.  Although  S.  F.  chiefly  originated  and 
benefited  by  the  debt  contracted  for  the  county,  yet  the  segregated  San 
Mateo  should  have  been  assigned  a  just  share.  The  text  of  the  document  is 
verbose,  straggling,  and  involved,  altogether  unworthy  of  so  important  an 
act. 

Mr  Hawes,  once  prefect  of  S.  F.  county,  who  introduced  the  bill  in  the 
assembly,  was  mobbed  by  partisans  of  disappointed  plunderers.  The  defects 
of  the  early  charter,  or  rather  the  grievances  and  aspirations  of  the  eighth 
ward,  had  in  1853  led  to  a  revision,  greatly  affecting  squatters,  which  was 
defeated  in  six  wards,  yet  carried  by  the  majority  of  the  eighth,  only  to  be 
lost  in  the  legislature.  Text  in  S.  F.  New  Charter,  1853,  \-2A.  Out  of  tliis 
grew  a  duel  between  Alderman  Hayes  and  Editor  Nugent,  the  latter  being 
again  wounded.  S.  F.  WMg,  June  11,  1853;  S.  F.  Post,  Aug.  3,  1878;  Alta 
C'al,  Apr.  15,  1853,  etc.,  claimed  that  the  charter  vote  was  'stuffed.'  The 
revision  question  continued  in  agitation,  however,  and  resulted  in  the  passage 
of  a  reincorporation  act,  approved  May  5,  1855,  which  greatly  checked  expen- 
diture. Under  this  charter  was  elected  Mayor  Van  Ness  and  his  colleagues, 
who  held  office  from  July  1855.  Cal.  Stiitutes,  1855,  251-67,  284;  8.  F.  Ordi- 
nances, 1853-4,  509;  8.  F.  New  C/uirter,  Scraps,  Sar.  Union,  Apr.  28-30,  1855, 
etc.  Changes  in  ward  boundaries  may  be  examined  in  8.  F.  Directories,  1852, 
p.  67;  1854,  p.  177;  1856,  p.  137,  etc. 

^'  It  embraced  the  county  officials,  two  of  the  old  city  staff  and  a  few 
newly  elected  men,  notably  four  justices  of  the  peace,  who  assisted  to  form 
the  provisional  board  of  supervisors,  under  (r.  J.  Whelan  aa  president,  the 
mayor  being  transformed  into  police  judge,  according  to  the  scheilule  of  the 
charter. 

'''  Which  recognized  among  evils,  rotation  in  office,  connection  with  gen- 
eral party  politics  of  state  and  nation,  etc.  Some  even  advocated  officers 
elected  exclusively  by  tax-payers  for  managing  finances.  Jury  duty  was 
upheld  as  sacred,  etc.  Dempster's  Vig,,  MS.,  17-20*  Coon's  Annals,  MS., 
6-12. 


772 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


pathizers,  who  organized  a  nominating  committee  of 
twenty-one  prominent  citizens  to  select  efficient  and 
worthy  candidates  for  office,  regardless  of  political 
creeds  and  other  irrelevant  distinctions.  This  ticket 
headed  by  E.  W.  Burr  as  president  of  the  board  of 
supervisors,  with  H.  P.  Coon  for  police  judge,  D. 
Scannell  for  sheriff,  and  W.  Hooper  for  treasurer  and 
collector,"  received  the  approval  of  electors,  and  it 
was  justified  by  the  sweeping  reforms  carried  out 
midst  great  obstacles,  by  an  economic  administration 
which  reduced  expenses  to  the  extraordinarily  low 
figure  of  $353,300  for  the  year,  or  less  than  one  sixth 
of  the  amount  for  1854-5,"  and  by  a  purification  of 
the  city  hall  from  partisan  trickery  and  other  disre- 
putable elements. 

Under  the  heedless  rush  of  expenditure  which  be- 
gan in  1850,  as  noticed  in  a  preceding  chapter,  em- 
bracing monstrous  self- voted  salaries  to  aldermen,  and 
squandering  and  peculation  under  the  guise  of  grading, 
building,  and  other  operations,  a  debt  of  over  one  mil- 
lion had  been  contracted  in  about  a  year,  which  was 
rapidly  growing  under  a  heavy  interest  of  thirty-six 
per  cent,  and  the  excessive  charges  demanded  in  view 
of  depreciated  scrip  payments  and  prospective  deficits.'* 
Alarmed  at  the  pace,  a  number  of  conscientious  men 
bestirred  themselves  to  obtain,  not  alone  the  new 
charter  of  April  1851,  which  should  restrain  such  ex- 
travf^anoe,  but  an  act  to  fund  the  debt  on  the  reason- 
able basis  of  ten  per  cent  interest,  redeemable  from  a 
preferred    fund  within  twenty  years.*     Under  this, 

"  C.  R.  Bond,  assessor;  E.  Mickle,  audi,tor;  J.  F.  Curtis,  chief  of  police; 
H.  Kent,  coroner;  T.  Hayes,  county  clerk;  F.  Kohler,  recorder;  H.  H. 
Byrne,  attorney;  Cheever  and  Noyes,  to  the  uselessly  double  office  of  dock- 
master;  J.  G.  Pelton,  supt  of  schools;  B.  0.  Devoe,  supt  of  streets.  The 
suitervisors  for  the  twelve  districts  were,  in  numerical  oraer,  C.  W^ilson,  W. 
A.  Darling,  W.  K.  Van  Allen,  M.  S.  Rol)ert»,  S.  Merritt,  C.  W.  Bond,  H.  A. 
George,  Nl  C.  Lane,  W.  Palmer,  R.  G.  Sneath,  J.  J.  Denny,  S.  S.  Tilton. 

**  Perhaps  the  retrenchment  was  too  severe,  for  gas  and  other  needfuls 
were  stopped  for  a  while,  and  streets,  schools,  etc.,  suffered  somewhat. 

'''The  corporation  property  would  at  a  forced  sale  have  realized  barely  one 
third  of  the  indebtedness. 

**  Under  act  of  May  1,  1851,  accordingly  a  coax^oiasioawas  appointed,  em« 


FUin)ED  DEBT. 


171 


Bin* 


bonds  were  issued  for  $1,635,600  out  of  the  two  mil- 
lions due.  Among  those  who  refused  to  surrender 
their  scrip  was  Peter  Smith,'^  who  procured  judg- 
ments against  the  city  and  began  to  levy  upon  its 
property.  Instead  of  raising  money,  as  they  could 
have  done,  for  settling  the  claim,  the  badly  advised 
commissioners  proclaimed  the  levy  illegal  and  fright- 
ened away  buyers  from  the  sale,  so  that  the  few  daring 
speculators  and  schemers  who  bought  the  property,  to 
the  amount  of  some  two  millions,  including  wharves, 
water  lots,  and  the  old  city  hall,  obtained  it  for  a  trifle, 
as  low  as  one  fiftieth  of  the  value  in  some  instances. 
A  large  proportion  of  the  sales  were  confirmed,  and  over 
the  rest  hung  for  years  a  depressing  cloud  which  added 
not  a  little  to  the  sacrifice.**  The  county  debt  was 
funded  in  1852  to  the  amount  of  $98,700  at  seven  per 
cent  interest,  payable  in  ten  years.*' 

Special  loans  being  permitted  under  the  charter, 
bonds  were  issued  two  years  later  for  $60,000  to  aid 
the  struggling  schools,  and  for  $200,000  on  behalf  of 
the  fire  department,  with  interest  at  seven  and  ten 

bracing  P.  A.  Morse,  D.  J.  Tallant,  W.  Hooper,  J.  W.  Geary,  and  J.  King  of 
Wm,  to  issue  stock  and  manage  the  interest  and  the  sinking  fnnd  formed  l>y 
a.  preferred  treasury  assignment  of  $50,000.  The  salary  of  the  commissioners 
was  $1,200  each,  the  prest  and  sec.  receiving  $300  more.  City  property  re- 
quired for  municipal  purposes  was  forever  exempt  from  sale.  AU  city  prop- 
erty was  to  be  conveyed  to  the  commissioners.  CnL  StatutfJt,  1851,  387-01 ; 
Petition  for,  etc.  Id.,  Jour.  Sen.,  p.  1820;  Id.,  Home,  p.  1403-6;  8.  F.  Floating 
DrU.  Mem.;  Alia  CaL,  Jan.  22,  Apr.  1,  1851;  Sac.  Tmmeript,  Feb.  1,  1851. 
Most  holders  accepted  the  stock,  although  not  bound  to  do  so;  a  few  who  held 
aloof  or  lived  abrwtd  were  finally  paid  in  fulL 

''  Who  bad  in  1850  contracted  to  care  for  the  destitute  sick  of  the  city  at 
$4  per  day.     His  claim  now  was  $64,431. 

^The  sales  took  place  on  July  7,  Sept.  17,  1851;  Jan.  2,  30,  1852.  Among 
the  last  was  a  belt  of  600  ft  beyond  the  existing  water-front,  which  brought 
$7,000.  People  treated  thom  as  a  farce,  but  the  aspect  changed  when  in- 
junctions were  issued  against  the  commissioners'  effort  to  dispose  of  the  prop- 
erty. A  compromise  was  offered  in  Feb.  1852,  but  failed,  owing  to  the  hostile 
attitude  of  the  council  in  refusing  to  support  it.  The  commissioners  were 
widely  blamed,  some  hinting  at  secret  connivance  with  the  plunderers,  but 
they  no  doubt  acted  in  good  faith  under  the  legal  advice  given.  The  state  in- 
stituted suit  aaainst  wem  for  25  per  cent  of  the  sold  water  lots.  Had  all 
claimants  joined  in  Smith's  procedure,  the  lack  of  available  means  for  the  total 
would  have  fmatrated  it  AUa  Cal.,  Nov.  24-Deo.  10,  185^  March  30  1853, 
is  especially  full  of  comments. 

^By  act  of  May  4,  1852,  S.  R.  Harris,  F.  D.  Kohler,  and  O.  Frank  being 
commissioners,  who  received  $500  each  for  their  work,  and  the  see.  $1,500. 
For  sinking  fund,  etc.,  see  CaL  Laws,  1850-3,  p.  366-7. 


77i 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


per  cent  respectively,  and  redeemable  within  about 
twelve  years.  Meanwhile  the  administration  had 
again  relapsed  from  the  momentary  fit  of  economy  in 
1851,  with  a  consequent  accumulation  of  fresh  city 
warrants  to  the  amount  of  $2,059,000 ;  but  as  this  sum 
had  been  swelled  largely  by  Meiggs*  fora^eries  and 
other  doubtful  means,  it  was  compounded  under  a 
funding  act  of  1855,  for  $329,000  m  bonds,  bearing 
six  per  cent  interest,  and  redeemable  in  1875.**  The 
management  of  the  different  debts  proved  satisfactory/ 
with  a  steady  increase  of  the  sinking  ^unds  besides 
punctual  payment  of  interest  and  a  partial  reuemption, 
so  that  the  final  settlement  seemed  assured.*^  The 
obligations  connected  with  these  bonds  alone  absorbed 
fully  one  third  of  the  regular  revenue  as  established  in 
1856,  and  accounted  in  a  measure  for  the  ever-recur- 
ring excess  of  expenditure,  notwithstanding  the  liberal 
tax  levy,  as  shown  in  the  annexed  note.*^ 

'0  Act  of  Ma^  7,  1855,  authorized  the  council  to  appoint  three  citizens  as  a 
board  of  examiners,  at  the  same  time  the  mayor,  controller,  and  treas- 
urer acting  as  commissioners  at  $1,209  each  a  year.  The  sinkins  fund  to  be 
started  in  18C5.  Cat  Statuteit,  1855,  285-7.  A  repudiation,  Hittell,  S.  F.,  227, 
tjriiis  it.  In  April  1855  the  scrip  was  quoted  at  61-2  cts.  By  ordinances  of 
Sept.  22, 1853,  and  Dec.  1,  1853.  The  school  bond  sinking  fund  received  i$5,000 
a.inually;  that  of  the  fire  bonds,  $16,6G6;  the  respective  date  of  redemption 
wiis  Nov.  1,  181)5,  and  Dec.  1,  18(56.  8.  F.  Onlin.,  1853,  400,  512-13,  etc. 

'^By  the  middle  of  1856  the  debt  of  1851  had  been  reduced  by  $136,600,  and 
the  county  bonds  were  redeemed  before  half  the  term  had  expired,  at  a  discount 
of  25  per  cent.  The  city  had  so  far  expended  for  the  debt  for  1851  $1 ,  196, 1 17, 
chiefly  for  interest,  less  than  $200,000  going  to  the  sinking  fund.  The  interest 
ou  the  other  three  bonds  had  absorbed  $48,367.  Then  there  was  a  mortgage  on 
the  city  hall  of  ^7,792,  and  $27,792  due  on  the  purchase,  while  the  outstending 
three  per  cent  monthly  scrip  of  1851  and  audited  wan-ants  loomed  above. 
Compare  statements  in  S.  F.  Municipal  Reports  also  of  1859,  1869,  etc.,  and 
abstracts  in  journals  following  the  quarter  and  annual  treasury  reports,  with 
synopsis  in  8.  F.  Bulletin,  Oct.  8,  1855;  Aug.  2,  1856,  etc.;  Merc.  Gax.,  Aug. 
10,  1860;  Alia  Col.,  May  16,  1853;  June  27,  July  7,  1856;  8.  F.  Herald,  icT, 
etc.;  Sac.  Union,  Feb.  19,  March  14,  Apr.  23,  J&ly  14,  1855,  etc. 
''The  rates  of  taxation  since  1850  were: 
Year.  City.  County.  State.  ToUl. 

1850-1.... $1.00  $0.50  (0.50  |2.00 

1851-2 2.45  1.15  .50  4.10 

1852-3 2.45  1.66J  .30  4.41i 

1853-4 2.00  1.28i  ,60  3.884 

1854-5 2.15  I.IOJ  .60  3.85X 

1855-6 2.33J  .824  -70  3.865 

1856-7 1.60  .70  2.30 

The  quarterly  licenses  under  charter  of  1851  were  from  $50  to  $100  on  auction 
and  commission  business  with  dealings  from  $25,000  a  year  downward,  and 


FIRES  AND  BUILDINO& 


77» 


Out  of  the  sweeping  conflagrations  of  her  early 
years,   San   Francisco   had   emerged   a  transformed 

$150  ou  dealings  above  $50,000;  merchanta  and  manufacturers  paid  about  ( 
to  i  more,  and  wholesale  liquor  dealers  $10  above  this.  Bar-rooms  paid  $S0 
on  business  Iwlow  $2,000  per  month,  and  $60  and  $100  for  limits  of  $1,000 
and  over;  restaurants  and  coffee-houses  $25;  brokera  $50;  pedlers  $100,  ex- 
cept when  selling  produce  raised  within  the  corporate  limits;  omnibuses  $15, 
two-horse  hacks  $10,  and  wagons  $8;  gambling-houses  $50;  billiard  and 
bowling  halls  $25  for  each  table  or  alley.  S.  F,  Manual,  1852,  30  et  seq. 
These  sources  yielded  for: 


Year. 
1850-1.. 
1851-2.., 
1852-3.., 
1853-4.., 
1854-5... 
1855-6.. 
1856-7... 


City 
Taxes. 
.$163,013 
.  3J5,6C1 
.  397,033 
.  692,240 
.  682,732 
.  424,766 
.  290,846 


Municipal 

Licenses. 

$59,691 

276,8.35 

328,039 

188,508 

103,784 

33,054 

69,927 


County 
Taxes. 
$119,028 
122,632 
313,217 
419,378 
389,620 
244,337 


State  Taxes 

and  Licenses. 

$137,003 

102,620 

93,683 

210,339 

291,896 

180,019 

146,969 


Totals. 

$478,635 

810,648 

1,131,872 

1,410,473 

l,368,0.'i2 

882.176 

497,732 


The  state  licenses  averaged  about  $23,000  a  year  except  for  1854-^,  when  they 
readied  $108,479;  and  the  poll-tax  about  $3,003  annually  for  1850-6,  except 
1852-3,  when  $11,8.33  was  obtained;  the  rest  of  the  state  receipts  in  S.  F.  co. 
caine  from  property  tax. 

The  assessed  value  of  property  was: 


Year. 

Real  Estate.       Improvements.  Personal  Prop. 

ToUls. 

1850-1. 

.  .$10,849,054 

Included        $4,772,160 

$21,621,214 

1851-2. 

...   11,141,463 

in               2,875,440 

14,010,903 

1852-3. 

...  15,676,356 

personal          2,805.381 

18,481,7K7 

1853-4. 

...  17,889,850 

$6,158,300         4,852,030 

28,930,150 

1854-5. 

...  19,765,285 

9,159,935         6,837,607 

34,702,827 

1835-6. 

...  18,607,800 

8,394,926         5,073,847 

32,070,572 

1856-7. 

...  17,827,617 

8,345,667         4,194,970 

30,368,254 

The  expenditure  stood  as  follows: 

Year. 

City. 

County. 

Totals. 

1850-1. 

$1,694,459 

$118,988 

$1,813,447 

1851-2. 

340,628 

115,704 

456,332 

1852-3. 

716  302 

292,727 

1,009,029 
1,831,825 

1853-4. 

1,440,792 

391,033 

1354r-5. 

2,167,227 

478,9G3 

2,646,190 

1855-6. 

625,633 

330,487 

856.120 

1856-7. 

353,292 

Aa  compared  with  1853-5  the  items  for  1856-7  show  the  following  large 
reductions: 

Year  1853-t 

Street  dept ^79,093 

Wharf  purchase 205,314 

Salaries 252,898 

Hospital  dept 213,364 

Police  and  prison 149,305 

Fire  dept 126,607 

School  dept 62,033 

Advertising  and  stationery. ...     46, 1 44 

Assessment  expenses 32,314 

Legal  se»',ice 28,254 

Elections 21,669 

Street  lights 11,692 

Sundries,  old  debts,  etc 143, 138 


Yearl854-S. 

$909,948 

61,119 

320,345 

278,328 

236,690 

263,123 

157,8.34 

63,231 

4.5,011 

31,821 

22,920 

44,204 

209,619 


Year  1856-7. 
$605 

76,244 

40,3liO 

59,266 

3.3,014 

85,323 

344 

7,292 

10,700 

784 

39,360 


$1,831,825  $2,646,190  $353,292 


776 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


city,*"  vaster  and  more  substantial,  yet  with  marked 
peculiarities,  as  in  half  cut  away  hills  and  curious 
grades,  and  in  the  business  centre  by  a  fortress-like 
architecture  of  massive  walls,  recessed  windows,  and 
forbidding  iron  shutters,  to  defy  the  flames.  The  era  of 
tents  and  shanties  passed  into  one  of  brick  and  granite,** 

See  authoritieR  of  preceding  note.  The  Annals  8.  F.,  393-4,  calculates 
that  the  taxation,  including  indirect  customR  duties,  was  in  1851 -'2  ^6 
per  head  of  city  population.  List  of  largo  tax-payers  and  mortgages  in 
Hunt's  May.,  xxxii.  610;  AUn  Cat.,  Dec.  1»,  1855;  Sae.  Union,  Oct.  4,  1855, 
etc. 

^'Aa  described  in  the  preceding  chapter  on  the  city.  After  1851,  only 
minor  tires  took  place,  the  largest  of  which,  on  Nov.  9,  1852,  destroyed  some 
32  buildings  in  the  ]>lock  between  Merchant  and  Clay  sts,  east  of  Ktamy,  val- 
ued at  $100,000.  The  fire-proof  city  hall  block  checked  the  iianies.  Tlie 
Rassette  house,  corner  of  Bush  and  Sansome,  burned  May  2,  1853,  value 
$100,000.  Several  of  the  416  boarders  were  injured.  The  St  Francis  hotel 
burned  in  Oct.  1853.  See,  further,  S.  F.  Fire  Dept  Scraps,  12-14;  AUa  Cat., 
June  14,  1855;  July  28,  1856. 

**  Brick  fields  were  established,  yet  bricks  came  long  from  the  cheajier  and 
superior  sources  of  Australia,  N.  Y.,  etc.,  lava  from  Hawaii,  granite  from 
China.  The  first  granite-faced  building  was  erected,  with  Chinese  aid,  by  J. 
Parrott  in  1862,  completed  in  Nov.,  at  a  cost  of  $117,000.  It  was  the  three- 
story  building,  68  by  102  feet,  on  the  n.  w.  corner  of  Montgomery  and  Cali- 
fornia st,  at  hrst  occupied  by  Adams  &,  Co.  and  Page,  Bacon,  &  Co.  A.  still 
larger  buildine  of  the  same  type,  four  stories  high,  62  by  68  feet,  rose  oa  the  N.  E. 
comer,  completed  Jan.  1854,  costing  $180,(M0.  It  was  occupied  by  Wells, 
Fargo,  k  Co.,  and  the  Pioneer  Society.  Views  of  both,  in  S.  P.  AnnaU,  415, 
514;  Moiitifomery's  Remin.,  MS.,  1-2;  U.  S.  Census,  Tenth,  x.  352-3.  The 
Folaom  quarries  were  opened  soon  after  to  odd  material  for  houses  as  well  as 
cobble  pavinz.  Sac.  Union,  June  14,  1856.  Among  oLher  notable  buildings 
erected  Dy  this  time  were  the  Montgomery  block,  on  Mont,  st,  between  Wash- 
ington and  Merchant,  completed  in  Dec.  1853,  4  stories,  122  by  138  feet,  so  far 
the  largest  and  finest  block  on  the  Pacific;  Rassette  house,  on  the  comer  of 
Bush  and  Sansome,  5  stories,  with  200  rooms,  the  largest  edifice  of  the  kind; 
the  citv  hall,  3  stories,  74  by  125  feet,  costing  $240,000  as  transformed;  custom- 
house block  of  1853,  s.  E.  comer  of  Sansome  and  Sacramento,  3  stories,  80  by 
185  ft,  costing  $140,000;  Bay  State  row,  Battery  near  Bush,  175  ft  square,  50 
ft  high,  costing  $140,000;  Orleans  row  of  1853,  n.  w.  comer  California  and 
Davis,  2  stories,  60  varas  square,  coat  $136,000;  Armory  Hall  of  1853,  N.  K. 
corner  Montgomery  and  Sacramento,  4  stories,  60  ft  square,  $125,000;  Masonic 
Hall,  Montgomery  st,  between  Sacramento  and  California,  of  1853,  4  stories, 
40  by  50  ft,  $125,000,  inclulii:!):  the  land;  the  Empire  of  1852,  s.  w.  corner  of 
California  and  Battery,  2  itnn?::s  89  by  184  ft,  $110,000;  Merchant-streut 
block,  between  Montt,!imery  &S)A  Kearny,  of  1853,  3  stories,  50  ft  square, 
$100,000,  including  land;  Fhcfuix  block  of  1852,  Clay  st,  between  Montgom- 
ery and  Kearny,  3  sto)-i6<<,  jO  by  180  ft,  $105,000;  the  post-office  of  1850, 
N.  E.  comer  Kearny  and  Cby,  2  stories,  87  by  90  ft,  $98,000;  Maynard  row  of 
1852,  N.  w.  comer  Califomia  and  Battery,  2  stories,  70  by  182  ft,  $85,030; 
the  Battelle  of  1853,  Montgomery,  between  Clay  and  Commercial,  5  stories; 
court  block  of  Jan.  1854,  Clay  near  Kearny,  3  stories,  41  by  108  ft;  Howard's 
of  1850,  which  had  escaped  many  fires,  4  stories;  Naglee's  of  1851,  s.  w. 
Montgomery  and  Merchant,  3  stories,  40  by  137  ft;  Riddle's  of  1853,  Clay 
near  Leidesdorff,  3  stories,  50  by  90  ft;  Merchant's  exchange,  on  Battery,  on 
imposing  edifice.  The  not  very  pretentious  custom-house  building  on  Battery 
Bt,  completed  in  Oct.  1855,  cost  over  $850,000 


STREETS  AND  HTLL9. 


ITT 


which  with  the  increase  of  safer  structures  assumed  a 
lij^hter  and  more  ornamental  form.** 

The  business  part  of  the  city  advanced  into  the  bay 
for  half  a  dozen  blocks  within  as  many  years,  following 
close  upon  the  piling,  and  bearing  along  the  sand  hills 
from  its  rear  to  provide  a  more  stable  foundation  for 
the  substantial  edifices  which  gradually  replaced  the 
wooden  ones.**  Attracted  by  the  deep  water  and  better 
wharves  of  Clark  Point,  and  partly  by  the  promises 
of  North  Beach,  with  its  expanse  of  level  «(round,  fair 
anchorage,  and  proximity  to  the  bay  gate,  tlie  com- 
mercial centre  took  a  decidedly  northward  direction 
after  1852-3,  as  shown  by  the  construction  of  the 
custom-house,  in  1854-5,  on  Jackson  and  Battery 
streets,  surrounded  by  the  merchants*  exchange  and 
other  representative  buildings.*^  While  the  crumbling 
slopes  of  Telegraph  hill  were  made  to  yield  under  this 
movement,  cognate  and  especially  manufacturing  in- 
terests continued  their  onslaught  upon  the  drift  hills 
south  of  California  street,  and  rapidly  levelled  their 
way  to  Happy  Valley.  All  around  the  fringe  of  dwell- 
ings grew  denser,  with  increasing  family  ties,  the 
fashionable  ones  clustering  near  South  Park,  on  Third 


^  An  improved  fire  departmenc  and  the  extension  of  fire  insoranoe  gave 
courage  to  the  cautious  for  erecting  superior  houses. 

**C'ars  laden  with  sand  by  steam-paddies  were  constantly  rattling  down 
the  inclines  along  the  water-front.  Despite  tillage  the  toundation  was  not 
very  secure.  The  American  theatre  on  Sansome  st  setUed  two  inches  on  the 
inauguration  night  and  a  ^art  of  the  U.  S.  warehouse  fell  in  18r>4.  Storms 
occasionally  made  serious  inroads  on  the  loose  fillago,  and  drove  the  waters 
over  the  low  ground.  Instance  on  Dec.  21,  1S51,  and  Dec  17,  1852, 
the  latter  causing  a  loss  of  $200,000  to  vessels  and  buildings.  AHa  Cal.,  Nov. 

4,  Dec.  18,  1852;  S.  F.  Herald,  Jan.  3,  1855;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Nov.  2,  1855. 
Reports  on  grades,  in  S.  F.  Board  of  Entjineers,  licpt,  1-27.     See  chapter  on 

5.  F.    Although  Market  st  was  in  1852  opened  between  Kearny  and  Battery  st, 
yet  as  late  as  1857  high  hills  blocked  it  ucyond  Third  st. 

*'The  banking-house  of  Lucas,  Turner,  &,  Co.,  and  several  other  lead- 
ing firms,  moved  away  from  California  st  to  the  Jackson-st  end  of  Mont- 
gomery st,  in  1854-6,  and  erected  costly  housos.  Sherman's  reason?,  are 
given  m  lus  item.,  L  104,  etc.  Pacific  st  was  graded  through  the  rocks  at 
Sansome  st,  and  extensive  encroachments  were  made  on  Telegraph  hill  for  fil- 
lage  along  its  base,  and  for  ballast  to  departing  ships,  till  'vhcat  came  to  serve 
this  purpose.  At  Clark  Point  rose  in  1851  three  U.  S.  bonded  warehouses 
of  iron,  part  of  which  were  buried  at  the  close  of  that  year  by  falling  rocks 
from  the  hill.  The  discovery  of  a  small  gold  quc^rtz  vein  in  the  hill,  in  1851, 
promised  for  a  time  to  advance  the  grading.  Mom,  Post,  Sept.  29,  1851. 


778 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


street,  and  along  Stockton  street  toward  the  slopes  of 
Pussian  liill,*^  and  houses  being  freely  sprinkled  even 
beyond  the  circling  summits  and  west  of  Leavenworth 
street. 

It  was  a  straggling  city,  however,  with  its  dumps 
and  blotches  of  hills  and  hillocks,  of  bleak  spots  of 
vacancy  and  ugly  cuts  and  raised  lines  The  archi- 
tecture was  no  less  patchy,  for  in  the  centre  prison- 
like and  graceful  structures  alternated,  interspersed 
with  frail  wooden  frames  and  zinc  and  corrugated  iron 
walls,  and  occasionally  the  hull  of  some  liauled-up 
vessel;  while  beyond  rude  cabins  and  ungainly  super- 
imposed stories  of  lodging-houses  in  neglected  grounds 
varied  with  tasteful  villas  embowered  in  foliage,  and 
curious  houses  perched  high  on  square-cut  mounds.*" 
For  a  time  caution  set  the  fashion  for  residences  al.so 
of  brick,  but  the  winter  rains,  the  summer  fogs,  and 
above  all  the  cost  and  the  startlinjj  admonition  of 
earthquakes,  soon  created  so  general  a  preference  for 
frame  dwellings  of  all  grades,  as  to  make  brick  dwell- 
ings a  rarity,  and  to  place  another  mark  of  j^oculiarity 
upon  the  city.  Wood  affirmed  its  supremacy  by  yield- 
ing more  readily  to  the  growing  taste  for  elaborate 
ornamentation.  The  distribution  of  races  in  this  cos- 
mopolitan settlement  added  to  the  many  distinctive 
quarters  raised  by  fashion,  by  branches  of  trade  and 
manufacture,  the  most  notable  being  the  Hispano- 
Amcrican  district  along  the  south-western  slope  of 
Telegraph  hill,  adjoined  by  French  and  Italian  colo- 
nies southward,  and  the  striking  Chinatown,  which 
was  fast  spreading  along  Dupont  street  its  densely 


**Here,  between  Washington  st  and  Wiishington  square,  was  the  chief 
promenade,  near  thu  adjoining  cliuruhej,  an. I  with  DupuhC  tit  a»  the  thorougli- 
lare  from  the  business  cuutro.  Paeilic  st  aht>vu  Stocktoa  st  was  in  185;{  granted 
to  a  phmk-road  company  to  be  opened  to  Larkin  st  under  toll.  H.  F.  i)nlin., 
1853,  Ilti. 

♦"The  'antique  castle  '  on  the  s.  E.  corner  of  Stockton  and  Sacramento  sts 
was  a  three-story  brick  building,  plastered  and  painted  in  imitation  of  stcme  ■ 
work,  each  block  of  a  diti'erent  color.  Its  iustory  is  given  in  S.  F.  <  till,  Nov. 
18,  1878.  Of  the  solid  houses  in  the  central  part  (KH)  were  valued  at  over 
$13,000,000.  Some  were  so  frail  aa  to  fall.  Siic.  Tramcrhat,  May  15,  1851; 
S.  F.  JiuUetni,  July  22,  185(J;  AUa  Cal.,  Nov.  17,  1856. 


WATER  AND  GAS. 


77» 


'ly 


crowded  and  squalid  interiors,  relieved  here  and  there 
by  curioHs  signs  and  fa9ade8  in  gold  and  green,  and 
pouring  forth  files  of  strangely  attired  beings. 

Owing  to  the  unexpected  extension  of  the  city  into 
the  bay,  and  to  defects  in  the  original  plan,  it  was 
aiflicted  with  a  faulty  drainage,  against  which  tlie 
prevailing  west  winds,  however,  offered  a  partial  safe- 
guard. The  lack  of  good  water  was  another  disad- 
vantage. The  supply  came  for  several  years  from  two 
or  three  brooks,  a  number  of  wells,**  and  from  Sauza- 
lito,^'  whence  it  was  brought  by  steamboats  to  the 
reservoirs  of  the  water  company,  and  distributed  by 
carts  among  the  inhabitants.*^ 

Tlie  requirements  of  the  fire  department  for  their 
numerous  cisterns  proved  a  strong  inducement  for 
laying  pipes  from  Mountain  Lake,  but  the  ])r()ject 
was  delayed.^  The  city  suffered  also  for  years  from 
lack  of  proper  street  lighting.  The  first  public  oil- 
lamps  began  in  October  1850  to  partially  relieve  citi- 
zens from  carrying  lanterns  as  a  protection  against  the 
numerous  pitfalls,  but  it  was  not  until  three  years  and 
a  half  later  that  gas-lights  appeared.^      The  streets 

'*The  Croton,  Cochituate,  and  Dall  aiul  Doran  were  the  leatlin^  wells. 
Account  of,  in  AU<i  Vat.,  Oct.  25,  18o2;  Apr.  19,  ISJ.'!;  .July  '21,  1855;  Sac, 
Union,  Aug.  25,  1855.     They  yieUleil  each  15,000  t<»  30,U0J  gallons  daily. 

'■'  The  old  watering-place  for  whalers,  etc. 

''■■'  In  the  spring  of  1854  aUout  05  teams  were  thus  employed.  A  onediorse 
water-cart  with  a  good  route  sold  for  t^l.-lOO  or  tl.SiW.  Families  were  sup- 
plied at  from  ^  to  iii>5  a  mouth.  The  Sauzalito  Water  and  Steant  Tug  Comp. 
organi/.L'd  in  1851  to  furnish  200,000  gallons  daily,  and  to  tow  vcssids;  capital, 
lfl5l),0>)0.     They  claimed  theirs  to  be  the  ouly  water  that  would  kfcp  at  sua. 

•■'The  Mountain  Lake  Wat  r  Co.  wns  organize<l  in  Oct.  1H5I  with  a  capi- 
tal of  $50(),()00.  'the  lake,  l>Mig  3.J  indcs  wej«t  from  the  piazii,  beyond  tlie 
hills,  was  supplied  by  a  lartre  drainage  and  seteral  springs.  See  their  char- 
ter and  prospectus  of  lSi.i-2,  p.  1-14;  S.  F.  Jlnnwil,  21'J;  AUa  f'ul.,  Jan.  25, 
July  8,  1852;  May  l.'l,  1853;  July  25,  18.55.  The  company  wiis  reorganii-x'il 
and  their  time  of  limitation  successively  extended,  but  after  stiirting  the  work 
in  May  ISii'i  the  cost  wiis  foutnl  to  excred  estimates,  and  the  promoters  lu'ld 
back.  ,S.  F.  Ordin.,  131,  204-0,  '245-6,  :{'J2;  S.  F.  Ihrf^rUiry,  IS.Vl,  212;  1850-7, 
p.  I'.H;  .S'.  /'.  Bulktin,  Dec.  7,  1855;  Sept.  22-3,  l»ec.  I.'i,  185«;,  with  allusions 
to  a  new  project.     The  tire  du|>t  hiul  ia  lH,"v4  alrea<ly  S8  Lir;;e  cisterns. 

^'The  first  oil-lamps  were  lighted  in  Merchant  st  by  J.  B.  M.  ('rooks,  and 
paid  for  by  subscription.  Ho  t«M)k  coutractii  from  the  cit>  in  1852.  S.  F, 
/  ,  ',518.  Montgomery  st  was  tirst  lighted  on  March  .'tlst.  AlUi  i'tiL, 
Apr.  1,  1851;  Dec.  31,  1852;  S.  F.  Ihmhl,  July  7.  1850;  Jan.  18,  1853.  Yet 
street  lighting  did  not  l>ecome  contmon  till  Jan.  i?>53.  After  several  projects 
the  S.  I",  (ras  Co.  organizeil  in  185:i,  with  B.  C.  .Sander^  ;:■*  piCKt,  J,  M  Moss, 
Jus  Dunohue,  etc.;  capital  i^50,rAio.     Their  workii  Wei's  W-j^uu  <n  Nov.  ou 


780 


ANN.iLS  OF  SAN  FRANaSCO. 


suffered  long  after  from  want  of  proper  paving  and 
cleaning/^  The  plaza  remained  a  waste  eyesore  till 
1854,  when  grading  and  planting  changed  its  aspect.^ 
By  this  time  communication  had  been  facilitated  by  at 
firnt  half-hourly  omnibuses  between  North  Beach  and 
South  Park,  with  two  lines  to  the  mission,  which  in 
1856  were  supplemented  by  one  to  the  presidio/^ 
Occasional  conveyances  connected  also  with  Huss  gar- 
dens, the  new  pleasure  resort  on  Sixth  street,  with 
the  picturesque  Lone  Mountain  cemetery,"^^  and  with 
the  fortification  begun  in  1854  at  Fort  Point,  to  be 
supported  by  similar  works  at  Point  San  Josd,  Alca- 
traz  and  Angel  islands,  all  of  which  vied  with  the 
time-honored  mission  and  its  race-tracks  and  gardens 
in  attacting  especially  Sunday  revellers. 


The  progress  of  San  Francisco  was  particularly 
marked  in  1853  with  the  expansion  of  business  under 
the  increasing  gold  yield  and  general  development. 
An  excitement  seized  upon  the  entire  community;  real 
estate  rose,  building  operations  were  undertaken  in 
every  direction,  with  costly  structures  in  the  central 

Front  st  between  Howard  and  Fremont  sts.  Posts  were  otilered  for  Dec. 
1853.  S.  F.  Ordin.,  1853,  474;  8.  F.  Directory,  1854,  p.  2G0;  185G-7,  p.  77-8; 
iju'ujkys  Irisli,  376.  On  Feb.  11,  1854,  a  few  leading  streets  and  buildings  were 
lirst  lighted.  Three  miles  of  pipes  were  then  laid  and  gradually  extending. 
The  price  was  $15  per  1,000  ft,  which  in  view  of  wages  and  cost  of  coal — see 
chapter  on  commerce^was  claimed  to  be  20  per  cent  cheaper  than  in  N.  Y. 
In  1856  this  was  reduced  to  $12.50,  but  street-lamps,  which  consumed  one 
fourth  of  the  80,000  ft  daily  manufactured,  continued  to  be  charged  at  32^ 
cents  each  per  night.  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Apr.  12,  Sept.  3,  Nov.  29,  1856.  The 
bill  for  11  months  was  $46,000.  Attn  Cal,  June  28,  1856.  Gas  was,  however, 
in  use  9  months  earlier.  Id.,  May  15,  1853;  V'll.  Fares,  etc.,  1-2. 

''''  The  first  sprinkler  appeared  May  2,  1851,  but  garbage,  mud,  rats,  and 
other  nuisances  were  general.  Cobble-stones  were  brought  from  Folsoin  in 
1856.  Sac.  Union,  June  14,  1856. 

^A  contract  was  made  for  $33,450,  S.  F.  Ordin.,  1853-4,  291;  but  the 
total  charged  for  that  year  was  $40, 138.     An  iron  fence  was  added. 

*'  The  Market-st  rail  line  was  projected  in  1854,  "nd  the  Mission  line  be- 
gun in  1856,  but  their  completion  extends  beyond  this  period.  S.  F.  Direct., 
1854-6;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  Dec.  4,  1855;  Mar.  29,  Apr.  1,  3,  16,  30,  May  12, 
Sept.  15,  1856;  AUa  Cal.,  July  14,  1853;  July  22,  1854;  Apr.  30,  1856.  The 
public  hacks  of  the  day  included  Brewster  coaches  worth  $4,000,  with  silver 
plating  and  rich  fittings. 

**  Projected  in  Nov.  1853,  and  inaugurated  May  30,  1*^54,  with  160  acres 
of  undulating  ground.  After  the  first  interment  in  June  it  quickly  became 
the  favorite  burial-place.  AUa  Cat.,  May  17,  30,  1854;  S.  F.  Bulletin,  May  6, 
1864. 


KISE  AND  FALL 


781 


parts,  and  everybody  yielded  to  extravagant  hopes. 
Of  more  than  600  of  the  stone  and  brick  buildings 
nearly  one  half  were  erected  in  course  of  that  year, 
the  assessed  value  of  property  increased  from  $18,- 
500,000  to  $28,900,000,  and  the  population,  including 
transients,  was  estimated  toward  the  close  of  the  year 
as  high  as  50,000,  or  fully  one  seventh  of  the  total  in 
the  state.  But  the  advance  was  based  on  fictitious 
values.  The  country  was  on  the  eve  of  an  industrial 
revolution.  Mining  had  reached  its  culminating  point 
and  driven  workers  to  agricultural  pursuits,  which 
now  made  themselves  apparent  by  a  home  production 
that  rapidly  displaced  the  staple  imports  and  carried 
their  channels  of  distribution  away  from  San  Fran- 
cisco. So  serious  a  blow,  added  to  the  general  re- 
trenchment in  the  interior  consequent  upon  a  change 
from  extravagant  camp  life  and  high  wages  to  sedate 
self-supplying  farm  occupations,  had  a  staggering  effect 
upon  the  prevailing  inflation.  Under  the  sudden 
decline  of  business  the  newly  erected  warehouses  were 
found  needless,  offices  were  abandoned  or  reduced, 
workers  were  thrown  out  of  employment.  The  ripples 
of  disaster  spread  wider  and  wider,  manifested  by 
teuantlesy  houses,  declining  wages  and  revenue,  and 
falling  values  of  real  estate  and  other  property."^" 
Additional  burdens  came  in  the  growing  corruption  of 
oI^v•ills,  attended  by  dissipation  of  property  and  revo- 
nnc  by  election  frauds  and  growing  debts,  following 
iip'ri  recent  devastations  by  fire  and  criminals,  tlie 
whoJB  culminating  in  tlie  commercial  crisis  of  1855, 
a!  «  v..  the  glaring  political  disorders  which  in  the  suc- 


'^'The  advance  of  25  per  cent  and  more  in  real  estate  from  1852  to  18o3 
was  more  than  lost.  Four  small  blocks  eight  fuet  under  water,  between  Com- 
mercial and  C'lav  sts,  from  Davis  st  eastward,  sold  in  Dec.  1853  for  {[!  1,1 98, 550, 
or  an  average  of  98,000  to  ^,000  per  lot,  corners  as  high  as  $10,000.  A  few 
months  later  they  might  have  been  bought  at  one  half.  Indeed,  vacant  lota 
became  unsalable.  Out  of  1,000  business  nouaes  300  were  deserted.  The  Union 
hotel,  renting  for  $6,000,  was  in  1855  let  at  $1,000.  Compare  statements 
in  the  journals  of  the  period,  especially  AUaCal.,  Jan.  19,  1853;  Aug.  18, 
Oct.  10,  Nov.  14,  1856;  Sac.  Union,  June  21-30,  Oct.  16,  1855.  Prices  nortli- 
ward  held  thoir  own.  In  Hayes  Valley  60-vara  lots  sold  in  Oct.  1856  fur 
i.um  ^5  to  $250. 


782 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


ceeding  year  roused  the  people  t  -  forcibly  reform  the 
entire  administration  by  means  of  a  portentous  vigi- 
lance movement. 

But  the  crisis  passed,  and  business  assumed  its 
nor!)ial  course,  with  new  and  surer  channels,  regulated 
by  a  truer  standard.  As  it  regained  strength,  under 
the  auspices  of  unfolding  resources  and  a  growing 
settled  population,  the  city  responded  to  the  impulse. 
She  reasserted  her  claim  as  the  Pacific  metropolis, 
pointing  to  her  position  at  the  Golden  Gate  outlet, 
to  her  dry-dock,  her  vast  array  of  wharves,  ware- 
houses,*** and  other  facilities;  her  blocks  of  substan- 
tial bii  'ress  structures,  whence  radiated  extending 
suburbs,  m  .'<  ined  by  fast-increasing  manufacturcs,"- 
embracing  a  dozen  important  foundries,  machine 

and  boiler  works,  employing  several  hundred  men; 
four  saw-mills,  besides  sash,  blind,  and  box  factories; 
eleven  flouring  mills  with  a  capacity  of  1,100  barrels 


**  At  Rincon  Point,  established  in  Apr.  1851. 

*' Riiplaeiiig  tlic  suveuscore  and  more  of  storage  ships  used  in  Oct.  18i)l. 
Atinnln  S.  I''.,  H55.  Concerning  wharves,  sec  my  former  chapter  on  8.  F.,  and 
my  next  vohime;  also  chapter  ou  commerce,  for  sliipping,  etc. 

*'■'  Of  five  foundries,  in  the  Happy  Valley  region,  the  Union  iron-works  main- 
tained the  leading  place,  pioneers  as  tliey  were,  founded  in  184i)  hy  1'.  Dono- 
hue  and  hrotlicr.  Tlie  Sutter  iron-works  and  the  I'acific  foundry  opened  in 
1850,  the  Vulcan  iron-works  in  1851,  and  the  Fulton  in  1855,  two  employing 
in  1850  some  .30  men  each,  and  the  others  from  50  to  nearly  200  each.  Tlie 
boiler- works  of  Coffee  and  Risdon  employed  40  men.  Minor  esta1)lishments  of 
the  above  class  were  the  Excelsior,  Kmpire,  Pluenix,  and  those  of  S.  F.  Kern 
and  F.  Snow,  supplemented  by  Carem  and  Renther,  W.  H.  Clarke,  and  Mahly 
&  Fabra.  There  were  also  wire-works,  2  brass-foundries,  a  dozen  tinsmiths, 
half  a  dozen  each  of  sliip  and  copper  smiths;  4  saw-mills,  7  sash  and  blind 
factories,  half  a  dozen  turners,  2  uox  fiietories,  2  willow  and  wooden  ware 
establishments;  11  Houring  mills,  5  coffee  and  spice  mills.  The  S.  F.  sugar 
refinery  employed  over  100  men.  There  were  also  a  steam  cracker  factory 
and  steam  candy-works;  a  dozen  and  a  half  of  breweries,  among  them  the 
Pliiladelphia  in  the  leatl;  1  malt-maker,  2  distilleries,  .3  vinegar  factories, 

8  soda  and  G  syrup  and  ginger-ale  manufacturers,  1  chemical  work,  1  gold 
refinery,  1  metallurgical,  half  a  dozen  manufactories  of  soap  and  candles,  9  of 
camphenc  and  oil,  2  of  wash  fluids,  5  packers;  a  score  of  coopers,  two  dozen 
wagon  and  carriage  makers;  3  pump  and  block  makers,  2  l)oat-builders,  5 
sail-makers,  a  score  of  saddlers;  cordage  works,  5  billiard-table  manufactories, 
1  piano-forte  maker,  1  furniture  factory,  a  dozen  and  a  half  upholsterers, 

9  carvers  and  gilders,  2  lapidaries,  numerous  goldsmiths  and  jewellers,  2 
opticians,  1  watch-case  maker,  2  sculptors,  9  engravers,  8  lithographers,  a 
score  of  })rinting -offices,  1  stereotype  foundry,  half  a  dozen  bor  ',ibiuderies,  and 
other  establishments  for  supplying  clothing,  food,  etc.  The  Annnh  S.  F., 
492,  numerates  in  1854  fully  160  hotels  and  public  houses,  60  restaurants,  03 
bakeries,  48  markets,  chiolly  butcher-shops,  20  baths,  and  IS  public  stables. 


INDUSTRIES. 


783 


^.  82 


daily';  a  steam  cracker  factory ;  a  largo  suj^ar  refinery ; 
a  dozen  and  a  half  breweries,  besides  distilleries,  soda 
and  syrup  works;  several  oil,  candle,  and  soap  works; 
billiard-table  manufactories;  a  beginning  in  furniture 
making;  and  a  host  of  establishments  concerned  in 
supplying  necessities  and  luxuries  for  mining,  field, 
and  home  life,  a  larg:o  proportion  of  an  artistic  stamp. 
Happy  Valley,  and  the  adjoining  region  south  of 
Market  street,  were  the  centre  for  heavy  industries. 
North  Beach  claimed  also  a  share,  while  Kearny 
street,  as  the  connecting  link,  displayed  their  pro- 
ductions in  shops  which  for  rich  and  striking  ap- 
pearance we:n  already  rivalling  those  of  eastern  cities. 
In  1854  then  .ore  five  public  markets,  of  which  two 
hafl  f)ver  two  d<jzcn  stalls  each. 

No  Itss  marked  were  the  social  features,  daily 
strengthened  in  the  domestic  atmosphere,  with  its  at- 
tendant religious  and  benevolent  admixture.  The  first 
male  organizations,  for  protection,  had  expanded  into  a 
dozen  military  companies,  with  ornamental  as  well  as 
useful  aims,**  su{)plemented  by  the  semi-heroic  fire 
brigades,  seventeen  in  number,  including  tliree  liook- 
and-ladder  companies,"*  and  by  several  clubs,  witli  ad- 
juncts for  gymnastic,  convivial,  moral,  and  literary 
purposes/^  Fraternal  societies  had  blossomed  into 
numerous  lodges,  among  Free  Masons,  Odd  Fellows, 
and  Temperance  societies,  and  traders  and  professional 


"'The  First  Cal.  Guards  Co.,  formed  in  July  1849,  under  Naglce  out  of  the 
Hounds  affair,  was  followed  iu  succeeding  y>-ars  by  others  nmlcr  the  title  of 
rides,  lancers,  cadet.*,  blues,  fusiliers,  mostly  of  50  men  each.  The  first 
battalion  parade,  on  July  4,  IS')."?,  embraced  six  S.  F.  companies.  Annuls 
.S\  /'.,  454,  702,  etseq. 

"*  As  outlined  in  the  former  S.  F.  chapter. 

"•'  Tlie  Union  and  <  Jerman  were  among  representative  social  club.j.  There 
were  two  gymnasiums,  two  clubs  for  vocal  culture,  one  for  chess.  Among 
literary  associations  were  two  Hebrew,  one  Gorman,  one  catholic,  one  for  sea- 
men, besides  the  general  Atheniuum  an<l  Cal.  academy  of  Sciences  and  the 
Mercantile  Library  and  Mechanic's  Institute.  Patriotic  motives  bound  many 
of  them,  although  special  ones  existed,  as  in  the  New  England  society.  Among 
religious  associations  were  Cal.  Bible  Soc.  of  1849,  the  S.  F.  Tract  Soc,  and  the 
Y.  Alen's  Chri.st.  Assoc.  There  were  several  trade  associations,  including  ono 
for  reporters  and  three  medical.  Sons  of  Temperance  and  the  Grand  Temple  of 
Honor  formed  two  abstinenco  societies,  each  with  several  lodges;  the  lodges 
of  the  Masons  and  Odd  Fellows,  12  aud  10  respectively. 


784 


ANNALS  OP  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


unions  were  rapialy  forming.  Although  benevolent 
associations  had  been  started  in  1849  by  the  male  com- 
munity, they  received  their  encouragement  mainly 
with  the  growth  of  families.  Women,  indeed,  figure 
as  promoters  of  two  Hebrew  societies  and  one  for  sea- 
men, besides  assisting  several  others,  particularly  the 
two  catholic  and  protestant  orphan  asylums"  and  the 
four  hospitals,  among  them  the  United  States  Marine, 
which  formed  one  of  the  imposing  features  of  the  city. 
These  and  other  objects  had  effective  cooperation  from 
members  of  the  society  of  Pioneers,  founders  as  they 
were  of  the  state.  Education  received  their  early  at- 
tention, and  from  the  one  small  beginning  in  1848-9  the 
public  schools  had  increased  to  seventeen,  some  of  pri- 
mary, others  of  grammar  and  intermediate  order,  one 
high  school,  also  one  evening  school,  with  an  attend- 
ance of  nearly  3,400,  for  which  the  average  monthly 
expenditure  was  over  $12,000.  There  were  also  two 
superior  girls'  schools,  a  Jesuit  school,  and  the  San 
Francisco  college.*^  The  thirty-two  congregations  of 
the  city  embraced  eight  protestant,  six  catholic,  and  two 
Hebrew  bodies,  besides  a  convent  for  the  two  sisters 
of  Mercy.  Some  of  them  worshipped  in  halls,  but 
most  possessed  special  temples,  the  most  imposing 
being  the  catholic  cathedral.^* 

Notwithstanding  the  numerous  churches,  the  inhabi- 
tants were  by  no  means  devout,  as  may  readily  bo 
understood.     The  reckless  and  exuberant  spirit  of  the 

•*  Both  established  in  1 851.  Among  benevolent  societies  were  four  Hebrew, 
one  Chinese,  two  Irish,  one  Swiss,  one  Gterman,  and  one  French,  the  two  liitt  r 
with  good  hospitals,  and  three  for  women  alone.  The  sisters  of  Murcy  super- 
vised the  city  and  county  hospital,  and  the  government  the  U.  S.  marine  hoj- 
pital,  the  latter  one  of  the  great  structures  of  the  city,  costing  about  a  quarter 
of  a  million. 

*'  Which  aspired  to  a  university  ffrade.  Also  two  Hebrew  schools  aud 
some  minor  private  establishments,  besides  Sunday  schools  in  connection 
with  churches.  The  attendance  and  cost  for  1855-(),  as  above,  was  far  in  ex- 
cess of  tlic  preceding  and  even  following  year,  the  latter  on  economic  groum'is. 
The  15  Sunday  school  claimed  1,150  pupils. 

^  Followed  by  the  churches  of  the  congregationaliats  and  presbyteriaiis. 
In  point  of  number  the  methodists  led,  with  7  congregations,  whereof  1  (ilt- 
man  and  2  colored;  catholics  6,  presbvterians  5,  including  1  Welsh  and  1 
Chinese;  baptists  4,  episcopalians  and  congregationalists  3  each,  Uermau 
Lutherans,  Uuitari-ius,  aud  Swedenborgians  1  each. 


ELEMENTS  OF  CULTURE. 


785 


ptcr 


milling  era  was  too  deeply  engraven,  with  its  revelry 
of  tliouglit  and  conduct.  The  women  set  the  religious 
example,  ]>artly  from  sedate  habit,  while  social  allure- 
ments aided  them.  They  also  elevated  the  tone  of 
intercourse  and  pastime,  shamed  vice  away  into  the 
b3'-wa3's,  lessened  dissipation,  and  placed  gayety  within 
limits.  Official  ordinances  against  prostitution,  gam- 
bling, and  other  vices  were  chiefly  due  to  their  influence, 
and  female  patronage  gave  a  higher  attraction  to  the 
several  theatres*'  and  halls,  which  with  dramas  and 
reunions  competed  against  lower  resorts.  Habit  and 
excitement,  sustained  by  climatic  and  other  influences, 
continued,  however,  to  uphold  the  drink ing-saloons, 
so  that  their  number  was  proportitmately  larger  here 
than  in  any  other  city  in  the  world.  Costly  interior 
decorations  lent  them  additional  attractions;™  not  to 
mention  billiard-tables,^^  and  other  appeals  to  tlie 
lurking  mania  for  gambling;  the  tangible  pretext  in 
free  lunches,  which  had  become  the  fashion  since 
1850,"^  and  established  themselves  as  one  of  the 
marked  specimens  of  Californian  liberality;  and  the 
mental  refreshments  presented  in  numerous  files  of 
journals.  Newspapers  appeared  as  a  redeeming  fea- 
ture over  many  a  shady  trait,  and  to  extol  both  the 
enterprise   and   taste  of  the  people    by  their   large 

•"•The  Ailelphi  opened  in  July  1851,  on  Dupont  st  hetwcon  Clay  ami 
Wusliington  sts,  40  ft  front,  05  in  depth,  and  31  in  height.  The  Metropoli- 
tan opened  Dec.  24,  185.%  on  Montgomery  st  between  Wiishingtou  and 
Juck.sou,  and  took  the  leading  rank  for  size  and  beauty.  The  Jenny  Liud 
had  been  converted  into  the  city  liall;  the  American,  on  the  corner  of  San- 
some  and  Halleck  ata,  with  a  seating  capacity  of  nearly  2,000,  declined  into 
occasional  use,  like  the  Union  on  Commercial  st,  east  of  Kearny  st,  ai'.d  tlie 
three  halls,  San  Francisco  on  Washington  st,  and  Musical  an^l  Tui'u  Vercin 
o:i  Bush  st.  The  Olympia,  in  Armory  hall,  had  closed.  Maguire  was  in  KS.-.O 
preparing  to  build  a  new  S.  F.  hall  for  minstrels,  etc. 

'"Many  had  bought  mirrors,  chandeliers,  cornico-work,  etc.,  at  the  early 
forced  auctions,  for  a  n»ere  triHe,  and  later  competitors  for  ]mblic  favor  hail  to 
imitate  the  display.  Religious  journals  are  no  more  reliable  tlian  other 
fiery  champions  of  a  cause,  t)ut  the  Cliri'>'iiiii  Adixx-nlv  a.sserts  with  some  jus- 
tice tliat  by  actual  count  in  May  1853  there  were  .527  places  in  S.  F.  where 
liquor  Wiis  sohl.  Of  these  83  were  retail  drinking-saloons,  52  were  mIioIiv 
sale  stores,  144  were  restaurants,  1.54  were  groceries,  40  were  gambling- 
houses,  and  48  fancy  and  dance  houses.  See  also  AlUi  C'al.,  June  8,  18.'i2; 
S.  t\  Ikmlil,  etc. 

"  .\lso  proportionately  more  numerous  than  elsewhere. 

''^Instance  St  Amant's  humorous  experience  in  this  respect.  Voy.,  108-11, 
Hist.  Cal.,  Vol.  VI.    50 


786 


ANNALS  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 


number  and  excellence.  There  were  in  185G  thirteen 
daily  periodicals,  and  about  as  many  weekly  issues,  in 
half  a  dozen  languages.'' 

Thus  lay  transformed  San  Francisco,  from  an  ex- 
panse of  sand  hills,  from  a  tented  encampment,  to  a 
city  unapproached  by  any  of  similar  age  for  size  and 
for  substantial  and  ornamental  improvements;  from  a 
community  of  revelling  adventurers  to  one  of  high 
average  respectability  and  intelligence.  A  choice 
selection  of  manhood  from  all  quarters  of  the  globe 
was  here  congregated,  with  enterprise  and  ability  both 
well  and  badly  directed ;  but  as  devastating  fires  had 
weeded  the  architectural  parts  of  the  frail  and  un- 
seemly, so  vigilance  movements,  assisted  by  gold  rushes 
and  filibuster  schemes,  had  purified  society  of  the  worst 
criminal  elements  and  political  cormorants,  and  were 
now  raising  the  city  to  a  model  for  order  and  nmnicipal 
administration.  The  inhabitants  numbered  about  50,- 
000,"*  with  a  proportionately  smaller  floating  or  tran- 
sient population  than  formerly,  owing  to  the  increase 
of  permanent  settlers  in  the  state,  and  to  the  facilities 
and  attractions  of  interior  towns  for  supplying  miners 
as  well  as  farmers  with  goods  and  entertainment.'^ 
The  fluctuating  settlement  stood  now  the  acknowl- 
edged metropolis  of  the  west,  after  a  brief  struggle 
with  threatening  vicissitudes,  while  the  tributary 
country  had  developed  from  a  mining  field  with  flit- 
ting camps,  to  an  important  state  with  a  steady 
mining  industry,  and  a  fast-unfolding  agricultural  and 
manufacturing  region,  which  promised  to  rival  if  not 

"Of  which  two  were  French,  two  German,  one  Spanish,  one  Italian, 
one  Chinese.  Several  were  religious  and  Sunday  papers,  including  a  Mor- 
mon issue;  and  Hutchings'  was  the  monthly  magazine  of  the  day.  A  vast 
number  had  come  and  gone  during  the  preceding  years,  as  wdl  be  shown  later. 
The  AnivilaS.  F.,  493,  of  1854,  claimed  12  dailies  and  10  other  periodicals. 

'*  Calculations  in  the  Dirertort/  for  1857-8  make  it  60,000,  including  4,000 
floating.  A  Ita  Cal,  of  Nov.  3,  1855,  claimed  'at  least '  60,000;  but  Sac.  Umati, 
Aug.  '29,  1855,  reduces  the  figure  somewhat  jealously  to  40,000. 

'•'" The  cheering  winter  influx,  and  the  succeeding  gloom  left  by  the  spring 
exodus,  which  during  the  flrst  years  made  many  despair  of  the  city's  future, 
were  now  hardly  perceptible. 


GRAND  ACHIEVEMENTS. 


787 


eclipse  the  foremost  sections  of  the  union.  And  this 
phenomenal  progress  was  the  achievement  of  half  a 
dozen  years,  surpassing  the  wildest  of  those  specula- 
tions which  had  mcited,  first  the  entry  of  the  pioneers, 
then  annexation  by  the  United  States,  and  finally 
city-building,  and  the  founding  of  an  empire  out  of 
the  manifold  resources  which  one  after  another  un- 
folded before  the  unexpectant  eyes  of  the  absorbed 
gold-scckers.  A  series  of  surprises  marked  the  ad- 
vance of  the  state  as  w^ell  as  of  the  city — the  one  a 
wilderness  bursting  into  bloom,  the  other  a  mart  of 
progress  purified  by  many  fiery  ordeals.'" 


'•  Early  navigators,  like  Ayala,  MorrcU,  Beechey,  Wilkes,  the  whaling  and 
tradins  ship  captains;  writers  like  Dana,  Forbes,  Greenhow,  Simpson,  Bry- 
ant, all  united  lu  pointing  to  S.  F.  as  the  metropolis  of  the  prosi)ectivc  west- 
ern emjiirc.  So  VVebster  and  Benton  had  prophesied,  ami  for  this  many 
patient,  persevering  pioneers  had  expectantly  toiled.  Men  there  are  wlio 
dreamed  of  an  empire  which  from  here  should  encompass  Catliay,  and  nu'ct 
the  English  on  the  confines  of  India.  Annals  S.  F.,  5+-5.  On  the  other  side 
were  disl)elit'vers,  a  host  of  them,  as  shown  hy  fluctuating  values  of  S.  F. 
estate,  hy  the  iluprecating  utterance  of  fortunate  as  well  as  disapiminted 
sojourners  who  every  month  turned  their  back  upon  the  state,  for  home  or 
for  other  fields.  Kane,  in  Miscel.  SUU.,  MS.,  11.  The  progress  of  the  city 
is  well  illustrated  by  her  several  directories,  of  which  eight  appeared  dur- 
ing the  period  of  1851-6,  beginning  in  Sept.  1850  with  the  small  12°  issue 
of  139  pp.,  by  Chas  P.  Kiinball,  containmg  somewhat  over  2,500  names, 
and  a  meagre  appendago  of  general  information.  It  is  altogether  a  hasty  and 
badly  arranged  publication,  yet  of  suthcient  interest  from  lieing  the  pioneer 
in  the  field,  and  from  its  array  of  city  founders  to  warrant  the  reprinting 
which  it  received  a  few  years  ago.  The  next  directory  ilid  not  api)ear  till 
Sept.  1852,  when  A.  W.  Morgan  &  Co.  issued  an  8vo  of  125  pp.,  wrongly 
called  the  first  directory  of  the  city.  It  contained  few  more  naine.i  than  the 
preceding,  although  better  arranged,  and  with  a  fuller  appendix  of  general- 
ities, including  a  business  list.  In  the  following  month  F.  A.  Bonnard  pub- 
lished a  12mo  business  register.  The  first  really  excellent  directory  was 
issued  in  Dec.  1852  by  J.  M.  Parker.  It  was  an  8vo  of  114  register  pp.,  with 
about  9,000  names,  prefaced  by  an  historic  sketch  and  an  atlmirable  plan  of 
the  cit3',  and  followed  by  a  valuable  appendix  of  general  information  and 
statistics.  This  covered  1851-3,  and  the  next  pulilication  by  Le  Count  k. 
Strong  was  delayed  till  1854.  It  contained  264  j)p.,  ami  while  not  surpas.-^ing 
the  preceding  contained  much  general  information.  In  Jan.  1856  Baggett  & 
Co.  issued  the  S.  F.  Business  Directory  in  222  pp.,  prepareil  by  Larkin  &  Bel- 
den,  wholly  classified  under  business  heads.  In  Oct.  18.j()  Kirris,  Bogardus, 
&  Labatt  appeared  with  a  meagre  directory  of  138  pp.,  which  was  eclipsed  by 
the  simultaneous  publication  o?  Colvillo  in  308  pp.,  containing  about  12,000 
names,  with  historic  summary  and  a  valuable  a))pcudix.  A  peculiar  feature 
of  the  latter  consisted  of  fine  type  notes  throughout  the  rej^ister  of  names, 
with  biographic  and  historic  information  concerning  persons,  societies,  and 
notable  buildings.    The  next  issue  was  by  Laugley. 


